William F. Cody was a man seemingly trapped in the distant past, yet one who cared desperately about the onrushing future…
Buffalo Bill in the Movies
The first actor to play Buffalo Bill in the movies was the man who had perfected the role for over a quarter century on the stage and in the show...
John Wayne: “Bigger Than Life”
One might assume John Wayne and William F. Cody had little in common besides their Iowa origins and international fame as actors. Unlike Cody,...
Val Kilmer at Doc Holli-Days
The first “Doc Holli-Days” celebration, taking place in Tombstone, Arizona, this August 12-13, is already attracting at least one big name: Val...
The Ordeal of Larcena Pennington
Southeastern Arizona was contested ground. The few Americans who dared its dangers called the region the “Purchase,” after the 1854 Gadsden Purchase...
America’s Longest War
University of New Mexico Distinguished Professor Paul Andrew Hutton has balanced the academic with the popular for his entire career. He loves a...
The Severed Heads Campaign
Mickey Free rode into Camp Apache on April 27, 1874, with the bloody severed head of the renegade warrior Pedro hanging from his saddle. The...
Enchantment Meets Entrapment
In 1949, in an act of profound sagacity uncommon to our normally dysfunctional state legislature, the Roadrunner was designated as the official...
Wyatt Earp’s First Film
It was quite natural for Wyatt Earp to gravitate to Gower Gulch, the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Gower Street in Hollywood, where...
Wyatt Earp’s First Film
It was quite natural for Wyatt Earp to gravitate to Gower Gulch, the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Gower Street in Hollywood, where...
PAUL ANDREW HUTTON
The Distinguished Professor of History at the University of New Mexico, Paul Andrew Hutton is also True West’s Historical Consultant. Best...
The Gift of Cochise
It was the autumn of 1962, and we had just returned from a two-year duty tour in Taiwan. The Old Man had decided to retire from the U.S. Air Force,...