See You In Prescott Today!

 August 14, 2024

   The date has come and we're all headed up the hill to Prescott for the unveiling of the Doc Holliday plaque on Montezuma Street at 4 p.m. today. Afterwards we are meeting for a big, fat raucous party at the Hassayampa Hotel. So be there, if you want a free drink from Stuart (below).

BBB & Those Fabulous Rosebrooks

(taken on the last day in Payson

for the film festival)

Photo by Rob Mathiash

      Of course, we will be celebrating this stuff:

Second page of Doc In Prescott for the Tombstone Epitaph. Yes, the yellow highlighted text tags typo corrections not made yet.

   The T-Shirts and the commemorative poster will also be there and they both rock! See you this afternoon just off the square. And be there or be square!

"People don't buy what you do, they buy why you do it."

—Simon Sinek

Doc In Town, Doc In Brown And Doc In Black

 August 13, 2024

   Rebecca Edwards designed two versions of the commemorative poster for the Doc Holliday unveiling tomorrow in Prescott. Here is the first one:

Doc Poster in brown

   And, here is the second version:

Doc Poster in black

Do you have a preference?

"I'm your huckleberry, that's just my game."

—Doc Holliday

Duza Is A Doozy!

 August 12, 2024

   Had a great Sunday in Payson on the third day of the Film Festival. Elizabeth Fowler treated the Rosebrooks, Rob Mathiash and me to breakfast in an old house with a sign outside that says "Duza's." I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't this:

Avacado Toast as a work of art

   Turns out, this piece of art was created by a Yugoslavia born chef who was trained in Bosnia and ended up in Payson—Mensur Duzic. He has no prep staff and is a constant blur in the kitchen turning out great food. 

Chef Mensur Duzic all alone in his kitchen

   I ordered the avacado toast and got the best salmon I have ever had! And, the presentation is a work of art. Ay Yi Yi! Of course the place was slammed and deservedly so.

   After breakfast, we motored over to Noley's and had a delightful time discussing the film of the day, "The Outlaw Josie Wales."

   It was shortly after this that my luck ran out.

The Territorial Troupers Bag A Bottom Feeder

   It cost me a fine of $47.50 plus four free subscriptions. Well worth the price considering what I learned, to wit:

   People in small towns who stick together have meaningful lives.

   If you want to witness the soul of America, go to Payson and spend the day with people who care about their town.

   The strong are always simple.

   "The most important decision you make is to be in a good mood."

—Voltaire

Daily Whip Out: "The hard Worker"

"When I was young I was poor. But after years of hard work, I am no longer young."

—Old Vaquero Saying

We Rocked Payson Til The cows Came Home

 August 10, 2024

   This was a wonderful day for me. I met some of the nicest people and we laughed and laughed. This old cowboy called me out—"Who the hell let you out?"— on the porch of the Crosswinds Cafe at the Payson Airport. He knew all my work and gave me hell for it, which is that old Arizona world of good natured ribbing I love so much.

A Payson Cowboy Lets Me Have It

   Of course, thanks to Mad Coyote Joe, I tried the special eggs benedict, not on the menu and available only on the weekend if you know to ask for it.

I wasn't disappointed.

   From the airport, we motored down to Noley's bookstore and art gallery. All local work and just a wonderful throwback to that small town can do spirit. Here I am with the founder and owner.

BBB With Heidi Gregory of Noley's

Marshall Trimble is coming to town and we are having a book signing at six tonight in Noley's.  

 Yesterday the mayor asked me about growing up in Kingman and I told him about some of the old family tree shennanigans that all small towns have. Our driver then said:

"My ex-stepmom is my cousin's aunt."

—Sherah LaBonte

   I'm sorry, but I can't top the branches on that byzantine family tree with any Kingman story. In fact, that's not a tree, that's some kind of a cobra eating a banana.

"This is funny. You just haven't gotten it yet."
—Steve Martin, in his new autobiography, Born Standing Up

I Just Received the Key to The City of Payson And It Has Opened A Whole Lot of Doors Already!

 August 9, 2024

   Tomorrow is officially Bob Boze Bell Day in Payson, Arizona and I was presented a key to the city this morning by the mayor to officially mark the event.

That's the mayor, Chris Higgins, at far right, and he gave me the big, fat, golden key I am holding. On the left is Elizabeth Fowler who is spearheading the Rim Country Western Film Festival where I am the keynote speaker. And the pretty girl on my left is Gail Lovett, the owner of Rim Country BBQ where this photo was taken.

(photos by Rob Mathiasch)

   I didn't know this, but the tradition of giving a key started in medieval times, when it was common for European towns ringed by walls to give visiting dignitaries a key to the city gate as a gesture of trust and kindness. I intend to mark my time here with a few freebies and I intend to stock up on a few items that only Payson can provide.

   Being accompanied by the mayor around town I was privileged to imbibe a few treats that only the insider locals know.  I got a cup of free ice cream right here:

Free BBB Ice Cream On The House!

   Thanks to a heads up from Mad Coyote Joe I intend to crash the Crosswinds Cafe at the Payson Airport, and order the customized eggs Benedict dish which is not on the menu and only available to those in the know on the weekends.

   And, I had a chance to stop in and chat about my love for hats with Bob of Bob's Western Wear.

Bob & Bob In Bob's Western Wear

"Speak softly and carry a big key."

—BBB

Other Notables Like Me

Who Have Received A Big Key

• Saddam Hussein received the key to Detroit in 1980 after making a sizable donation to a church there.
• 
  
• The Kardashian-Jenner family received the key to Beverly Hills in 2010
• 
  
• Pilot Chesley Sullenberger received the keys to New York City and to his hometown of Danville, California, after safely landing a plane in the Hudson River after birds were sucked into the engine.
• 
  
• Regis Philbin received the key to NYC two years later when he retired from his TV gig.
• 
  
• Usher was given a key to New Orleans in recognition of his charitable work.
• 
  
• Members of the Jackson 5 were each awarded the key to their hometown of Gary, Indiana.
• 
  
• Axl Rose can open up imaginary doors in West Valley City, Utah.
• 
  
• Cher angered a bunch of Aussies earlier this year when she sold her key to Adelaide, Australia, for $96,000 on eBay.

Hello, Bob! Remorse And the Start of The Making Amends Tour

 August 8, 2024

   I recently had the misfortune of listening to myself on a tape recording of a talk I gave and it led me to this breakthrough epiphany. It's time for:

The Bob Boze Bell Making Amends Tour

   In short, I was appalled at how snotty I sounded. Always going for the joke, or, the outrageous commentary, when, at the end of the day, I just sounded off putting and snide. So, here is a public service announcement I am working on:

   Hello, my name is Bob Boze Bell and I want to talk to you about a very unfortunate greeting that involves people with my unfortunate handle.

   If I had a nickle for every time some person says this line to me, I could pay for at least five cups of coffee. Not at a Starbucks, or some fancy, expensive coffee shoppe, mind you, but I get it a lot, and it hurts me superficially. Why? Because, it's snotty and off putting

   Yes, it's based on an actual event that happened in Lincoln, New Mexico on April 28, 1881 when Billy the Kid escaped hanging and killed his two guards, but let's not get all foot-notey here.

April 28, 1881

Billy Bonney greets Bob Ollinger

   It is without a doubt one of the most deadly salutations in the history of the the Old West. But people, remember, it's a greeting that hurts people like me deeply, and it's not funny in the least. I implore you, do not buy this coffee mug I designed and financed the production of.

   Please stop this madness. Do not send cash, checks or money orders to the website address below. 

The66Kids.com

   We prefer credit or debit cards

   Remember, you can make this a better world by drinking your morning coffee out of something else. Have you tried styrofoam cups? Give it a try.

   I'm Bob Boze Bell and I approve of this message. And so does Emilio:

   And, so does these fine women:

Amy Dunn and her friend Uno

Lori Goodloe, President of

The Billy the Kid Outlaw Gang

Linda Pardo

"The problem with sarcasm is it's so insincere."

—Old Cartoonist Saying

The Great Unraveling

 August 7, 2024

   If you are concerned that the entire world is unraveling you are not alone. In case you didn't know, traffic fatalities are soaring all across the country because most city police departments have stopped enforcing traffic laws. It started with the pandemic and then with the political blowback from racial traffic stops, police departments have not gone back to enforcing traffic laws. It shows. As you have no doubt noticed, driving today is damn close to lawlessness.

   Meanwhile, the traditional summer job for kids is history and beyond that most restaurants are thankful when young servers actually show up for work. A half-joking sign outside a cafe tells the tale: "Now hiring people who show up."

   Add to this, the supply chain nightmare (Boeing doors anyone) and a fracturing of civility in all phases of our culture, it's disturbing to say the least.

   But don't mind me, I am still out in my studio chasing dust.

Daily Reworked Whip Out:

"Rurale On The Ridge"

Daily Reworked Whip Out:

"Flint On Guard"

   We often get letters like this one:

   I am sending you a copy of a picture, below, that I came across. Maybe you can find out who this is? Thank you.

—Edward Mitchell

Moonstar Trading Co. Greybull, Wyoming

Greybull Cowboys?

   I'll bet someone we know has the answer to who these cowboys are.

This Just In:

"Obviously, left to right: Tom McLaury, Wyatt Earp, Billy Clanton, Frank McLaury, Ike Clanton and Virgil Earp. Now you just need the long-lost photo of Jesse, Doc, and Billy playing poker in Las Vegas, NMT, you'll be set for life !

—Ken Skinner

   Thanks Ken, for the wise-ass response. No doubt some will take you seriously, but I got an ironic kick out of it.

"I love those who can smile in trouble."

—Da Vinci, see the great unraveling, at top

El Jefe In Dust And Justice Is Served In St. Joe Plus Old Vaquero #38

 August 6, 2024

   If the paint is flowing right, sometimes I can just about taste the dust.

Daily Whip Out: "El Jefe In Dust"

I've been asked how it is I can capture the dusty side effects of Old Sonora and my answer is this helps:

A Dusty Shot of Cazadores

(or two)

   Of course, this hefty bottle of Cazadores Reposado was a gift from a history-minded musician friend.

Mark Lee Gardner and BBB

   We traded fair and square at the Ellis Store in Lincoln, New Mexico last month.

   And, of course, we teamed up for this cover story.

   So, I've got that going for me!

Daily Whip Out: "Bob Ford Takes Aim"

   Also, thanks to Mark, in May of 2023 I got to stand in front of the court bench (still in use!) in the U.S. Courthouse in St. Joe, Missouri where Bob Ford stood after shooting Jesse James.

Photo by Mark Lee Gardner

That is the actual bench Robert Ford stood in front of at the U.S. Courthouse in Saint Joseph, Missouri

   Some people have asked me if there is an actual photo of the Old Vaquero I am always quoting, and my answer is, no, but this comes pretty damn close.

Daily Whip Out: "Old Vaquero #38"

"It's true tequila can't solve all your problems, but it's worth a shot."

—Old Vaquero Saying

Would A Nickname By Any Other Name Soar So High?

 August 5, 2024

   Who gets remembered and who is forgotten is often dependent on a very bizarre equation.

What’s in a name? Quite A Bit, Actually

   In history, losers sometimes become winners by having superior nicknames. Don't believe me?

Daily Whip Out: "Goyathlay Looks Up"

   Very few people know who Goyathlay is. Same for Henry McCarty, Robert Leroy Parker and Harry Alonzo Longabaugh. Robert was a cowboy from Utah, Henry was a dishwasher in Bonita, Arizona and Goyathlay was a Bedonkohe Apache from the Clifton, Arizona area. Oh, and Harry was a cowboy in Wyoming. What they all have in common is that their names are crushingly forgettable, but their nicknames tell a different, and much longer lasting story.

   Goyathlay was dispatching an enemy soldier in Mexico when the soldado cried out for Saint Jerome to save him. Later, other Apache warriors kidded Goyathlay (which translates as "He Who Yawns") mimicking the victim's cries, "San Hay-ronimo! San Hay-ronimo!" which is the Spanish pronunciation of Saint Jerome. Later, some anglos who heard the story, exchanged the soft J Spanish pronunciation for a hard G English pronunciation and extended the word Jerome to Geronimo. 

Daily Whip Out: "Henry The Dishwasher"

   Henry the Dishwasher killed a bully in self defense and then fought on the losing side of the Lincoln County War. At some point he took on the alias of William Bonney and in the last several months of his life, a Las Vegas, New Mexico newspaper called him Billy the Kid.

"Robert Leroy Parker, Ethyl Place and Harry Alonzo Longabaugh having tea in Cholila"

   Robert Leroy Parker took on the alias of Butch Cassidy and some of his cowboy friends started calling his pard Harry Alonzo Longabaugh, "The Sundance Kid" because Harry spent some time in jail in Sundance, Wyoming.

   Thanks mostly to the power of film, all these anonymous losers are internationally known by their epic nicknames. 

   The moral is, if you want to be remembered, you are probably going to need a darn good nickname.

"Of all eloquence a nickname is the most concise; of arguments the most unanswerable."

—William Hazlitt

Not Too Shabby

 August 4, 2024

   Sometimes I try things that seemed like a failure at the time, but when I see it again after the passage of time—in this case 32 years—I think to myself, you know what, that is not as bad as I remember.

   Case in point:

Daily Whip Out: "Dead Kid Dying"

   I created this scene of Billy the Kid bleeding out on Pete Maxwell's bedroom carpet on the evening of July 14, 1881. This was when I created my first book on the Kid which was published in October of 1992. What it has going for it are a few happy accidents, primarily the scattered shafts of light pointing at the dying light in his eyes and the emphasis on the dropped knife. Not too shabby

In Search of The Cowboy Silhouette

   Why is it that silhouettes are so powerful?

   Also, how did this gent get so evil?

Oliver Lee's Deadly Profile

   And, on another point, Kathy and I watched "Lawrence of Arabia" in four settings recently (it's four hours long, including intermission!) and I have something to say about specific vs. ideal racial depiction in films from watching it.

"A true man hates no one."

—Napoleon Bonaparte

The Trickster & The Hearst Epiphany

 August 3, 2024

   I was on a Zoom call yesterday with Neil Gordon, one of the foremost speech coaches in the country and he told me about a powerful trick most people don't know about. If you open your talk with a cliff hanger it creates anticipation, which is the lynchpin of all good stories. This led me to the epiphany of The Trickster, which the Navajos believe is represented by the coyote.

Daily Whip Out: "The Trickster"

   So, expect me to incorporate a little bit of the Trickster in future talks.

   At the request of Kent Fevurly, here is the Hearst Epiphany I referenced in yesterday's post. This is from my April 7, 2010 blog about a seminal event in 2002:

The Reticular Activator Miracle
   My therapist wife turned me on to a concept called the reticular activator (not sure of that spelling). As I understand it, your mind is looking for solutions to problems and often when we are doing other things, a recessed part of your noggin' will activate and, butting in, remind you that a solution is nearby. The most profound example of this, to me, is when, in 2002, True West was losing $30k a month and my brother-in-law told me the only way we were going to survive is if I could find someone with national magazine experience. I told him that was a tall order in remote Cave Creek, Arizona and he said, "Not my problem." About two weeks later my staff was arguing over a cover design at Robert Ray's computer and, over the wall, I happened to hear the word "Hearst." I excused myself, went out front in our little store and saw four or five people standing there. I said, "Who just said 'Hearst?'" And this guy near the door said, "I did." "Why did you say Hearst?" And Bob Brink famously replied, "Because I ran the magazine division at Hearst for 26 years and I just retired to Carefree."

   End of blog comments.

   Bob's salary at Hearst was one million dollars a year—his salary!—and during his reign at the publishing behemoth, the magazine division enjoyed double-digit growth almost every year for twenty years! Needless to say, his knowledge about publishing a national magazine was invaluable to me and True West. Several times a week he would come in and say, "What's on your plate today, kid?" And I would say, "I have a printer who is threatening to sue me," and he would laugh and say, "Write this down." And, so I would write down his point by point advice on dealing with it and it would go exactly as he dictated.  Key line: "Go ahead and sue me, then you'll only get half your money." Wow. I can't tell you how wonderful it was to say that line and hear a belligerent printer on the other end of the line, totally back down! Bob was a godsend and many of the concepts he provided to us are still in use today. When I think about True West still being in business, I have to admit, it's about 86% because of K. Robert Brink.

K. Robert Brink

(1934-2020)

   So I'm a firm believer in the power of the reticular activator. And, also, the Trickster.

"Para un largo hay otro mas largo."

—Old Vaquero Saying (For every clever person, there is a person more clever.)

"If you talk about the human condition, and the audience feels that, it doesn't matter how big or small the space is."

—Don Bluth, legendary animator on bringing Anatasia to a small theater venue

More Simple Truths For Our Troubled Times

August 2, 2024

   Here are a few more lessons learned in my 25 years of running True West magazine.

More Simple Truths for Our Troubled Times

   If you want a new idea, read an old book. Or, in our case, read an old magazine. I had everyone and their brother telling me in 1999 not to change the magazine—"If it ain't broke, don't fix it," is a line I got almost daily. The problem was, True West was severely broken (the newsstand had gone from 250,000 sales per issue down to 6,000) and we were losing $30k a month. 

The 1958 version

   So, for starters, I went back and read the original magazines that Joe Small had created in the 1950s (that is a perfect example cover, above). To my surprise, I found that they covered rodeo, they talked about movies, they did so many things we no longer did, but the main thing I noticed is they told good stories. When I asked Joe's widow, Elizabeth, what went wrong, she said, "The footnote crowd took over." A classic take on the tail wagging the dog. Note to self: the truth is not facts lined up. The magazine you are reading today is more like the original magazine. Or, as one cranky historian recently put it, "The ancients have stolen all our best ideas!"

The old True West is an eye opener

• Wanna stand out and be different? Reject the current vilification of everything. It's my belief, people come to True West to get away from the current awfulness. Put another way, if you truly want to succeed: Go where they ain't.

• Nothing changes more than the past. As a matter of fact, every time history is retold, it moves a little. To wit: "Anyone who believes you can't change history has never tried to write his memoirs." 

—David Ben-Gurion

• Pay attention: the universe is trying to help you. I have a long story I won't bore you with now, but utilizing my reticular activator, I heard the word "Hearst" out of the corner of my hearing and it completely altered our future (Full blown anecdote on request).

• The past is a foreign country. They do things differently there.

• "The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away." 

—Picasso

• We are Davids in a swarm of Goliaths. Keep moving. It will help you avoid getting stepped on.

• Life is beautiful if you are on the road to somewhere.

• "Everything you say should be true but not everything true should be said." 

—Voltaire

• The perfect recipe for life is: something to do, someone to love and something to hope for.

• Courage never goes out of style.

• "Do silly things. Foolishness is a great deal more vital and healthy than our straining and striving after a meaningful life." 

—Anton Chekhov

• "When you give yourself over to art's deception, it becomes magic."

—Marco Tempest

• We need to find new common myths. In fact, our only hope as a country is to find new common myths. Why?

   "Large numbers of strangers can cooperate successfully by believing in common myths."

—Yuval Noah Harari

• Sometimes you have to jump off a cliff and figure it out on the way down.

We support our museums!

• And finally, and most importantly, we must support local authors, museums, historical societies and bookstores. 

"If we don't support each other, who will?"

—The True West Mantra