Vitals

Paul Genge as Mike, silent syndicate hitman

San Francisco, Spring 1968

Film: Bullitt
Release Date: October 17, 1968
Director: Peter Yates
Costume Designer: Theadora Van Runkle

WARNING! Spoilers ahead!

Background

Today would have been the 113th birthday of actor Paul Genge, born March 29, 1913. A U.S. Army Air Corps veteran, Genge’s screen career began after his return from World War II, almost always playing uncredited bit parts as cops, crooks, and the occasional coach. Despite these tough-guy roles, Genge was an advocate for regional theater whose penchant for performing Shakespeare included appearing in—and ultimately directing—stage productions of Hamlet and starring in the title role of King Henry IV when he was 26.

Bullitt provided Genge with one of his few credited movie roles, even though his character’s name isn’t uttered on screen—only referred to as “Ice Pick Mike” in the track listing for Lalo Schifrin’s jazzy soundtrack. Mike is arguably one of the most pivotal characters in this slick crime classic, as the slick triggerman whose execution of the witness known as Johnny Ross sets the action into motion.

He is also one of three characters to appear during the movie’s famous car chase, sitting alongside legendary stunt driver Bill Hickman in the black 1968 Dodge Charger R/T that’s pursuing—then pursued by—Steve McQueen’s green 1968 Mustang fastback through the hills of San Francisco. McQueen’s titular Lieutenant Bullitt describes Genge and Hickman as “shotgun and a backup man. Professionals.”

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What’d He Wear?

On the surface, there’s little of note about Mike’s clothing—an intentional choice, allowing him to walk into settings like a hotel or hospital without being noticed, complete his deadly assignment, and leave. However, he also puts his clothing to tactical purpose, from the deep pockets of his raincoat concealing his broken-apart shotgun to the ice pick taped inside his pant leg.

We never see Mike without his beige cotton gabardine raincoat, which is almost certainly Burberry based on the black, white, and red-on-tan tartan house check lining the inside of the coat. This simple bal-style knee-length raincoat features a Prussian collar with a buttonhole through the left side, a five-button front under a covered fly, slanted side pockets, single vent, and raglan sleeves finished with single-button pointed tabs at each cuff.

Mike wears heavy-duty black leather gloves with gauntlets covering his wrists, presumably to protect them when firing his shotgun in close quarters. His suit remains generally covered by the raincoat, though we can discern that it’s a charcoal woolen flannel with a single-breasted jacket and flat-front trousers finished with plain-hemmed bottoms. This conservative, nondescript business suit serves his purpose of remaining anonymous yet presentable in most settings.

Mike completes his look with black leather shoes and black socks, the latter best seen when he pulls up his trouser leg to reveal the ice pick taped to his left ankle—aimed downward with the pointed tip buried in cork to avoid accidentally stabbing himself.

With his raincoat and suit, Mike wears a pale-ecru poplin shirt with a spread collar that frames the knot of his blue repeating mini-paisley printed tie.

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The Gun

After he’s wounded during the assassination, Bullitt’s colleague Carl Stanton (Carl Reindel) accurately describes the shooter as “about 5’10”, white hair. Gun: Winchester pump.”

The shotgun is specifically a Winchester Model 1897 Takedown, a variation of the classic solid-frame design that allows the barrel and magazine tube to be quickly separated from the receiver for easier cleaning and transport. Mike takes that practicality even further by removing the stock to create a pistol grip, underscoring his dangerous professionalism and emphasis on concealment. The screen-used gun in Bullitt was likely a military surplus example, suggested by the “U.S.” marking stamped above the trigger on the left side of the receiver.

The exposed external hammer is a defining feature of the Model 1897, John M. Browning’s improvement on his earlier Model 1893. Introduced in November 1897, the takedown variant followed within a year and helped establish a modular concept later seen in shotguns like the Mossberg 500 and Remington 870. Though later designs—like Browning’s own Winchester Model 1912—enclosed the hammer, the distinctive Model 1897’s popularity with military, police, and civilian shooters kept it in production for six decades, with more than one million manufactured before it was discontinued in 1957.

Beyond the hardware itself, Mike’s efficiency is chillingly evident in his preparation: he wears earplugs to protect his hearing when firing multiple 12-gauge rounds the tight confines of a hotel room, then calmly retrieves the spent shells before leaving.

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How to Get the Look

Anonymity is an asset to “Ice Pick Mike”, who dresses both to hide himself in plain sight while also hiding the tools of his trade like an ice pick taped to his ankle and a deconstructed shotgun in his raincoat’s deep pockets.

• Beige cotton gabardine bal-style knee-length Burberry raincoat with Prussian collar, five-button covered-fly front, slanted side pockets, raglan sleeves with single-button pointed-tab cuffs, and single vent
• Charcoal flannel suit:
  • Single-breasted jacket
  • Flat-front trousers with plain-hemmed bottoms
• Pale-ecru poplin shirt with spread collar and button cuffs
• Blue-on-navy mini-paisley repeating print tie
• Black leather lace-up shoes
• Black socks

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Do Yourself a Favor and…

Check out the movie.