Original Item: Only One Available. This is a full-size rubber M1 Garand stunt rifle prop acquired from the liquidation of Ellis Props & Graphics, the long-running Hollywood prop house whose inventory supplied countless film and television productions. This example carries provenance associating it with Steven Spielberg’s 1998 film Saving Private Ryan and appears on an accompanying Ellis inventory or master list connected with the production. We have not been able to screen-match this individual rifle to a specific scene or performer, so its attribution rests on the surviving Ellis provenance rather than visual identification in the finished film.

The prop is molded almost entirely from flexible rubber and was intended to reproduce the general appearance and dimensions of a U.S. M1 Garand while remaining lightweight and incapable of functioning as a firearm. Props of this type were particularly useful for background performers, stunt sequences, vehicle scenes, falls, and other situations in which the weight and potential hazards of a real or blank-firing rifle were undesirable.

Saving Private Ryan is a 1998 American epic war film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Robert Rodat. Set in 1944 in Normandy, France, during World War II, it follows a group of soldiers, led by Captain John Miller (Tom Hanks), on a mission to locate Private James Francis Ryan (Matt Damon) and bring him home safely after his three brothers have been killed in action. The cast also includes Edward Burns, Tom Sizemore, Barry Pepper, Giovanni Ribisi, Vin Diesel, Adam Goldberg and Jeremy Davies.

Inspired by the books of Stephen E. Ambrose and accounts of multiple soldiers in a single family, such as the Niland brothers, being killed in action, Rodat drafted the script, and Paramount Pictures hired him to finish writing it. The project came to the attention of Hanks and Spielberg, whose involvement, due to their previous successes, secured the project's development. Spielberg wanted to make Saving Private Ryan as authentic as possible and hired Frank Darabont and Scott Frank to do uncredited rewrites based on research and interviews with veterans. The main cast went through a week-long boot camp to help them understand the soldier's experience. Filming took place from June to September 1997, on a $65–$70 million budget, almost entirely on location in England and Ireland. The opening Omaha Beach battle was the most demanding scene, costing $12 million to film over a four-week period, and using 1,500 background actors.

This is a full scale rubber replica non-firing prop gun as used in the 1998 Hollywood film Saving Private Ryan. This all rubber example was acquired from the Ellis Props and Graphics liquidation auction. Ellis was the oldest and the largest Prop House in California until its liquidation auctions in late 1999 and early 2000.

This would have been a "background" used prop gun and not a close up camera version. Dozens of background M1 Garand Rifle props were used in the making of Saving Private Ryan and beyond this example appearing on a master list, we have no way to identify it being used in the film. Typically rubber guns are given to actors when they are on vehicles and in faster motion. The M1 Garand is the chief weapon of the 1st Squad and is the weapon most frequently seen used by American forces in the film. The condition is fair and reflects that of an item with extensive use. There is paint missing and small bits of foam missing as well. The sight ring is gone and there is a sling attached via two zip-ties, correct to other examples we have had from the film.

This example is particularly noteworthy for its full-scale rubber construction, Ellis Props & Graphics provenance, association with the production inventory of Saving Private Ryan, surviving sling with zip-tie attachments, and extensive production-style wear. Although it cannot presently be tied to a named actor or specific scene, it represents the type of lightweight stunt weapon documented in Spielberg’s landmark 1998 WWII production.