Book Description
This book is now limited to an existing stock after which it will go out of print. All copies purchased new directly from Amazon.com will be AUTOGRAPHED by the co-author/editor, Glenn G. Boyer. The combination of going out of print and the autograph, will make this publication a rare collectors' item. (In a short interim period until Amazon's small current inventory is exhausted, some copies will be unautographed, but may be sent to publisher, HRA, at 1702 E. Lind Road, Tucson, Arizona, 85719, and such copies will be returned autographed, postpaid.) This is the memoir of a woman who saw the raw life of the last frontier as the consort of a man who is today the best known Western character of them all. The text of this book is totally attributable to Wyatt Earp's third and last wife, who lived with him from April 1882 when he left Tombstone until his death in Los Angeles, California in January 1929. The sources are what Mrs. Earp said personally, wrote, or are based upon documentation of events with which she was thorougly cognizant as an observer or participant. It is a memoir in the "traditional" definition: that memoirs are most often written by someone other than the subject. (Webster's New World Dictionary. 2d Edition, c. 1970: "a biographical notice usually written by a relative or personal friend of the subject.") That holds true with this book, but though not entirely written by the subject personally, it was prepared by someone who had met her during her lifetime, and became thoroughly familiar from intimate sources with what the subject did and said. This accepted memoir preparation tradition naturally arose from the need for one with writing ability to assemble memoirs in publishable form. Notwithstanding, this work is most largely based directly on dictated interviews of the subject or first person recollections of what she said or wrote to others she trusted. In view of the modern fame of Wyatt Earp as a folk hero, the insights of the one who knew him best make the book absolutely unique.
Customer Reviews:
Very Intriguing. Great history and personal outlook........2007-10-08
I was glued to this book. I even read all of the research notes. This was truly a remarkable work of history and a great perspective on an event that has been over dramatized and blown out of such proportion by Hollywood.
Non Fiction.......2007-09-03
Josephine Earp, Wyatt's wife, looks back on her life in her later years, and the time spent with her husband.
Josie's Adventure, March 29, 2007 .......2007-05-18
Josephine Marcus Earp was born with a sense of adventure, she ran away from a prosperous and loving home in San Francisco not to join the circus, but a theatrical troupe playing Gilbert and Sullivan's H.M.S. Pinafore that was bound for Tombstone.
Young, attractive and impressionable is a prescription for trouble in a mining town. Josie accepted Johnny Behan's offer of marriage before she had time to look over the whole field, and it came back to haunt her. Behan bought her a ring but put off the wedding. Wyatt Earp caught Josie's eye and opened up a classic love triangle. Then to further complicate matters both suitors were in a race to become the next sheriff of Cochise County.
Josie's accounts of Tombstone are right on the mark and two of her best friends Addie Bourland and Marietta Spencer had first hand knowledge regarding two of Tombstone's major happenings - the shootout at the OK Corral and the murder of Morgan Earp.
Josie tells about the bloodletting after the shootout and how in order to get out of the line of fire Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday along with several allies leave Tombstone and go to Colorado. Josie followed Wyatt a short time later and they soon got married. While they were in Colorado they spent time with Doc Holliday and Bat Masterson and did some mining in the Gunnison area.
Then it was on to the silver strike at Coeur d'Alene, Idaho and the gold fields of Alaska. Back in the states Wells Fargo hired Wyatt to do some detective work in Texas. When that job was finished they traveled to San Diego, California in search of business opportunities. The two dined out, went to parties, attended the theatre and saw the famous Lily Langtry perform in Shakespeare's "As You Like It." Wyatt made a number of profitable investments in both saloons and real estate. He also won a fine trotting racehorse in a poker game. That one horse peaked Wyatt's interest in racing and he eventually bought and raced a sizeable stable of horses. Following those days on the racing circuit and a stint as a boxing promoter Wyatt and Josie settled in and lived out their lives in Los Angeles entertaining and being entertained by stars that were part of Hollywood's burgeoning motion picture community.
Wyatt died in 1929 and Josie lived until 1944.
Josephine Marcus Earp tells a compelling story of an era filled with colorful characters and fascinating events.
Tom Barnes Author of "Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone"
Also "The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle."
The Hurricane Hunters And Lost in the Bermuda Triangle
Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone: The Life and Times of John Henry Holliday
Thank you!.......2007-04-12
Enjoyed the book very much. A lot of interesting information and facts from the time period. I would recommend the book to anyone with interest in this era.
Josie's Adventure.......2007-03-29
Josephine Marcus Earp was born with a sense of adventure, she ran away from a prosperous and loving home in San Francisco not to join the circus, but a theatrical troupe playing Gilbert and Sullivan's H.M.S. Pinafore that was bound for Tombstone.
Young, attractive and impressionable is a prescription for trouble in a mining town. Josie accepted Johnny Behan's offer of marriage before she had time to look over the whole field, and it came back to haunt her. Behan bought her a ring but put off the wedding. Wyatt Earp caught Josie's eye and opened up a classic love triangle. Then to further complicate matters both suitors were in a race to become the next sheriff of Cochise County.
Josie's accounts of Tombstone are right on the mark and two of her best friends Addie Bourland and Marietta Spencer had first hand knowledge regarding two of Tombstone's major happenings - the shootout at the OK Corral and the murder of Morgan Earp.
Josie tells about the bloodletting after the shootout and how in order to get out of the line of fire Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday along with several allies leave Tombstone and go to Colorado. Josie followed Wyatt a short time later and they soon got married. While they were in Colorado they spent time with Doc Holliday and Bat Masterson and did some mining in the Gunnison area.
Then it was on to the silver strike at Coeur d'Alene, Idaho and the gold fields of Alaska. Back in the states Wells Fargo hired Wyatt to do some detective work in Texas. When that job was finished they traveled to San Diego, California in search of business opportunities. The two dined out, went to parties, attended the theatre and saw the famous Lily Langtry perform in Shakespeare's "As You Like It." Wyatt made a number of profitable investments in both saloons and real estate. He also won a fine trotting racehorse in a poker game. That one horse peaked Wyatt's interest in racing and he eventually bought and raced a sizeable stable of horses. Following those days on the racing circuit and a stint as a boxing promoter Wyatt and Josie settled in and lived out their lives in Los Angeles entertaining and being entertained by stars that were part of Hollywood's burgeoning motion picture community.
Wyatt died in 1929 and Josie lived until 1944.
Josephine Marcus Earp tells a compelling story of an era filled with colorful characters and fascinating events.
Tom Barnes Author of "Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone"
Book Description
"Quite impressive. I doubt if there has been or will be a more deeply researched and convincing account." —Evan Connell, author Son of the Morning Star: Custer and the Little Bighorn
"The book to end all Earp books—the most complete, and most meticulously researched." —Jack Burrows, author John Ringo: The Gunfighter Who Never Was
"The most thoughtful, well-researched, and comprehensive account that has been written about the development and career of an Old-West lawman." —The Tombstone Tumbleweed
"A great adventure story, and solid history." —Kirkus Reviews
"A major contribution to the history of the American West. It provides the first complete and accurate look at Wyatt Earp's colorful career, and places into context the important role that he and his brothers played in crime and politics in the Arizona territory. This important book rises above the realm of Western biography and shows the development of the Earp story in history and myth, and its effect on American culture." —John Boessenecker, author Gold Dust and Gunsmoke
"The ultimate Wyatt Earp book." —Professor Richard Brown University of Oregon
Customer Reviews:
Detailed but lacks a little emotion.......2007-07-03
Excellent book for its purpose - but the excitement of Earp's life doesn't come through, which is probably a fault in me, not the book.
Wyatt Earp: Life of a Frontier Lawman.......2007-06-20
Casey Tefertiller's Wyatt Earp: The Life Behind the Legend begins with Cowtown Justice and the young lawman's early efforts to apply the law in the Kansas communities of Wichita and Dodge City. Wyatt Earp gained wide community approval with his quite way of dealing with explosive situations.
Tefertiller chronicles the Dodge City era of the 1870's and Wyatt Earp's role as lawman. Toward the end of the 1879 cattle season Wyatt joined his brothers and made the move the silver mining camp at Tombstone, Arizona.
There is no doubt that silver was the big lure to the mining camp, but Wyatt also considered the idea of operating a stagecoach line and a possible freight line. He looked into both of those propositions and when they didn't work out he fell back on his earlier experience as a lawman and took an appointment as Deputy US Marshal.
Wyatt Earp was on the Tombstone streets during 1880 and 1881 and had first hand knowledge of the good and the bad. He witnessed corrupt politicians and their muscle called the cowboys bully and intimidate the citizens of Tombstone. A confrontation was set in motion during the summer of 1881 when Wyatt Earp and Johnny Behan squared off as political opponents to run for Cochise County Sheriff. And adding to their adversarial positions was the fact that both men were seeking the hand of a pretty young lady named Josephine Marcus. Tombstone residents continued to be plagued with the bullying tactics of the cowboys and all that came to a head on the evening of October 25, 1881 when the cowboy's most vocal personality made the rounds of saloons drinking and railing against the Earp brothers and Doc Holliday. There were minor skirmishes that evening and the next morning but the big show came the following afternoon when the cowboy's ignored a city ordinance and refused to surrender their firearms. Ike Clanton, Billy Clanton, Frank Mclaury, Tom Mclaury and Billy Claiborne defiantly waited at the vacant lot on Fremont Street near Third for the arrival of Chief of Police Virgil Earp and his deputies Wyatt Earp, Morgan Earp and Doc Holliday. When the shooting was over it was obvious that the cowboys had lost the fight. Tom and Frank Mclaury were dead, and Billy Clanton was dying of multiple gunshot wounds. Virgil Earp had a bad leg wound; Morgan Earp was wounded in the back, Doc Holliday got a severe bruise when a bullet glanced off his gun belt and Wyatt Earp did not have a scratch. The shootout didn't end the conflict, because just day's later Ike Clanton filed murder charges against the Earps and Holliday. Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday were hauled into Judge Wells Spicer's court for a hearing. Prosecution and the defense called a string of witnesses to the stand, but at the end of the 28-day hearing Judge Spicer ruled in favor of the defense. The hearing didn't end the feud. Virgil Earp received three shotgun blasts and was almost killed while making his night rounds and Morgan Earp was shot in the back and killed by night guns. Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday were marked for assassination, but left the Tombstone area for Colorado to avoid a complete bloodbath. Wyatt married Josephine Marcus and they followed the silver and gold mining strikes from Idaho to Alaska. Wyatt later dabbled in commercial real estate, horse racing and for a while was a Wells Fargo special detective. In his latter years he lived in Los Angeles and was a movie consultant on western films. Wyatt Earp died in his Los Angeles home in 1929. Casey Tefertiller tells the Wyatt Earp story in a straightforward style that leaves the reader with an indelible picture of that famous Frontier Lawman.
Tom Barnes author of "Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone."
Also "The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle."
The Hurricane Hunters And Lost in the Bermuda Triangle
Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone: The Life and Times of John Henry Holliday
Great book.......2007-05-20
I'm fairly new to researching old west history but lately I've noticed it's become a hobby for me. This book describes historical accounts of Wyatt Earp and sets the scene for all the moments that Wyatt Earp is involved in.
It also includes little facts about his friends, enemies, and even beyond that making this book a definite favorite in my collection.
Best book on Wyatt Earp I've read in a long time! .......2007-04-12
As has already been said, this book provides a well-researched, relatively unbiased account of the life and times of Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp.
Tefteller does get boring in a few spots, but it's not so much a manner of style as it is a NEED to write the full picture of Wyatt Earp, which includes some down time! He wasn't always in a shoot out or on a vendetta ride through the south. At times, he was just Wyatt and Tefteller does a great job of letting the reader see Wyatt from many vantage points. Through the eyes of friend and foe alike.
He also debunks a lot of previously-held "truths" about Wyatt, which is necessary for any lover of historical fact.
Any person wishing to learn about Wyatt Earp would do well to read this book.
Eh.......2007-03-08
I was slightly bored with the writing style and pacing of the book. I have read many biopics and this was not at the top of my list. There are better books out there.
Book Description
BLACK HATS is the untold story, rooted in factual speculation, of two of the most notorious men of the early 20th century––Wyatt Earp and Al Capone. Earp made his name in his younger days, serving as a lawman who was well known for bending the law where he saw fit, and shooting first and asking questions later. But it's a little–known fact that Earp spent the last twenty years of his life as a private detective in Los Angeles. So when his best friend, Doc Holliday's, mistress implores the aging lawman to track down her and Holliday's errant son in Manhattan, Earp willingly takes the case. His task: to convince the young man to give up his ill–advised involvement in organized crime and bootlegging.
Earp enlists his old friend, Bat Masterson, who's now a sportswriter, and delves deep into the world of the New York mafia, where he comes across a young Alphonse Capone. Earp and Masterson, men who earned their names in the rough and tumble, lawless world of decades before, set their sights on liberating a young man from the ruthless thug Capone and his gang. The showdown between two of the most storied, and feared, personalities in American history will be a blockbuster tale for fans of crime writing and historical fiction alike.
Customer Reviews:
Great Read.......2007-08-09
Have read all of Patrick Culhane's "Road to" Series. I found them highly entertaining and good reads.
Black Hats is no different. He weaves the historical with fiction for a rich tapestry of a story.
Don't look for a deep meaning but sit in a comfortable chair with your favorite drink and enjoy.
Started out great, then..........................2007-06-26
I thought that the premise of the story was rather imaginative. I'm a big fan of historical fiction especially when the author weaves historical figures into the story alongside fictional characters. The plot moved along very quickly and the development of the characters was good as well. As I was making my way through the book I kept asking myself how the author would end the story I knew (as do many of us) that Capone eventually leaves NY to settle in Chicago but how would the author accomplish this within the context of his story? I thought the ending was just a bit too far fetched. The author wrapped it up in a nice neat package. Who wants that? I guess the author was limited to what he could do to most of the main characters if he wanted to keep it in line with reality. Still it was a huge letdown.
Wyatt Earp In NYC? Get A Rope!.......2007-05-09
One of the things I love about Max Allan Collins's period-piece mysteries and suspense novels is the authenticity. If you read something in a Collins book, outside of the fictional spin he adds to and puts on things, you can bet it really existed at that time. He also delves deeply into the backgrounds of his historical "characters" and provides a good biography of them.
When I read that BLACK HATS was going to offer a confrontation between an elderly Wyatt Earp and a young, wet-behind-the-ears Al Capone, I was excited. I conjured up images of alley showdowns with six-guns and Thompson submachine guns. We almost got that here. The action was a little more downplayed that I would have wanted, but I was working off my own expectations. Collins stayed within the truth of what really happened in those days in 1920, with a little bit of what COULD have happened thrown in.
Collins gave us a fictional son of Doc Holliday and painted the Prohibition backdrop both eloquently and faithfully. His other "characters" like Texas Guinan, Jack Dempsey, and Damon Runyon were great and added a lot of color to the story.
But it's Wyatt and Bat Masterson who really seize the spotlight. Their friendship comes across clearly and believably, and it was fun seeing them in action together.
The plot was especially well done too. John Holliday had won a warehouse full of liquor in a poker game at a time when the rest of the city (and the state) were dry and having to import their liquor from Canada. It was a treasure trove on par with one of the acheological finds that would have sent Indiana Jones scampering for his fedora.
I was a little disappointed with the ending because it wasn't as BIG as I'd imagined. But it had neat little twists that made everything come together well.
BLACK HATS is a fast, fun read with plenty of history, atmosphere, and trivia to keep armchair historians and thrill-seekers turning the pages.
Wyatt Earp vs. Al Capone? It works!.......2007-05-01
Okay, a book that pits Wyatt Earp against Al Capone? How the heck is that going to work? And is it even possible to make it into a readable book? The answer to both questions is a huge YES!
Max Allan Collins, writing as Patrick Culhane, has written one helluva historical novel. He manages to make you believe that a 70 year old Wyatt Earp could beat a 20 year old Al Capone. He does this by using all real historical figures as his main characters. As far as I could tell only two of the characters were fictional. Doc Holiday's son and his girlfriend.
The only minor complaint I have is the ending, which after all the action that takes place earlier in the book, is a bit of a letdown. But given the constraints of history, the ending actually makes a lot of sense. As I think back on it now it was a pretty good way to end the book.
Read the book -- don't wait for the movie.......2007-04-24
This is without question one of the most entertaining and engaging books I've read in a long while. Frequently blending historical characters, particularly ones with multiple biographies about them, doesn't work. The "what if" school of writing requires lots of research, speculation and educated guesses. Culhane, aka Max Allan Collins, manages to not only pull it off but sets the table for a movie made from the book.
To posit that Doc Holliday had a son by Big Nose Kate and that Wyatt Earp and Bat Masterson would be around to help him out of trouble with the New York mob and up-and-coming gangster Alphonse Capone in 1920 is nothing short of brilliant fancy. And believable fancy at that! The period details are excellent and there's enough action and twists to keep you wanting more. The ending is perhaps a bit contrived, but who cares since it's been such a fun read. Wyatt and Bat are wonderfully drawn and they amply prove the old saw about age and experience beating youth and impetuousness.
Well done, "Patrick!" One thing this book has done, and it was the Wyatt Earp tie-in that got me to pick it up to begin with, is to encourage me to read other work by Max Allan Collins. Now, if Hollywood will just option this book and cast it properly...
Average customer rating:
- Strap On Your Holster And Prepare To Join The Earps In A Rip-Roaring Read!
- For love of Josie
- Best book EVER.
- Pishposh and bleh
- TinHorn
|
Gunman's Rhapsody
Robert B. Parker
Manufacturer: Putnam Adult
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 United States
| World Literature
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
| 18th Century
| 19th Century
| 20th Century
| African American
| Asian American
| Classics
| Collections & Readers
| Drama
| General
| Hispanic
| History & Criticism
| Humor
| Jewish American
| Letters & Correspondence
| Native American
| Poetry
| Short Stories
| Women Writers
Contemporary
| General
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
Historical
| Genre Fiction
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Westerns
| Genre Fiction
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
Hardcover
| Parker, Robert B.
| ( P )
| Authors, A-Z
| Mystery & Thrillers
| Subjects
| Books
Look Inside Fiction Books
| Trip
| Specialty Stores
| Books
Look Inside Mystery & Thriller Books
| Trip
| Specialty Stores
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Appaloosa
-
Wilderness
-
Love and Glory
-
Double Play
-
The Widening Gyre (Spenser Novels (Dell))
ASIN: 0399147624
Release Date: 2001-06-04 |
Amazon.com
Wyatt Earp, Billy the Kid, Doc Holliday, Tombstone, the O.K. Corral--the icons are so firmly embedded in American history that we might know nothing more about them than their names. But in this spare, moody riff on the events leading to the 1881 shootout at the O.K. Corral--the signature battle defining the violence of the Old West--Robert B. Parker shades the black-and-white starkness with shifting tones of gray.
Parker moves beyond the Hollywood version of the shootout to explore the tangle of family loyalties, dirty politics, and passion that embroiled Wyatt Earp before and after his encounter with the Clanton gang. In Parker's version, the longstanding rivalry between the Earps and the cowboys may stem from cultural difference (the Clantons were ranchers who held Confederate sympathies during the Civil War; the Earps were townsfolk who had Union loyalties), and it may be exacerbated by alcohol, machismo, and fiery accusations from both sides. But the spark that leads to the final conflagration is simpler: Wyatt falls in love with Josie Marcus, Sheriff Johnny Behan's beautiful, self-assured companion.
Parker's Wyatt Earp is, like his detective hero Spenser, by turns arrogant and humble, and Earp's firm-jawed struggles with honor, family, and love will feel familiar to fans of that long-running series. But the author has abandoned the series' relatively intricate plotting and its touches of goofy humor. The novel is a curious amalgamation of inexorably linear narrative and moments of static contemplation. It drifts like a tumbleweed through Tombstone, leaving two- and three-month gaps, pausing briefly to dip into moments of conflict and moments of peace.
Gunman's Rhapsody is not a big, sprawling western. Hewing firmly to an understated minimalism, it seems at times to have sprung from a collaboration between Hemingway and a Quaker council. Who would have thought that such an unlikely combination could be so rewarding? --Kelly Flynn
Book Description
A novel of the Old West, imagined as only Robert B. Parker can.
"He already had a history by the time he first saw her . . . he was already a figure of the dime novels, and he already half-believed in the myth of the gunman that he was creating, even as it created him."
Robert B. Parker, the undisputed dean of American crime fiction, has long been credited with single-handedly resuscitating the private-eye genre. As the creator of the Spenser, Jesse Stone, and Sunny Randall series, he has proven, again and again, that he is "Boston's peerless man of mystery" (Entertainment Weekly). Now he gives his fans the book he always longed to write-a brilliant and evocative novel set against the hardscrabble frontier life of the West, featuring Wyatt Earp.
It is the winter of 1879, and Dodge City has lost its snap. Thirty-one-year-old Wyatt Earp, assistant city marshal, loads his wife and all they own into a wagon, and goes with two of his brothers and their women to Tombstone, Arizona, land of the silver mines. There Earp becomes deputy sheriff, meeting up with the likes of Doc Holliday, Clay Allison, and Bat Masterson and encountering the love of his life, showgirl Josie Marcus. While navigating the constantly shifting alliances of a largely lawless territory, Earp finds himself embroiled in a simmering feud with Johnny Behan, which ultimately erupts in a deadly gunbattle on a dusty street.
Here is the master's take on the hallowed Western, as expertly crafted as the Spenser novels, and with the full weight of American history behind it.
Download Description
"A novel of the Old West, imagined as only Robert B. Parker can. ""He already had a history by the time he first saw her...he was already a figure of the dime novels, and he already half-believed in the myth of the gunman that he was creating, even as it created him."" Robert B. Parker, the undisputed dean of American crime fiction, has long been credited with single-handedly resuscitating the private-eye genre. As the creator of the Spenser, Jesse Stone, and Sunny Randall series, he has proven, again and again, that he is ""Boston's peerless man of mystery"" (Entertainment Weekly). Now he gives his fans the book he always longed to write-a brilliant and evocative novel set against the hardscrabble frontier life of the West, featuring Wyatt Earp. It is the winter of 1879, and Dodge City has lost its snap. Thirty-one-year-old Wyatt Earp, assistant city marshal, loads his wife and all they own into a wagon, and goes with two of his brothers and their women to Tombstone, Arizona, land of the silver mines. There Earp becomes deputy sheriff, meeting up with the likes of Doc Holliday, Clay Allison, and Bat Masterson and encountering the love of his life, showgirl Josie Marcus. While navigating the constantly shifting alliances of a largely lawless territory, Earp finds himself embroiled in a simmering feud with Johnny Behan, which ultimately erupts in a deadly gunbattle on a dusty street. Here is the master's take on the hallowed Western, as expertly crafted as the Spenser novels, and with the full weight of American history behind it. "
Customer Reviews:
Strap On Your Holster And Prepare To Join The Earps In A Rip-Roaring Read!.......2007-07-26
Parker's Gunman's Rhapsody makes you feel that you've been transported back to 1881 and life in a small western town (Tombstone)-- dealing with gun fights, cowboys and local politics, and working with the Earp brothers, Doc Holliday, and their women. Since the book is based on historical accounts of the Earps and events leading up to the gunfight at the OK corral, much of the action is not surprising. However, Gunman's Rhapsody's main strength is in its very well-developed characters and its sense of the Wild West that seems so real you constantly feel the need to kick the mud off your boots, and to check your pistol to make sure you're ready for whatever trouble you're going to have to deal with next. If you are hankering for a good novel about an exciting era long past, Gunman's Rhapsody is highly recommended. Louis L'Amour has nothing over Robert Parker in books about the Old West.
For love of Josie.......2006-09-10
I really enjoy listening to audio books like this one at work. You need to pay attention to it, so you'd better not be doing anything important at work that demands your attention. If you get absorbed in your work, you might miss something that Wyatt said.
Hi, Wyatt said.
Hi, Josie said.
What's up?, Wyatt said.
Nothing, Josie said.
Josie's voice is a higher and breathier version of Wyatt's. It's a bit childish. When will audio books hire more than one reader? This deal of listening to only one reader trying to do a dozen characters, male and female, of varying accents, doesn't work. And give me a break, have actors do the dialogue and stop saying "Wyatt said" "Josie said" every minute. You have my permission to take that liberty with the book.
The basic plot of this story is that Wyatt Earp falls in love with Josie Marcus, she leaves her ex-boyfriend Johnny Behan to be with Wyatt, and Behan does his best to stir up trouble for Wyatt and to kill all the Earps, in retaliation for losing his girl.
Johnny Behan is a bit of an Iago. He tells a lot of lies and he has morally disgusting motives. Why can't he just accept that his ex-girlfriend has left him and moved on? He should be having his discussion with Josie, not with Wyatt, because Josie is the one who left him. She wasn't kidnapped, and Josie wasn't his wife.
There are several shootouts. One of them is apparently the famous one at the OK Corral, but there are a few.
I suppose that the plot has been oversimplified, and that there was more to the feud than Wyatt stealing Behan's girl. One of the other reviewers on this site had some negative things to say about the real life Josie Marcus, charging her with giving us a distorted version of what happened, overemphasizing her own importance. I have no way of knowing. This book does make Josie the central character, the reason for everything that happens. It has Wyatt saying that he'd do it again, too, for love of Josie. That's sweet, but who knows if it is all true.
Best book EVER........2006-07-24
I have never read, nor feel i will ever read, a book like it. To tell you the truth I picked it up because of the shiny red dot on the cover and threw it on my TBR pile. It was only later that year when I went on vacation to the South Carolina shore that I picked it up again. After my normal fare failed me and the book I was currently reading dropped into a puddle of water, I picked up Gunman's Rhapsody. 8 hours later ( yes I finished the book in 8 hours... I don't know if that is good or bad ) I was a changed man. Shortly thereafter, I read it again. For any Robert B. Parker fan, this one is a must-read. For any Western fan ... it is a must-read. I am now a highly decicated Robert B. Parker fan. I also have to admit that I read "Appaloosa" with the same rabid intensity. Which turns out to be a bad thing since now there are no more Robert B. Parker westerns to read.
Pishposh and bleh.......2005-08-23
What did Parker do here for source material? Watch Costner's "Wyatt Earp"? Throw in a little "Tombstone"? Buy into the myth Wyatt's "Josie" created for herself...and this is the woman (real name Sarah but who hid her Jewishness behind the name Josie) who gambled all his money away for over 45 years and then let him die of neglect. I loved the spotlight review from back in 2001, that bit of delicious parody up there - spot on, matey. In a few easy lines of perfect dialogue it captures the scope and style of this rather unimpressive book. Doc Holliday is intro'd as a southerner merely by saying he's a southerner...and then proceeds to speak in a coarse uneducated way from then on. Pooey on this book. Daniel P. Smith who wrote the spotlight review would have written a much better book. Probably has.
TinHorn.......2005-06-29
Whoah, boys, easy. Amazing how some people go off. Let's make that amusing. If you like westerns, Wyatt Earp, OK Corral, Doc Holliday, Johnny Ringgold (Ringo), and Josie Marcus (Dana Delany - hard to forget her face after the Tombstone movie), you're apt to appreciate this book. Excellent dialogue! Fine western!
Product Description
A lot can happen in 30 seconds. In the case of the shoot-out at the O.K. Corral, 30 seconds found three men dead, left two men wounded and ultimately captured the imagination of generations of Americans. Wyatt Earp, an against-all-odds hero who was literally the last man standing; Doc Holliday, Earp's unlikely crony; the tragic tale of the Earp family--all of these elements make the story of the O.K. Corral irresistible to a great many people. Hollywood filmmakers were quick to recognize the legend's attraction--and its potential. As early as 1939 (with the production of Frontier Marshal), moviemakers were recreating the gunfight at the O.K. Corral and its attendant happenings in Tombstone, Arizona, on October 26, 1881. The following decades produced various renderings of the story, some more historically accurate than others but all with the American flair for entertainment. This volume examines eight movie renderings of the legendary gunfight. Produced from 1939 to 1994, these movies each use Wyatt Earp and other real-life characters as their sources. The work focuses on the filmmakers treatment of the history and the skill with which each balances fact with the necessity of entertainment. The ways in which Wyatt Earp is presented in each film and this portrayal's relationship to the period in which the film was made is also examined in detail. Films discussed are Frontier Marshal (1939), Tombstone: The Town Too Tough to Die (1942), My Darling Clementine (1946), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957), Hour of the Gun (1967), Doc (1971), Tombstone (1993), and Wyatt Earp (1994). Period photographs are also included.
Customer Reviews:
When the truth becomes legend..........2007-02-26
If you can't enjoy this book, then you either don't enjoy the history of the Old West, or you have no interest in Hollywood westerns. Anyone who does enjoy western americana will find Michael Blake's fascinating study of Hollywood's Wyatt Earp and the O. K. Corral revealing, and downright fun. The story of the Earp/Tombstone legend in film is a recapitulation of how images of arguably the most famous gunfighter and the most famous gunfight have evolved. The author demonstrates how historical forces have changed interpretations on celluloid. Blake, author of the previously well-received Code of Honor: The Making of Three Great American Westerns (comprising of High Noon, Shane, and The Searchers) takes the reader through eight feature films covering the years 1939 to 1944.
McFarland, publisher of numerous fine books in the western film genre, does its usual fine work in presenting Blake's book in a high-quality trade paperback 7 x 10 format. The opening chapter of the book is a capsule history of events leading up to October 26, 1881, and what followed, including Earp's vendetta ride and later life. Blake incorporates the most recent scholarship in Earp studies into this eighteen page essay. Chapter 2 is a discussion of Hollywood's discovery of Wyatt Earp by, among others, silent film western star William S. Hart. It also introduces the influence of Stuart N. Lake's popular biography Wyatt Earp, Frontier Marshal. Lake's shadow will loom large in later productions. This chapter also includes a look at fictional Earps- Gunsmoke's Matt Dillon and Hugh O'Brian in The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp.
The eight movies examined in detail are as follows:
1. Frontier Marshal (1939)
2. Tombstone: The Town Too Tough To Die (1942)
3. My Darling Clementine (1946)
4. Gunfight at the O. K. Corral (1957)
5. Hour of the Gun (1967)
6. Doc (1971)
7. Tombstone (1993)
8. Wyatt Earp (1994)
Each movie gets a chapter wherein the film is examined in detail as to script, plot, casting, direction, production values, acting, authenticity, problems during filming, clashing egos and even music for each film. The author fearlessly gives his well-thought out views on all aspects of each movie, and while you may not agree with every assessment, you know they have been carefully considered. Blake places each movie in its historical context, and in gives them an overall review, rating them from the well-crafted and well-performed (Tombstone) to the failed (Wyatt Earp) to the execrable (Doc). Blake's own background as an Emmy Award winning makeup artist (he has written three books on Lon Chaney), period stills, film posters, many from his personal collection, his first-person interviews, all bring the reader as close as one can imagine to the production of each individual film. Hollywood legends like John Ford, Henry Fonda, Burt Lancaster, James Garner, Kevin Costner and others walk the pages of the book. Even the much maligned performance of Victor Mature as Doc Holliday in My Darling Clementine is seen in a new and more positive light. Many western movie buffs admire the movie Tombstone, and with the help of historian and film consultant Jeff Morey who worked for a time on the film, Blake tells the behind-the-scenes story of how Kevin Jarre's script became a cult classic.
In this candidly written and enjoyable book we see how the legends of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, and the O.K. Corral gunfight became household names through their Hollywood images on the silver screen.
Well Worth the Wait.......2007-01-09
Michael F. Blake is my favorite author, and this book is one of the reasons why. This is a well researched book, and it shows his love for the cinema and history. At the same time, Michael doesn't write above the heads of his audience, like many film scholars do. He writes for the working class audience, which is most appreciated. This is a wonderful study of Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, and those who brought their stories to the screen.
MARVELOUS BOOK.......2007-01-06
I have purchased many books over the years relating to my interest in the Old West and Tombstone in particular. Mr Blakes wonderful book is up there with the best. Right from the first few pages it's obvious that because of Michaels long experience in the film industry, he has access to people and information available only to a very few well connected individuals.
The book gives a fascinating insight into the making of the key movies about Tombstone, the politics, the conflicts and interactions between all the key players, and an excellent analysis of each movie in relation to the known facts surrounding Tombstone on the 1880's.
The book is crammed with dozens of rare photographs, many of which will not have been seen before.
I loved this book. Congratulations Mr Blake on a fine effort.
If I was to complain, it would be that this book will have a very long shelf life, and remain important for years to come, so I would have loved to see a hard cover version, just to match the quality of the contents, and perhaps ensure the book survives the rigours of many readers over the next many decades, but it's more a compliment than a complaint
JOHN ALLDRED
NEW ZEALAND
Print the Legend.......2006-12-12
As John Ford's character in "A Man Called Liberty Valance" said, "This is the West, sir. When legend becomes fact, print the legend!" The movies have never tried to be accurate history. Time and money and often good story telling requires that some people and events will have their appearances altered by the film maker. But, the viewer seldom is in on the reasons changes are made and how the process took place. Michael F. Blake has changed all that, at least as far as the Earp/ Clanton street fight near the O.K. Corral.
This excellent new book not only tells you about the true history as compared to the movie versions, but gives a film maker's insite to many of the problems that happened before and during the filming schedule. With help from top Earp historian, Jeff Morey, Blake reveals for the first time in print the extreme dificulties incured during the making of the 1993 film, "Tombstone." This is a must own book for anyone interested in Western films. Bye the way, the few typos that slipped by proof readers, are not a reflection of the writer not knowing, but rather as in most books the first printing escapes with a few missed identifications or spelling errors.
Blake's aim is as true as Wyatt Earp's.......2006-12-11
Michael F. Blake's "Hollywood at the OK Corral" nicely fills a gaping hole in the literature on Wyatt Earp's transition from itinerant lawman, gambler, miner, horse thief, pimp, and con man to the iconic, legendary, and nearly mythical character he is today. The same goes for the evolution of the sudden and shocking street fight in Tombstone to today's metaphor for any vicious gun battle, firefight, or other spot where bullets seem to be flying from all sides. This progression for both the "gunfight at the O.K. Corral" and the one participant who remained standing, untouched by lead, and Hollywood's role in building and shapeshifting the legend, has been discussed and argued about at some length in biographies by Casey Tefertiller, Allen Barra, Tim Fattig, Steve Gatto, and others, and in surveys by George McDonald Fraser and others. But this is the first book-length examination, and it is packed with material not published elsewhere.
Right from the start, the O.K. Corral was the stuff of cinema. It was immediately preceded by what must have been one of the most visually arresting images in Western history, the walk down to destiny by Virgil, Wyatt, and Morgan Earp and their ally Doc Holliday. That Blake understands this is clear: his book's cover displays the walkdown most familiar to today's audiences, that of four grim and superbly costumed lawmen played Kurt Russell, Val Kilmer, Sam Elliott, and Bill Paxton from the movie Tombstone.
Blake begins by reviewing the argued-over facts of Wyatt's life, including the OK Corral. In order to accurately compare the "real" to the "reel," film historian Blake understands the importance of getting the history right. This chapter, as do the later ones, benefits greatly from Blake's use of recent historical research, including the Tefertiller and Barra biographies, and Peter Brand's groundbreaking work on Wyatt's Vendetta riders, such as Sherman McMasters and John Johnson (known to filmgoers as "Turkey Creek Jack"). Blake has also sought insight from descendants of the unfortunate McLaury brothers, including writer Pam Potter. Blake next provides an overview of Earp and Hollywood, from the old Westerner's friendship with William S. Hart, through Hollywood's use of Stuart Lake's powerfully influential book "Wyatt Earp: Frontier Marshal," and on to the pervasiveness of Earp and the gunfight in American and global culture (e.g., the Star Trek episode, "Spectre of the Gun").
The heart and soul of the book are the separate chapters on the making of eight theatrical O.K. Corral films: Frontier Marshal (1939), Tombstone: the Town Too Tough to Die (1942), My Darling Clementine (1946), Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957), Hour of the Gun (1967), Doc (1971), Tombstone (1993), and Wyatt Earp (1994). Here is where this film historian's nearly half-century immersion in the industry comes into play. (Blake is the son of an actor, a childhood actor himself, and an Emmy-winning make-up artist, as well as published film historian.) Wonderful anecdotes came from a variety of sources, including the subjects of Blake's interviews, including Burt Lancaster and James Garner, "Wyatt Earp" screenwriter Dan Gordon, Tombstone" costumer Joseph Porro, and "Tombstone" historical consultant Jeff Morey. Many wonderful on-the-set photos came from archival sources, including the William S. Hart, John Ford, John Sturges, and Hal Wallis collections.
One of Blake's most important themes is this: "History and Hollywood have never been synchronous when it comes to facts. At best they are civilized adversaries and, at worst, churlish rivals." Blake explains why "historical" films are and must be ahistorical, however much that maddens "buffs" of any historical topic.
Each chapter colorfully reveals the usually difficult gestation of a film, from starry-eyed conception, through arguments over scripts, budgets made and busted, lawsuits threatened, and on-set shouting matches (and at least one angry golf-cart destruction derby), to marketing successes and failures and make-or-break film critic reviews. Each chapter is a delight, precisely because Blake knows how to identify and draw out the conflicts inherent in movie making. In this regard, the making of "Tombstone" was probably the diciest affair. Here Blake's book benefits from the cooperation of Jeff Morey, who helped Kevin Jarre develop perhaps the greatest O.K. Corral script. But each project was an eye-opener. I for one wish the "Doc" chapter had been longer, because one wants to know every detail of how such an abysmal film could ever be made.
The book has a few typos and, as one reviewer noted, at least one miscaptioned picture. The font is a little small for some aging eyes. My biggest complaint is that I wish the book had been bigger. I know Blake must have left some additional good stories out to save space for what's here.
This book is an absolute must for anyone interested in Wyatt Earp, the O.K. Corral, Westerns, and how Hollywood makes any movie.
Customer Reviews:
Great Try...but no thanks.......2007-04-12
It's long been suspected that either Wyatt Earp embellished the stories told to Lake, Lake embellished the stories Earp told him OR Wyatt's WIFE encouraged Stuart Lake to embellish the stories through her own exaggerations and what not... whatever the case, this story is not the true tale of Wyatt Earp, the man.
It's a decent fictional account and contains many of the legends that made him famous, but ultimately time has revealed it for what it is... a yarn.
Read it to be entertained, but don't read it if you're wanting to know the true Wyatt Earp.
Essentially an Autobiography.......2004-02-17
I just finished this most interesting biography of Wyatt Earp and I found myself both fascinated and a bit skeptical. I was fascinated by the life of Wyatt Earp as it was written by a man who interviewed him over a period of time. I was impressed with the research that the author, Stuart Lake, appeared to have put into his project. He had interviewed a number of surviving witnesses to the life of Earp. He also had a number of newspaper accounts and appears to have located a number of valuable documents in the course of his research. The book wasted little time in getting to Wyatt's career in law enforcement in the American West. The bulk, and I mean just about ALL, of the book is spent on his career in Wichta and Dodge City, Kansas as well as Tombstone, Arizona. The many famous (and not so famous) outlaws and lawmen of the Old West move in and out of the story on a regular basis. Stuart lists an almost endless number of feats of daring by Wyatt Earp in the process of making his case for Earp as the greatest of all men of the American West. Many of the events are depicted in great and compelling detail. Many of the parties are quoted, presumeably, from the memory of Earp himself. There is never a dull moment in the life of our hero, especially considering that all this action took place over a relatively short period of time. The book, at times, reads like a well-researched dime novel. For a chance to re-live the wild, wild West, it has little competition.
As for my skepticism, I came away wondering first of all; did all this really happen? Perhaps it did but our hero (and I am not trying to be facetious, Wyatt Earp truly is a hero) does it all seemingly with one hand tied behind his back. My other reservation has to do with the politics of the times and places. There are only good guys and bad guys and no exploration as to the motivations of either side except for good and evil. I found myself wondering if I were the only source of information about the events of my time and I had to relate to the world in 50 years or so the events I had witnessed. Take the Invasion of Iraq, the presidential election of 2000, or the impeachment of President Clinton. I certainly could make a claim as to who was the "bad guy" and who was the "good guy" while somneone else of a different political persuasion could make the opposite claim. There is no one to speak for the opposing view in this book. The author quotes frequently from the Tombstone "Nugget" but always prefacing the unreliability of the source. I found myself wondering if there might not have been something of another side to the events in Tombstone. The labor strife in mining communities of those days was very significant; just study the history of Butte, MT. Is it possible that Earp supported the powers that be and the miners looked for support from wherever they could get it? Maybe not, but it would have been helpful if the author tried to give a bit of an impartial look at the motives of the opposing side in Tombstone. That said, and realizing that this is about Wyatt Earp, not the miners, this is a book well worth the time of any fan of the American West.
Great historical account.......2002-05-01
A tremendous amount of research went into this book and it shows. Very well done.
Legend of the Old West.......2001-02-14
I have always been facinated with the old west and its heroes. This book by Stuart Lake was very well written and exceptionally entertaining. I am in the middle of reading it for the second time. Especially interesting are the quotes from Wyatt Earp himself. The legends own words bring a sense of realism and authenticity to the writers story. I would recomend this book to anyone and hope the publisher puts it back in print.
FANTASYLAND A LA WYATT EARP.......2000-05-13
This is another half fake-Lake book. The other is UNDERCOVER FOR WELLS FARGO. Why did it take so long to discover this guy was writing fantasy fiction, not history and biography. Wyatt Earp deserves better and Casey Tefertiller's recent bio. on The Life and The Legend is the only decent factual biography we have. All the old cliches are here, The Ben Thompson standoff, THE Clay Allison affair. No wonder Hollywood can't get it right. For 70 yrs very few have. Coming in June 2000, a brilliant new book on Wyatt Earp finally at last gets the Shootout at O K Corral right. Look for DOCUMENT 94!
Average customer rating:
|
Wyatt Earp (Outlaws and Lawmen of the Wild West)
Carl R. Green , and
William R. Sanford
Manufacturer: Enslow Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Library Binding
General
| Biographies & Memoirs
| Subjects
| Books
General
| History & Historical Fiction
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
1800s
| United States
| History & Historical Fiction
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
Westerns
| Fiction
| United States
| History & Historical Fiction
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
General
| United States
| History & Historical Fiction
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
Law & Crime
| Reference & Nonfiction
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
Historical
| Biographies
| People & Places
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Ages 9-12
| Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 0894903675 |
Book Description
The gunfight at the OK Corral occupies a unique place in American history. Although the event itself lasted less than a minute, it became the basis for countless stories about the Wild West. At the time of the gunfight, however, Wyatt Earp was not universally acclaimed as a hero. Among the people who knew him best in Tombstone, Arizona, many considered him a renegade and murderer.
This book tells the nearly unknown story of the prosecution of Wyatt Earp, his brothers, and Doc Holiday following the famous gunfight. To the prosecutors, the Earps and Holiday were wanton killers. According to the defense, the Earps were steadfast heroes—willing to risk their lives on the mean streets of Tombstone for the sake of order.
The case against the Earps, with its dueling narratives of brutality and justification, played out themes of betrayal, revenge, and even adultery. Attorney Thomas Fitch, one of the era’s finest advocates, ultimately managed—against considerable odds—to save Earp from the gallows. But the case could easily have ended in a conviction, and Wyatt Earp would have been hanged or imprisoned, not celebrated as an American icon.
Customer Reviews:
OK Corral to Judge Spicer's Court.......2007-05-31
Steven Lubet has taken a thought provoking look at the fallout surrounding the October 26, 1881 shootout on the streets of Tombstone. He gives the background of the major players and a Wild West Frontier look at a growing mining camp during the early days of Tombstone.
The buildup to the shootout has all the elements of conflict, partisan politics with opposing newspapers fanning the flames, a love triangle, which involves both suitors in a run for the office of sheriff of Cochise County, and a gang of bullies known as cowboys running roughshod over citizens and ranchers in the Tombstone area.
Ike Clanton, one of the most provocative voices among the cowboys sets the stage for the shootout the night before with his threats and rants against the Earps and Holliday. The threats continued the following morning with other cowboys joining in the chorus. In an effort to disarm the cowboys and quell the disturbance, Chief of Police Virgil Earp deputized his brothers Wyatt and Morgan Earp along with Doc Holliday.
When the confrontation becomes imminent Ike Clanton, the chief loud mouth, ran away and left the fighting to his younger brother, Billy Clanton and two associates Tom and Frank McLaury. At the end the shootout cowboys Billy Clanton, Tom McLaury and Frank McLaury were all dead. Virgil and Morgan Earp both received debilitating gunshot wounds, Doc Holliday suffered a bad bruise from a glancing bullet, and Wyatt Earp was not hit.
Cowboy backers and lawyers immediately filed murder charges against the Earps and Holliday and hauled them into Judge Wells Spicer's court for a hearing.
Prosecution and defense were represented by capable lawyers skilled in the law and articulate in the courtroom.
Lawyers Tom Fitch and T.J. Drum represented the Earps and Holliday in the courtroom while District Attorney Lyttleton Price and lawyer Ben Goodrich presented the prosecutions case.
More than a dozen witnesses took the stand during the 28-day hearing and Lubet uses all of them to point out strategies being employed by prosecution and defense attorneys. The questions and cross examinations, objections and rulings by Judge Spicer leads to good courtroom drama. And there is a good balance in presentations until Ike Clanton takes the stand and makes a string of wild allegations that could not possibly be proven.
In the end Judge Spicer rules in favor of the Earps and Holliday. Spicer advises the prosecution team that they have every right to pursue a grand jury indictment. However, it was his opinion that there was mot enough evidence to sustain a conviction.
The cowboys were not finished though, and pursued a vendetta using threats and intimidation against Judge Spicer and Mayor Clum. In the dead of night shotgun blasts hit and almost kill Virgil Earp. Unfortunately their next try succeeds, when they shoot Morgan Earp in the back
To avoid an all out bloodbath Doc and Wyatt eventually leave Tombstone for a safe haven in Colorado.
Tom Barnes author of "Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone."
Also "The Hurricane Hunters and Lost in the Bermuda Triangle."
The Hurricane Hunters And Lost in the Bermuda Triangle
Doc Holliday's Road to Tombstone: The Life and Times of John Henry Holliday
Reality in the West & Justice Served.......2007-04-08
I always appreciate looking as closely at historical events through a realistic eye. This book didn't fail to meet those expectations. Although I must admit that I raised an eyebrow occasionally at some of the author's assertions e.g. Virgil Earp's tenure as police chief was a disaster. I nonetheless could appreciate what the Earps had accomplished by ridding Tombstone of scum. Sometimes enough is just enough and I can't hold the Earps to blame for dealing with the "Cowboy menace".
I am sure this is closer to the truth than many of the movies portray, however I am curious to read other books on the subject. One can certainly identify the various slants people of different backgrounds bring to the table. As mentioned in this story, there are numerous people who later go on to write accounts of the ordeal. That itself is rather amusing whereas they testified to not seeing the entire event or were proven incorrect by the "provables" on the stand.
Much akin to the judge's predicament in this story, it is up to the reader to determine who is able to be trusted and what their various motivations and agenda's are. Considering that people cannot agree on balls and strikes when watching a ballgame it is very amusing and rather interesting to read what a witness' take on the ordeal was.
I am a fan of the Earps' saga. This book only strengthened my beliefs that the Earps were justified and honorable men and that the Clantons et al were vile individuals.
An excellent but oddly named book.......2006-08-24
Despite its anomalous title, which must be either a marketing ploy or the author's unstated opinion, this is an exceptional book written by a legal scholar who is intimately familiar with the law and its history, and who has obviously done his homework regarding the hearing held in the wake of the police action of October 26,1881 in Tombstone, Arizona. The author clearly understands the laws, then extant in Arizona, and has studied the case and its testimony in painstaking detail. With that insight and background, he walks us through the proceedings pointing out when and where the prosecution and defense succeeded or erred in judgment, either winning or losing points for their positions. Fortunately for the reader, Mr. Lubet writes fluently and is able to explain the subtle nuances of both the law and the testimony, as a lawyer would see it, in terms easily understood by the layman. This makes for easy and enjoyable reading.
Beyond the proceedings, the book is still more interesting since it delves into some little known legalities of times past and explores the histories of some of the major participants. For example: I never quite understood why those accused of assassinating Abraham Lincoln were never allowed to testify in their own defense. Little did I know that, prior to 1864, laws in all U.S. jurisdictions prohibited accused parties from doing so or that in 1864 Maine became the first state to abolish that rule. Neither did I know that Judge Spicer, who presided at the OK Corral hearing was the defense attorney for the only man found guilty and executed in Utah for the Mountain Meadows Massacre. I also didn't know that Tom and Frank McLaury's brother, Will, a lawyer from Texas, interjected himself into the proceedings on the side of the prosecution and may have been instrumental in that side's insisting on a charge of first degree murder.
I must confess, however, that although I found this book to be an excellent read I was somewhat disappointed at some of the things the author failed to recognize, or at least failed to mention, and I have to disagree with some of his conclusions. More specifically: he never observed that the prosecution's case was almost entirely fabricated. As a result, he didn't seem to understand why their lawyers didn't ask more probing and expansive questions to solidify their testimony. The obvious answer, in my view, is that what they had contrived was all there was and that any deviation from that orchestrated testimony could easily have devastated their case. I.e., Would all the witnesses have said the same thing? (Witness Ike Clanton's wild and outlandish testimony.) In addition, the author stated several times that Wyatt Earp had clearly lied in stating that his gun was in his pocket. In the author's opinion, if that was so Wyatt would never have been able to draw it as quickly as he was said to have done. Instead, Mr. Lubet concluded that Wyatt was most likely waving it as they approached the "Cowboys." (a clear provocation) To me, a more likely scenario is that upon seeing that the Cowboys were armed, Wyatt quite sensibly put his hand in his pocket, grasped his pistol and steadied his nerves. And, strangely enough, the author never mentioned the fact that almost all of the prosecution witnesses were friends or associates of the slain Cowboys and that, based on the testimony of the two most neutral witnesses to the shootout, all had clearly perjured themselves.
There is one other conclusion which one can drawn from this book. Whereas many have long held that Sheriff Behan was simply a bumbling or ineffectual lawman with sympathies toward the "Cowboys" (i.e., the outlaws). He was most likely one of them. Why else would he: 1) deputize known Cowboys, 2) include known Cowboys in his posses, 3) steadfastly avoid ever capturing any Cowboys, and 4) perjure himself in an attempt to hang Virgil, Wyatt, and Morgan Earp, three respected lawmen, along with Doc Holliday? Blind hatred may have clouded Will McLaury's judgment, if he was an honorable man, but Johnny Behan has no such excuse.
All that aside, however, this is an erudite book about the most famous gun fight and the most controversial character on America's wild frontier. As such, it is thought provoking and a "must have" for every fan of western history.
a tantalizing look at cross examination at birth.......2006-07-27
Lubet's book isn't just about the Earp/Clanton legal proceeding called the Spicer Hearing. It's about how the crafty Earp attorney Tom Fitch seized upon a legal tactic still in its infancy: cross examination. The transitions between Lubet's chapters will keep you from running to the refrig or the toilet. I read this book twice as fast as any non-fiction book I can recall. If you are a law student, or thinking about becoming a lawyer, get this book. Suddenly, the Earp/Spicer hearing has taken on considerable historical value.
Roger S. Peterson, Rocklin, California
Surprising & Interesting Close Look at the Gunfight Through the Trial .......2005-09-03
This is well written and a fascinating account of the trial of the Earps and Doc Holiday versus the prosecution led by the brother of the McLaury brothers that were killed in the famous gunfight along with Billy Clanton. Lubet, who is a professor of law at Northwestern U., writes a very articulate account of the history of the Earp-Holiday Clanton-McLaury feud that culminates in an interesting and revealing review of the trial. Readers familiar with Wyatt Earp and Tombstone will appreciate Lubet's brief biographies and economical account of the brewing battle that virtually takes place after a mere 50 pages. Those unfamiliar with the famous gunfight will appreciate the detail that Lubet gives the reader in those few pages. The bulk of the book is about the trial, characters and witnesses, the lawyers, the strength of the cross examinations and a review of Judge Spicer's ruling. The shootout does have a personal element as the Clantons and McLaurys, paryicularly Ike Clanton who personally threaten the Earps and Holiday. The prosecution's theme is that the Earps and Holiday planned the all out confrontation to eliminate their enemies. Of course, as the author points out, the Earp's' defense attorney, Thomas Fitch, is a superior trial lawyer and Lubet makes it clear by discussing Fitch's accomplishments in the trial that reflects his superior experience and knowledge of the law. The trial relives the gunfight that barely lasted a minute virtually in slow motion as Lubet leads you through the testimonies and the strategies of both sides. Interesting that Ike Clanton who ignited the event essentially asks for Wyatt's blessing to flee from the gunplay unarmed. Lubet covers it all in this relatively brief book such as the weak actions of Sheriff Behan, the erstwhile politician, that makes a weak attempt to disarm the cowboys and who apparently had an interconnected history with Wyatt. Wyatt stole his girl, Josephine Marcus, who eventually became Wyatt's second wife and Behan also reneged on a promise to make Wyatt his Deputy. Lubet provides a wealth of information including Judge Spicer's earlier history as the defense attorney of John Lee who became Brigham Young's famous scapegoat for the Mountain Meadows massacre of a wagon train. The author also demonstrates that there were two societies in Tombstone, much like in Billy the Kid's town in New Mexico, Democrats that leaned to the Cowboys and the Republicans who were primarily town folk and businessmen who supported the Earps. Although most know the outcome of the trial, the aftermath is just as fascinating as Virgil is severely wounded in an assassination attempt and Morgan is murdered. And Wyatt, once his brother Virgil is safe, does go on a revenge posse acting as a Deputy Marshall on dubious authority tracking down and killing three of the suspected killers. Later after Doc and Wyatt escape to Colorado and apparently away from the scene, Johnny Ringo is found shot to pieces. It is fascinating that after the Earps leave, as did so many of the interesting people, the town ironically dies shortly there after. And how fitting that Ike Clanton, who stirred the passions that emptied into that famous street fight, was killed in 1887 for getting caught doing what he did best, rustling. And Lubet has a great comment about Sheriff Behan, he led many posses in pursuit but no closer than a mile of who ever he was chasing. But let the author tell the story, he does such a good job of it.
Average customer rating:
- This certainly is not a biography, but has some small merit.
- Another Trail of Vengeance for Wyatt Earp
- Speculative conspiracy theory, not history
- One of the very good books on this subject
- WOLA Book Reviewer
|
The Death of Warren Baxter Earp : A Closer Look
Michael M. Hickey
Manufacturer: Talei Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
History
| Subjects
| Books
| Africa
| Americas
| Ancient
| Arctic & Antarctica
| Asia
| Audiobooks
| Australia & Oceania
| Europe
| Gay & Lesbian
| Historical Study
| Large Print
| Middle East
| Military
| Military Science
| Russia
| United States
| World
General
| Biographies & Memoirs
| Subjects
| Books
Criminology
| Crime & Criminals
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
Murder & Mayhem
| True Accounts
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Doc Holliday: A Family Portrait
ASIN: 0963177257 |
Customer Reviews:
This certainly is not a biography, but has some small merit........2003-12-08
It seems that this writer continued his characteristic practice of employing researchers. But the rub is, to quote Bacon on the school-men who are famous for speculating on how many angels could repose on the head of a pin: "From an infinite agitation of wit, they produced not very much matter." Implicit in Bacon's criticism is that such investigations overlook a lot, such as that many even in his day questioned the existence of angels. And even many that didn't question that would wonder why angels would waste their time sitting on a pin. Many, we may be sure, also didn't give a damn one way or the other. And drawing a parallel may suggest why this book doesn't rate high in Amazon's sales record.
The main theory of this author that Wyatt Earp avenged his brother's death by stalking and ultimately killing all those he suspected had a hand in it, falls short of tenable in that the killer named by the coroner's jury, who was not seriously trying to hide out since he lived under his own name, was allowed to live for years and die a natural death.
Certainly Wyatt and his brother Virgil (and even his brother Jim whom history has perhaps consistently underrated) would have looked into the matter, and undoubtedly did, and stories of old timers, for what they are worth, which is sometimes quite a bit, state that at least brother Virgil was seen in the area not long after the killing took place.
It is a worthy speculation that Virgil, and perhaps Wyatt, after personal local inquiry, which would have gone beyond that in the record today, concluded as anyone would who read no more than the recorded testimony of the coroner's jury, that Warren - a great pain in the neck even to his own family - was asking for what he got. In view of this, it is unlikely that either of those two rather careful men would jeopardize their futures by entering into a blood feud simply because a malodorous family member had been killed. Wyatt's last wife said that Virgil was evasive about the matter when she asked him directly. Possibly he thought the Earp Brothers were expected to have exacted vengeance and would be criticized if they hadn't.
As a criticism of this book's touted thoroughness, one wonders how that "legion" of researchers, who led to the author figuratively dragging in the history of every yellow dog roaming the streets the day of the killing, missed the fact that Warren had been married. Or that he made a college try at killing his partner in Spokane, Washington in days of yore.
We know why they didn't try to scout up the living descendants of his wife for whatever they might contribute? But think what they missed. Was he a wife beater? Why did the marriage break up? Does he have surviving relatives? Was Warren so malodorous that even his wife's family would not have said anything good about him? They certainly should have been given a shot at the record if they could be found. The above are questions that might have been answered. Does that family have old letters from the other Earps explaining that they looked into Warren's "offing" and deemed it justifiable?
C'mon. This is not a biography and is actually a rambling speculation about a killing that only attracts notice since the deceased was a brother of a man who achieved wide spread but "questionable" fame.
Carefully examined, the life of Warren Earp makes obvious that he wouldn't have deserved a biography for any reason. As much would have been concluded about his brother Wyatt if those who wrote of him knew in time that he had stolen horses, that he was a notorious whore master and pimp who, moreover, had deserted his wife of at least a decade for a wiggly little thing. As for the deserted wife's legal status, she certainly qualified as a common law wife. The "wiggly little thing" confirmed that in the eyes of her collaborators on her aborted biography, who said that she still evinced guilt over the deserted wife, who later committed suicide, and that her guilt was PRONOUNCED even after the passage "of all those years." Over fifty at the time. (Letter extent in a private collection.)
This book is not worth the price, certainly not as what it claims to be, but has some merit for independent research of frontier characters and matters. It is not in my opinion a "must" book for Western buffs' libraries, or even for many libraries of any kind. It ranks as curiosa and not much more.
Another Trail of Vengeance for Wyatt Earp.......2002-07-30
Recent years have seen the emergence of someone who has proved to be a relentless pursuer of the truth, an historical researcher of the first order: Michael M. Hickey. In the early 1990s, Hickey published no less than three books looking in great detail at the thirty-second "O.K. Corral" gunfight and then, in 2000, produced a volume that has really given Earp historians something to think about. "The Death of Warren Baxter Earp: A Closer Look" puts forward the proposition that, subsequent to the shooting down of Wyatt's youngest brother, Warren, in an Arizona saloon in the summer of 1900, Wyatt went on yet another "trail of vengeance" and killed all those whom he held responsible.
This enormous book of 759 pages is the most exhaustively researched book yet on the doings of Wyatt Earp - and in an area of his life about which little is known. Aided by a small army of field investigators from all over the States, Hickey has come up with an extraordinary story which, if true, puts a whole new light on the character of Wyatt Earp. This is a truly fascinating read and is the sort of history we Earp enthusiasts want, packed full of primary source material, expertly, and entertainingly, edited.
David Ashford, England
Speculative conspiracy theory, not history.......2002-05-19
In this gargantuan volume, Michael Hickey presents a conspiracy theory in the aftermath of the death of Warren Earp (Wyatt's brother) that would perhaps do credit to a JFK assasination buff, but hardly qualifies as good history. To accept his conclusions, in my opinion, requires the reader to discard logic and common sense. There is a wealth of primary source material presented, and for that I will give the book two stars, but I do not advocate that anyone read this book in the expectation of learning the truth.
One of the very good books on this subject.......2002-04-17
There have been numerous books published about Wyatt Earp and his brothers, "The Fighting Earps", over the years. A few of them are very good. Most of them are very bad; being either a repitition of the well-known facts or a distortion of them to present Earp in a particular way.
Michael M. Hickey's "The Death Of Warren Baxter Earp" is one of the very good books on this subject. Yes, of course, this massive (over seven hundred pages) work on the strange death of Wyatt's younger brother in 1900 can be labled a "conspiracy theory", but with such persuasive evidence it is an intriquing one. Hickey and his team of researchers have discovered an impressive amount of new information on a very familiar topic. All of this primary source material is reproduced on the page so that the reader can judge for themselves. Perhaps Wyatt Earp's vengance against his enemies did not end when he rode out of Arizona in 1882.
If you think you have read everything about Wyatt Earp then this fascinating and provocotive work about a little known part of his life will surprise you. Anyone with an interest in the Earp brothers, western lawmen and outlaws or justice (and the lack of it) in the old west will find this book hard to put down. It is highly recommended.
WOLA Book Reviewer.......2001-11-24
Mr. Hickey assembled a top notch team of research assistants to comb every archive, newspaper, bio file, family history, unpublished memoirs, coroner and medical reports, travel itineraries and photo libraries to put together the mystery of Warren Earp's killing and it's participants. Such researchers as Rita K. Wilburn Ackerman of Phoenix Arizona, Gary S. McLelland of Glendale Arizona, Robert N. "Bob" Cash of Austin Texas, Dorman W. Brown of Wilcox Arizona, Jeff Hickey (not related) of Seattle Washington, Steven C. "Steve" Levi of Anchorage Alaska, Richard Lapidus of Simi Valley, California, Phyllis de la Garza of Wilcox Arizona, W. French Anderson, M.D., University of Southern California, Ben T. Traywick of Tombstone Arizona, and many more were instrumental in digging up and seperating the facts from fiction. There are some astonishing finds and pearls of research found in this volume. Each of the main participants is given their own chapter and working notes.
"This massive tome dissects Warren's death, inch by inch, particle by particle, and peers into the background of every player in that grubby episode at the Headquarters Saloon in Wilcox, Arizona Territory...Mr. Hickey's basic premise is that Warren was assassinated in a murder for hire plot, and the killing made to appear as nothing but a drunken squabble between two men," states Leo W. Banks in the book's forward. He goes on to say that, "Conspiracy theorists will swoon- and others will roll their eyes at the numerous possibilities discussed here." I agree. I don't see shadows on the wall, or the "grassy knoll" like Mr. Hickey sees wherever the Earps are concerned, and the book does have some leads and connections that are pretty fantastic to say the least. There are some factual errors I found while reading the MS but that shouldn't distract from the overall book Mr. Hickey has done and the enormous amount of work, new research and connections to Cochise Counties cowboys from the 1880's. Like a good mystery, don't read the last chapter just to find who did it, but follow along the paths of the suspects and see where it leads you. You might be surprised. As Ruth Mellenbruch told Phillip Rasch in 1951, "I know who the man was that hired the two men as killers." Read on and see if you can flush them out too.
Books:
- I, Rigoberta Menchu: An Indian Woman in Guatemala
- Icebreaker: Who Started the Second World War?
- Iceman Inheritance : Prehistoric Sources of Western Man's Racism, Sexism and Aggression
- In Search of Captain Zero: A Surfer's Road Trip Beyond the End of the Road
- Inhuman Bondage: The Rise and Fall of Slavery in the New World
- Interpreter of Maladies
- Iran Awakening: A Memoir of Revolution and Hope
- Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History
- Jamestown: A Novel
- Jesus Land: A Memoir
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- The Safe Shopper's Bible: A Consumer's Guide to Nontoxic Household Products, Cosmetics, and Food
- The Last King: Rome's Greatest Enemy
- Paths to a Green World: The Political Economy of the Global Environment
- Nursery Rhymes Coloring Book
- The 33 Strategies of War
- Scarlet Letter, The
- Sierra Leone Business Intelligence Report
- Accounting for Social Responsibility: A Historical Perspective
- Reforming Asian Socialism: The Growth of Market Institutions
- Spitting Off Tall Buildings
Wyatt Earp: The Life Behind the Legend
Doc Holliday: The Life and Legend
Murder in Tombstone: The Forgotten Trial of Wyatt Earp (The Lamar Series in Western History)
Apache Days and Tombstone Nights: John Clum's Autobiography, 1877-1887
