“I love the smell of napalm in the morning!” These were the words of Robert Duvall’s character, Lt. Col. Bill Kilgore, in the classic 1979 film...
Cutting Through the Smoke
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Art, Guns and Culture
A New-Old Needle Gun
A long slender firing pin inspired the nickname “needle gun” for a custom, sporterized Springfield trapdoor rifle that was a popular single shot on...
Cake Was His Last Meal
“How much am I bid for this cake?” asked the auctioneer as he lifted it to show the bidders. Cakes were often sold to raise money for churches and...
Buckles: The Cowboy Calling Card
Out West, the belt buckle’s significance reaches beyond its functionality of keeping your pants from sagging. The buckle can proclaim the wearer’s...
Hauser’s Story Finds its Heartbeat
Cincinnati artist John Hauser left behind few letters and no diaries, making biographical details of his life and work sketchy at best. Yet an...
The Truth to Chaco Canyon
Scholars and archaeologists may debate why the great Pueblo Indian society existed in Chaco Canyon, but everybody agrees on one thing: It’s in the...
Uberti’s Wild West
Benelli USA wanted the characters, location and props in its latest Uberti ads, online catalog and videos to have an authentic Old West look and...
Exploding Ginger Snaps?
“Ours was a high classed outfit and we would treat even a tenderfoot right until he got smart. “We wouldn’t tolerate any smart alecs in our bunch....
Outerwear Out West
"A genuine mountaineer is a...kind of sui genus, an oddity, both in dress, language and appearance, from the rest of mankind." "Associated with...
Celebration of Non-Indian, Indian Art
“In his Kachina Painter, Mr. Couse represents a modern Indian painting on a wall one of the sacred symbols of his ancestors. “There is a hint of...
C.M. Russell’s Illustrated Colt
For Charlie Russell’s funeral on October 27, 1926, a pistol and rig, along with his chaps, were draped over Dexter, the cowboy artist’s favorite...
Forget The Alamo
Everybody has been talking about Alamo movies this year, but they keep forgetting the best of the bunch. Actor Fess Parker’s death led every Baby...