Tag Archives: Frontierado Sagas

TEN NEGLECTED GUNSLINGERS OF THE OLD WEST

MASCOT COWBOY 2

“Hold it right there,” the gunslinger exclaimed, “We got us some apparent paradoxes and their effect upon contemporary philosophy to discuss … you savvy?”

JUST 30 DAYS UNTIL FRONTIERADO! As always Frontierado is about celebrating the myth of the Wild West and not the grinding reality. Part of the fun each year is an examination of neglected gunslingers from the 1800s. 

The likes of Billy the Kid, Doc Holliday, Calamity Jane and Jesse James have been the subject of a variety of movies and folk tales. Unfortunately some figures from the Wild West led lives at least as interesting as the big names did but have not gotten nearly as much attention. Here is a look at ten such men and women.

Rattlesnake Dick

Rattlesnake Dick

10. RATTLESNAKE DICK – No, he’s not a porn star. Dick Barton was originally from England but migrated with his family to the United States.In 1849 he joined the California Gold Rush but, having no luck at prospecting, formed an outlaw gang and took to robbing gold and payroll shipments instead. His second-in- command Cyrus Skinner was once shot down in a gunfight with Wells Fargo detectives and the stolen gold that Skinner had hidden before dying was fruitlessly sought after for years. Continue reading

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TEN NEGLECTED GUNSLINGERS: COUNTDOWN TO FRONTIERADO

western sceneryJUST 30 DAYS UNTIL FRONTIERADO! As always Frontierado is about celebrating the myth of the Wild West and not the grinding reality. Part of the fun each year is an examination of neglected gunslingers from the 1800’s. 

The likes of Billy the Kid, Doc Holliday, Calamity Jane and Jesse James have been the subject of a variety of movies and folk tales. Unfortunately some figures from the Wild West led lives at least as interesting as the big names did but have not gotten nearly as much attention. Here is a look at ten such men and women.

Rattlesnake Dick

Rattlesnake Dick

10. RATTLESNAKE DICK – No, he’s not a porn star. Dick Barton was originally from England but migrated with his family to the United States.In 1849 he joined the California Gold Rush but, having no luck at prospecting, formed an outlaw gang and took to robbing gold and payroll shipments instead. His second-in- command Cyrus Skinner was once shot down in a gunfight with Wells Fargo detectives and the stolen gold that Skinner had hidden before dying was fruitlessly sought after for years. Continue reading

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TOP FOUR FRONTIERADO MOVIES: NUMBER THREE – POSSE (1993)

possePOSSE is a terrific western about a gang of African American gunfighters (plus the goofiest Baldwin brother) involved in an action-packed epic journey across the American west. The Frontierado holiday (which will be here Friday August 2nd) is the perfect time of year to hunker down with this film while drinking a Cactus Jack or a Deuces Wild or two. I’ll review the recipes for those mixed drinks in a few days, for now we’ll focus on the third-place movie on our countdown.

Posse stars Mario Van Peebles, who also directed, as Jesse Lee, the brooding, revenge-driven hero of the saga. He and all but one member of his gang, our titular posse, are soldiers fighting in Cuba during the Spanish-American War in 1898. A dangerous assault they carry out turns out to be a Continue reading

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HAPPY FRONTIERADO!!! CELEBRATE WITH 6 MORE NEGLECTED WILD WEST FIGURES

 All through the year we waited, and now it is here in all its glory! HAPPY FRONTIERADO to one and all! This is the first multi-continent celebration of this major holiday, with Buckshot Bryant, Doc Robyn and Kid Equus observing it in New Zealand and with Lady London and her faithful steed Gentleman George leading the festivities in Merry Old England! Six-Gun Sara, Cactus Cathy, Palmetto Bill, Kid Crimson, Bison Bloodworth, Amarillo Rose, Dusty Murtaugh, Doc Albany and Casino Bill and others are helping me, the Blackwater Kid, celebrate Frontierado right here in the USA!  To help mark this holiday I will offer up six more quick looks at neglected real-life western figures whose lives had as much drama as the better-known names from the American frontier. 

6. THE MORMON KID – No, that’s not a joke, Matt Warner really was known as the Mormon Kid for the religion he left to pursue a wild life as an outlaw. Some traditions still hold that the Mormon Kid got his first experience with gunplay as a Continue reading

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FRONTIERADO WEEK: FOUR NEGLECTED WILD WEST FIGURES

 With the Frontierado holiday coming up this Friday, August 5th (and isn’t it great to have a holiday that falls on the Friday of its three-day weekend, not on the Monday?) it’s time for another seasonal post. Since Balladeer’s Blog loves to cover under-the-radar subjects today’s post is about four real Wild West figures who don’t get the pub of the big names. My attitude, as always, is that in real life the legends of the west were thugs and worse but Frontierado is about the myth of the west, not the grinding reality. 

1. TEXAS BEN THOMPSON – That’s our number one figure depicted to the left. Ben and his brother were often called Texas Ben and Texas Billy and I  think using the nickname as often as possible will help Ben’s myth get more attention. Texas Ben served in the Continue reading

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FRONTIERADO MEAL-MAKING MADE EASY WITH BUFFALO GAL

 Here at Frontierado international headquarters things are as hectic as you would imagine with the Frontierado holiday coming up this Friday, August 5th. Various mayors, governors and heads of state are all contacting me to get the official Frontierado imprimatur on the events they are planning in their communities. I’m never too busy to pass along a tip, though and for the past few years I’ve gotten my buffalo steaks, buffalo butt chili and other items from Buffalo Gal! Express delivery is available and Buffalo Gal now carries elk meat as well!

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FRONTIERADO ROLL OF HONOR

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Just one week until Frontierado and then the event that we all look forward to all year long will be over, so let’s milk all the enjoyment we can out of this Frontierado season! This picture is of the Drovers, the Official College Sports Team of Frontierado! They play for the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma, the very first school to give my blog publicity last summer and to make their student-athletes available for my probing yet inane interviews. You could say Drover is the 21st Century word for a cowboy.

Anyway, with just one week to go I figured I’d do a Fronteriado Roll of Honor involving the non-shy people who okayed making their Sagas public. Here are the names, and for added fun I didn’t add links this time – all of you can have fun doing a google search under your Frontierado names, since you’re all the number one result under each of them! (Sorry, Lady London, but you’ll have to search under “Lady London Didi” because of all the London entries)

SIX-GUN SARA – This ballsy lady was the Continue reading

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FRONTIERADO RECIPE: DEUCES WILD

We are just 12 days away from the  Frontierado holiday on Friday August 5th.We’ve examined Sagas, weird westerns, quality westerns and other Frontierado traditions. Time for another drink recipe for those of legal drinking age.  Previously I gave you the recipe for a Cactus Jack and now I’ll give you the recipe for another traditional Frontierado drink. It’s called a Deuces Wild and Continue reading

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FRONTIERADO POKER: BETTER THAN SEX? YOU BE THE JUDGE

As promised here are the rules for Frontierado Poker, the game that is strictly my own invention to go along with my made-up Holiday Frontierado.

1. Remove all face cards from the deck. The game is played with a 40-card deck.

2. Every player antes up. (I’m not advocating gambling. You can decide for yourselves what you play for.)

3. Each player is Continue reading

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JUST SIXTEEN DAYS UNTIL FRONTIERADO!

What is Frontierado?  Frontierado is a Continue reading

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