Those heroes of the Wild West as portrayed by John Wayne and
others on the big screen over the years, where in reality very
far from heroes. If they were around today they would probably
be branded as terrorists and then exterminated by the law
enforcement agencies they purportedly represented. The home of
the true gambling hero was this rough world of cattle herding
dominated by the saloon and the gambling den.
Cheap novelists such as Ned Buntline whose dime publications
became popular across the land romanticized
this world of rough justice
and mayhem. Buffalo Bill got together a whole bunch of
these people, many of whom had come believe their descriptions
in the "penny dreadfuls" and created a "Wild West Show" that he
took on tour. His real name was William Frederick Cody and he
was nicknamed, Buffalo Bill because of the dubious accolade of
having managed to kill 4,3000 buffalo in a mere 18 months. Wild
Bill Hickock, the quirky legendary marksman insisted on wearing
2 pistols even when asleep. Ironically he was killed during a
poker game in Deadwood City. When he was shot by a publicity
seeker whilst he was holding what has come to be known as the
"dead man's hand" in poker, aces and eights.
Calamity Jane was a far cry from the character Doris Day
portrayed. Martha Jane Canary was an ex-Pony Express rider whose
shooting was good enough for Buffalo Bill to include her in his
show. In reality it was amazing she could hit any target with a
pistol, as she was a chronic alcoholic and inveterate gambler.
Belle Starr was not really very different either. Her most
famous poker line was "a pair of six shooters beats a pair of
sixes any day!" I don't think any of us can argue with the logic
behind that! She had a child by Cole Younger, married outlaw Jim
Reed and after his death teamed up with an Indian named Sam who
aided her in her very successful horse stealing business based
out of Dallas. What about Blly the Kid? Like many of his
contemporaries he spent most of his time underage drinking in
saloons and gambling parlors and had killed 21 men before he
caught a bullet himself at the tender age of 21. Pity how all of
this punctures the romanticized balloon on the noble Wild West,
the last frontier. But then if people had known the truth
Hollywood would have had huge problems of coming up with those
'westerns" that portrayed a world of honor and opportunity many
of which have achieved cult status as movies. In reality,
however, this was another "spin job" as nothing could be further
from the truth!
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