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Did everyone in the Old West Just curious, in movies that
are period pieces in the Old
West, does EVERYONE have a
western accent, or were some
people back then speaking with
what is considered a 'neutral'
American accent? Perhaps
people who were considered
"upper class"?
I know, weird question, but
any input is appreciated.
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Of course everyone had an accent. If you are British, everyone in the Americas have accents. In the Old West, there were people from many, many nations as we were a developing country of immigrants. There were very few people born and raised there until it wasn't the Old West any more but a developed area. So yes, everybody had accents of some kind since there would have been English, Irish, Scottish, Spanish, German, Chinese, Italian, African, Native American.... the list goes on... g-day! |
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top gun fights of the 1800's I was just wondering what the
top gun fights were of the
american west during the 19th
centurary? And where does the
gun fight at the ok corral
rank?
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~Gunfights, as depicted by Hollywood, are largely a myth. Very few face-to-face "quick draw" fights happened. John Wesley Hardin, who claimed 44 murders to his credit, as often as not killed from ambush. Doc Holiday is a legend and he reputedly could draw with no little speed. However, his aim was somewhat lacking. In four known gunfights for which there is some credible corroboration, he missed one opponent completely, grazed one's scalp, hit one it the toe and the fourth in the arm. Of course, the dime novels of the day would embellish at will and Doc never failed to leave an opponent dead. The first real gunfight as depicted in legend took place in Springfield, Missouri, on July 21, 1865. Bill Hickok and David Tutts faced off at about 75 yards. Tutt fired and missed. Hickok rested his revolver on his free arm to steady his aim and hit Tutt in the chest, killing him. The dime novels picked up the story and the legend of the street duel, quick draw gun fight was born. Then along came Hollywood and the mythology distorted "history" so far out of proportion that 150 years later, people ask questions like yours. Hickok v Tutts actually happened, the belligerents actually faced off in the street and they actually drew on each other. Being the first, it is the model for the myth. As such, it may merit consideration as your "top". The "gunfight" at the OK Corral was nothing short of pre-meditated murder by the Earps and Doc Holiday. It was the climax of an ongoing power struggle between the Earps and the "cowboys". Bad blood had been building between the factions for some time, and local politics came into play, particularly the election for sheriff of Pima County. The position was invaluable due the "fringe benefits" to be had, especially from the bars and gambling houses. Wyatt Earp was unquestionably involved in his share of election fraud, and there is even less doubt that Ike Clanton and Johnny Ringo, as election officials, weighted the count in favor of Earp opponent Johnny Behan. When Cochise County was split from Pima County, Wyatt Earp claimed to have made a deal with Behan whereby he would not contest the appoint of Behan as sheriff on the condition that he, Earp, was appointed undersheriff. Whether or not the deal was struck, Earp was not appointed, thus further fanning the flames. Wyatt's brother, Virgil, was appointed town Marshall of Tombstone, in Pima County. Both factions used their badges frequently to stymie the "business" interest of the other. Everything came to a head on October 26, 1881, but not at the Corral. The actual fight took place in a small space between MacDonald's assay house and Fly's Lodging House. In that confined area, some 30 shots were fired in less than half a minute (including both barrels of Holiday's shotgun at point blank range). Of the nine people involved, three were killed and three were wounded. The fight gained notoriety as much for the aftermath as for the fight itself. After the fight, at different times, Virgil and Morgan and Wyatt Earp were each ambushed, but the assailants were never positively identified. Wyatt was not hit. Virgil was permanently wounded. Morgan died. Wyatt, little brother brother Warren, Holiday and and as many as eight of their friends went on a killing spree. Having no evidence against the surviving "cowboys", they killed at least 3 of the cowboys. Meanwhile, Behan led a posse including Johnny Ringo and about 20 others armed with warrants for the arrest of Earp and Holiday for murder, so Earp and Holiday fled Arizona for good. According to one dubious account, they returned to Arizona and shot Ringo as he was taking a nap, then stage the scene to look like a suicide. Ringo's death was ruled a suicide. The myth of a gunfight between Holiday and Ringo is simply not true. Stories of OK Corral abound, but the facts will forever remain shrouded in mystery. Even the trial testimony is of little help. For each witness, there is a different version. One thing is certain. The Hollywood accounts (be it Richard Dix and Kent Taylor, Kirk Douglas and Burt Lancaster, Kevin Costner and Dennis Quaid, Val Kilmer and Kurt Russel or James Garner and Jason Robards) have little resemblance to the account as it actually happened. Which is the "top gunfight"? That's too subjective to consider. Which is the most famous? Probably OK Corral simply because of (totally false) Wyatt Earp legend and the money that has been made from the dozens of fictionalized accounts of it. Given the stupidity of creating an aura of heroism around these murderers, I suppose you can pick from any number of "gunfights" to select your subject "top". Why not Clay Allison and Chunk Colbert? Search: legendsofamerica/gunfighter list It will give you hundreds to choose from, from "A to Z", along with a whole lot of other hogwash to boot. |
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Overall, how were native |
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They were cheated everywhere they could be. Their children were taken away so they could become "good Americans". They were given rotted meat, disease invested cloth. All in all, not bad. |
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When are the American values The guns that American's so
love are not improving our way
of life. Modern Democracies do
not allow people to own most
guns except for traditional
hunting and that under a
strong set of rules. Guns are
not something in other modern
Democracies that citizens
generally seek and keep in
their houses. America is also
the only modern Democracy that
has an epidemic of gun murders
and killings on a record
level. Why would we want to
continue to allow this killing
to go on just for the right to
own a gun? Guns don't protect
you, they endanger your
children! They are used for
suicide more than protection.
What is the problem with the
American male that he can only
feel safe when having a gun
near him?
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I don't know what Republican rag you are reading, DannyK, but it is not a fact that crime is lower in communities with greater guns. Thailand, Hong Kong and China have the lowest crime rates in the world. The reason? They take the life out of you for things like embezzlement, drug dealing, etc. There is no concern within intent as there is here - the only concern is if you committed the act and then you are subsequently punished severely. Steal something? Lose your arms - makes it a bit harder for you to steal something next time. The American version of Democracy tends to have a price - too many people that wouldn't be allowed to exist in other countries. It is a very well known fact that America has the highest murder rate in the world and has for decades... It is related not only to our absurdly ridiculous gun laws that practically give away guns - but also to our ridiculously broken judicial system that is more concerned with making rich lawyers than it is with dispensing justice. The Old West will most likely never die in America since the US Government was designed to be inefficient - heavily burned by bureaucracy so that little or nothing would ever change - so that our forefathers legacies would carry on - so that American Democracy in all its shining and unresponsive brilliance to a changing world would remain soundly, forever and ever... Amen. |
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Should Americans carrying guns |
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No, cowards don't have shoot outs. |
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