
In the 1983 classic A Christmas Story, Ralphie Parker expresses his longing for a Red Ryder BB gun a staggering 28 times. For him, this BB gun symbolizes the ultimate Christmas gift, a tool to emulate the cowboy heroes he idolizes. The thought of not receiving it fills him with despair, as if his world would fall apart. Even the repeated warnings about the risk of shooting his eye out fail to deter his unwavering desire.
Unlike the iconic leg lamp from the beloved holiday film, the Red Ryder BB gun was a real product with a history beyond the movie. But were children in the 1940s as obsessed with owning one as Ralphie? And what exactly is the origin of the Red Ryder name?

Ralphie’s relentless pleas for a Red Ryder BB gun mirrored a modern child begging for Spider-Man-themed pajamas. The air rifle was a licensed item tied to Red Ryder, a comic strip hero introduced in 1938 and featured in nearly 750 newspapers.
Red Ryder, a cowboy created by Stephen Slesinger and illustrated by Fred Harman Jr., fought injustice in the San Juan Mountains alongside his sidekick, Little Beaver, and his horse, Thunder. The character’s popularity led to a 12-part movie serial, Adventures of Red Ryder, in 1940, followed by 23 feature films, TV pilots, radio shows, and comic books between 1944 and 1947.
Red Ryder’s fame made him a prime candidate for licensing deals, a practice that was rare in the 1940s outside of Disney and Beatrix Potter merchandise. The trend of licensed entertainment products wouldn’t gain momentum until the 1977 release of Star Wars.
In 1983, Bruce Martin, a writer for the Pensacola News-Journal, reminisced about his childhood room filled with Red Ryder memorabilia. He described owning a Red Ryder secret decoder ring, a poster of Red Ryder and Little Beaver, and a collection that included a lariat, bullwhip, bank, and gun-and-holster set.
It was a logical move for Red to endorse an air rifle, given his tendency to resolve conflicts with gunfire. Only one company could truly do the product justice.
Back then, Daisy dominated the BB gun market. Established in 1886 as the Plymouth Iron Windmill Company in Plymouth, Michigan, it initially supplied farmers with steel windmills. (The company later relocated to Rogers, Arkansas, in 1958.) Customers who bought a windmill received a complimentary metal air rifle, designed by Clarence J. Hamilton, the same engineer behind the windmills.
The windmill company faced an unexpected twist: customers were far more captivated by the free rifle than the windmills. Fortunately, the company adapted swiftly. By 1895, it rebranded as Daisy and shifted its focus entirely to producing BB guns.
Despite being a well-known brand, Daisy sought to boost sales during the 1930s economic slump. They partnered with popular cowboy actors like Buzz Barton and Buck Jones for promotional campaigns. They also collaborated with Buck Rogers, the sci-fi comic strip hero, leading to the creation of the Buck Rogers Rocket Pistol and Disintegrator Pistol.
In 1940, Daisy capitalized on the Red Ryder brand, a collaboration that proved highly successful. Slesinger and Harman, the strip’s creators, reportedly proposed a Red Ryder revolver, but Daisy opted to rebrand an existing BB carbine instead. Despite production halts from 1943 to 1945 due to World War II, the Red Ryder BB gun sold 1 million units in 1949 alone, cementing its status as a coveted toy, just as portrayed in the film.
While Ralphie dreamed of owning a real gun, the specific model he desired wasn’t something you could simply pick up at a store.

In A Christmas Story, Ralphie is obsessed with obtaining a “Red Ryder range model air rifle featuring a compass in the stock and a built-in sundial.”
This detail was a creative liberty: The actual Red Ryder BB gun lacked a compass or sundial. However, the Buck Jones rifle included these features. It’s possible that Jean Shepherd, whose writings inspired the film and who also narrates it, confused the gun with one from his childhood. Ultimately, Ralphie’s prized possession became a hybrid, with Daisy agreeing to add a compass and a silkscreened sundial to a Red Ryder for the movie’s props.
Daisy rifles continue to be produced today, marking almost 140 years of nearly continuous manufacturing. While few recall the character Red Ryder, the name has become synonymous with BB guns. A 25-foot-tall Red Ryder statue even stands outside the Daisy Museum in Rogers, symbolizing how the brand has overshadowed its original inspiration.
Although all air rifles require responsible use, Ralphie’s mother’s concerns weren’t entirely baseless. In 2002, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) sued Daisy, alleging that their 880 and 856 Powerline Airguns had a defect making them appear unloaded when they weren’t, a flaw linked to 15 deaths and 171 serious injuries. The CPSC demanded a recall. (The case was resolved in 2003, with the CPSC withdrawing the recall request and Daisy agreeing to provide enhanced safety information.)
Despite this, air guns and children remain a risky combination. A 2019 study in the journal Pediatrics revealed that nearly 14,000 kids were treated annually for injuries caused by “non-powder” firearms, such as BB or paintball guns, between 1990 and 2016. Approximately 15% of these injuries affected the eyes.