James Swinnerton was a well known cartoonist who came to the American Southwest expecting to die from either tuberculosis or alchoholism in 1906. Instead, he experienced a full recovery from both afflictions. He spent the next fifty years painting the desert which he believed saved him from certain death. This book contains 23 color images of Swinnerton's paintings and 12 color images of the original art work for his beloved Canyon Kiddies cartoon. Also includes ten never before published B&W photos of Swinnerton.

Palm Springs, long a desert hideaway for celebrities, has a history as unique and varied as its residents. From the original Cahuilla inhabitants of the area, to the settlers who were drawn to the therapeutic waters of the original hot springs, you will get to know the people and stories that made Palm Springs famous.

Recounts the life of the popular Western painter and cartoonist, gathers examples of his work, and describes his complex personality.

2021 Honorable Mention Recipient of the Charles Hatfield Book Prize from the Comics Studies Society Taking up the role of laughter in society, How the Other Half Laughs: The Comic Sensibility in American Culture, 1895–1920 examines an era in which the US population was becoming increasingly multiethnic and multiracial. Comic artists and writers, hoping to create works that would appeal to a diverse audience, had to formulate a method for making the “other half” laugh. In magazine fiction, vaudeville, and the comic strip, the oppressive conditions of the poor and the marginalized were portrayed unflinchingly, yet with a distinctly comic sensibility that grew out of caricature and ethnic humor. Author Jean Lee Cole analyzes Progressive Era popular culture, providing a critical angle to approach visual and literary humor about ethnicity—how avenues of comedy serve as expressions of solidarity, commiseration, and empowerment. Cole’s argument centers on the comic sensibility, which she defines as a performative act that fosters feelings of solidarity and community among the marginalized. Cole stresses the connections between the worlds of art, journalism, and literature and the people who produced them—including George Herriman, R. F. Outcault, Rudolph Dirks, Jimmy Swinnerton, George Luks, and William Glackens—and traces the form’s emergence in the pages of Joseph Pulitzer’s New York World and William Randolph Hearst’s Journal-American and how it influenced popular fiction, illustration, and art. How the Other Half Laughs restores the newspaper comic strip to its rightful place as a transformative element of American culture at the turn into the twentieth century.

"As the Western began to flourish in literature, it also began to appear in illustrations and early comic strips of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. William Grady charts the history of the genre in comic strips and books from its origins in this period through its mid-century heyday to its gradual decline in the 60s and 70s, ending with a brief look at the current "afterlife" of Western comics over the last few decades. In doing so, he also argues for the importance of comics in the development of the Western alongside both literature and film/television. He explains how the mythic-historical settings of Western comics allowed the young readers at whom they were aimed to explore different aspects of their contemporary society, wrestle with taboo topics, and envision different futures for the US. Grady begins by exploring the origins of the Western genre in the late 19th century and shows the importance of illustrated narratives and cartoons in helping readers visualize the West, thus establishing much of its iconic imagery of frontier life, including racist stereotypes of Indigenous Peoples. He moves forward in time to show how the West became mythologized and fantastic elements were introduced into the real landscape in comic strips such as Gasoline Alley and Krazy Kat, until the Great Depression, where strips emphasized the escapist adventures of the West in Red Ryder, Lone Ranger, and others. The postwar Western spread into comic books and was used alternately as positive and negative commentaries on the Cold War and America's place in the world, but in the era of Vietnam and Watergate, Western comics portrayed darker reflections of American culture and history and eventually more or less died out. Despite the genre's apparent demise, Grady ends by examining its ongoing influence over the last decades as its tropes are used to interrogate and subvert the idea of the mythic West and explore diverse perspectives on the genre"--

Explore 259 Memorable Hikes Near Los Angeles, California From short nature trails to challenging peak climbs and breathtaking canyon treks, Los Angeles County is a hiker’s paradise. Experience the best of it with this updated edition of the classic hiking guidebook. Local author and hiking expert David Harris and Southland hiking guru Jerry Schad lead you along 259 trips in 33 regions, from the San Gabriel and Santa Monica mountains to Malibu and on out to Catalina Island. That’s virtually every hike worth taking within an hour’s drive of the city. Afoot & Afield: Los Angeles County offers a comprehensive collection of hiking adventures for everyone from families with small children to experienced mountaineers seeking the ultimate challenge. The guide encompasses almost all public lands within the county, including Griffith Park and the Hollywood Hills, the San Gabriel Wilderness, Crystal Lake Recreation Area, and numerous county and city parks. At-a-glance essential information, including distance, hiking time, elevation gain, and ratings for difficulty, help you to choose the perfect trail. Complete descriptions and driving directions are paired with easy-to-read maps with GPS waypoints to give you the in-depth details you need. So whether you seek solace from the crowds, a cardiovascular workout, or a new perspective of the natural world, Afoot & Afield: Los Angeles County will get you going.

Take a train to Southern California, and you'll pass through Colton. Once the home of Gabrielino and Serrano Indians, Colton is now known as the "Hub City," the only place in the United States where the Union Pacific and the Burlington, Northern & Santa Fe railroads cross. Westward-bound rail passengers travel through the horseshoe-shaped valley along the same trails that served Spanish explorers journeying from Mexico to Monterey in the 1770s. The valley's early settlers made use of the rich soil and ready transportation, cultivating fruit trees and shipping their harvest north and east. Legendary figures have also roamed Colton's streets, including the famous Tombstone gunslingers Wyatt Earp and his brother Virgil, who was Colton's first marshal, and their father, Nicholas, who served as a justice of the peace and city recorder. Over the 150 years of the community's history, many have passed through Colton, and all have left their mark on this classically Californian town.