At head of title: Disney Pixar Toy story 3.

The real lives of the historic figures in Old West Showdown are shrouded in controversy and myth. Was Jesse James a Southern Son fighting for the cause of the fallen Confederacy, or a blood-thirsty cutthroat justly pursued by the authorities? Was Billy the Kid a misunderstood youth or a cold-blooded killer? Did Buffalo Bill Cody truly ride for the Pony Express as a young man? Or, was he just a blowhard who trumped up his own past in an attempt to seem more heroic in the eyes of audiences attending his Wild West shows? In Old West Showdown, dueling authors Bill Markley and Kellen Cutsforth draw on fact and folklore to present opposing viewpoints pertaining to controversies surrounding some of the most well-known characters and events in the history of the Old West.

In Standoff at High Noon, the sequel to Old West Showdown, coauthors Kellen Cutsforth and Bill Markley again investigate ten well-known, controversial stories from the Old West. Through their opposing viewpoints, learn more about notorious figures and infamous events, including the controversial death of Davy Crockett at the Alamo; the life and death of Sacagawea who assisted Lewis and Clark on their Corps of Discovery Expedition; the tragic fate of the Donner Party snowbound in the Sierra Nevada; the assassination of Wild Bill Hickok; Arizona’s Lost Dutchman Mine; and the controversy over Butch Cassidy’s death in South America. No matter whose side you are on, there’s always something new to discover about the mythic Old West.

Often times the smaller the man, the harder the punch--this adage was true in the case of diminutive Luke Short, whose brief span of years played out in the Wild West. His adventures began as a teenage cowboy who followed the trail from Texas to the Kansas railheads. He then served as a scout for the U.S. Army during the Indian wars and, finally, he perfected his skills as a gambler in locations that included Leadville, Tombstone, Dodge City, and Fort Worth. In 1883, in what became known as the "Dodge City War," he banded together with Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, and others to protect his ownership interests in the Long Branch Saloon--an event commemorated by the famous "Dodge City Peace Commission" photograph. The irony is that Luke Short is best remembered for being the winning gunfighter in two of the most celebrated showdowns in Old West history: the shootout with Charlie Storms in Tombstone, Arizona, and the showdown against Jim Courtright in Fort Worth, Texas. He would have hated that. During his lifetime, Luke Short became one of the best known sporting men in the United States, and one of the wealthiest. He had been a partner in the Long Branch Saloon in Dodge City, as well as the White Elephant in Fort Worth. He became friends with other wealthy sporting men, such as William H. Harris, Jake Johnson, and Bat Masterson, who helped broaden his gaming interests to include thoroughbred horse racing and boxing. Before he died he would become a familiar figure in Chicago, Memphis, New Orleans, and Saratoga Springs, where he raced his string of horses. He traveled with other wealthy sporting men in private railroad cars to attend heavyweight championship fights. Luke Short was always a little man dealing in big games. He married the beautiful Hattie Buck, who could turns heads at all the top resorts they visited as man and wife. Jack DeMattos and Chuck Parsons have researched deeply into all records to produce the first serious biography of Luke Short, revealing in full the epitome of a sporting man of the Wild West.

Originally published: New York: Simon & Schuster, 2011.

An extensively illustrated day-by-day adventure that tells the stories of pioneers and cowboys, gold rushes, and saloon shoot-outs on America’s frontier. Beginning in the nineteenth century, the lure of land rich in minerals, fertile for farming, and plentiful with buffalo bred an all-out obsession with heading westward. The Wild West: 365 Days takes you back to these booming frontier towns that became the stuff of American legend, breeding characters such as Butch Cassidy and Jesse James. Prize-winning journalist and historian Michael Wallis spins a colorful narrative, separating myth from fact, in 365 vignettes. Learn the stories of Davy Crockett, Wild Bill Hickok, and Annie Oakley; travel to the O.K. Corral and Dodge City; ride with the Pony Express; and witness the invention of the Colt revolver. Included throughout are images drawn from Robert G. McCubbin’s extensive collection of Western memorabilia, encompassing rare books, photographs, ephemera, and artifacts, including Billy the Kid’s knife.