The Beretta 70 is a magazine-fed, single-action semi-automatic pistol series designed and produced by Beretta of Italy, which replaced the earlier 7.65mm Beretta M1935 pistol. Some pistols in this series were also marketed as the Falcon, New Puma, New Sable, Jaguar, and Cougar (not to be confused with the later Beretta 8000, which was also marketed as Cougar). The gun is notable for its appearances in film, and is also the first compact Beretta pistol to feature several improvements commonly found in Beretta pistols for the rest of the century. Improvements over previous Beretta pistols The 70 Series improved upon the M1934/M1935 (and the later .22 LR offering of the same as the Model 948) in several ways. The 180-degree swivel-lever safety of the M1934/35 was cumbersome and slow to operate, being almost impossible to rotate with the gun hand. The 70 Series incorporated a cross-bolt safety modeled after that used on the M1951, but this safety was also difficult to operate with a single hand, and could also accidentally be switched on or off depending on the user's grip. After a short time, the Model 70 cross bolt safety was replaced with the thumb-activated, frame-mounted lever safety found on most Beretta pistols in the latter half of the 20th century, and indeed most single-action or traditional double-action semi-automatic pistols in production today, until the relocation of the safety to the slide with the Model 92S in 1983. The frame grip angle was changed to allow more natural position of the shooting hand when pointing at the target. The trigger was also re-designed to improve (lighten) the average weight of pull required to fire the pistol. As the replacement for the M1934/5 in Beretta's compact/medium pistol line, the Model 70 integrated the M1951's takedown lever, guide rod system, slide stop, and magazine release button in the lower part of the grip. Initially, the Model 70 used the slide hold-open feature of the M1934/5. This utilized the magazine follower to physically block the slide from closing on an empty magazine. Removing the magazine caused the slide to slam forward into battery, unless the operator engaged the thumb safety. This process increased reloading time considerably. The follower hold-open was eventually replaced in Series 70 production with an improved dedicated slide stop, a feature again derived from the M1951 service pistol. Midway through production, the slide stop release lever was altered from the