Jeff Cooper

He was known for his advocacy of large-caliber handguns, especially the Colt 1911 and the .45 ACP cartridge.

Cooper, along with Michael Dixon and Thomas Dornaus, worked on the design of the Bren Ten pistol around the 10mm Auto, based on the Czech CZ 75 design.

The cartridge was larger than 9×19mm Parabellum and faster than .45 ACP rounds.

Cooper's modern technique defines pragmatic use of the pistol for personal protection.

The modern technique emphasizes two-handed shooting using the Weaver stance, competing with and eventually supplanting the once-prevalent one-handed shooting style.

The five elements of the modern technique are:

There are several conditions of readiness in which such a weapon can be carried.

Cooper promulgated most of the following terms:

Condition 0 is considered "ready to fire"; as a result, there is a risk of accidental or negligent discharge carrying in Condition 0.

The most important means of surviving a lethal confrontation, according to Cooper, is neither the weapon nor the martial skills.

The primary tool is the combat mindset, set forth in his book, Principles of Personal Defense.

Cooper came up with a color code, consisting of four colors including white, yellow, orange, and red:

"In White you are unprepared and unready to take lethal action. If you are attacked in White you will probably die unless your adversary is totally inept.

In Yellow you bring yourself to the understanding that your life may be in danger and that you may have to do something about it.

In Orange you have determined upon a specific adversary and are prepared to take action which may result in his death, but you are not in a lethal mode.

In Red you are in a lethal mode and will shoot if circumstances warrant."

The color code, as originally introduced by Cooper, had nothing to do with tactical situations or alertness levels, but rather with one's state of mind.

Cooper did not claim to have invented anything in particular with the color code, but he was apparently the first to use it as an indication of mental state.

The USMC uses "Condition Black," although it was not originally part of Cooper's color code.

According to Massad Ayoob, "Condition Black," in Cooper's youth, meant "combat in progress."

"Condition Black" is also used to mean "immobilized by panic" or "overwhelmed by fear".

Cooper is best known for his work in pistol training, but he favored the rifle for tactical shooting.

He often described the handgun as a convenient-to-carry stopgap weapon, allowing someone the opportunity to get to a rifle:

"Personal weapons are what raised mankind out of the mud, and the rifle is the queen of personal weapons.

The rifle is a weapon.

Let there be no mistake about that.

It is a tool of power, and thus dependent completely upon the moral stature of its user.

John Dean "Jeff" Cooper (May 10, 1920 – September 25, 2006) was a United States Marine, the creator of the "modern technique" of handgun shooting, and an expert on the use and history of small arms.

Cooper was born in Los Angeles where he enrolled in the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps at Los Angeles High School.

He graduated from Stanford University with a bachelor's degree in political science.

He received a regular commission in the United States Marine Corps (USMC) in September 1941.

During World War II he served in the Pacific theatre with the Marine Detachment aboard USS Pennsylvania (BB-38).

By the end of the war, he had been promoted to major.

He resigned his commission in 1949 but returned to active duty during the Korean War, where he claimed to be involved in irregular warfare in Southeast Asia, and was promoted to lieutenant colonel.

After the Korean War, he left active duty.

From the late 1950s through the early 1970s, he was a part-time high school and community college history teacher.

In the mid-1960s, he received a master's degree in history from the University of California, Riverside.

In 1976, Cooper founded the American Pistol Institute (API) in Paulden, Arizona (later the Gunsite Academy).

Cooper began teaching shotgun and rifle classes to both law enforcement and military personnel, as well as civilians, and conducted on-site training for individuals and groups from around the world.

He sold the firm in 1992 but continued living on the Paulden ranch.