As a kid I was not a big fan of Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, or The Lone
Ranger. Sure, I watched them, but they never had the pull of Josh Randall
or Paladin. Even as a youngster, I preferred tarnished heroes. The protagonists
in Wanted Dead or Alive and Have Gun Will Travel were grittier than
the signing cowboys or a masked man that always shot the gun out of the villain’s
hand. I liked that Paladin wore all black and Josh Randall never apologized for
tracking down men for money. These were hard men with a strict code of honor.
They might kill, but never without just cause.
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| Wordslingers: An Epitaph for the Western |
A new book
brought these thoughts to mind. Wordslingers: An Epitaph for the Western by Will Murray is a comprehensive history of Western pulp
fiction. I’m not
a fan of Western pulps, but I’m a huge fan of Western pulp cover art. I collect
pulp fiction Western books and magazines, and love to rummage around used
bookstores so I can add to my collection. I’ve never read an entire pulp
Western because the stories never seemed to live up to the promise of the cover
art. I’ve probably missed something, so I’m going to ask for Murray’s book for
Christmas. With back cover art like this, how can I resist?