Dan Morphy, president of Morphy Auctions, has announced the Pennsylvania company’s newly formed partnership with Beinfeld Productions, producers of the industry-leading Las Vegas Antique Arms Show (LVAAS).
“We’re very excited about our new association with Beinfeld,” Morphy said. “Their vast show-promotion experience combined with Morphy’s marketing expertise will take the Las Vegas show to another level, both in terms of attendance and the number of dealers participating. Our common goal is to help grow the antique and collectible firearms industry.”
“Morphy’s has set up at the Vegas show for several years, now. We increased our presence there after our 2017 acquisition of James D. Julia Inc., a company that was a powerful force in the antique firearms market,” Morphy added. “Following that purchase, which led us to shift a major part of our marketing focus to the antique and collectible gun market, we felt a logical next step would be to look into a partnership with Beinfeld Productions. The process of achieving that goal has been a very easy and pleasant one for us. Over the years, Morphy’s team – which includes 15 top firearms experts – has gotten to know the Vegas show’s managers, Paul and Karen Balfour, and they’ve always been an absolute pleasure to work with. We know the type of people they are, and they’re a big part of why the show is so popular with buyers and sellers, alike.”
Launched in 1962 by Las Vegas gun collector and dealer Harry Mann (d. 1962), LVAAS is the oldest continuously operating trade or specialty show of any type in Las Vegas, far outlasting even the long-running showroom extravaganzas at major casino hotels. The annual event is a calendar highlight for antique, vintage and out-of-production firearms enthusiasts, attracting exhibitors from throughout the United States, Canada, the UK, Continental Europe, Japan, and China.
The Balfours assumed the show’s daily operations and management responsibilities from their brother-in-law, Wally Beinfeld (1929-2013), in 1998, and committed to honoring Wally’s and the show’s legacy. With the new Morphy’s/Beinfeld partnership in place, Paul Balfour stressed that the show’s winning formula will not change. “The show will continue to be held at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort and Casino, and Karen and I will continue to manage it as we always have, listening to the dealers and working with them, and doing everything we can to make it a show that exhibitors will gladly travel halfway around the world to attend,” he said.
“Paul and I are very happy that Morphy’s has become a partner in the show,” Karen said. “We’ve gotten to know Dan from his years of setting up at the show, and he is an upfront, honest individual. The entire Morphy Auctions team is extremely professional. Their cross-promotion and marketing abilities will only strengthen the show’s quality and make it even more successful than it already is.”
In its 57-year history, the LVAAS has attracted numerous Hollywood personalities, legislators, and other notable figures. The many historically important guns that have been displayed at the show include the finest known antique Colt single-action Buntline Special revolver, with original skeleton shoulder stock, which was exhibited in 2016 by Carol Watson’s Orange Coast Auctions; and General Ulysses S. Grant’s magnificent Civil War-era Remington revolvers, whose whereabouts had been unknown for over a century. Valued at $1.5 million, the circa 1863 “Lost Remingtons” made their public debut at the January 2018 LVAAS at Greg Martin’s booth.
The first edition of the show to reflect the new collaboration between Morphy Auctions and Beinfeld Productions is slated for February 28-29 and March 1, 2020. The dates are later in the year than usual due to a scheduling conflict at the venue. “Ordinarily the show is held in mid to late January. It will revert to that timeframe in 2021,” Morphy said.
