The Shooters is Good Western Entertainment
Metz's Book Provides Plenty of Notorious Western Characters
Apr 27, 2009
Leon Claire Metz, author of The Shooters – A Gallery of Notorious Gunmen from the American West, has compiled an impressive list of famous, and infamous, American lawmen and outlaws. Each of the twenty-nine characters covered in this entertaining book, is a well known name to aficionados of Western literature and lore.
Famous Western Outlaws
From Billy the Kid to Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp, Metz explores the facts and fables surrounding these well known personalities. Time has done much to embellish the reputations of these characters, but even then many of these men fairly earned all the fame they have enjoyed.
Interesting to note, Metz points out in numerous instances that there was a fine line indeed between the western outlaw and the lawman. More than a few of these individuals went from law enforcement to outlawing, and back again. A good example of this is Wyatt Earp who was nearly immortalized by Kurt Russell’s portrayal in the film Tombstone. The film overlooked Earp’s more nefarious dealings before arriving in that city which made him the legend (and some would say undeserved legend) he is today. The Earps and Doc Holliday in The Shootout at the OK Corral are now immortalized.
From train robberies, bank hold ups and cattle rustling, the characters featured in The Shooters have proven themselves to be notorious, sociopathic and fascinating, contributing to the overall allure of the wild and wooly American West. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, the Mysterious Dave Mather, the notorious Daltons and the psychopathic John Wesley Hardin are just a few of the many individuals that Metz covers in the book.
Western enclaves of crime and violence are also covered. Las Vegas (New Mexico) El Paso, Tombstone, Wichita, and Dodge City are a few of the western towns with blemished, but irresistible, reputations.
Famous Western Sheriffs
Pat Garrett (the man who shot Billy the Kid) along with Long Haired Jim Courtwright and Dallas Stoudenmire are just some of the controversial sheriffs that Metz profiles. The famous Texas Rangers, not nearly as effective as most people like to believe, have an undeserved reputation according to the author.
Modern Cowboys
It’s interesting how many of these famous characters lived well into the 1900’s. Most people think of the west and its outlaws as “long ago,” but in fact some of these famous outlaws died well within the lifetimes of many now living Americans. Wyatt Earp died in 1929, and only recently a newspaper article discussed the fact that Butch Cassidy was not shot in South America as so many believe, but died in the 1937 in the United States.
The fact that the West, and the history of the West, enthralls many people can easily be testified to by the growing popularity of True West Magazine and the Western Historical Society. Metz's book greatly contributes to that fascination and is an interesting read.
 |
