# BBC America and the Beretta 1953

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bbc-america-and-the-beretta-1953/283714>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [January 8, 2005, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bbc-america-and-the-beretta-1953/283714 "2005-01-08T05:03:13Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\
**Post date:** [January 8, 2005, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bbc-america-and-the-beretta-1953/283714/1 "2005-01-08T05:03:13Z")

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I’ve complained about this before.  
The Friday night BBC America shows-The Avengers, The Saint, The Pretenders-the most frequent firearm is the Beretta 1953. I have a .32 in my sock drawer. They might be .380s on TV.  
Tonight, each damn show had a 1953 Beretta. I’ll not even complain about the silencer on a revolver on _The Pretenders_.  
What’s so damn sexy about the 1953? Italian cops used to carry it. No Lugers, no Walther PPKs, no Mausers?

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**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\
**Post date:** [January 8, 2005, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bbc-america-and-the-beretta-1953/283714/2 "2005-01-08T05:14:51Z")

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Maybe they were the easiest guns to adapt for blanks?

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**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\
**Post date:** [January 8, 2005, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bbc-america-and-the-beretta-1953/283714/3 "2005-01-08T05:39:21Z")

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I dunno. They’ve done some stupid things with them-or it, maybe they couldn’t afford more guns.  
They had a silencer on a revolver; it won’t work.  
Someone fired the Beretta once, and the slide locked open; the clip was empty.  
Tony Curtis took the Beretta, unknown from a desk drawer tonight in _The Presuaders_ (sorry, wrong name in the OP) and waited until he was ready to shoot the bad guy to pull the slide back and chamber a round; how did he know it was loaded?