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Although, one may think that there was no justice in the American Wild West, there actually was justice. Just like today, you had the right for a quick trial. Just like today, you had the right for a quick trial, and a fast one, undoubtedly. The court house (as seen in this image that reads “The Court House” and below, Saloon”) was built in the Saloon and not to cure your hangover but to hang you over. In plain words, you shoot now, you’re hanged now. How’s that for justice! And “after-parties” were “neck parties”. Awesome, ha? After Judge Hammerstone, in a blink of an eye, sentenced you to the ropey Joshua’s tree, next to the Opera House (see image)with live music (OK, not music, music, but music nonetheless) you’re truly have the right to remain silent. None of that “dream-team lawyers” “I want to call my lawyer” “innocent until proven guilty” “ 20 years on a death-row, last minute Governor Call” etc. While many were legitimate criminals accordingly sentenced for first-degree murder, some were grabbed, regardless of guilt, by mobs of hundreds and subjected to “necktie parties.”
From the three-stage process of dying by strangulation to the photographs of the dead men, former law enforcement officer R. Michael Wilson has researched every detail of 18 executions and tells them succinctly. You can read about each crime in about the same time it takes to die from a hanging: 10 minutes.
Cowboys: the myth
Thanks to Hollywood, we associate the word Cowboy with Western [Spaghetti] movies and its fake-ass-heroes like John “Awkward” Wayne, Gary Cooper, and Clint “Blondie” Eastwood’s Dollar Trilogy, epic Spaghetti western films that were cooked by real Italian Spaghetti Chef Sergio Leone (a little help of Spanish cuisine not to be ignored here) using The Good, Bad and Ugly ingredients and further sweetly sauced with the famous film score, including its main theme (come on, you know it so well, hum it along; when a kid or a teenager, not exactly sure, I used hum it when played Cowboys and Indians, or when encountered by some trouble, as sign of impending blow to the bad…and, well, the ugly) and, of course, it-would- be-sin not to mention the Director of photography Tonino Delli Colli, who was responsible for the film's sweeping widescreen cinematography that revolutionized film making, thank you; my vote for “the best-directed film of all time”, for Leone's unique perspective that enables the audience to be closer to the character as we see what he sees.
So who were really these cowboys?
How about this? They were Blacks (a black cowboy? Eddie Murphy as a cowboy?), Hispanics (now, wait a minute, you!) Native Americans (I’m warning ya!), and even Britons (Nigel-with-bad-teeth? That’s enough!” and, nearly all were in their twenties or teens (such as the lean-not-so-mean Billy The Kid, a petty criminal who became legend for killing pedestrians. TheFeel cheated? Why none of them characters ever have been portrayed as a Wild West Hero? The answer to that would be: For one, the faggots and pedophiles in Hollywood, including writers, directors, and producers were greedy-racist-white-trash who loved whites and blue eyes.
Second, movie making and story-telling was white men-made industry and the therefore the white was in charge of movie making and character casting. Plus, the white men were in the right place in the right time since they could act and fake better than in any other job or business. Most of them boys were Italians, Jews and Polacks which makes it more ironic. And, hey, you didn’t expect Martin Scorsese to have had cast Harry Pottier instead of De Niro in Taxi then, and Will Smith to replace Ma-Boy Leo De Caprio, now, did you?
Back to our dear cowboys, if you will…
Here is another shocker. Central to the myth and the reality of the West is the American cowboy. His real life was a hard one and revolved around two annual roundups, spring and fall, the subsequent drives to market (yes, the Moo-Market, the California Cow) , and the time off in the cattle towns spending his hard earned money on food, clothing, gambling, and prostitution (sounds like today’s truck drivers or blue collar workers, I’d say). During winter, many cowboys hired themselves out to ranches near the cattle towns, where they repaired and maintained equipment and buildings.
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Central to the myth and the reality of the West is the American cowboy. His real life was a hard one and revolved around two annual roundups, spring and fall, the subsequent drives to market, and the time off in the cattle towns spending his hard earned money on food, clothing, gambling, and prostitution. During winter, many cowboys hired themselves out to ranches near the cattle towns, where they repaired and maintained equipment and buildings. On a long drive, there was usually one cowboy for each 250 head of cattle.
On a long drive, there was usually one cowboy for a drive, a cowboy's duties included riding out on the range and bringing together the scattered cattle. The best cattle would be selected, roped, and branded, and most male cattle were castrated. The cattle also needed to be dehorned and examined and treated for infections. On the long drives, the cowboys had to keep the cattle moving and in line. The cattle had to be watched day and night as they were prone to stampedes and straying. The work days often lasted fourteen hours, with just six hours of sleep. It was grueling, dusty work, with just a few minutes of relaxation before and at the end of a long day. On the trail, drinking, gambling, brawling, and even cursing was often prohibited and fined. It was often monotonous and boring work. Food was barely adequate and consisted mostly of bacon, beans, bread, coffee, dried fruit, and potatoes. On average, cowboys earned $30 to $40 per month. Because of the heavy physical and emotional toll, it was unusual for a cowboy to spend more than seven years on the range. As open range ranching and the long drives gave way to fenced in ranches in the 1880s, the glory days of the cowboy came to an end, and the myths about the "free living" cowboy began to emerge.
Many of the cowboys were veterans of the Civil War, particularly from the Confederacy, who returned to ruined home towns and found no future, so they went west looking for opportunities. Some were Blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans, and even Britons. Nearly all were in their twenties or teens. The earliest cowboys in Texas learned their trade, adapted their clothing, and took their jargon from the Mexican vaqueros or "buckaroos", the heirs of Spanish cattlemen from Andalusia in Spain. Chaps, the heavy protective leather trousers worn by cowboys, got their name from the Spanish "chaparreras", and the rope was derived from "la reata". All the distinct clothing of the cowboy—boots, saddles, hats, pants, chaps, slickers, bandannas, gloves, and collar-less shirts—were practical and adaptable, designed for protection and comfort. The cowboy hat quickly developed the capability, even in the early years, to identify its wearer as someone associated with the West. The most enduring fashion adapted from the cowboy, popular nearly worldwide today, are "blue jeans", originally made by Levi Strauss for miners in It was the cowboy hat, however, that came to symbolize the American West.
The modern rodeo or "Frontier Day" show is the only American sport to evolve from an industry. It exists on both the amateur and professional level, and it remains a favorite form of entertainment in many towns of the West. Rodeos combine the traditional skills of the range cowboy - calf and steer roping, steer wrestling, team roping, bronco riding, and horsemanship with the showmanship of bull riding, and barrel racing.
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