You want literature, but some of the later Clint Eastwood westerns were great (really all of the spaghetti trilogy - the first based on Yojimbo - ending in Good Bad and Ugly, and High Plains Drifter -> Pale Rider).
Also The Magnificent Seven (as above a reworking of The Seven Samurai - actually I saw a quirky sci fi version with Robert Vaughn too), The Wild Bunch, and probably type in 'best Westerns of all time' - though a lot of them aren't
I love the spaghetti westerns. Clint rules. Even though it's not a Western by pure definition, I love The Outlaw Josey Whales (spelling may be off, there), but Unforgiven is probably my all time favorite. What an ending. I really wish the genre would get rebooted. There have been a few good ones over the past years, Open Range the first that comes to mind. I also really like The Quick and the Dead, which kind of lovingly pokes fun at the Western genre.Originally Posted by MystyrMystyry
You want literature, but some of the later Clint Eastwood westerns were great (really all of the spaghetti trilogy - the first based on Yojimbo - ending in Good Bad and Ugly, and High Plains Drifter -> Pale Rider).
Also The Magnificent Seven (as above a reworking of The Seven Samurai - actually I saw a quirky sci fi version with Robert Vaughn too), The Wild Bunch, and probably type in 'best Westerns of all time' - though a lot of them aren't
For me Firefly helped me understand the "good bad guy" theme that runs through many westerns and the links they often have to the Civil War and its fallout. That and Firefly is simply awesome.
In our local library there are several shelves of well-read westerns. Lot of guys especially of a certain vintage seem to enjoy these - particularly the cliched dross. No one mentioned The Searchers or Buffalo Soldiers. I enjoyed Butcher's Crossing and Carrington as well.
The Tall Stranger by Louis L'Amour will be a good start with his books.
Blood on the Rio Grande by Leslie Scott
Also take a look at David Gemmel's Wolf in Shadow (UK) /The Jerusalem Man (US) - it is a western rewritten as a fantasy series. David Gemmel had written a western, but his publisher told him westerns weren't popular. so, the book was rewritten with a fantasy backdrop. I remember enjoying it.
Any of Elmore Leonard's westerns are worth a read, especially Hombre and Valdez is Coming. Can also recommend Mary Doria Russell's novels Doc and Epitath, which deal with Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp. Any of Ron Hansen's westerns. The Sisters Brothers is quite good.
if anyones still out there reading this thread---I was thinking the same thing and was glad to see togre post this. I concur. grey's my favorite, l'amour is enjoyable too, and ive liked every max brand book ive read too.
A Man Called Paladin [1964] by Frank G Robertson
Paladin was one of my favorite tv characters ~ a bon vivant, lady's man, gourmet, a connoisseur of good food, spirits, music & art, world traveler, hunter (he killed a man killing tiger in Asia), a decorated war veteran and hero during the Civil War, and former boxer. He has some knowledge of the Chinese language and his confidant was Chinese-American. Very professional in his work as investigator and detective. I always admired the way he quoted Shakespeare or some other renowned scholar.
The novel tells us more about him and gives us his actual name (prefer not to spoil so I won't give it to you here).
I have a copy of this novel from McFadden Books which is one you can readily carry in your book and read as you ride the subway or bus to work.
When stupidity is considered patriotism, it is unsafe to be intelligent
~ Isaac Asimov
Have Gun Will Travel reads the card of a man.
A knight without armor in a savage land.
His fast gun for hire heeds the calling wind.
A soldier of fortune is the man called Paladin.
Paladin, Paladin
Where do you roam?
Paladin, Paladin,
Far, far from home.
He travels on to where ever he must
a chess knight of silver is his badge of trust
There are campfire legends that the plainsmen spin
of the man with the gun
of the man called paladin
Paladin, Paladin
Where do you roam?
Paladin, Paladin,
Far, far from home.
Far, far from home.
Far, far from home.
When stupidity is considered patriotism, it is unsafe to be intelligent
~ Isaac Asimov
westerns are interesting in my life---I use them as a sort of default "go to" when I don't know what else I might like to read. I do the same thing with star trek books. its not necessarily that I want to read a western, its that I more or less know im going to end up liking what I read if I pick one.
I have a 50 movie pack of westerns on dvd that I picked up at a yard sale---full of actors whose names I recognize, but I don't recognize any of the titles, let alone have seen any of them.
have gun will travel was a little before my time and i don't remember seeing re-runs of it, so im not familiar with it. I grew up with a fair amount of bonanza, the rifleman, gunsmoke and the wild wild west. and lots of john wayne movies, and clint eastwood ones too.
the title makes me wonder if influenced the creators of the equalizer. or that its just a common enough trope that has recurring appeal; most everyone likes rough justice.
have gun will travel was a little before my time and i don't remember seeing re-runs of it, so im not familiar with it. I grew up with a fair amount of bonanza, the rifleman, gunsmoke and the wild wild west. and lots of john wayne movies, and clint eastwood ones too.
Most cowboy/western shows were what they used to call "action" shows where the highlight was a big fight at the end of the show. HGWT did often have a fight at the end, but the story was more about principle ~ that the world is unjust but Paladin was willing to set it all right. He preferred not to fight. But if forced to do so he would. And fight fiercely if he had to.
Paladin was a multi faceted Renaissance man - truly one of a kind. Sadly, TV has not produced such an interesting character like that in a long while. I strongly recommend watching some episodes on YouTube or nostalgia TV.
When stupidity is considered patriotism, it is unsafe to be intelligent
~ Isaac Asimov
I think by the 70s the cop shows had pretty much subsumed the cowboy shows. Both genres more or less followed the same formula. Movies too. The man with no name became Dirty Harry. I watched a few episodes of Gun Smoke as a kid, but it was my dad’s show. I liked Kung Fu. Caine would try to avoid a fight, but we all knew in the end he was going to wind up kicking somebody’s a**. That’s all we wanted to see. And then the next day we’d try out Caine’s moves at recess. Strip mall karate businesses boomed. Rex Kwon Do too. I have some nunchuck skills.
Uhhhh...
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