I have decided that 2022 is going to be the year of pop culture here at Dead Dick’s Tavern. Over time, I have accumulated many miniatures, both officially licensed and not, of characters from film, video games, comics, literature and cartoons. I had a dive through my pile of shame the other night and I pulled a bunch out, and this year I’m making them a priority.
First up: Matthew Quigley from one of my favorite Westerns: Quigley Down Under (1990). For those who haven’t seen it, here’s a quick synopsis sans any major spoilers: Matthew Quigley (Tom Selleck) is an American sharpshooter of some renown, and he is hired by Marston, a British land baron (Alan Rickman, who is simply awesome in this role) for some unspecified shootin’ work on his huge ranch in the Australian Outback. Quigley packs up his Sharps Big Fifty and makes the ocean voyage all the way to Australia only to discover that Marston wants him to hunt and kill Aborigines. This does not sit well with Quigley, and the two men have what’s charitably termed a “falling out.” If you want to know the rest, watch the movie. Or just look it up on Wikipedia.
Tom Selleck is one of those actors I rarely think about; but when I see him in something, especially in a Western, I find I like him a lot. He’s outstanding as Quigley. Alan Rickman plays Marston like a British Hans Gruber, menacing but with a bit of humor. The film also features Laura San Giacomo (also great) and a very young Ben Mendelsohn. It’s really good.
This is Reaper’s “Batt Ridgeley, Sharpshooter”; from their Chronoscope line. I would say the resemblance is a bit uncanny, wouldn’t you?
Perhaps. But it’s Batt Ridgeley. Not Matt Quigley. Ahem. Wink.
Here he is, all painted up by me. I kinda like how he came out.
This miniature has once again kindled my interest in Old West gaming. I have more than enough miniatures and scenery painted and ready to go, so I really have no excuse. Just have to decide on a set of rules.
A nice shot of the Sharps Big Fifty. If you haven’t seen this movie yet, it’s well worth tracking down.
Back soon with something for Fembruary, I think…
Awesome work Keith, the model totally looks like Quigley, and your painting has added to the atmosphere of the model.
Thank you, Dave. I bought him along with a bunch of Reaper Old West models last year. My plan is to get through them this year, one at a time. I have one in particular I’m pretty psyched for. Here’s a clue: “Dying ain’t much of a living, boy.”
Superb painting on Quigley… er, I mean Ridgeley! You’ve really got all the colours down pat and he looks great! Can you get an Alan Rickman-esque mini to portray Marston?
And I love your plan to do pop culture minis. Reaper does a ton of them, and Crooked Dice’s stuff is insanely good – if you’ve ever wanted Dastardly and Muttley minis, or drivers from the Italian Job, they’ve got them.
How did you get on with the latest storm? Our power was off all day Friday. Freezing cold, no water, and my phone, laptop and Kindle all died. Awesome.
Thank you, sir! I am unaware of a “not-Marston” figure; but I’m sure I could find a suitable proxy somewhere. I DO have some Crooked Dice stuff to get to. I placed an order last year and sadly couldn’t get everything I wanted (missed out on the Bionic Man and Woman and the Banana Splitz miniatures), but I got some stuff I wanted! I saw the Dastardly and Muttley and it killed me to miss out on those, too. But shipping costs between the US and UK are just fucking stupid right now.
The latest? Well, last week’s left about 26″ of snow in my yard (not counting drifts). That was fun. But I didn’t lose power, mainly because I didn’t get much wind here. The one last night was barely 3 inches, but it was wet and cold, so it froze to the pavement. Now my driveway is a sheet of ice. I scraped up what I can, and I applied my snow melt; but my driveway is shaded by some pretty tall trees and doesn’t get the sun. It’s going to be frictionless until the temperature rises enough to melt it; which looks to be a few days away at minimum.
Way to bring me down, Matt! 🙂
Very nicely done mate, looks very like the photo, have never seen the film to be honest, but was never really a fan of westerns, (they were something my dad watched all the time), but lately I’ve found myself watching a few John Wayne movies on the telly, and enjoying them a lot, perhaps it’s an age thing?
Cheers Roger.
Merci, Roger ol’ boy. If you don’t like Westerns, I can’t see you enjoying Quigley; although it DOES take place in Australia, so…? Come to think of it, quite a few Westerns (The Proposition, both Ned Kelleys, etc..) take place in Australia, and most have been pretty good. And don’t go pulling the age card on me. You’re only a couple of years older!
An excellent movie and a good realisation of Quigley himself. Interested to see what other pop culture figures you’ve got planned.
Thanks, Jeremy. As Matt has teased, I have a few Crooked Dice minis to get to; but I also have a few Etsy purchases and some long-forgotten miniatures I dug out to see the light of day!