Frontierado is on August 2nd, so two weeks from now blog posts related to that major holiday will wrap up for the year.
A neglected aspect of Wild West lore is the Alaskan Gold Rush. Klondike Kate was the only figure I’ve covered from the Yukon so it’s long past time for more. Think of dogsleds instead of stage coaches and instead of hot deserts, snow and temperatures so cold that whiskey freezes in the bottle. Think of winter storms of such magnitude that the entire city of Nome, AK was literally wiped out late in the Gold Rush. Boomtowns, gunslingers and gamblers are common to Gold Rushes in the frozen north AND in the continental U.S.
THE MONTANA KID – Dan Egan, before his Yukon fame, was a boxer during the dangerous years when the sport was illegal in many areas and boxing matches were subject to being raided by the police. He had only limited success and his career as a pugilist is distinguished mostly by his losses to THE Billy Hennesy.
Already called the Montana Kid, Egan lost to Hennesy in boxing matches from Leavenworth, KS to San Francisco, CA between 1888 and 1892. Beginning around 1896 the Kid was in Alaska and made a name for himself smuggling whiskey from Juneau and Skagway to Dawson via his notoriously fast dogsled team.
Egan became a legend from his escapades eluding Canadian Mounties and American authorities with his ever-expanding inventory of smuggled goods. The Montana Kid would spend his down time between smuggling runs drinking and gambling in the many saloons in the Gold Rush boomtowns.
When he was on a winning streak Egan would reward his sled-dogs with prime steaks from the best available restaurants.
This amiable but deadly man was a frequent participant in the marathon, multiple-day card games held at the Bank Saloon, along with equally colorful Klondike figures like Silent Sam Bonnifield, One-Eyed Riley, and the gambler known only as the Oregon Jew. Continue reading
Balladeer’s Blog remains the only site on the web that equally criticizes both of America’s rival gangs of white collar criminals: Democrats and Republicans. Here’s the latest round of Transgress With Me. (As ever, WE NEED THIRD PARTIES) 
MONTREAL CARABINS 
OTTAWA GEE GEES 
ACADIA AXEMEN 
FARMER PEEL – Gunslinger Langford Peel got the nickname “Farmer” Peel through the same sense of irony that earns some tall people the nickname Shorty and some fat people the nickname Slim. Peel was always well-dressed and smooth-tongued and the furthest thing away from the image of a Farmer that you could get among the high-stakes gambler/ gunslingers of his era. 
AMAZING ADVENTURES Vol 2 #25 (July 1974)
Up first we have the latest hilarious hypocrisy from the hatemongering, race-baiting demagogues of the Democrat/ Ku Klux Klan Party. They spout non-stop hatred but snivel when they get any kind of pushback. (Note, too, the usual Democrat insinuation that to be black means you MUST obey the Democrats or else you’re not a “black voice.”) 
Then there’s this reminder (left) that de facto Third Party President Donald Trump has done more for the poor and the working class of ALL colors than any other president in my lifetime. 
There is plenty to talk about concerning Jayhawk Conference football this year.
FAQ: HOW MANY ANTIFA (KLAN-Tifa) MEMBERS ARE RAPISTS AND CHILD MOLESTORS? 
FAQ: How many Antifa (really KLAN-Tifa) members, an unknown number of whom may be rapists and child molestors, would wet their pants and flee in terror if they ever encountered REAL Nazis? 
GANG OF ROSES (2003) – The annual Frontierado Holiday, coming August 2nd this year, is about the myth of the Old West, not the grinding reality. So is the movie Gang of Roses, which is why I cannot believe the merciless reviews this fun, harmless, escapist movie has gotten. I find it far better than the similar Bad Girls. 
Let me give a quick synopsis, then take a look at the main characters, following which I will state my counter-arguments to the most frequent criticisms leveled at this female-led Western:
Balladeer's Blog 