Indy's Whip Master Braces for Windfall

The Indiana Jones set is again beating down the door of the Washington man who's made most of the bullwhips used in the movie blockbusters, the Seattle Times reports. David Morgan, 82, handcrafted eight more for the fourth installment, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, which premieres at midnight tomorrow; there's a 6-week waiting list for Morgan's $895 lashes.

Morgan began designing calf-hide whips in the 1970s for circus performers, ranch hands, and Wild West enthusiasts. In 1981, the stunt coordinator for the first Indy flick, Raiders of the Lost Ark, hired him—and that was that. "He's very modest about his contribution to pop culture," a colleague says. "I think that he's more of an icon than he knows." (More Indiana Jones stories.)