James Buel Lile (August 22, 1933 – May 5, 1991), known as Jimmy Lile and "The Arkansas Knifesmith", was an American knifemaker from Russellville in Pope County, Arkansas, who made the Rambo Knife for the films ''

First Blood ''First Blood'' is a 1982 American war action film starring Sylvester Stallone as Vietnam War veteran John Rambo. Directed by Ted Kotcheff, the film was co-written by Michael Kozoll, William Sackheim, and Stallone, deriving from the 1972 no ...

'' and '' Rambo: First Blood Part II''. As a knifemaker Lile served as a president of the Knifemakers' Guild and on the board of directors of the

American Bladesmith Society The American Bladesmith Society, or ABS, is a non-profit organization composed of knifemakers whose primary function is to promote the techniques of forging steel blades. The ABS was founded by knifemaker William F. Moran, who came up with the ...

Early life

A Russellville native, Lile was the son of a coal miner. He made his first knife at the age of eleven by grinding an old file into a blade. He spent his young adult life working as a high school teacher, serving in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

, and as a construction contractor.

Knifemaker

In 1971, Lile became a full-time knifemaker and was known as "Gentleman Lile" or "The Arkansas Knifemaker". He was particularly known for his Survival knife designs known as "The Mission" series, created by request for

Sylvester Stallone Sylvester Gardenzio "Sly" Stallone (; born July 6, 1946) is an American actor and filmmaker. In a Sylvester Stallone filmography, film career spanning more than fifty years, Stallone has received List of awards and nominations received by Syl ...

to use in his first two ''

Rambo Rambo may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *John Rambo, the main character from the ''Rambo'' franchise * Mary Rambo, female character in '' Invisible Man'' Films * ''Rambo'' (franchise), starring Sylvester St ...

'' movies. These designs would go on to influence other knife makers in the 1980s. In addition to creating the Rambo knives, Lile designed and made several Bowie knives that he presented to

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

and U.S. Presidents

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, and

Gerald Ford Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was the 38th president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Ford assumed the p ...

. Other owners of his work included

John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne, was an American actor. Nicknamed "Duke", he became a Pop icon, popular icon through his starring roles in films which were produced during Hollywood' ...

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, and

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter. Most of his music contains themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially songs from the later stages of his career. ...

. When Lile was approached with the specifications for the "Rambo" knife, he was told to design it not as a mere "prop" but as a basic tool to perform a variety of tasks. Lile adapted a basic clip point

Bowie knife A Bowie knife ( ) is a pattern of fixed-blade fighting knives created by Rezin Bowie in the early 19th century for his brother James Bowie, who had become famous for his use of a large knife at a duel known as the Sandbar Fight. Since its fir ...

which could be used to chop wood and slice food while retaining an edge. He employed a waterproof hollow handle design to store matches, needles, thread, and a compass; the hollow-handle allows the knife to be fitted to a pole to make a spear or gig. The handle was wrapped with nylon line that could be used for fishing or making snares. The tips on the guards were made into a standard and Phillips screwdriver and the spine was serrated. Lile chose to forge the blade of 440C high-carbon steel, which he claimed could cut through the fuselage of an aircraft. Lile was elected president of the Knifemakers Guild in 1978 and was an early member of the

. He was elected to the board of directors of the ABS in 1977 and acted as a liaison between the two groups. His "Lile Lock" folding knife is on display at the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

in Washington, D.C. In 1984 he was inducted into the '' Blade Magazine'' Cutlery Hall of Fame. On September 11, 2019, Dallas Auction Gallery sold the largest collection of original Jimmy Lile knives ever offered at auction. Over 100 Jimmy Lile Rambo movie knives were in the sale. All of the knives came from the same private collection.

References

External links

The Jimmy Lile Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lile, Jimmy Knife makers People from Russellville, Arkansas 1933 births 1991 deaths United States Army soldiers People from Pope County, Arkansas Schoolteachers from Arkansas 20th-century American educators