Cowboys & Indians Blog

A Losing Proposition

Thursday, September 2, 2010 at 10:22 am

I did not go to Miami Beach looking for a great steak. A Cuban sandwich, yes. Rice and beans, yes. Seafood and sushi, yes. But a steak? I'm a Dallas girl, and I believe I am surrounded by some of the best beef the world has to offer right in my own backyard. But on Saturday night I found myself at The Forge Restaurant in Miami sitting in an oversized Alice-in-Wonderland pearly white wingback chair holding an equally out of proportion menu, feeling slightly out of my element, when the words popped out at me like a taunt: "BEST STEAK IN AMERICA."

Could they be serious? I grabbed my tall, tan, and shaved-headed waiter Nick by the arm. By then he had already disclosed that he was Argentinian, was raised in a household of sisters, and rightly proclaimed that my cocktail of choice should be the Summer Thyme (a deliciously earthy blend of Tanqueray, blackberries, blueberries, thyme-infused agave nectar, lime juice, and what tasted like cloves). "You are from Buenos Aires," I said, "next to Texas, the land of beef. You must know your steaks. Are you honestly going to say that your glitzy, high-glam restaurant serves the best?" "Yes," he said, as he slipped off his Citizen watch and clasped it around my wrist. "If I am wrong, the watch is yours." What was I to do? Order the steak and pre-order a pistachio souffle for dessert, that's what.

I didn't know it at the time, but The Forge is a Miami institution, named after an actual forge opened by blacksmith Dino Phillips on the spot in the 1920s. Phillips later turned it into a casino and restaurant where the likes of Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland came to enjoy the restaurant's signature open-hearth grilled steaks. Bought by international financier Alvin Malnick in the '60s and decorated with his personal art collection, the restaurant continued to be frequented by celebrities like Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor, and Desi Arnaz. Alvin's son Shareef took over operations in the '90s and undertook a massive year-long renovation in 2009, resulting in an over-the-top interior worthy of today's A-listers like J-Lo, Sting, Al Pacino, and Will Smith.

When it arrives, my medium rare steak (which was described on the menu as a 16 ounce New York strip, 21-day aged prime) is accompanied by two artful whole peeled tomatoes. Playing coy, and still skeptical, I took a bite of tomato first. I have no idea what the chef did to it, but it tasted effervescent, with a sparkle like Champagne yet a pure, tomato-ey flavor. Now I was intrigued. I cut into the blackened exterior of the steak revealing a still raw center. I took a bite. It was everything a great steak should be. The char on the outside spoke of every end-of-trail cowboy campfire, while the luscious pink interior was pure decadence. Warmed through, it was buttery soft, all of the meaty juiciness having been reabsorbed in the steak itself, with none of it lost on the plate.

I gave Nick his watch back, but not until I had finished off my pistachio souffle. Like the steak, and the service, it was perfection. That was one bet I was happy to lose.

Wednesday Western: 'Vera Cruz'

Wednesday, September 1, 2010 at 7:45 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: Vera Cruz, director Robert Aldrich's two-fisted 1954 Western starring Gary Cooper and Burt Lancaster as soldiers of fortune involved in a post-Civil War scheme to steal a stagecoach filled with Emperor Maximilian's gold. Ernest Borgnine, Charles Bronson, Jack Elam and Cesar Romero co-star.

New Waggoner Ranch Book

Tuesday, August 31, 2010 at 10:14 am

We're always interested when Wyman Meinzer puts out a new book - the Texas photographer's work reflects an obvious devotion to the Western landscape, particularly that of his home state. You can get a taste of his latest offering, "Under One Fence-The Waggoner Ranch Legacy," in this short but beautiful video (about 3:30).

Introducing: Under One Fence - The Waggoner Legacy from Wyman Meinzer on Vimeo.

From the publisher's description: "Imagine the jingling of spurs, the hiss of a rope, and a cowboy calling for his ride of the day...come along on this historic journey as Wyman introduces the Legacy of the Waggoner Ranch. Listen as Wyman takes you to a place that exudes the essence of the ranching legacy across Texas, if not the world. "

Visit www.wymanmeinzer.com for more details

An abundance of Emmys for 'Temple Grandin'

Monday, August 30, 2010 at 12:03 p.m.

Glee, Modern Family and Mad Men may have attracted more attention from viewers and handicappers during the days and weeks leading to last night's Emmy Awards. But the biggest winner of the evening turned out to be Temple Grandin, the uplifting story of the extraordinary woman who triumphed over autism to become an internationally renowned expert in humane livestock handling. The acclaimed HBO drama -- now available on DVD -- received a total of five awards: Outstanding Made For Television Movie, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie (Claire Danes), Outstanding Supporting Actor (David Strathairn) and Supporting Actress (Julia Ormond), and Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries or Movie (Mick Jackson). If you'd like to know more about the story behind the story: Chuck Restivo interviewed the real-life Temple Grandin for the September issue of Cowboys & Indians, and you can can read his story here.

Taos Pueblo Celebration

Friday, August 27, 2010 at 10:39 am

Taos Pueblo will commemorate the history, the struggle, and the victory of Blue Lake on September 17th and 18th, 2010.

&We hope all our neighbors in the Taos Valley will plan to be with us as we celebrate this momentous event for the people of Taos Pueblo,& said Taos Pueblo Governor James A. Lujan.

"Blue Lake & A Symbol of Cultural Strength and Determination& will commence on Friday, September 17th with an opening mass at St. Jerome Church on Taos Pueblo, and an evening reception.   The highlight events will take place on Saturday, September 18th with activities scheduled throughout the day in the plaza of Taos Pueblo&s historic village.

In this photo from 1970, President Nixon officially signed the documents returning 48,000 acres taken by President Theodore Roosevelt and designated as the Carson National Forest early in the twentieth century. Blue Lake was included in this return of Taos land. An additional 764 acres south of the ridge between Simpson Peak and Old Mike Peak and west of Blue Lake were transferred back to the Pueblo in 1996.

A First Look at Rooster

Thursday, August 26, 2010 at 12:30 p.m.

Thanks to everyone who submitted questions for our upcoming Jeff Bridges interview for the December issue.& In case you hand't seen it, this photo surfaced last week and gives us all a hint of things to come from Rooster and Mattie.

From Toque to Toe

Thursday, August 26, 2010 at 10:28 am

Chef James Holmes of Olivia in Austin (named one of 2009's best restaurants by Bon Appetit), recently had Rocketbuster design a custom pair of boots to reflect his passion for cooking. I can only hope that Holmes' fancy footwear will catch on, and that custom chef boots will replace the now ubiquitous chef tattoo. To see Holmes at home in the kitchen, check out his appearance on the Today Show with Kathie Lee and Hoda.

Wednesday Western: The Great American West of John Ford

Wednesday, August 25, 2010 at 6:30 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu: "The Great American West of John Ford," a 1971 documentary that takes a loving look at the director they called "Pappy." The one-hour short format features some superb rememberances and interviews with the people who knew him, worked with him, and were made stars by him. John Wayne narrates, and Henry Fonda and Jimmy Stuart feature prominently, along with Ford himself.

This little film dovetails nicely with the Peter Bogdonavich's recently re-released documentary "Directed by John Ford" It wasn't until this year that the fully restored version of that film was released on DVD. Both are worth watching.

Wooland Necklace

Wednesday, August 25, 2010 at 6:15 p.m.

I am in love with this multi-strand necklace designed by Rocki Gorman as an exclusive piece for Ranch at the Rim. It not only balances bold layering and refined elegance, it&s also just the right blend of brights and browns. This necklace is the perfect color to pair with your summer-spring wardrobes, but not so vibrant that it&s too loud for fall.

Cool Summer Drinks

Tuesday, August 24, 2010 at 10:21 am

Created by Texas Mixologist Mike Malone, these icy cold drinks were made for outdoor entertaining. Can I point out that we are on day 19 of 100-plus degree heat in Dallas?

Midori Pina Punch

1 part Midori Melon Liqueur
1 part Cabo Wabo Silver Tequila
1 part Mango Juice
3 parts Pineapple Juice
Splash of Sprite

Pour all ingredients into a punch bowl over ice.& Stir well and garnish with a pineapple and mango slices.

For an even colder refreshment, serve up a Midori Float made with lemon sorbet.& The froth in this cocktail comes from the muddling of the lemon sorbet with the flavors pineapple, cranberry and rum.& Served in a tall glass with a long spoon, this ice cold treat aims to please!

Midori Float

1 parts Midori Melon Liqueur
3/4 parts Rum (orange flavored)
2 parts Pineapple juice
1/4 part Cranberry Juice
Half a scoop of Lemon sorbet muddled
Juice of half a Lime
Slice of Pineapple

Pour all ingredients into a shaker and shake to froth.& Pour over ice and garnish with pineapple wedge and a scoop of lemon sorbet.

Pendleton Bedding

Monday, August 23, 2010 at 11:25 am

Today the historic Pendleton Woolen Mills makes everything from bedding to apparel to furniture and decor, but it all started in 1909 with Indian trade blankets. Pendleton originally made blankets for the Nez Perce Indians, but as trade expanded to other tribes, Pendleton kept its customers in mind. Its studies of the local and Southwestern tribes& weaving traditions and surveys of their textile preferences resulted in the vivid, Native-inspired designs that Pendleton is still known for today. If your style correlates with that of the original Pendleton consumer, I am sure you will love Pendleton Home Collection&s latest fall bedding, woven in pure virgin wool, as much as I do. Here are some of my top picks:

The Turquoise Trail blanket collection, a brilliant color-pairing of turquoise, golden-tan, and fuchsia woven in the tradition of the Navajo stripe blankets of the late 1800s, is one of my favorite wool collections. This bedding is named for New Mexico&s National Scenic Byway that was deemed the Turquoise Trail by the Native Americans who first mined the stones along this route more than 2,000 years ago.

I also love the more versatile tapestry design of the Rock Springs collection. The darker colors, faux leather piping, and smaller geometrics give it a sense of sophistication, and it pairs perfectly with the striped&Adobe Canyon coordinates and the Chimayo throw, inspired by the textiles of Chimayo weavers.

But my top pick has to be the hacienda-styled Los Ojos bedding. Incorporating Spanish colonial and Native American design aesthetics, this design incorporates Spanish crosses, diamond ojos (eyes) patterns, and symbols of the Navajo Four Mountains of Creation. And its classic black and ivory color combination emphasizes the bold simplicity of the pattern.

Pendleton&s bedding collections come in three sizes with custom monogramming and embroidery options, and to complete your room in whichever style you choose, Pendleton makes toss pillows, throws, rugs, room decor, and furniture pieces that coordinate with its bedding collections.

Wednesday Western: 'Peacemakers'

Wednesday, August 18, 2010 at 3:33 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: Peacemakers , the 2003 pilot for an imaginatively conceived, undeservedly short-lived TV Western best described as Gunsmoke meets CSI. &It's set&in the growing community Silver City, Colorado during the late 1880s, a period when fingerprinting, photography and other forensic techniques were gaining acceptance as invaluable tools for law enforcement. Jared Stone (Tom Berenger), a grizzled, middle-aged federal marshal, realizes that the times, they are a-changin'. So he accepts assistance from&a cocky Pinkerton agent (Peter O'Meara) with a degree from Yale and a wagonload of forensic equipment, and a strong-minded medical student (Amy Carlson), who has returned home to Silver City to run the family undertaking business.

Hawaii Horse Expo

Tuesday, August 17, 2010 at 10:57 am

Ah, summer's almost gone. Naturally there wasn't time to do it all, but if we could pick and choose, we would have gone to the Hawaii Horse Expo this weekend.

Our friends who already live in the Alhoa state will be lucky enough to take clinics from people like Dr. Robert Miller and Rick Lamb, of RFD-TV's The Horse Show. There's always next year - have a peek at this video to learn more, or visit hawaiihorseexpo.com for more details.

America's Great Canyons

Monday, August 16, 2010 at 11:12 am

Journey through Canyons from Metron on Vimeo.

Rush Springs Watermelon Festival

Friday, August 13, 2010 at 11:14 am

Held continuously since 1948, the Rush Springs Watermelon Festival has become one of the most popular festivals in Oklahoma. There are exhibits, stage shows, a carnival, arts and crafts fair, and, of course, a watermelon queen. A rodeo will be held Friday night (August 13) at 8:00 p.m., and the parade is Friday at 5:00 p.m. Get up early Saturday morning for the Watermelon Festival 5k Run, then catch the seed spitting contest at noon, followed by the Queen's Coronation (this year's Queen, Haley Jones, pictured) at 8:00 p.m.

Tomato and Watermelon Salad

4 tomatoes, cored, seeded, and cut into 3/4-inch chunks
2 cucumbers, peeled, seeded, and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
4 cups yellow or red seedless watermelon, cut into& 3/4-inch-cubes
2 Hass avocados, halved, pitted, peeled, and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
1 tablespoon chopped mint or basil
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons aged balsamic vinegar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a small bowl, whisk together coriander, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and black pepper.

In a large bowl, combine all remaining ingredients. Pour vinaigrette over the watermelon mixture and toss to coat evenly.

'Sweethearts' on tour

Wednesday, August 11, 2010 at 4:21 p.m.

Coming soon to a theater, university, video store or correctional facility near you: Sweethearts of the Prison Rodeo, documentary filmmaker Brad Beesley's fascinating group portrait of feisty female convicts who are relative newcomers -- but determined competitors -- in a decades-old statewide event previously restricted to male inmates in the Oklahoma prison system. After earning rave reviews and audience acclaim at various international festivals, the film will kick off what its distributor bills as "a Western Swing tour" Sept. 17 in New York City and Austin, Texas, and screen in various other venues (including the Southern New Mexico Correctional Facility) prior to its Oct. 25 DVD release. Beesley chatted with C&I a few months ago about Sweethearts, so you can read all about it here. And you can check out the screening schedule here.

2010 Rodeo Hall of Fame Inductees

Wednesday, August 11, 2010 at 8:54 am

A belated congratulations to the Rodeo Historical Society's 2010 Hall of Fame inductees, announced on Friday. Each year the organziation names a select few to be immortalized in the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum Rodeo Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City. Honorees will be recognized as part of Rodeo Weekend at the Museum, scheduled for October 22-24.

One of the top honors that can be bestowed on a rodeo cowboy or performer, the Hall of Fame members this year include John and Mildred Farris, Denny Flynn, Clyde Frost and Walt Woodard. Being honored posthumously are the late John A. Beutler, Ronald &Buddy& Lytle and Larry Kane and the great Charlie Beals.

Two special awards also will be presented during Rodeo Weekend. The 2010 Ben Johnson Memorial Award, which honors a living representative of the community and competition found in rodeo life, goes to Dean Oliver. Oliver, an 11 time world champion, began roping professionally 1952. He would go on to win three all-around world championship titles and a record eight calf-roping world championship titles, including four in a row between 1960 to 1964. He has won every major professional rodeo, some more than once. Oliver was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 1979 and the Rodeo Hall of Fame in 1963.

Also honored is Donita Barnes, the 21st recipient of the Tad Lucas Memorial Award. She is the wife of Bob Barnes, and has helped him run a successful rodeo business since day one. Donita drives livestock trailers, gathers and sorts stock before rodeos, keeps the books as the company&s secretary and collects entries for their rodeos. She has also helped keep time at the rodeos for more than 50 years. She is considered the matriarch of Barnes PRCA Rodeo and has inspired a western way of life in her children and grandchildren.

For reservations for Rodeo Weekend or For more information about the Museum, visit them at www.nationalcowboymuseum.org or by calling (405) 478-2250.

Above: American Rodeo Gallery -- Bronze of Bill Linderman, courtesy National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum

Wednesday Western: 'Thunder Mountain'

Wednesday, August 11, 2010 at 12:03 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: Thunder Mountain, a briskly paced 1947 Western, loosely based on a Zane Grey novel, starring Tim Holt as a cowboy who must fight to reclaim his Arizona ranch -- and defend himself against murder charges -- when he tangles with murderous landgrabbers.

A 'Bad Day' (for a good cause) with Kevin Costner

Tuesday, August 10, 2010 at 4:39 p.m.

Almost 25 years ago, members of the legendary L.A. punk rock band X -- yes, that's right, just X -- got together with a small group of friends to make a spoofy, silent 20-minute Western titled Bad Day. Chief among the parties involved: A young actor by the name of Kevin Costner. Now you can pay whatever you want to view the 1986 movie as a digital download. And part of what you pay will go to the victims of the Gulf Oil Spill. You can read more about it here, or simply take a look at the trailer to see if you're up for the experience.

Steak with Friends

Monday, August 9, 2010 at 10:07 am

Chicago chef Rick Tramonto wants you to fire up the grill this summer and enjoy a classic steak dinner with good friends and good wine. Why steak? Because, he points out in Steak with Friends: At Home, with Rick Tramonto, for many Americans the classic cut represents luxury, as well as the city he calls home. But don't worry if you're not a fan of red meat, he includes plenty of other options in his beautifully photographed cookbook: grilled pork chops with mushroom-sausage stuffing, grilled chicken with roasted squash salad, twice-baked potatoes with Irish cheddar, and coconut cream pie to top it all off.

Hanger Steak
This is one of my favorite cuts&well, unless I am offered a bone-in rib eye, which is also one of my favorites. Hanger steak is not very pretty and comes in two lumpy pieces connected by a tough sinew that should be disconnected and discarded. Hangers are also known as butcher&s steaks because in the old days no one wanted such a homely-looking piece of meat and so the butchers took them home for their own families&much to their delight. Today these cuts are extremely trendy and popular, and for good reason: Hanger steak is full bodied and downright delicious. It takes very well to being marinated.
Serves 4

2 hanger steaks, about 1 pound each, cleaned, trimmed, and jacquarded by a butcher
Balsamic Marinade (recipe below)
Olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Mushroom Jus (recipe below)

In a shallow baking dish, cover the steaks with the marinade. Gently rub it into the meat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours or up to 36 hours. Prepare a clean, well-oiled charcoal or gas grill so that the coals or heat element are medium-hot. Or, heat the broiler.

Lift the steaks from the marinade and let the marinade drip into the dish. Brush the steaks with olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper. Grill the steaks, turning 2 or 3 times, for a total of 12 to 14 minutes for medium-rare meat. Brush the steaks with the marinade during the first half of grilling. If the thin ends of the steaks are getting done before the thicker, turn the steaks so that the thin sections are on the outer, or cooler, part of the grill. Let the steaks rest for about 5 minutes before serving.

Meanwhile, in a saucepan, heat the jus over medium heat until very hot. Slice the steaks against the grain, and divide among 4 serving plates or arrange on a platter. Spoon the jus over the steak and serve.

Balsamic Marinade
Makes about 3 1/2 cups, enough for 4 to 6 (12- to 16-ounce) steaks

3/4 cup balsamic vinegar

2 teaspoons grated orange zest

& cup freshly squeezed orange juice

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 shallot, minced

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

2 1/2 cups olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a glass, ceramic, or other nonreactive mixing bowl, stir together the vinegar, orange zest and juice, garlic, shallot, and thyme. Whisk in the olive oil until it comes together. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Use immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Mushroom Jus
Makes about 2 cups

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons minced shallots
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 cups sliced shiitake mushrooms
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups Veal Jus, demi-glace, or reduced chicken stock

In a medium-sized saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Saute the shallots and garlic for 3 to 4 minutes, until softened. Add the mushrooms and saute for about 3 minutes, or until the mushrooms begin to exude their liquid. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the veal jus, raise the heat to medium-high, and bring to a simmer. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes, or until the sauce comes together. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

&From Steak with Friends: At Home, with Rick Tramonto by Rick Tramonto with Mary Goodbody/Andrews McMeel Publishing

Short-Lived, Tate Still Rings True

Friday, August 6, 2010 at 9:00 am

Do you remember one of the most famous television advertising campaigns during the 1960s? I&ll give you a hint. It was a cigarette commercial with a good-looking cowboy as the actor. If you guessed the Marlboro Man, you&re right.

David McLean was the Marlboro Man and also played Tate in the 1960 television western series of the same name. Tate lost the use of his left arm in the Civil War and had become a bounty hunter in order to raise enough money to have his arm surgically repaired. Despite the fact that he only has the use of his right arm, he has a reputation as an extremely fast gunfighter, which usually put him in harm&s way, as other gunslingers want to try and best him. Tate cuts an imposing figure with his left arm covered in black leather from fingertips to elbow and cradled in a sling. True to most western heroes of the early years, Tate was discriminating in the jobs that he took and always won out in the end. As a gun-for-hire, he reminds me of Paladin in Have Gun & Will Travel

This NBC television series was short-lived and only appeared for one season, but it holds the distinction of being one of the first television series to cast a lead character as physically disabled, thus paving the way for other shows to follow suit. If you think about it, you probably can name at least two or three other series that have used nondisabled actors to play physically disabled leads. I remember Raymond Burr plays a wheelchair-bound chief of detectives in Ironside; James Franciscus plays blind insurance investigator Mike Longstreet in Longstreet; and Kevin McHale plays Artie, who is confined to a wheelchair, in the current hit television series Glee.

The three DVD set, containing all 13 episodes of this classic western, was released in 2007. The black-and-white series features many outstanding celebrities such as Robert Redford, Warren Oates, James Coburn, Martin Landau, Royal Dano, and Leonard Nimoy. I&ve added it to my western collection and hope you do so as well. You can click here to watch the episode "Comanche Scalps."

Eating Local

Thursday, August 5, 2010 at 10:08 am

In the upcoming October issue of C&I, we visit a variety of farmers markets throughout the West, emphasizing the importance of buying and eating meat and produce raised by local farmers and ranchers. Sur La Table is also on the local food farmwagon, and has recently released the beautiful cookbook Eating Local: The Cookbook Inspired by America's Farmers (Andrews McMeel, 2010) by Janet Fletcher. To accommodate home cooks who are shopping at farmers markets (or in their own backyard), the book is arranged not by type but by the dominant ingredient. So if you find yourself with an abundance of beets, you'll have plenty of options for how to cook them (try Creamy Beet and Tahini Dip, Golden Beet and Blood Orange Salad, or Warm Beet Greens and Beet Stems with Whipped Feta). But what I bet you'll have soon is a tsunami of squash, so here's a creative, simple, and healthy way to serve the summer standby.

Summer Squash Carpaccio with Arugula, Pecorino, and Almonds
Serves 4
When shaved thinly, vegetables that you might not normally eat raw present new possibilities. Long, straight-sided summer squashes like green and yellow zucchini look like wide ribbons when shaved for this salad. A brief rest in a garlicky vinaigrette renders them supple, so they can be tossed with arugula and shavings of salty cheese. Zephyr squash, a straightneck variety popular at Austin&s Green Gate Farms, would be ideal for this recipe because each squash has both yellow and green markings.

Ingredients

1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1 pound small zucchini, preferably a mix of green and yellow varieties, no more than 5 inches long
2 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 small clove garlic, minced to a paste
Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 handfuls of arugula (about 3 ounces)
Chunk of pecorino toscano, ricotta salata, or other medium-aged pecorino cheese, for shaving

1. Preheat the oven to 350&F. Toast the almonds on a baking sheet until golden brown and fragrant, 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool.
2. Trim the ends of the zucchini. With a mandoline or other manual vegetable slicer, or a vegetable peeler, shave the zucchini thinly lengthwise. Discard the first and last slices of each squash, which are mostly skin. Put the zucchini ribbons in a large bowl.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and salt to taste. Add the dressing to the shaved zucchini and toss with your hands to coat it evenly. Taste and add more salt if necessary. Let stand for 5 minutes to allow the zucchini to soften.
4. Add the arugula to the zucchini. With a cheese plane or vegetable peeler, shave about 3 ounces of cheese, or as much as you like, into the bowl. Add several grinds of black pepper, then toss gently with your hands. Transfer the salad to a serving platter, leaving any watery juices behind. Top with the toasted almonds. Serve immediately.

&From Eating Local: The Cookbook Inspired by America&s Farmers by Sur La Table and Janet Fletcher/Andrews McMeel Publishing

Wednesday Western: 'The Desert Trail'

Wednesday, August 4, 2010 at 11:23 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: The Desert Trail, a 1935 Western adventure starring John Wayne as a straight-shooting cowboy who must take flight to clear his name when he's wrongly accused of robbery -- and murder -- after earning prize money at the Rattlesnake Gulch Rodeo.

Hi Yo Silver: A Tribute to Clayton Moore

Tuesday, August 3, 2010 at 10:54 am

The Lone Ranger was one of the first Western series to be produced for television, and after the usual round of auditions, veteran serial star Clayton Moore was tapped to play the masked man. Beginning in September of '49, Clayton&s voice helped The Lone Ranger become one of the most fondly remembered early TV series and an enduring American icon.

This year, the Happy Trails Children&s Foundation honors Clayton Moore and The Lone Ranger as part of their Silver Screen Legend XIII charity auction. Included this year is a fantastic pair of Damascus steel spurs made and donated by knife and spur maker Charles Sauer. Jim Lockwood of Legends in Leather added a hand-carved and Sterling silver mounted double holster rig along with the matching spur straps.

As if that wasn't enough, the rig features sterling silver conchas and buckle sets on the spur straps by Michael Ekstrom, as well as engraving on the pistols by Conrad Anderson, Ivory grips were hand crafted by Bob Leskovec and 33 solid sterling silver bullets in the cartridge cases on the belt.

Order your tickets today for this beautiful and unique museum quality one-of-a-kind cowboy collectible. Tickets are $10 each or 11 tickets for $100. The drawing will be held Saturday evening, December 18, 2010 (you do not need to be present to win). The winner will be notified by phone. You may check our web site for the winner's name, after the drawing.

Total proceeds of this drawing benefit the Happy Trails Children's Foundation for abused children. Call (760) 240-3330 or visit www.happytrails.org for more information.

More stars lassoed for 'Hell on Wheels'

Monday, August 2, 2010 at 11:58 am

Two more lead players -- Anson Mount, perhaprs best known for his continuing roles on the TV series First Watch, Line of Fire and Conviction, and Irish actress Dominique McElligott, last seen opposite Sam Rockwell in the sci-fi drama Moon -- have signed on to join rapper-actor Common in Hell on Wheels, a new Western series planned for the AMC cable network.

According to Hollywood.com: "Set during the building of the Transcontinental Railroad in the 1860s, Hell On Wheels follows Cullen (Mount), a former slave owner and Confederate soldier driven by the desire to avenge the murder of his wife by Union soldiers. He ends up working on the railroad out in Nebraska, along with Elam (Common), and Lily Bell (McElligott), an intelligent young woman taking care of her sick husband, one of the railroad's surveyors."

The pilot for Hell on Wheels is scheduled to start filming later this month on location in Alberta, Canada.

A Horse's Tale

Monday, August 2, 2010 at 10:52 am

The National Quilt Museum in Paducah, KY is having a juried exhibit of international quilts relating to &/or depicting horses. The exhibit "A Horse's Tale" will run from Aug.13 to Nov. 16 to coincide with the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. &Visit www.quiltmuseum.org for more details.

Breakfast with the Curators

Sunday, August 1, 2010 at 10:47 am
Get your day started right with Breakfast &with the Curators, a series of&lectures and&artist presentations held every August at the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture on Santa Fe's Museum Hill. Meet and learn about Native American artists, tour the museum exhibits, and go behind-the-scenes with MIAC curators and scholars. Tickets cost $25/$20 for MNMF members, with museum admission included. Call 476.1247 or 476.1271 for reservations and more information. All events begin with breakfast at the newly reopened Museum Hill Café at 8:30 a.m. followed by programs at the Museum, scheduled to end at 10:00 a.m. August 13- Huichol Art and Culture: Balancing the World: Breakfast with Dr. Jill Grady and Dr. Peter Furst, guest curators and anthropologists, followed by a tour of the exhibit Huichol Art and Culture: Balancing the World. August 17- Indian Market Highlights: Gerónima Cruz Montoya: Breakfast with Bruce Bernstein, Director of SWAIA, Santa Fe Indian Market, followed by a talk entitled &Geronima Cruz Montoya Country: An Indigenous New Mexico Story & and highlights of Geronima Cruz Montoya&s works in the MIAC Collections. August 20- Function to Fine Art: American Indian Basketry - A Preview Behind the Scenes at MIAC: Breakfast with Larry Dalrymple, guest curator and well-known basketry expert, followed by a talk introducing our upcoming basketry exhibit &From Function to Fine Art: American Indian Basketry& and a behind-the-scenes tour of MIAC&s basket collection. August 27 - Lonnie Vigil: 2010 Native Treasures Artist Honoree: Breakfast with Lonnie Vigil, renowned micaceous potter and 2010 MIAC Native Treasures Artist Honoree, followed by a talk and viewing of &Lonnie Vigil&s work on display at the Museum.

Wagon Train – “The Willy Moran Story”

Friday, July 30, 2010 at 9:00 am

About three months ago, I was in The Arrangement Western Interiors store in Dallas. I was shopping for accessories for my &Western room.& I ran across a bronze sculpture of a Conestoga wagon drawn by several oxen. I really wanted that sculpture, but it was way out of my price range and I didn&t have enough space on my coffee table to do it justice, as I already had a book of photographs from Lonesome Dove and an Indian pot. But I continued to think about this sculpture for a long time. It reminded me of the western series Wagon Train. I loved that show dearly. Each week a well-crafted hour-long, black-and-white episode featured a major star and provided me with what I call &life lessons.& My mother, my religious background, and all of the westerns that I have watched over the years helped to form my character. If you stop and look back, I&m sure you might also realize that westerns played some part in establishing some of your values.

Inspired by the classic John Ford western film, Wagon Master, Wagon Train ran for eight seasons from 1957 to 1965 and starred Ward Bond as Major Seth Adams, the wagon master, and Robert Horton as Flint McCullough, the scout. Terry Wilson played Bill Hawks; Denny Miller played Duke Shannon; John McIntire played Christopher Hale; and Frank McGrath played Charlie Wooster, the cook.

&The Willy Moran Story,& Wagon Train&s premiere episode, debuted on NBC on September 18, 1957. Ernest Borgnine played Willy Moran, a former boxer, who served in Union Army during the Civil War with Adams. Willy has become a drunkard and has hit bottom. He is recruited by Mr. Robinson, played by Donald Randolph, to drive his wagon from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Kansas. His original driver, a man by the name of Brady, played by Andrew Duggan, has not arrived and the wagon train must depart. Robinson and Brady (who arrives after the train has left St. Joseph) are part of William Quantrill&s guerilla force and are planning a raid to obtain ammunition carried by the wagon train. A widow with two children show an interest in Willy, who is trying to redeem himself on the journey. The raid takes place; and Willy distinguishes himself by risking his life to get close enough to catapult a keg of lit gunpowder into the nest of raiders. The outlaws scatter. Willy ends up driving the widow, her wounded uncle, and the two children on to Kansas. &Wagons ho!&

If you are interested in watching this episode and others, purchase Wagon Train & The Complete First Season, which was released in December 2009. Click here to watch the opening and hear the theme from Wagon Train.

Wednesday Western: 'From Noon Till Three'

Wednesday, July 28, 2010 at 12:02 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: From Noon Till Three, writer-director Frank D. Gilroy's slyly amusing Western comedy starring Charles Bronson and Jill Ireland. A second-rate outlaw named Graham Dorsey (Bronson, deftly spoofing his own macho image) decides to dally while his partners rob a bank, and spends three blissful hours at the ranch of Amanda Starbuck (Ireland), a beautiful widow he tricks into falling for him. After he departs -- and is reported killed by a posse -- Amanda greatly romanticizes their relationship in an account that inspires books, plays and popular songs. As a result, Graham is transformed into a larger-than-life legend -- a legend that must endure, Amanda decides, even after she learns he isn't really dead.

An uncommon rapper-actor goes Western

Tuesday, July 27, 2010 at 2:43 p.m.

The rap music artist known as Common (born Lonnie Rashied Lynn Jr.) is the first notable signed for the cast of Hell on Wheels, AMC's pilot for a proposed Western series about the building of the Transcontinental Railroad. This won't be his first acting gig -- he recently starred opposite Queen Latifah in the romantic comedy Just Wright, and appeared with Steve Carell and Tina Fey in Date Night -- but it's first lead role in a TV project. In Hell on Wheels, Common will play Elam, a freed slave who goes West to seek a job on the railroad. Additional cast announcements are expected soon, as the pilot starts filming next month in Alberta, Canada.

Garage Sale Yields Rare Ansel Adams Find

Tuesday, July 27, 2010 at 10:18 am

Save your dimes and quarters and hit the classified sections this weekend - an afternoon picking over a garage sale yielded a box of rare Ansel Adams glass negatives that could be worth millions to one man. Any question of authenticity has effectively been negated. CNN reports that the plates were individually wrapped in newspaper inside deteriorating manila envelopes. Notations on each envelope appeared to have been made by Virginia Adams, the photographer's wife, and matched samples provided by the Adams' grandson.

Cowboy Cooking for Kids

Tuesday, July 27, 2010 at 10:11 am
Fort Worth, Texas' own Judie Byrd started a cooking school out of her home more than two decades ago. She quickly outgrew her own kitchen and subsequently opened the Culinary School of Fort Worth on El Campo and Camp Bowie, but soon she needed even more room and moved to the old Balcony Restaurant in 2003. There, after hearing complaints from young mothers in her classes that even though they had learned some great recipes and tips, they still had to go grocery shopping, head home, prep and cook the food for their families, Byrd had an idea for a new kind of class. She developed the concept of Super Suppers, where participants arrive empty-handed and leave a few hours later with a dozen healthy entries, each of which feeds four adults, to take home and freeze. Her franchise has gone national, including to my hometown of Perrysburg, Ohio, where my father and grandparents are devotees. Cassie Egli, who is in Rotary with my dad, runs the Perrysburg-Maumee branch, and it turns out that she is putting the West in the Midwest this summer with cowboy cooking classes for kids. Kids learn to make rustic recipes with big, bold Texas flavors, including King Ranch chicken and empanadas de dulce (sweet apples stuffed in pastry). The class is $35 (or sign up for 3 for $99) and is open to kids 4-15 years of age. Each child will go home with 3 servings of each item they make so they can cook the family dinner that night.

A posthumous pardon for Billy the Kid?

Monday, July 26, 2010 at 1:46 p.m.

Looks like one of the most famous -- or, if you prefer, infamous -- figures of the Wild West era may get an official pardon by New Mexico governor Bill Richardson.

First look: 'Cowboys & Aliens'

Saturday, July 24, 2010 at 9:10 p.m.

The sci-fi Western Cowboys & Aliens isn't slated to open until next year -- literally, July 29 -- but Cowboys & Indians has gotten hold of the first officially released image from the film: Daniel Craig (a.k.a. James Bond) as Jake Lonergan, a lone cowboy who leads an uprising against extraterrestrial invaders. Looks here like he got his hands on some of the enemy's weaponry.

'Strong' enough to compete for Oscars?

Thursday, July 22, 2010 at 5:10 p.m.

Remember when we told you a while back about a movie Gwyneth Paltrow and Tim McGraw were shooting in Nashville? The one in which she played a hard-drinking country music artist, and he played her manager-husband? Well, that movie, originally known as Love Don't Let Me Down, has a new title -- Country Strong -- and a tentative release date: Dec. 22. It's always a little dangerous to rush to assumptions, but a release that late in the year usually indicates that the folks distributing a film are thinking about possible Academy Award nominations. And as Jeff Bridges and Robert Duvall can tell you, there's nothing like playing a faded country star to increase your chances for Oscar gold.

Jackson Hole Art Auction

Thursday, July 22, 2010 at 12:51 p.m.

Mark your calendar and pull out the mattress cash for the Jackson Hole Art Auction, coming Saturday, September 18 in Jackson Hole. This year's event is "An Auction of Past and Present Masters of the American West," and marks the fourth year for auction.

Trailside Galleries of Jackson, WY and Scottsdale, AZ, in partnership with the Gerald Peters Gallery of Santa Fe, NM are gearing up for what has become one of the premier western art events in the country. Works by living artists like William Acheff, Clyde Aspevig, Ken Carlson, Martin Grelle, Bill Owen, G. Harvey, and Kenneth Riley are just a few of the notables featured in the upcoming sale. The sale will also feature important works byt the great historically recognized artists of the American West, including William R. Leigh, Oscar Berninghaus, E. Martin Hennings, and Charlie Dye.

The 4th annual Jackson Hole Art Auction will be held at the Center for the Arts in Jackson, Wyoming. For further information call 1.866.549.9278, visit www.jacksonholeartauction.com.

Wednesday Western: 'Young Billy Young'

Wednesday, July 21, 2010 at 12:22 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: Young Billy Young, a 1969 shoot-'em-up by veteran Western writer-director Burt Kennedy (Welcome to Hard Times, Support Your Local Sheriff), starring Robert Mitchum as Ben Kane, a former Dodge City sheriff who takes on the job as lawman in a small town to settle an old score. Once he starts wearing the badge, he's aided and abetted by two unlikely allies: a hot-headed young gunfighter (Robert Walker Jr.) and a sassy dancehall girl (Angie Dickinson). Look for David Carradine in a supporting role as the son of the varmint who murdered Kane's son.

Wyatt Earp in Sin City

Tuesday, July 20, 2010 at 12:49 p.m.

Looks like sci-fi Westerns may be the hot new Hollywood craze. Later this month, Cowboys and Aliens -- an action-adventure that pits cowboys and Indians against extraterrestrials in 1873 Arizona -- starts shooting on location in Santa Fe with Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford in lead roles. And now Spider-Man director Sam Raimi has announced plans to film Earp: Saints for Sinners, a fantastical drama that transports Wyatt Earp to a futuristic world to battle bad guys.

Like Cowboys and Aliens, Saints for Sinners is based on a "graphic novel" (what us geezers used to call a "comic book"). It's a product of Radical Publishing, the same outfit that gave us Caliber, a series that resets the King Arthur legend in the Wild West. Judging from the blurb on the Radical website, the plot of Saints for Sinners sounds a bit like Mad Max goes to Tombstone:

"In a world where the American economy has all but collapsed to the levels of the Great Depression, infamous bandits roam the country and the law is as corrupt as the criminals it's sworn to stop. Yet one lawman remains a steadfast moral compass for the people: WYATT EARP. Earp has collared more most-wanted men than anyone in history -& but after a violent assignment claims the life of his brother, Wyatt sets out to forge a simple life in the only boomtown left: Las Vegas. With gorgeous women and free-flowing money on endless tap, Sin City attracts more people than a modern gold rush. Though Earp no longer wears a U.S. Marshal&s badge, his past is about to catch up to him. With nearly everything to lose, Earp will have to beat the odds stacked against him in order to bring old-fashioned justice to Sin City.

No word yet about casting or planned release date. Stay tuned for further details.

Happy Birthday, Cormac McCarthy

Tuesday, July 20, 2010 at 10:36 am

Say what you will about his tempestuous and ultra-violent Blood Meridian, I still think The Border Trilogy (All The Pretty Horses, The Crossing, and Cities of the Plain) is one of the most beautiful pieces of western fiction ever written.

For those of us who grew up loving Louis L'Amour, Elmer Kelton, and Larry McMurtry, reading Cormac McCarthy for the first time was like being introduced to 100-proof whiskey after a life of drinking nothing but beer: his books are wild, passionate to a fault, and just a little bit dangerous.

Cormac McCarthy is frequently called one of America's greatest living writers, and to me it is no coincidence that a good part of his life's work happens to be Westerns. I'm glad to wish him happy birthday today.

R.I.P.: James Gammon (1940-2010)

Sunday, July 18, 2010 at 5:55 p.m.

Happy trails to James Gammon, the veteran character actor who passed away Friday at age 70. Western fans will remember well his appearances in such films and TV dramas as Streets of Laredo, The Sacketts, The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez, Silverado, Wyatt Earp, Wild Bill and Monte Walsh. But his gravelly voice and craggy features also served him well in other sorts of movies -- most notably, the comedy Major League and its sequel, which found him perfectly cast as a cantankerous baseball coach.

"The Cowboys' Kitchen" on RFD-TV

Sunday, July 18, 2010 at 9:00 am

"The Cowboys' Kitchen" with Grady Spears premiered earlier this month on RFD-TV (click here for the full schedule). You sharp-eyed western decor buffs probably noticed the Rodeo and Boots & Saddle china pattern that gave the table setting just the right touch of classic cowboy decor -- that's right, Westward Ho from True West Home. Each week the show invites us into Grady&s outdoor kitchen where friends and family gather around to experience his modern twists on hundreds of classic cowboy dishes from appetizers to desserts and everything in between.

Spears appeared on Good Morning America about this same time last year to educate some greenhorns about cooking a burger, but you may not know that he previously did a PBS pilot tentatively called "The Cowboy Way." And of course, those of us who like a cool drink now and then keep a well-thumbed copy of his book Cowboy Cocktails by our bedside.

Between the various books he's published (like the recent Cooking the Cowboy Way) and his television savvy, we hope he'll have time to make his new RFD-TV show a regular thing. The world needs more cowboy cooking, if you ask us.

Hopalong Cassidy

Friday, July 16, 2010 at 11:29 am

I was out shopping for an antique lamp last week and ran across an old Roy Rogers lunchbox shaped like a radio. It started me thinking about the various lunchboxes that my mother bought me while I was growing up. Try and remember your first Western-themed lunch box & for me, it was Hopalong Cassidy, followed by Roy Rogers, and then Annie Oakley (from what I gather, Cassidy&s image was the first to be put on a lunchbox).

It&s common knowledge that Hopalong Cassidy (1952 & 54), featuring silver haired William Boyd, was the first network western series on television. Hopalong was an all-around good guy who got his nickname from a gunshot wound that left him with a slight limp. &Hoppy& didn&t smoke, chew tobacco, drink, or swear. He always wore black clothes and a black 10-gallon hat. Topper, his horse, was solid white. Together, they made a striking pair. Hopalong Cassidy&s enormous popularity started a craze that lasted almost two decades and inspired the development of other family-oriented westerns, such as The Gene Autry Show and The Roy Rogers Show .

The premier episode of the Hopalong Cassidy series, &Borrowed Trouble,& features sidekicks Andy Clyde as California Carlson and Rand Brooks as Lucky Jenkins. Cast members include Anne O&Neal, John Parrish, Cliff Clark, Helen Chapman, Earle Hodgins, Herbert Rawlinson, Don Haggerty, and James Harrison. In &Borrowed Trouble,& a new saloon opens up too close to the town&s only school (spoiler alert!). Miss Abbott, the schoolmarm, played by O&Neal, keeps throwing apples and breaking the saloon&s windows in an effort to thwart its opening. The owner of the only other saloon in town, the Big Dome, gets the idea that if he kidnaps the schoolteacher, the owner of the new Golden Mill Saloon will be blamed. Hoppy saves the day, and the owner of the Golden Mill Saloon is exonerated. All ends well as Golden Mill Saloon owner Steve Mawson, played by Parrish, buys and donates the Big Dome Saloon to serve as a new school.

Hopalong Cassidy: The Complete Television Collection (52 episodes on DVD and 10 digitally remastered feature films), was released in 2007 and includes &Borrowed Trouble.&

Search for the World's Best Indian Taco

Thursday, July 15, 2010 at 9:00 am

Food is often the inspiration for film: Chocolat; Food, Inc.; Julie and Julia; Big Night;& even Ratatouille. Now it's time for frybread's big break in Search for the World&s Best Indian Taco, a whimsical short film which has its film festival premiere at L.A. Shorts Fest on Tuesday, July 27, as part of the 7:45pm program. Directed and co-written by Kiowa/Choctaw filmmaker Steven Judd, Search for the World&s Best Indian Taco tells the story of an old Indian man who regales his grandson with tall tales of his lifelong search for true love.

The short film is a production of InterTribal Entertainment (ITE), a workforce development initiative of the nonprofit Southern California Indian Center, Inc.& The purpose of ITE is to provide employment and training opportunities for American Indians interested in careers in the entertainment industry.& Each year, ITE funds and facilitates an environment for American Indian writers, directors, actors, producers and technicians to collaborate with professional mentors in film production settings.& Last year, Search for the World&s Best Indian Taco was chosen for production after it emerged as the winner of ITE&s competitive call for short scripts from American Indian writers nationwide.

Director/co-writer Judd&s inspiration for the script came from growing up watching action heroes on the big screen.& Recalls Judd, &The biggest reason I wrote and wanted to shoot this was because I wanted to have a cool Indian on screen driving a cool car.& When I was growing up and in college, I&d see cool cats in movies, guys that I wanted to be like & Indiana Jones, Clint Eastwood, any character from a Quentin Tarantino movie.& But there never was a Native guy who was& just cool.&& Judd gets his wish and more in Search for the World&s Best Indian Taco.& Not only is there a cool guy, but also a beautiful girl, a flying car, and a talking rabbit.

&This film is the perfect example of the kind of quality, entertaining work that American Indian talent is capable of producing,& says James Lujan, Director of InterTribal Entertainment.& &I think it&s important for Native storytellers to convey the American Indian experience by crossing over and connecting with non-Indian audiences.&

Epazote

Wednesday, July 14, 2010 at 5:50 p.m.

My sister and brother-in-law just returned to Colorado from a weekend trip to Santa Fe, and they can't stop raving about a new restaurant called Epazote. Turns out that Fernando Olea (the chef) bought Bert's Burger Bowl and Bert's La Taqueria more than 20 years ago, but just recently opened an upscale restaurant on the same premises as La Taqueria on Agua Fria.& Fernando, who is originally from Mexico, moved to the States when he married a woman from the Midwest then held a myriad of jobs (including working in business administration and cosmetology) before embracing his love of food. After returning to Mexico to collect his family's traditional recipes, he began experimenting and quickly became a mole expert. His new restaurant features three distinct moles every night. And my sister enjoyed every last one of them.

Wednesday Western: 'Fighting Caravans'

Wednesday, July 14, 2010 at 12:03 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: Fighting Caravans, a two-fisted, straight-shootin' Western based loosely -- very loosely -- on a novel by Zane Grey, starring Gary Cooper as a frontier scout who finds love and adventure while guiding a wagon train through dangerous territory.

R.I.P.: C.H. "Bud" Humphrey (1924-2010)

Tuesday, July 13, 2010 at 2:29 p.m.

C&I would like to extend condolences to the family and friends of PRCA Gold Card member C.H. "Bud" Humphrey, who passed away July 4 in Temple, Texas, at age 86. A former member of the Old Time Rodeo Cowboy Association, the Historical Rodeo Association and the Cowboy Alumni Association, Humphrey was inducted into the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame in 1995 and the Bell County (Texas) Cowboy and Cowgirl Ring of Honor in 2001.

Returning to those thrilling days of yesteryear...

Tuesday, July 13, 2010 at 12:46 p.m.

Comic Jay Thomas recalls a memorable encounter with The Lone Ranger in this classic clip from Late Show with David Letterman. (And a tip of the Stetson to Ivan G. Shreve Jr. for recalling the recollection.)

Texana and Western Americana Auction at Heritage

Tuesday, July 13, 2010 at 9:00 am

Back in May, a superbly colorful and remarkably well-preserved American hand-carved Cigar Store Indian, which had sat in a Washington, D.C.-area basement for at least 20 years, brought a world record public auction price of $203,150. This remarkable work of art was part of Heritage Auction Galleries Political & Americana Auction, which realized total sales of more than $1.25 million.

Much of the success at the May 22 auction came in the form of Western Americana at Heritage, with some 150 diverse lots. The top seller was a rare &Pony Express Bible,& which sold for $20,315. The Pony Express provided one of these Bibles to each of its riders, and only a few copies are believed to have survived.

The auction also included a fine selection of historical photography, a category Heritage plans to develop further in future sales, according to Slater. A three-quarter plate tinted daguerreotype of a Shakespearean actor drew spirited bidding, ultimately selling for $13,145 against a high-estimate of $6500. A number of 19th century Western images by William Henry Jackson also inspired aggressive bidding, with a photo of Sitting Crow bringing $4,183 against a pre-sale high-estimate of $2500 leading the way. A superb circa 1871 expedition photo of the Colorado River by T. H. O&Sullivan sold for $9560, completely obliterating its $800-1500 pre-auction estimate.

Your next opportunity to own a piece of history is coming soon - the September Signature Texana and Western Americana Auction opens for bidding around Aug 26, with the official event running Sept. 14-15. Looking to sell ? Better hurry - the consignment deadline is Friday, July 23.
FYI: Heritage Auction Galleries, www.ha.com, 1-800-872-6467

Robert Highsmith at Marigold Arts

Monday, July 12, 2010 at 4:29 p.m.

There is nothing like a cool, shady river in July, but if you can't catch time for a dip, Robert Highsmith's paintings are the next best thing to being there.

 Marigold Arts gallery in Santa Fe presents a solo exhibition of watercolors by Robert Highsmith until August 11. Featuring scenes of summer in New Mexico and Colorado, Highsmith's photorealist watercolor landscapes have earned him Best of Show in Western Impressions, El Paso and the Top 100 Award in both Paint the Parks (St. Louis, MO), and Paint America (Topeka, KS).

With strong, simple studies of the the light and landscape of the Southwest, Highsmith&s paintings are full of subtlety that masks the technique required to achieve the remarkable photorealism that have earned him his accolades.

Highsmith&s work has been widely exhibited across the United States and has won more than one hundred awards, including the Emily Goldsmith Award from the American Watercolor Society in New York, NY. He's in a fine company at Marigold Arts - the gallery represents some of the best of fine art and craft by New Mexico artists, covering everything from hand-woven textiles and rag rugs to sculpture, clay, and jewelry.

Artists Invited to Show, Sell at Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center

Sunday, July 11, 2010 at 4:19 p.m.

The Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center and Wildlife Forever invites artists to participate in the &Art&s Better Outside& expo on Saturday, July 17, 2010, at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens, 75 miles southeast of Dallas.

The art show and sale will be in conjunction with the Wildlife Forever State-Fish Art Contest national expo, which will be attended by student artists from around the nation. Artists are encouraged to actively demonstrate their craft or offer a hands-on art-related activity for the visiting public.

To learn more about becoming involved in the event, call (903) 670-2266. For information on the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center and the Wildlife Forever State-Fish Art Contest, visit www.statefishart.com.

Saved from the slaughterhouse

Sunday, July 11, 2010 at 12:58 p.m.

A real-life drama with a happy ending: Thanks to the last-minute efforts of activists backed by a California winery owner, 174 horses up for sale at a state-sanctioned auction in Nevada will not be galloping off into the sunset.

Farm Fab

Sunday, July 11, 2010 at 9:00 am

Garden parties are a daily occurrence at The Inn at Dos Brisas, the Relais & Chateaux epicurean retreat just outside of Houston, and the guests of honor, whose names include Buttercup, Calliope, King Harry, Royal Hillbilly, and Kermit, don&t travel far for the occasion for they sprout just steps from the kitchen door. &Now the exclusive resort and restaurant is bringing the garden party indoors with the unveiling of a new 7,000-square-foot greenhouse. Upon completion, hundreds of varieties of organic fruits and vegetables will be cultivated in the technological conservatory which will feature fogging systems, multiple area curtaining, automated side walls, extensive air circulation automation, computer controlled organic feeding and watering systems, and heating and cooling from geothermal wells. The new greenhouse will provide chef Jason Robinson and the team at Dos Brisas a steady supply of fruits and vegetables year-round in addition to the more than 400 varieties grown outdoors.

Epicurean Experience

Saturday, July 10, 2010 at 9:00 am

Head to the historic Omni La Mansión del Rio on San Antonio&s famed River Walk for an exclusive epicurean experience. From Friday, July 9 to Sunday, July 11 (with additional dates to be announced), the hotel will be offering a three-day package for up to eight participants,& including locals and overnight hotel guests. Rates start at $419 per night, based on double occupancy with a two night minimum stay. Additional services such as spa treatments at Forbes Four Star Watermark Spa can also be added à la carte. Highlights of the weekend include an hour-long Chef&s Table Reception in the hotel's acclaimed Las Canarias kitchen, a visit to the farmers' market with Chef Brand to search for ingredients for an afternoon cooking class, a group dinner at Las Canarias where attendees will indulge in the cuisine they&ve prepared, and a Sunday Champagne Brunch. Reservations for Chef Brand&s Epicurean Experience can be booked by calling Omni La Mansión del Rio at 210.367.6428.

Taos Pueblo Commemorates 40th Anniversary of the Return of Blue Lake

Friday, July 9, 2010 at 9:00 am

Taos Pueblo, in north central New Mexico, will commemorate the 40th Anniversary of the return of its sacred Blue Lake and surrounding lands on Saturday, July 10 during the 25th annual Taos Pueblo Pow Wow.   This remembrance and celebration will observe one of the most significant occasions in the history of Taos Pueblo and the American Indian People: the Pueblo&s& 64-year struggle with the United States Government to reclaim religious freedom and protection of sacred land.   The kick-off event will take place during Saturday afternoon&s Grand Entry at 1 p.m. at the Taos Pueblo Pow-Wow grounds. Special welcoming remarks will be made by Tribal Leadership and Blue Lake Committee to kick off this momentous occasion.

  On December 15, 1970, former President Richard M. Nixon signed into affect Public Law 91-550, stating, &this is a bill that represents justice, because in 1906 an injustice was done in which land involved in this bill, 48,000 acres, was taken from the Indians involved, the Taos Pueblo Indians. The Congress of the United States now returns that land to whom it belongs… I can&t think of anything more appropriate or any action that could make me more proud as President of the United States.&   Nixon's signing restored Taos Pueblo lands and led to the unhindered continuation of the Pueblo&s millennium-old traditional culture. It also set a precedent for self-determination for all American Indian people, tribes and nations.   

For more information, contact the Taos Pueblo Tourism Department at (575) 758-1028 or tourism@taospueblo.com. Visit www.taospueblo.com for general information about the Pueblo.  

Seaweed, Salmon, and Manzanita Cider

Friday, July 9, 2010 at 9:00 am

The plant and animal foods eaten by traditional and contemporary California Indians are the focus of an exhibition that will open at Grace Hudson Museum in Ukiah on Sunday, July 11 at 1 p.m. Seaweed, Salmon, and Manzanita Cider: A California Indian Feast features historic and contemporary photographs, artifacts, food samples, memoirs, and recipes. Essays and anecdotes by contemporary California Indians provide fascinating, affectionate, and sometimes startling insights into the physical and spiritual techniques used by native peoples in the gathering, hunting, winnowing, leaching, and cooking of a tasty array of California's native foods.&The free exhibit opening will include several demonstrations&showing methods of preparing some of these&foods and offering opportunities to sample them.

At the request of Heyday Institute and the California Exhibition Resources Alliance, Sherrie Smith-Ferri, director of the Grace Hudson Museum and member of the Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians, acted as the exhibit's curator&in consultation with her aunt,&California Indian artist Kathleen Rose Smith. The exhibit is based on a&book of the same name by Margaret Dubin and Sara-Larus Tolley (Heyday&Institute, 2008), with major contributions by Smith. The exhibit will be on display at the Grace Hudson Museum through November 4, 2010, and will then&travel for more than three years to other museums throughout California.

The Grace Hudson Museum is at 431 S. Main St. in Ukiah. Photo by Ira Nowinski. Merk Oliver (Yurok) tending the salmon roast at the Yurok Salmon Festival in Klamath on August 20, 2006.

The Big Week

Thursday, July 8, 2010 at 6:00 p.m.

Kick off The Big Week in Salinas this Friday July 9th with Cowboys & Cabernet, the cowboy poetry event and wine tasting. The next day, continue the celebration by bringing back what was once the largest night-lighted parade west of the Mississippi, the Colmo del Rodeo Parade. On Saturday July 10th dozens of local and visiting floats and entries will follow after the annual Kiddie Kapers Parade, featuring more than 2,500 children.

The California Rodeo Salinas is also starting its own Hall of Fame, similar to other rodeos such as the Pendleton Round Up and Cheyenne Frontier Days, with the inaugural induction will take place during Big Week in 2010.

But the true rodeo action begins on Wednesday July 14th with the 10th annual Professional Bull Riding Challenger Tour event at the Salinas Sports Complex, followed by four days of the wild action when the rodeo kicks off on July 15th. The Rodeo itself is unique because it runs much like a two-ring circus with simultaneous action taking place in our arena and on our track that surrounds the arena. A spectator can take in a clown performing an act on the track while also watching saddle bronc horses buck in the arena. Ticket holders will want to be in their seats early to see the grandeur before rodeo action starts in the arena each day. Keep a sharp eye out for The One Arm Bandit and the Riata Ranch Cowboy Girl trick riders.

'Temple Grandin' lassos 15 Emmy nominations

Thursday, July 8, 2010 at 12:53 p.m.

Congratulations to Claire Danes, David Strathairn, Julia Ormond, Catherine O'Hara, director Mick Jackson, scriptwriters Christopher Monger and William Merritt Johnson, and all the other folks who received Emmy Award nominations today for Temple Grandin, the outstanding HBO biopic about the renowned animal behavior scientist who has transcended autism to become one of the world's leading authorities on livestock management. If you'd like to know more about this remarkable woman and her work, check out the next issue of Cowboys & Indians -- availabale at fine newsstands everywhere July 20 -- which features Chuck Restivo's exclusive interview with the real Temple Grandin, and David Hofstede's review of the HBO movie (due Aug. 17 on DVD) inspired by her experiences.

Coreen Cordova Trunk Show

Thursday, July 8, 2010 at 9:00 am

If you know anything about Western style, you're undoubtedly already acquainted with Coreen Cordova (if not, follow the link to read an enchanting article from our December 2009 issue). And if you're any kind of cowboy boot aficionado, you know Back at the Ranch means top-of-the line. So when the two of them get together, it's a formidable combination.
Jewelry lovers should take note: here's an opportunity to double your fun when Coreen Cordova's Trunk Show drops in on Back at the Ranch in Santa Fe, New Mexico. You can get a eyefull of everyone's favorite Western charms from until August 15th.
FYI: Back at the Ranch, 209 E. Marcy St., Santa Fe, New Mexico, 505.989.8110

Wednesday Western: 'Lawman'

Wednesday, July 7, 2010 at 4:47 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: Lawman, a gritty 1971 Western starring Burt Lancaster as a stern small-town marshal bent on arresting some cowhands who accidentally killed an old man during their drunken carousing. Trouble is, the cowhands live in a neighboring town run by an aged despot (Lee J. Cobb) who isn't eager to turn the men -- his employees -- over to the lawman. Complications arise as the marshal reveals himself to be a relentless fanatic who doesn't aim to please. Robert Duvall, Sheree North, Ralph Waite and Robert Ryan co-star under the direction of Michael Winner, a British-born filmmaker whose other credits include the 1972 Western Chato's Land -- and three Death Wish dramas starring Charles Bronson.

Rio Grande Scenic Railroad Concert Series

Wednesday, July 7, 2010 at 1:00 p.m.

Summer is always one of our favorite times to head for Colorado - now theres one more good reason to head for the Rocky Mountains.
Starting this week, Michael Martin Murphey headlines the Rio Grande Scenic Railroad Roots & Boots Summer Concert Series. This marks Murphey's third year performing every single weekend in July -- but the only way to hear him is by hitching a ride on the Rio Grande Scenic Railroad by boarding the train in either Alamosa or La Veta.
You can book your reservation online for a limited time to get tickets at a special price for both the train ride and concert for $20 coach or $30 for an upgrade. Enjoy some scrumptious BBQ while listening to Murphey perform his crowd-pleasing cowboy favorites. Price of admission includes a meet-and-greet with Murphey.
For more information, visit www.coloradotrain.com, or call 877-726-RAIL.

Pepper Pot Soup

Wednesday, July 7, 2010 at 9:00 am

Part of the Iroquoian lineage, the Cherokee Indians left the Great Lakes region for 40,000 miles of lush hills and valleys in& southern Appalachia. They built villages along riverbanks and cleared roads. Council houses were built to represent the people and resolve disputes, and women ran the households. But by the 1600s Spanish, French, and English traders began to encroach upon the Cherokee lands, and by the 1700s the tribe found itself in near constant conflict with colonial armies. Once the settlers discovered gold in the mountains, the Cherokee fate was sealed. President Andrew Jackson passed the Indian Removal Act of 1830 into law and set in motion the tragic massacre and relocation of an entire people.

A few Cherokees hid in the Great Smoky Mountains and were later allowed to claim a small portion of their land in western North Carolina. In 1889, a 56,000-acre section of land, called the Qualla Boundary, was chartered and is now home to almost 11,000 descendants of the original Cherokee nation.& In her new cookbook, Cider Beans, Wild Greens, and Dandelion Jelly, Joan E. Aller documents Cherokee life in the southern Appalachian mountains and shares some recipes she has picked up from friends and neighbors along the way. Try a bowl of Pepper Pot Soup with John Cripe's Fry Bread (page 186), and check out our upcoming September issue for more about the history of Native cuisine.

Pepper Pot Soup
Serves 8 to 10
This old recipe from the Cherokee is delicious. This is the kind of soup that you can add your favorite vegetables to, depending on whatever is available. It&s good in any season. I like to use red bell peppers, crookneck squash, and pattypan squash along with the other ingredients. However, the original recipe is wonderful just as it is.

1 pound beef short ribs
2 large white or yellow onions, quartered
3 ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1 large red, orange, or yellow bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 large turnip, peeled and cubed
1/2 cup diced potato
1/2 cup sliced carrots
1/2 cup corn kernels (drained canned or defrosted frozen)
1/4 cup minced celery
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Put the ribs in a large pot and pour water over them until the water covers the meat by about 1 inch. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat, and then reduce the heat and simmer for 2& hours, or until the meat is done.

Remove the meat and let it cool, reserving the liquid in the pot. Discard the beef bones and return the meat to the pot. Add the onions, tomatoes, bell pepper, turnip, potato, carrots, corn, and celery. Cover and simmer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until the vegetables are tender. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. Serve immediately.

&Reprinted with permission from Cider Beans, Wild Greens, and Dandelion Jelly by Joan E. Aller/Andrews McMeel Publishing

SOFA Symposium kicks off today

Tuesday, July 6, 2010 at 4:18 p.m.

Today marks the beginning of a three-day symposium entitled "Historic Bond/Contemporary Spirit: Collecting New Southwest Native Pottery", presented by the second annual international Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Fair: SOFA WEST: Santa Fe 2010. The symposium runs through Thursday, July 8 at the Santa Fe Convention Center.

Tailored for the art collector and connoisseur, Historic Bond/ Contemporary Spirit symposium presenters to-date include Garth Clark, author/specialist in modern and contemporary ceramics, curator, critic and dealer; Bruce Bernstein, PhD, executive director, Southwestern Association for Indian Arts (SWAIA); and Ellen Bradbury, former director of Museum of Fine Arts in Santa Fe (now New Mexico Museum of Art).

Ellen Bradbury of Recursos de Santa Fe, another key organizer, said, "It has been almost 25 years since there was a serious recap of the world of pueblo ceramics. New Native work has moved from the traditional to the innovative and irreverent, but the roots of the process are always visible and strong. The tension and excitement of these young potters has amazed and delighted collectors and curators."

The symposium will include exclusive, curator-led tours of internationally-recognized museum collections of prehistoric and historic Pueblo pottery, as well as private collections of historic and contemporary Native ceramics. Participants will also tour the breathtakingly beautiful Pueblo of Acoma and witness the making of Pueblo pottery first-hand.

For more information on Historic Bond/Contemporary Spirit, visit www.sofaexpo.com/spirit/ For information on SOFA WEST: Santa Fe 2010, July 8 - 11, Opening Night July 7, A Special Member Preview for Museum of New Mexico Foundation and SOFA VIPs, visit www.sofaexpo.com, email info@theartfaircompany.com or call 773.506.8860.

Guitar For A Cause

Tuesday, July 6, 2010 at 4:11 p.m.

There's still a few days left to bid on this Yamaha F 325, donated and signed by Jeff Connors (son of Chuck &The Rifleman& Connors), in support of National Day of the Cowboy 501(c)3's fundraising efforts. Connors is an enthusiastic advocate for the NDOC, and with his help, the National Day of the Cowboy organization has passed it around to numerous other friends and celebs who have signed it in turn. Pictured is champion yodeler and cowboy poet Gary McMahan, signing the guitar at the Olde Town Pickin' Parlor in Arvada, Colorado. McMahan joined notables such as Ray Benson, Michael Martin Murphey, Jamey Johnson, and Johnny Bush.

The Ebay auction began for this new Yamaha 325 guitar on Thursday, July 1, and will run through July 10th. The winning bidder will also receive the photos of the signers, a Certificate of Authenticity to veryify that the signatures are legitimate, and a soft black case for the guitar.

The National Day of the American Cowboy this year is July 24 - for more information, visit www.nationaldayoftheamericancowboy.com

AMC going Western -- again -- with 'Hell on Wheels'

Tuesday, July 6, 2010 at 12:33 p.m.

After drawing millions of viewers and earning a passel of awards with Broken Trail, AMC may be ready to saddle up again with another Western. The cable network announced Tuesday plans to produce (along with E1 Entertainment and Endemol USA) a pilot titled Hell on Wheels, a period drama that focuses on a former Confederate soldier and his involvement with the building of the Transcontinental Railroad. Created and co-written by Joe and Tony Gayton -- sibling scriptwriters whose credits run the gamut from Uncommon Valor to Murder By Numbers -- it's set to start filming in August on location in Alberta, Canada, under the direction of David Von Ancken (Seraphim Falls).

Joel Stillerman, AMC senior vice president of original programming, production and digital content, is nothing if not enthusiastic about the project: "Hell on Wheels brilliantly captures the world surrounding the construction of the first Transcontinental Railroad in post-Civil War America. The epic setting provides the perfect backdrop for the early industrialism and corruption surrounding the project; the incredible immigrant experience; and the good, the bad, and the ugly of what it took to get this railroad built. The Gaytons have created a high-octane world that pays homage to the script's namesake, and this show fits perfectly with our goal of creating premium television on basic cable."

John Wayne: An American icon on AMC

Thursday, July 1, 2010 at 5:06 p.m.

To celebrate America's birthday, the AMC cable network is showcasing an all-American hero -- John Wayne -- in an Independence Day holiday weekend movie marathon that kicks off at 8 pm today with Hondo. (The classic Western will be rerun at 3 pm Friday). Other titles in the lineup include Rio Bravo (10 pm Thursday, 5 pm Friday), The Comancheros (1 am and 12:30 pm Friday), The War Wagon (3:30 am and 10 am Friday, 1:30 am Sunday), The Horse Soldiers (8 pm Friday, 5:30 pm Saturday), The Wings of Eagles (10:30 pm Friday, 3 pm Saturday), Operation Pacific (1 am and 12:30 pm Saturday), The Shepherd of the Hills (3:30 am and 10:15 am Saturday), McClintock! (8 pm Saturday, 5 pm Sunday), North to Alaska (4 am and 9:15 am Sunday), Chisum (12 noon Sunday), Cahill, U.S. Marshal (11 pm Saturday, 2:30 pm Sunday), The Cowboys (8 pm Sunday, 1:15 am Monday) and The Shootist (11 pm Sunday). Please note: All times listed are Eastern Daylight Time. And if you mosey on over to the AMC website, you'll find a fan quiz, a photo gallery and a movie-ranking poll all devoted to The Duke. Hey, is this a great country or what?

Willard Clark Woodcuts

Thursday, July 1, 2010 at 10:23 am

From Brandon Michael Fine Art in Santa Fe comes 32 woodblock prints from the estate of New Mexico artist Willard Clark. Clark, featured in our upcoming September issue, was a master woodblock printer and his work is becoming increasingly rare. Many of these are re-strikes, but there are several signed originals in the bunch that would make for a fantastic addition to any collection, or a great opportunity to start one. Pictured above is Deer and Lightning, woodcut (signed) 6.5 x 5&, 1st printing, number 13 of 27, circa 1985. Visit Brandon Michael Fine Art to learn more.

'Chicken and Biscuits' and vampires -- oh, my!

Wednesday, June 30, 2010 at 2:20 p.m.

Just in time to capitalize on the phenomenon that is The Twilight Saga: Eclipse -- which, not incidentally, broke all box-office records for a midnight movie premiere during last night's nationwide screenings -- country music artist Colt Ford has put a little twang into Twilight with the new music video for his chart-climbing tune "Chicken and Biscuits."

A huge fan of the entire Twilight franchise, Colt intended his video -- directed by Jason "Potsy" Ponciroli, and filmed on location in Nolensville, TN -- as a spoofy tribute with appeal for both country music fans and the legions of Twihards. "Twilight is such a great love story," Colt says, "and 'Chicken and Biscuits' is a love song about my wife and all country girls. I think the concept of this video is really funny. I hope everyone likes it as much as I do.&

The video offers playful allusions to Twilight regulars Bella, Jacob and the entire Cullen clan, and features Colt himself as the brooding Edward. The big difference is, instead of craving blood, this Edward has an insatiable desire for -- yes, you guessed it! -- Bella's southern-fried chicken and biscuits.

Wednesday Western: 'Riders of Destiny'

Wednesday, June 30, 2010 at 12:01 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: Riders of Destiny, a 1933 five-reeler (barely 53 minutes long) that marked John Wayne's one and only appearance as a singing cowboy. Yes, that's right: Long before Gene Autry and Roy Rogers were crooning tunes while riding the range, The Duke was strumming his guitar and serenading the sagebrush as "Singin' Sandy," a U.S. Secret Service Agent on the trail of a duplicitous land-grabber (Forrest Taylor) and his murderous henchman (Yakima Canutt). Indeed, the movie actually begins with Wayne warbling a ballad that ends with a warning: "There'll be guns a-blazin', a-blazin' with lead. Tonight you'll be drinking your drinks with the dead." No kidding. Wayne biographer Maurice Zolotow insisted in his book Shooting Star that The Duke did his own singing in Riders of Destiny. According to other sources, however, Wayne's singing voice (noticeably unlike his speaking voice) was dubbed by Bill Bradbury -- son of the film's director, Robert Bradbury Jr., and twin brother of Western movie star Bob Steele.

Celebrating Dolly -- and Dollywood

Tuesday, June 29, 2010 at 2:12 p.m.

Hallmark Channel will honor country music icon Dolly Parton -- and observe the silver anniversray of her popular Tennessee theme park -- when the cable network presents Dolly Celebrates 25 Years of Dollywood at 8 p.m. ET Saturday, July 3. The one-hour special, taped on location at Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, TN, has Dolly joined by special guests Miley Cyrus, Billy Ray Cyrus -- and Kenny Rogers, whose chart-topping recording of "Islands in the Stream" with Dolly remains one of the top-selling duet singles of all time. Also on the program: Tributes for Dolly -- and Dollywood, which has played host to more than 62 million visitors since opening in 1986 -- by such notables as Brad Paisley, Faith Hill and Kenny Chesney.

A Bird of a Different Feather

Monday, June 28, 2010 at 10:25 am

To try some authentic Pueblo food, head to the Adobe Gallery in Santa Fe on August 9 from 4 to 7 p.m. In honor of Birds on Pueblo Pottery, an exhibit of important historic pots from 1850-1930 featuring bird motifs used by Southwest indigenous potters for more than a thousand years, the gallery will host a reception Pueblo-style, with authentic Pueblo food made by a Kewa chef who now lives in Jemez. The exhibit will run August 9-31 to coincide with the 2010 SWAIA Indian Market.

For more information call 505.955.0550 or go to www.adobegallery.com; Adobe Gallery, 221 Canyon Road, Santa Fe.& August gallery hours: Mon-Sat 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sundays 12 p.m.- 4 p.m.

Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre

Friday, June 25, 2010 at 10:46 am

Imagine yourself back in the mid 1950s. If you were asked to name the top Western writer, you would have surely said Zane Grey. Zane Grey was a prolific American Western author best known for his wonderful historic rugged tales of the Old West.

Over the years, Grey&s writing has provided the source for over 115 full length Western movies, as well as the Western anthology television series known as Dick Powell&s Zane Grey Theatre, and six spin-off western dramas. Actors such as Robert Ryan, Randolph Scott, Robert Young, Gary Cooper, William Powell, Claudette Colbert, Mary Astor, Jack Palance, Denver Pyle, David Niven, Barbara Stanwyck, Wallace Berry and others became well known because of their frequent appearances in movies and television series that were based on his work.

As I look back, I can remember seeing wonderful actors like Robert Ryan, Randolph Scott, Robert Young, Gary Cooper, William Powell, Claudette Colbert, Mary Astor, and Jack Palance as they appeared on Dick Powell&s Zane Grey Theatre. I can also remember my brother and me quickly finishing up dinner and doing the dishes so that we all could sit down and watch it as a family. My mother especially liked Dick Powell&s introductions of each episode. Powell would introduce the episode and talk about Western folklore and other Western trivia.

The show, which ran on CBS from 1956 to 1961, remained true to the spirit of the author&s source text, even if they drifted a bit from the plot sometimes. A good example is the premiere episode You Only Run Once, which focuses on revenge and vigilantism. Matt Jessop, played by Robert Ryan, is unjustly accused of murdering a young boy and stealing horses. Jessop has to come to terms with not only the "Vigilance Committee" that is little more than a lynch mob, run by power-hungry Frank Hale, played by John Hoyt, but also with his neighbors and friends who are too afraid to stand up for the right to a fair trial and the notion of innocence before being proven guilty. Additional co-stars of this episode include: Matt&s wife, played by Cloris Leachman; Kroll, played by Howard Petrie; Kerney Boles, played by Whit Bissell; Sayers, played by Stuart Randall; Dan Morriss, played by Parley Baer; Ramsey, played by Kem Dibbs; Luke, played by Douglas Fowley; and Jed Scott, played by Leo Gordon.

Dick Powell&s Zane Grey Theatre Season One was released in 2009 and remains the only available set of the show on DVD, although you can still find several volumes on VHS. Click here to watch a clip of the episode "Calico Bait" starring DeForrest Kelly. YOu can find out more about Zane Grey by visiting Zane Grey's West Society.

World's Oldest Rodeo turns 123 next week

Thursday, June 24, 2010 at 10:54 am

It'll be seven days to remember in Prescott, Arizona, next week, as the Prescott area gears up for the "World's Oldest Rodeo". This year marks the 123rd anniversary of the event, and the towns of Chino Valley, Prescott Valley, and the City of Prescott are asking everyone in the town to put on their best duds in honor of the occasion.

A town of diggers and cavalrymen, Prescott was a mining outpost and military garrison when it was formed in 1864, but gradually turned to ranch country as the years passed. Area residents George Ruffner, Bucky O&Neill, and Morris Goldwater formed a rodeo committee in 1888 and invited cowboys from the local ranches to compete for a prize. The events of July 4, 1888 were documented in the Arizona Weekly Journal Miner Newspaper as the first official &cowboy contest&, later to be known to the world as rodeo.

Although there are numerous other claims to being the first or oldest rodeo, the Prescott Rodeo is the one that actually owns the service mark for "Worlds Oldest Rodeo." Regardless, it&s surely the Prescott Area&s most anticipated event of the year and the town remains a staple of the rodeo circuit througout the year, drawing tens of thousands of spectators.

The Prescott Frontier Days and "World's Oldest Rodeo" heads out of the chutes beginning Monday June 28 and runs through the July 4th weekend. For schedule and ticket information, visit worldsoldestrodeo.com, and take a deep ride, cowboy.

Wednesday Western: 'Desert Gold'

Wednesday, June 23, 2010 at 12:56 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: Desert Gold, a briskly paced 1936 Western, based on a novel by Zane Grey, starring Larry "Buster" Crabbe -- the original Flash Gordon! -- as Moya, a young Indian chief who's determined to guard the gold deposits on his tribe's land, despite incursions by greedy claim-jumpers. Among the supporting players: An extremely young Robert Cummings as an Eastern-born tenderfoot, and Glenn Erickson -- later known as Leif Erickson, star of TV's The High Chaparral -- as the brother of a varmint who sets his sights on Moya's gold.

Music for the Ages

Wednesday, June 23, 2010 at 10:59 am

Willie Nelson's Red Headed Stranger, Loretta Lynn's Coal Miner's Daughter and the spoken language of native tribes in Washington state were among the works inducted into the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry today.

Pulled from a combination of nominations by the public and by members of the National Recording Preservation Board, the Library of Congress makes its annual preservation choices under the terms of 2000's National Recording Preservation Act. The Act specifies that work chosen for preservation by the Library of Congress should be "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant" and be at least 10 years old.

Willie Nelson's 1975 album reputedly cost only $20,000 to record, and it handed him definite success after years as a songwriter and modestly known performer. The Library of Congress lauded Red Headed Stranger's "uncommon elegance."

Also notable was the inclusion of logger, musician and music instructor Leon Metcalf's collection of recordings of the First People of Western Washington State. Metcalf's interest in languages spurred him to document songs, stories and other narratives from native tribes in region surrounding the Puget Sound. The recordings document the voices of many of the last Native speakers of Western Washington and were some of the first to make use of modern tape recording methods. The recordings are even more unique in that they include recorded personal messages and genuine aural documentation of tribal conversational practice. The original collection is located at the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture at the University of Washington in Seattle.

This year's list of recordings features a vastly diverse selection of spoken-word and musical recordings spanning the years 1913-1995 (click here to see the full list). There are now 300 recordings in the National Recording Registry. For more information, visit www.loc.gov

Cider Beans, Wild Greens, and Dandelion Jelly

Tuesday, June 22, 2010 at 11:46 am

Born in Pennsylvania in 1734, Daniel Boone was one of the first American colonists to enter the Appalachian Mountains, which would later become known as the "first Western frontier." By 1773, he was leading settlers, including many of his in-laws, through the Cumberland Gap and into Kentucky. Settlers staked their claims in the mountain hollers and raised crops of corn, potatoes, black-eyed peas, gourds, and fruit trees. They hunted deer, bear, elk, raccoon, possum, and squirrel. They learned to make hominy from the Cherokee and churned butter from the milk of their cows. They gattered dandelion greens, wild carrot, and pusley, and stored roots and pickles in springhouses.

In her beautiful new cookbook, Cider Beans, Wild Greens, and Dandelion Jelly (Andrews McMeel Publishing), Joan E. Aller, an artist and Tennessee dweller, lovingly documents the foods and history of the Southern Appalachian mountain ranges she calls home. She offers grits and redeye gravy for breakfast, okra soup and Tennessee-style corn pone for lunch, and Mountain Fried Steak with Possum Trot Cowboy Gravy for dinner. Got a sweet tooth? There's Mountain Molasses Stack Cake and George Washington Carver's Sweet Potato Pie for dessert. Fix up her Egg Casserole with Taters and Sausage on Saturday night, stick it in the fridge for the evening, make yourself a mint julep (recipe page 185), sit yerself down on a rocker on the front porch, and settle in with C&I's Kentucky coverage in the July issue. In the morning, all you'll have to do is heat up the oven and you'll have something worth getting out of bed for.

Egg Casserole with Taters and Sausage

Serves 8

Located in the mountains of northern Georgia, Henson Cove Bed & Breakfast in Hiawassee is a unique farmhouse-style B & B reminiscent of earlier times when fun was a trip to the mountains and nature was the entertainment. Stunning views, porch swings and rockers, exploring, and fun activities give you a real country appetite. This breakfast casserole, which you prepare the night before and refrigerate overnight, is hearty and delicious and will hold you over through lunch. You can cut the recipe in half (using 6 eggs) for an 8- or 9-inch square pan.

1 pound breakfast sausage (preferably Jimmy Dean)
1/2 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
3 cups cold cooked potatoes cut into small cubes
1 (4-ounce) can diced green chilies
1 cup low-fat small-curd cottage cheese
1 to 2 cups grated cheddar cheese
10 to 12 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Pinch of nutmeg
Fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish
Chopped tomato, for garnish
Salsa, for serving

Grease a 9 by 13-inch baking dish. In a skillet over medium heat, combine the sausage and onion and cook until the sausage is browned.

In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, chilies, cottage cheese, cheddar, eggs, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Stir to blend. Add the cooked sausage mixture and blend. Pour into the prepared baking dish, cover, and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 1 hour, or until set. Garnish with cilantro and tomato and serve with salsa on the side.

&Reprinted with permission from Cider Beans, Wild Greens, and Dandelion Jelly by Joan E. Aller/Andrews McMeel Publishing

Trace Adkins joins celebrity lineup for tonight's 'Disaster in the Gulf' telethon

Monday, June 21, 2010 at 1:48 p.m.

Last week, country music star Trace Adkins popped up as a news commentator on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360. Tonight, the good ol' boy who gave us "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk" returns to the cable news network to help man the telephones for a good cause. Specifically: Trace is joining fellow country chart-topper Tim McGraw and a host of other celebrities for Disaster in the Gulf: How You Can Help, a star-studded telethon hosted by Larry King to help raise money for relief efforts on the Gulf Coast. The special two-hour telecast begins at 8 p.m. ET, and also will involve Chelsea Handler, Sting, Cameron Diaz, Kathy Griffin, Justin Bieber, Alyssa Milano, Robert Redford, Harry Connick Jr., Jenny McCarthy, Melania Trump, Ivanka Trump, Ted Danson, Aaron Neville, James Carville and Mary Matalin, Anderson Cooper, Lenny Kravitz, Edward James Olmos and many others.

"Matt Gets It"

Friday, June 18, 2010 at 2:06 p.m.

Those of you who consider yourselves &baby boomers& remember that Gusmoke was on television for 20 years -- the last episode aired March 31st, 1975. In fact, Gunsmoke was the longest-running prime time dramatic series (635 episodes) in the history of television.

My father was in the military and we were stationed overseas during the first couple of seasons, so I wasn&t able to watch it until we returned in 1957. I remember that it started out in black-and-white for 30 minutes, and changed over the years to a 60 minute show, in color, by the time it reached its seventh season.

It's widely known that John Wayne turned down the role of Matt Dillon and recommended James &Jim& Arness in his place. But The Quotable John Wayne & The Grit and Wisdom of an American Icon offers up one more bit of trivia: Wayne actually introduced the premiere episode of Gunsmoke, &Matt Gets It.&

Arness' character Matt Dillon was the U.S. Marshal of Dodge City, Kansas, which was known in those days as the &Gomorra of the Plains.& Some of the other citizens of the television Dodge City were: Chester B. Goode, the Marshal&s sidekick, played by Dennis Weaver; Galen &Doc& Adams, M.D., the town&s physician, played by Milburn Stone, and Kathleen &Kitty& Russell, owner of the Long Branch Saloon, played by Amanda Blake.

Of the initial cast members, only James Arness remains alive. Doc died in 1980, Kitty in 1989 and Chester in 2006. Of course other memorable, regular cast members eventually were brought on, such as Quint Asper (1962-1965), played by Burt Reynolds; Festus Haggen (1964-1975), played by Ken Curtis (died 1991); Thaddeus Greenwood (1965-1967), played by Roger Ewing; Newly O&Brien (1967-1975), played by Buck Taylor; and Sam Noonan (1961-1973), played by Glenn Strange (died 1973).

Even though I watch Gunsmoke every morning before I go to work and also when I get home, I still hadn't seen the first episode. I wanted a DVD with the first episode on it, so I searched Dallas and the surrounding metroplex and finally found a 50th Anniversary Volume One edition of Gunsmoke in Frisco, Texas. The first episode pits Dan Grat, a fast gunman, played by Paul Richards, against a young U.S. Marshal Matt Dillon. Matt, who isn&t as fast as Grat, is shot down in the street. While Matt is healing, Grat runs rough-shod over Dodge City murdering several more residents. When Matt recovers, he realizes that Grat is fast, but not that accurate at a distance and that is why Grat insists that his opponents come in close. Matt confronts Grat in the Dodge House (hotel) and makes him draw from a distance, the beginning of many showdowns for the Marshall of the next 20 years.

If you would like to see Episode One, click here to see it on youtube.com. Also visit to Encore Westerns, tvland.com, and TV.com, as they carry various episodes of the series.

Live tonight on CNN: Trace Adkins

Thursday, June 17, 2010 at 2:13 p.m.

Trace Adkins is a country music star, a TV and movie actor, and an inspiration for a comic book series. Tonight, he adds another credit to his resume: News commentator. Trace, a Louisiana native and former offshore oil-rig worker, will be joining Anderson Cooper via satellite to talk about the Gulf Oil Spill at 10 pm ET during Anderson Cooper 360 on CNN. How much do you want to bet he comes off sounding smarter than a lot of so-called experts?

More signs of a Western renaissance

Thursday, June 17, 2010 at 11:39 am

According to the showbiz trade paper Variety, producer Brad Fischer (Shutter Island) has started work on The Brigands of Rattleborge, a Western drama scripted by S. Craig Zahler. The plot, Variety reports, involves "a group of ruthless thieves who use the cover of a torrential rainstorm to plunder a frontier town." No cast members have been announced so far.

On the other hand, Variety also reports that Lee Majors has been signed to appear in the big-screen version of The Big Valley, which starts production next month in and around Baton Rouge, La. Jessica Lange will star as ranching family matriarch Victoria Barkley, a role memorably played in the original TV Western by Barbara Stanwyck. And Majors will appear as... well, this is the odd part: Majors, who played Victoria's son Heath Barkley on the TV show, reportedly will play Tom Barkley in the movie. Why is that odd? Well, for one thing, this means Majors will be playing in a film the father of the character he once played in a television series. But if you remember the TV series at all, you know that Tom Barkley never actually figured into the drama because... because... well, because he was dead. Deceased. Gone like a freight train, gone like yesterday. Victoria Barkley was always identified as a widowed ranching family matriarch. So unless the movie is radically different from the TV series... maybe there'll be lots of flashbacks?

Josh Brolin: Riding tall in 'Jonah Hex'

Wednesday, June 16, 2010 at 3:53 p.m.

Houston-based entertainment journalist Roseann Rogers -- a mainstay at H-Town's Channel 55 -- has a brief but lively chat with Josh Brolin about Jonah Hex, the supernatural-themed Western opening Friday at theaters and drive-ins everywhere.

Wednesday Western: 'Rainbow Valley'

Wednesday, June 16, 2010 at 12:04 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: Rainbow Valley, a 1935 Western starring a very young John Wayne as an undercover government agent assigned to protect construction workers building a road through gold country. The colorful supporting cast includes George "Gabby" Hayes and Buffalo Bill Jr.

Support Team Duke

Tuesday, June 15, 2010 at 1:18 p.m.

Word has reached our ears that Marisa Wayne, daughter of John Wayne, will be participating in the Macmillan 4x4 UK challenge, a a long-distance, annual, four-wheel drive navigational endurance event that aids Macmillan Cancer Support. Marisa will compete in a 1995 300Tdi Land Rover Defender in this special 100th anniversary run of the event.

John Wayne survived lung cancer in 1964, but died 15 years later after a battle with cancer of the stomach. During this difficult period, he became passionate about helping others fight this terrible disease. To honour his memory, his family created the John Wayne Cancer Foundation (JWCF) to bring &courage, strength and grit& to the fight against cancer. We spoke last year with Marisa about her father's legacy.

To sponsor Marisa's team please go to www.justgiving.com/Mac4x4TeamDuke
For more information on Macmillan Cancer Support visit www.macmillan.org.uk
For more information on the John Wayne Cancer Foundation visit www.jwcf.org

The Powers That Be

Monday, June 14, 2010 at 11:13 am

The brilliance of Trece Mexican Kitchen & Tequila Lounge lies not in its beautiful people location on the corner of Travis Street in Dallas or in its luxe interior. It is found not on the premium tequila and mezcal menu or even on Salsa Thursdays, when the music is live and margaritas are $5. No, the brilliance is found in chef&s whites, in the kitchen, with a back tattooed with the single-name moniker of the infamous: Powers.

Executive Chef Andrew Powers was born and raised in Seguin on his parents& ranch, hunting deer and wild boar. He knows Texas, and he knows haute cuisine, having trained at the Mansion on Turtle Creek. But more than that, he knows good food, and he knows how to make it both beautiful and approachable, like the kind of girl who&s out of your league but you sidle up to at the bar anyway, knowing, no matter how the evening ends, she&s going to make your night.

Take a recent chef tasting. It started with the restaurant&s famous guacamole en molcajete, made tableside with fresh avocados, roasted tomatoes, red onions, garlic, and cilantro, with the heat level to order. Next came an appetizer of two cornmeal-crusted oysters set on a fried slice of plantain that looked, and almost tasted, like a crispy piece of maple-glazed bacon. Then there was seared tuna that melted like butter, followed by a perfectly cooked filet served over sweet potato puree and roasted celery that was, simply, the Best. Steak. Ever.

I&ve dressed up for dinner at Fearing&s and Pyle&s and Rathbun&s restaurants in Dallas. But to dine on the Trece patio on a warm Tuesday night with best friends, wearing jeans and sandals and watching the beautiful people parade by, a slowly melting blueberry mojito in one hand, a guacamole-laden chip in the other, and Powers sending out the next surprising dish from the kitchen & that&s gold, Jerry.

For the best deal in town, head to Trece on Monday nights when dinner is on the house (you pay for drinks and select appetizers and extras) or on Sundays when you can enjoy the family dinner special, which includes a three-course dinner for adults for $15.95 while children 15 and under eat free.

Big Valley

Friday, June 11, 2010 at 12:58 p.m.

It may have been another ordinary day in Texas on September 15, 1965, but in our house you could sense the excitement. My brother, Michael, and I were waiting for the initial episode of The Big Valley to air in prime time on ABC.

The studio cast Miss Barbara Stanwyck as powerful Victoria Barkley, the widowed matriarch of a close-knit frontier family. I was 15 at the time, so I had already seen Miss Stanwyck in reruns of several great movies, such as Stella Dallas (1937), Golden Boy (1939), The Lady Eve (1941), Ball of Fire (1941), Double Indemnity (1944), and Sorry, Wrong Number (1948). I consider Miss Stanwyck to be a feminine, yet tough independent woman & a woman to be admired. In The Big Valley, she and her TV family own the Barkley ranch located in the San Joaquin Valley, approximately four miles outside of Stockton, California. The 30,000-acre ranch is renowned for its horses, cattle, mining operations, vineyards, and orange groves.

The rest of the Barkley family included attorney Jarrod, the eldest son; Nick, the hotheaded ramrod of the Barkley ranch; Audra, played by Linda Evans, was Victoria&s beautiful daughter; and Eugene, the youngest son played by Charles Briles, was a medical student studying at Berkeley. Heath Barkley, played by Lee Majors, was the illegitimate son of Thomas Barkley, the late patriarch of the family.

Richard Long and Peter Breck had already established themselves in television and film. Richard Long had appeared in the Ma and Pa Kettle pictures, The Life of Riley, and The Kansas Raiders. Breck had been featured in Sea Hunt, Wagon Train, Have Gun & Will Travel, Perry Mason, and Gunsmoke. Evans and Majors were newcomers to television, and I first saw them on The Big Valley. I remember thinking that Heath was one of the best looking men that I had seen on television. Audra was also the prettiest woman that I had ever seen. Both went on to become stars after the series culminated in 1969. Evans became known for her role as Krystle Carrington on the 1980s soap opera Dynasty. Majors, of course, starred in The Six Million Dollar Man, and The Fall Guy.

In the first episode of The Big Valley, &Palms of Glory,& a conflict takes place between the railroad&s need for land and the land rights of the ranchers and farmers. Also in this episode, the character of Heath Barkley is introduced to the family. Heath, upon learning from his mother who his father was, goes to the Barkley ranch wanting to assume his name, heritage, and rightful portion of its holdings. Guest stars included Napoleon Whiting, Len Wayland, Dal McKennon, Arthur Peterson, Vincent Gardenia, Malachi Throne, Dennis Cross, Melvin Allen, and Mike De Anda.

Click here to watch this episode in its entirety on Hulu.com.

Music in the Kitchen

Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 3:02 p.m.

Glenda Facemire, head makeup artist and stylist for Austin City Limits, has had the opportunity to meet countless musicians. But as she puts it, "What happens in the makeup chair stays in the makeup chair!" So although she won't dish, she will share the favorite recipes of some 130 artists who have sat in her chair and appeared on the ACL stage in her new cookbook, Music in the Kitchen. From Rosanne Cash's roast lemon chicken with carrots and onions to Loretta Lynn's country collard greens to My Morning Jacket's quinoa eggs with cheese, there's a little something for every palate.

In honor of Jennings Brown's July C&I feature, "Texas Loud and Proud," here's Willie Nelson's recipe for a surprisingly sweet salsa with a spirited kick.

Willie's Tequila-Mango Salsa
Reprinted with permission from University of Texas Press.

1/3 cup Austin Slow Burn Spiced Peach Jam with Habanero
3 tablespoons red onion, diced
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 large avocado, chopped
2 c. mango, coarsely chopped
1 cup strawberries, chopped (optional)
1/2 cup jalapenos, diced (optional)
Jose Cuervo Especial to taste (set to the side with a shot glass and drink at your own risk).

Mix all ingredients and serve with chips. Great on chicken or fish.

The Heat Is On

Wednesday, June 9, 2010 at 12:25 p.m.

I may never pass for a native, but after I entered my mango habanero hot sauce in the State Fair of Texas and won second place in one of the most hotly contested categories, I knew I could hold my hatless head high. Check out our July issue for a behind-the-scenes look at state fair cooking contests and the contestants who can't get enough of the competition.

Texas State Fair-Winning Mango Habanero Hot Sauce

8 large ripe mangoes, peeled and seeded
24 ounces carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
4 medium white onions, peeled and roughly chopped
2 1/2 cups distilled white vinegar
2 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
7 fresh orange habanero chilis, seeded and deveined

Wednesday Western: 'Nevada'

Wednesday, June 9, 2010 at 12:02 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: Nevada, a 1944 Western starring Robert Mitchum -- billed here as "Bob Mitchum" -- based on a story by the great Zane Grey. Trivia note: The same story was previously filmed in 1927 with Gary Copper in the lead role as a cowboy who pursues his buddy's killer.

The stars will be out for Wednesday's CMT Awards

Tuesday, June 8, 2010 at 2:02 p.m.

Taylor Swift has been added to the ranks of presenters for tomorrow evening's CMT Music Awards in Nashville, joining such luminaries as Trisha Yearwood, Laura Bell Bundy, Gloriana, Faith Hill, Sheryl Crow, Martina McBride, Kellie Pickler, Blake Shelton, celebrity cook Paula Deen, American Idol&s Kara Dioguardi, NFL great Terrell Owens, actress Hayden Panettiere, NASCAR legend Richard Petty and Saturday Night Live&s Kenan Thompson. But remember: The awards may be given out by celebrities, but they're voted on by fans like you. In fact, after the final nominees for Video of the Year are announced at the beginning of the live show, you can vote at CMT.com and via text message throughout the live broadcast -- well, OK, live in the Eastern and Central time zones -- to determine the night&s big winner.

The CMT Music Awards will air 8 pm ET Wednesday on the CMT cable network, and will feature performances by some of country music's biggest stars, including Toby Keith, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, Tim McGraw, Brad Paisley, Carrie Underwood, Jamey Johnson, LeAnn Rimes, Keith Urban, John Mayer and the Zac Brown Band. Kid Rock has signed on to host the event -- really, no kidding -- which is expected to last 2 1/2 hours. And if you can't be near your TV set to follow the festivities, don't worry: I'll be Twittering from the audience at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena.

Another No. 1 for George Strait

Tuesday, June 8, 2010 at 12:09 p.m.

The King of Country has another diamond in his crown: Billboard Magazine has named George Strait No. 1 on its list of the 25 top-selling country artists of the past 25 years (1985-2010), based on tabulations of the music trade publication's archived charts for country music singles and albums. Garth Brooks came in second, followed by Reba McEntire at No. 3, Alan Jackson at No. 4 and Tim McGraw at No. 5. The Top 10 also included, in descending order, Randy Travis, Toby Keith, Kenny Chesney, Alabama and Brooks & Dunn.

Nashville is ready to rebound with CMA Music Festival

Monday, June 7, 2010 at 4:18 p.m.

After enduring the worst of times, folks in Nashville hope to enjoy the best of times -& or, at the very least, four solid days of wall-to-wall good times -& as Music City prepares for this week's annual CMA Music Festival .

As The Tennessean reports, the four-day CMA extravaganza & set for Thursday, June 10, through Sunday, June 13 & &is the first crucial test of how quickly and how far Nashville's flood-damaged tourism industry can rebound after serious flooding five weeks ago scattered conventions and scared away free-spending visitors.& Country Music Association officials have announced that 50 percent of the festival&s net proceeds will be donated to the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee for flood relief. The good news is, early signs indicate that there may be slightly more of those proceeds this year: CMA staffers report that ticket sales are up ten percent over 2009.

As usual, tens of thousands of festivalgoers are expected to gravitate toward the Nashville Convention Center, where lifestyle exhibits and autograph booths traditionally are popular attractions. Tim McGraw, Rascal Flatts, Julianne Hough, The Judds and Kellie Pickler are just a few of the notables who&ll be meeting and greeting fans throughout the 2010 CMA Fest.

Among the headliners signed for the festival&s nightly mega-concerts at Nashville&s LP Field: Brad Paisley, Tim McGraw, Keith Urban, Reba McEntire, Lady Antebellum, Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert, Martina McBride, Rascal Flatts, Trace Adkins and Darius Rucker.

And for festivalgoers who prefer less pricey entertainment, there are free concerts throughout the festival at the Riverfront Park Daytime Stage. The lineup there includes The Judds, Rodney Atkins, Mark Chesnutt, Bucky Covington, Jack Ingram, Joey + Rory, Patty Loveless, Jo Dee Messina, Mel Tillis and Clay Walker.

Continuing a tradition we established way back in -- well, back in 2009, actually -- I&ll be in Nashville this week to cover the CMA Music Festival for Cowboys & Indians magazine and the C&I website. I'll also be Twittering live from the nightly LP Field concerts & and from the CMT Music Awards show Wednesday evening at Nashville&s Bridgestone Arena. Hey, it's a dirty job, but somebody's got to do it.

Cat Garrett versus Billy the Kitt

Monday, June 7, 2010 at 10:58 am

Go ahead -- you know you want to watch!

Willie Nelson: Hair today, back tomorrow

Monday, June 7, 2010 at 10:37 am

Country music icon and C&I cover boy Willie Nelson surprised fans last week by cutting off his trademark tresses. To celebrate this historic event & dubbed &The haircut heard around the world!& & The Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum Store is now offering a novelty Willie Nelson headband. No, seriously. Emulating the locks that the "Red-Headed Stranger" sported for more than three decades, this adjustable, one-size-fits-all piece features a red bandana with synthetic ponytail braids. And it's now available just in time for Father's Day gift-giving.

The headdress can be purchased for $10 from The Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum Store at 1800 N. Congress Ave. in Austin. Orders can also be made by calling toll free at (866) 369-7108, or in Austin at (512) 936-4639. The Museum Store is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday. You can also find this little piece of history online, while supplies last, at TexasStateHistoryMuseumStore.com or by clicking here.

Wanted: Dead or Alive

Friday, June 4, 2010 at 4:16 p.m.

As a preteen in Texas in the 1950s, it was perfectly acceptable for me to wear a cowboy hat, a holster and gun, and a vest with a badge on it, carrying a rifle and a set of Paladin&s calling cards. I absolutely, positively identified with the &good guys& on television. Most of what I watched were westerns. My outfit said it all; I stood for &truth, justice, and the American way.&

I remember when CBS first introduced Wanted: Dead or Alive. It was in 1958, which was about a year after I had started watching Have Gun & Will Travel. Both shows were on CBS. There were only three major networks during the fifties & NBC, CBS, and ABC. Wanted: Dead or Alive ran from 1958 to 1961 and was in black-and-white, as most movies and TV shows were back then.

Steve McQueen played bounty hunter Josh Randall. His trademark was a .44 & .40 sawed-off 1892 Winchester carbine. It was the biggest gun attached to a holster that I had ever seen. I couldn&t take my eyes off of it. Sure McQueen was cool and good-looking, but as a preteen, I was more interested in the gun. I found out recently that after McQueen first shot the gun and was nearly knocked on the ground, he named the weapon the Mare&s Laig (Leg). He said, &It&s like a Hog&s Leg, only it kicks harder.& McQueen was known as &The King of Cool,& but if you had asked me at that time in my life, it was the gun that was cool.

The show&s first episode was &The Martin Poster,& and McQueen&s costars included Michael Landon, Nick Adams, Vaughn Taylor, and Jennifer Lea. In the episode, Randall has a wanted poster on Andy Martin, played by Adams, and comes to Las Tunas to talk to Andy&s brother, Carl (played by Landon), only to find that Carl&s being held in jail on similar charges.

Chaos ensues. The U.S. Marshal is killed, and the townspeople are in a frenzy. The prisoner, Carl, escapes with the aid of his brother. Randall shoots Andy in the escape, but some think that Randall played a part in the breakout. Eventually, Randall tracks down the Martin brothers and kills Carl, bringing in Andy to stand trial. When handed the $3,500 reward for bringing in both Martins, Randall asks that the money be placed in the Marshal&s widow&s bank account.

If you haven&t seen the TV series, get a hold of the DVDs and watch the first episode. Not only will you see Steve McQueen before he made such great films as The Magnificent Seven, The Great Escape, The Thomas Crown Affair, Bullitt, and The Towering Inferno, but you&ll also get a glimpse of Landon and Adams before they starred in their own television series.

New - Cowboys & Indians Digital Edition

Friday, June 4, 2010 at 4:11 p.m.

For 17 years, Cowboys & Indians has showcased the best of the Western lifestyle, offering the latest in fashion, food and wine, architecture and home decor, art, music and film, all presented with spectacular images from award-winning photographers. Now C&I is blazing a new trail by bringing you all the drama and grandeur of The Premier Magazine of the West on your iPhone, iPad, PC or Mac with a new digital edition available through Zinio.

With the digital edition, you&ll be able to search, read, share and save C&I digital content from anywhere in the world. You can move seamlessly within each issue, zoom in on graphics, and click on e-mail addresses and live hyperlinks. And you&ll have ready access to every digital edition with the free Zinio Magazine Newsstand app for your iPhone or iPad.

Being on Zinio&s digital newsstand, says C&I executive editor Margaret Brown, &gives us the opportunity to reach a large new audience segment eager to explore magazine content via their iPhones and iPads. Since Cowboys & Indians has always been regarded for its strikingly beautiful visual depictions of the West and the Western lifestyle, the magazine is a particular standout among Zinio&s offerings.&

The Peach of Perfection

Thursday, June 3, 2010 at 9:29 am

There are moments in life when eating something causes time to stop, when everything around you becomes still and silent and you are left with a transcendent moment when, like on the series finale of Lost when Sawyer and Juliet brush fingertips reaching for a candy bar, time and space collapse and every moment you have ever experienced on a magnetized island that may or may not really exist flash through your mind ... You know what I mean. The kind of moment when you take a bite and suddenly you&re like, So this is what a [fill in the blank] is supposed to taste like. It&s like I&ve never eaten one before. It&s like all of the [fill in the blank]s that I have ever eaten have been condensed and surpassed in this single moment that I will never be able to replicate again because, for the first and last time, I understand.

Like when Melissa bought a writhing crustacean from a lobsterman along the Maine coastline and we drove back to our campsite, built a fire, brought an enamel soup pot of water to boil, and tossed the lobster in. We cracked the claws sitting on the ground, swatting at mosquitoes, our laps covered in towels, eating the speckled meat with impatient buttered fingers.

Or when we woke up one morning in the northern jungles of Thailand, loose and relaxed from being walked on by a tiny Thai masseuse the night before, and our waitress brought out a heaping platter of fruit and we each took a bite of a just-picked mango, sweet and smooth as custard, and simply looked at each other, at a loss for words.

Or when Karl brought me my first dozen farm-fresh eggs from his pampered brood in Ennis, and I cracked the baby-blue shell into a frying pan, watching the golden yolk sit up and wink as the white bubbled and hissed. I flipped it over, sprinkled it with salt and pepper, and slid it out of the pan onto a piece of whole wheat toast. When I gingerly poked the yolk with my fork, liquid gold poured out, causing me to exclaim that forever forth I needed a steady supply of what I dubbed Karl&s tiny miracles.

Or this week, when my two peach trees were so heavy with fruit that one branch broke off under the weight, so I stood in the 90-plus degree May heat, strategically plucking the orbs to reduce the load. Firm to the touch and blushing like a fourth-time bride, I thought the peaches couldn&t possibly be ripe, but as I took a bite of one with just a hint of give, breaking through the firm red skin with my teeth, warm juice poured down my chin and I flashed back, forward, and sideways to every peach I ever believed I had tasted, knowing in that moment that this, in fact, was the only real one.

Peach Pit Jelly Of course I couldn't let the broken branch of peaches go to waste, but the fruit was too small to make peeling and pitting feasible. So I decided to try an old farmwife trick, usually reserved for the peelings and fruit-caked pits leftover from canning peaches, and make a beautiful jelly with the precious fruit.

Juicing the Peaches:

If you have too-small peaches, roughly chop and place in a soup pot, keeping peels and pits but discarding any blemished flesh or broken pits. Or, in place of whole fruit, use your peel and pit trimmings from pie and preserve making. Add the juice of one lemon and fill the pot with water so the fruit is just covered. Bring the pot of fruit to a boil then turn off the heat and let the fruit sit overnight or during the day, about 8 hours. Using a jelly bag or cheesecloth, strain the pits and peelings so that you are left with just the juice.

Making the Jelly:

5 cups peach juice
6 cups sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 box pectin
1 stick cinnamon

Stir together peach juice, lemon juice, and pectin in a pot. Add cinnamon stick. Bring to a rolling boil. Add all of the sugar at once and return to a rolling boil. (Watch pot carefully & the jelly will bubble up as soon as you add the sugar. Reduce the heat as needed to prevent a spillover.) Boil for one minute then immediately remove from heat. Skim any foam off the surface and remove cinnamon stick, then ladle jelly into clean, dry jelly jars. Fill jars to within 1/8 of an inch to the top. Clean jar rims and threads with a damp cloth, screw on new jar lids, and process in a boiling water canner for 5 minutes. Let jars cool and set for 24 hours. Makes about 6 half-pints.

Wednesday Western: 'Chino'

Wednesday, June 2, 2010 at 12:02 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: Chino, an offbeat 1973 European-produced drama -- kind of a "Spaghetti Western," actually -- that reunites Charles Bronson and The Magnificent Seven director John Sturges for a tale about a half-breed horse rancher in 1880s New Mexico who reluctantly becomes a father figure for a headstrong young runaway (Vincent Van Patten).

R.I.P.: William A. Fraker (1923-2010)

Wednesday, June 2, 2010 at 12:00 am

You might not recognize his name, but if you're a movie buff you almost certainly have seen and greatly appreciated the handiwork of William A. Fraker, the multi-Oscar-nominated cinematographer who died of cancer Monday at age 86. Among his many credits: Rosemary's Baby, Bullitt, Paint Your Wagon, Rancho Deluxe, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas and Tombstone. He also directed the original Monte Walsh (1970), a cult-fave Western that paired Lee Marvin and Jeanne Moreau as unlikely romantic leads, and The Legend of the Lone Ranger (1981), which, really, shouldn't be held against him. Fraker speaks eloquently and insightfully about his craft -- and about what he learned while working with directors as diverse as Richard Brooks and Roman Polanski -- in this interview conducted for the American Cinematographers Guild magazine after he was honored with the 2000 ACG Lifetime Achievement Award.

Red River

Tuesday, June 1, 2010 at 11:28 am

Ed. Note - Few films capture the love of the pubilc like Red River. For you first-time viewers, our own Victoria Jackson offers this synopsis. Red River airs on Encore Westerns June 8th at 7 p.m. CST.

When Matthew Garth, played by Montgomery Clift, of the Red River D and his men cross into Abilene, Kansas on August 14, 1865, with slightly over 9,000 of Thomas Dunson&s cattle, history is made. They have completed the first cattle drive across the newly marked Chisholm Trail, but Matt made an enemy. Tom, Matt&s adoptive father, played by John Wayne, is coming to kill him for stealing his herd and taking his men, not to Missouri, as they had planned, but to a northern Kansas railhead that may not exist.

Red River is a story of how a man and a boy, with a single bull and cow, build one of the greatest herds in Texas. It&s a tale of love, ruthlessness, danger, bitter conflict, and tests of character and strength.

The story begins in 1851 when Tom and Nadine Groot, played by Walter Brennan, join a wagon train bound for California. Tom and Nadine leave the caravan near the northern border of Texas. Indians attack the convoy and massacre everyone, except a boy, Matt, who was out chasing down his cow. The men find the boy wandering and half-crazed. They take Matt on the 2,000-mile journey south and Tom embraces him as a surrogate son.

They settle past the Pecos River and near the Rio Grande. Days pass. Two vaqueros approach and inform Tom that the land belongs to Don Diego, a Mexican land baron residing 400 miles south. Tom states, &tell Don Diego ... that all the land north of [the Rio Grande] is mine!&

Later, Matt leaves to fight in the Civil War. Afterward, he returns to the ranch to find Tom broke and an impoverished post-war cattle market in Texas. If the ranch is to survive, the cattle must be driven more than 1,000 miles and sold in Missouri. The long, hard journey begins.

The supporting cast is outstanding. Actors include Joanne Dru, Harry Carey Jr., Coleen Gray, John Ireland, Noah Beery Jr., and Paul Fix. The scenery is magnificent and the music score, written by Dimitri Tiomkin, is stirring.

This classic Howard Hawks 1948 black and white film is an exciting adventure and will be aired on Encore Westerns Tuesday, June 8th at 7 p.m., CST

R.I.P.: Dennis Hopper (1936-2010)

Saturday, May 29, 2010 at 10:07 p.m.

Within the space of a month or so during the summer of 1969, moviegoers got to see Dennis Hopper as a luckless outlaw who dies while reluctantly aiding John Wayne in True Grit & and a chopper-riding rebel journeying across America alongside Peter Fonda in Easy Rider. And, mind you, that disparate combo of credits only begins to hint at the variety and versatility that define the resume of the late, great actor.

Hopper & who finally lost his long battle with prostate cancer Saturday at age 74 & lived and worked long enough to appear opposite everyone from James Dean (Rebel Without a Cause, 1955) to Kevin Costner (Swing Vote, 2008), Rock Hudson (Giant, 1956) to Keanu Reeves (Speed, 1994), and play everything from a chain-gang prisoner (Cool Hand Luke, 1967) to a videogame-spawned villain (Super Mario Bros., 1993).

Western fans likely will remember Hopper for his appearances in such Wild West dramas as Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, The Sons of Katie Elder, Kid Blue and the aforementioned True Grit. And he merits at least a footnote in the TV Western Hall of Fame for being a guest star in the very first episode -- scripted by Sam Peckipah -- of The Rifleman.

More about 'Red Dead Redemption' on TV

Friday, May 28, 2010 at 3:40 p.m.

Here's a preview of the Red Dead Redemption 30-minute Western drama set to air at 11 pm CT/12 midnight ET Saturday on the Fox network. Take this as fair warning: It's suitable for network TV viewing -- unlike the game itself -- but it's still not kid stuff.

Clint Eastwood Turns 80

Friday, May 28, 2010 at 11:58 am

He's known as The Man With No Name, Rowdy Yates, Dirty Harry, Blondie and Josey Wales. But when Clint Eastwood Jr. was born 80 years ago, next Monday, the nurses called him Samson because of his unusual size at birth (12 pounds, 6 ounces) & an appropriate nickname for a man who was destined to become larger than life. Go ahead, make your Memorial Day. Celebrate Eastwood&s career by tuning in to the Turner Classic Movies channel for all Eastwood, all day. They're playing some of the best selections from his more than five decades in film, leading up to The Eastwood Factor, produced, written, and directed by film historian Richard Schickel and narrated by Morgan Freeman. Considering Eastwood's 31st directed film Hereafter is expected to premier this October and his J. Edgar Hoover biopic is rumored to be released in 2012, the B-actor & turned American icon, turned auteur & shows no sign of slowing down as an octogenarian.

10 Things I Learned From Chef Kent Rathbun

Friday, May 28, 2010 at 11:50 am

Last night I had the privilege to dine at the award-winning Dallas restaurant Abacus with (as in, sat to the left of) chef Kent Rathbun. In addition to enjoying a five-course tasting menu that he designed, I learned a surprising thing or two about his most famous appetizer, why he turned down Top Chef Masters (twice), and the secret to Kansas City barbecue (here's a hint: don't cut the crust):

His famous lobster shooters are the result of a last-minute menu change that he made for Julia Child's birthday dinner at the James Beard House. Deciding that his Texas-sized portions might overwhelm the more delicate appetites of the predominately New York City crowd, he decided to turn his planned curry soup with crab dumplings into a bite-sized dumpling appetizer served with a shot glass of red-curry coconut cream sauce. When party guests started parading back into the kitchen for more, he knew he had a hit. A subsequent surplus of lobster meat at the restaurant resulted in the ingredient upgrade, which Rathbun now regrets. "If we had stuck with crab, they would have been just as popular for a fraction of the price," he laughs.
Like me, Rathbun is a Weightwatchers devotee. After an injury, he needed to get into shape, so he has been hitting the gym and watching what he eats. He pulled out his iPhone with the Weightwatchers app at the table, but refused to calculate the points for our decadent meal. "You don't want to know," he says.
Rathbun's favorite way to eat an avocado? Fried.
On why he turned down Top Chef Masters twice: "You're either chosen to be the rock star or you're chosen to be the villain. I have too many people counting on me to have my fate left up to a producer." But he's up for a fair fight, mano a mano, like his battle against Bobby Flay on Iron Chef America. Teamed up with his brother, Atlanta chef Kevin Rathbun, he defeated reining champion Flay in an elk battle. But don't hand him a bucket of grasshoppers and tell him to make it work. "I'm not going to lose because I stand around for 10 minutes wondering, Why am I cooking grasshoppers?"
He credits his illustrious career as a chef to Susan Feniger, of Border Grill, Ciudad, and, now, Street fame. When he was getting his start as an apprentice at La Bonne Auberge in his hometown of Kansas City, Missouri, Feniger was the sous chef at the restaurant. "I'll never forget, Sue grabbed me one day & I hadn't been there long, maybe a couple of days & and she said, 'Kent, come back here and help me cook the employee meal.' Before I knew it, there were four fantastic quiches ready to go. I remember thinking that day, I want to be able to do that. She didn't look at a book or a recipe, she just started pulling together ingredients."
The secret to the best barbecued brisket? Lean meat, fat trimmed to a 1/4-inch, season heavily with garlic salt and a dry barbecue rub, lots and lots of vinegar in the mop, smoke for hours, baste often to tenderize the meat, and, whatever you do, don't cut off the crust. "I use a lot of vinegar in my barbecue sauce because that's what I learned from dad. I still do barbecue the exact same way I learned from him when I was 5 years old. I use 4 parts vinegar to 1 part of your favorite barbecue sauce." Not surprisingly, Rathbun touts his own new line of products, available exclusively through his website and at Central Market,& which includes ancho chili and Texas peach barbecue sauces, along with his family barbecue rub and a signature garlic salt that he says is used on every piece of red meat that hits the grill in his restaurants.
Where does he go to find BBQ like his dad used to make in KC? LC's Bar-B-Q. He stopped by the beat-up smokehouse with his brother when they were both back in town. Rathbun says there was an old man inside cutting the brisket. "What do you boys want today?" he asked. "Everything," the Rathbun boys replied. "No, seriously," the old man said. "Everything," Kent repeated. And they weren't kidding. Turned out the man was none other than LC himself. He served up the barbecued brisket, turkey, pork, and sausage, all with the black crust still on it. "The black edge is the barbecue," Kent says. "There is no way you can do barbecue good without that stuff, because that's what it's about." When LC took a spatula to the cutting board where he had sliced up the meat and scraped all the black bits into a pot of beans, Kent couldn't help exclaiming with pride, "That's my man, baby!"
The secret to good guacamole is the acid level & you need to make sure you add enough lime juice to keep a bright, green color. Which is especially important for Rathbun's grilled onion guac, which he doesn't want to turn grey from the smoke. The simple ingredients? Grilled red onions (he grills them over a wood fire), California avocados, cilantro, and lime juice.
The best sushi in Dallas? No surprise & at his wife Tracy's restaurant, Shinsei, in Dallas.
What do you cook for a presidential inauguration? Well, when that president is Dubya and you get the call from pal Eddie Deen that he needs someone to make "the fancy food" for, oh, about 27,000 guests, you need a tray-passed hors d'oeuvre that says "Texas" with style and staying power. So Rathbun came up with a roasted corn and avocado salad served in tortilla cups. Here's his recipe:

California Avocado Roast Corn Nachos
Serves 8
1 medium red onion, diced
1 tablespoon minced garlic
4 ripe California avocados, peeled, seeded, and diced
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1 jalapeno, stemmed, cored, and finely diced
1/2 cup roasted corn kernels
1/2 cup black beans
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
Salt, to taste
8 tortilla cups (see make-ahead recipe below)
1/4 cup grated Cotija cheese

Saute diced onion over medium heat until tender. Allow onion to cool.

In a medium bowl, mix together onion, garlic, avocado, cilantro, jalapeno, corn kernels, and black beans.

Season mixture with lime juice and salt. Chill in refrigerator for 1 hour.

Fill tortilla cups with mixture and garnish with cheese.

Tortilla Cups

8 corn tortillas
Vegetable oil

Using a circular cookie cutter that is 3 inches in diameter, cut circles out of corn tortillas.

Fill a large pot or deep fryer 3/4 full with oil and place over medium-high heat. Heat oil until it reaches 350 degrees.

Place one tortilla round in oil. Using a 2-ounce ladle, press the tortilla into the oil so it forms a cup around the ladle. Keep tortilla round submerged until crisp. Remove and place on a paper towel to eliminate excess oil.

Repeat procedure with remaining tortilla rounds.

*Large avocados are recommended for this recipe. A large avocado averages about 8 ounces. If using smaller or larger size avocados, adjust the quantity accordingly.

'Red Dead Redemption' comes to TV

Thursday, May 27, 2010 at 1:28 p.m.

Despite all that loose talk last year about a possible revival of TV Westerns, it looks like the closest thing we&re going to get this season to a Wild West drama on broadcast network television is... well, would you believe Red Dead Redemption ?

Yes, it&s based on the mega-hyped, widely praised videogame currently on sale at fine stores everywhere. But no, it&s not an adaptation featuring flesh-and-blood actors. The 30-minute animated drama & set to air at 11 pm CT/12 midnight ET Saturday on the Fox network & incorporates elements from the Rockstar Games release in an original scenario created and directed by filmmaker John Hillcoat, who previously gave us The Proposition, the 2005 &Australian Western& starring Guy Pearce and John Hurt, and The Road, the 2009 sci-fi flick starring Viggo Mortensen and based on Cormac McCarthy&s apocalyptic novel.

According to the folks at Rockstar Games, the half-hour late-night special &chronicles a slice-in-time of protagonist John Marston as he tracks down his former fellow outlaw and friend, Bill Williamson. Along the way, Marston encounters many of Red Dead Redemption's eclectic cast of dreamers, misfits and liars. Using the world of Red Dead Redemption as a virtual film studio and created entirely with in-game assets and technology, Hillcoat re-imagines Marston&s pursuit of justice and salvation.&

And if watching this 30-minute version of Red Dead Redemption makes you want to gallop over to the nearest store where you can buy the video game & well, pardners, that&s pretty much what the Rockstar people hope you&ll do.

Merle Haggard: Life is good

Wednesday, May 26, 2010 at 12:18 p.m.

Country music legend Merle Haggard comes across as frank and reflective in a newly posted CMT Insider interview. He talks at length about his warm relationship with his family, his recent battle with cancer -- which, fortunately, he appears to have won -- and how grateful he is that, at age 73, he's still making music and drawing crowds. "[T]here's been a great surge of interest in my overall career in the last few months," Haggard tells CMT's Terry Bumgarner. The reason for the uptick? "I think it's a combination of the availability on the Internet and the opportunity for people to get what they really want rather than being force fed with music like we have been over the past 20 years or so. And now our audience is varied quite a bit in age. A lot of young people are coming in to our concerts for the first time because of something they saw on the Internet." Like, maybe, the above video?

Duke's Birthday

Wednesday, May 26, 2010 at 10:38 am

On a humble May 26th in 1907 Marion Mitchell Morrison was born to pharmacist Clyde Wayne and his wife, Mary, in a small town in Iowa.& We're certain that Ma and Pa Morrison would be proud of him, even if he did change his name to John Wayne.

One of the most popular film stars to ever grace the silver screen (and the silver disc as well), Wayne continues to endure as a figure of American individualism comparable to few others.

If you're of a mind to celebrate, there's always the annual festival in his hometown of Winterset, Iowa. But if that's too far of a drive for ya, you pilgrims can still catch in the Duke on the tube. All day long, TCM is running John Wayne films (including some lesser-known reels from the 20's), and will extend the celebration into the Memorial Day Weekend with The Green Berets. Hallmark and Flix will also be showing some fan favorites over the next few weeks, including Wayne's famous cameo on I Love Lucy.

In honor of his birthday, we're sure the Duke would be pleased if we all took a moment this weekend and gave thanks for the brave men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice serving their country in the armed forces.

Wednesday Western: 'The Indian Fighter'

Wednesday, May 26, 2010 at 12:03 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: The Indian Fighter, an exciting 1955 drama starring Kirk Douglas as a scout who leads a wagon train through hostile Indian territory -- and becomes involved with the decidedly non-hostile daughter (Elsa Martinelli) of a Sioux chief. Walter Matthau, Lon Chaney Jr. and Alan Hale Jr. co-star for director Andre de Toth, a Hungarian-born filmmaker whose other credits include The Bounty Hunter, Day of the Outlaw and -- no kidding! -- the original House of Wax.

Sisters on the Fly

Tuesday, May 25, 2010 at 7:37 p.m.
Sisters on the Fly is a group of now-close-to 1,400 women who share a like-minded desire to participate in outdoor adventures. They hit the road in decorated vintage trailers, stopping to fly-fish, camp, ride horses, and, of course, eat, all across the West. For an annual fee of $50, you can join the group, or you can catch up with them at Willow Creek Ranch in Kaycee, Wyoming, for their annual Cowgirl College June 5 & 10. Stay in the bunkhouse, learn to play poker, and join in the general good times. Their new adventure and cookbook, Sisters on the Fly: Caravans, Campfires, and Tales from the Road by Irene Rawlins, is now available and is chockfull of camper and campfire meals, including the award-winning chili recipe from members Becky Clarke, Vickie Stoppello, and Ferne Krumm, who won the McCall, Idaho, chili cook-off in 2009 with this recipe: Award-Winning Chili Serves 8&10

4 pounds beef chuck, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
4 tablespoons canola oil
4 medium yellow onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 (6-ounce) cans tomato paste
4 tablespoons dried oregano
3 tablespoons New Mexico chili powder
4 teaspoons cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
4&5 cups of water
1/2 cup lime juice
1 can lager beer

Season the beef with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a 6-quart pot over high heat and brown the meat in 3 or 4 batches. Add the onions and garlic and cook until lightly browned; return the beef to the pot and add the tomato paste. Cook about 12 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon. Add the spices and Tabasco sauce and cook for 1 minute. Add 4 cups water and simmer for 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until meat is tender. If the chili becomes too thick, add 1 cup water. Add the lime juice and beer, and cook about 1 more hour; taste for seasoning.

Brad Paisley, Vince Gill, Ricky Skaggs and Steve Wariner are ready to play for you

Tuesday, May 25, 2010 at 4:23 p.m.

Free for you: Opry Guitar Jam for Flood Relief. Enjoy!

Pretty in Pink

Monday, May 24, 2010 at 6:09 p.m.

In honor of executive editor Margaret L. Brown's birthday, I decided to make a batch (or two) of strawberry cupcakes, since it is the start of strawberry season in these Western parts. As associate editor Jennings Brown walked by my office later in the day, cupcake in hand, he stopped to ask, "Is there real strawberry in these? Because they are the most strawberriest cupcakes I've ever had."
As a matter of fact, there is. And even if "strawberriest" is not a word, in this case, it is quite apropos. If you find yourself with too many pints to handle this summer, set aside 3 or 4 to make some fresh strawberry cupcakes with strawberry buttercream icing, along with some simple strawberry ice cream. Made with half-and-half and no egg yolks, it's slightly better for you than the custard kind and a whole lot easier to make.

Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes
Makes 24-30 cupcakes

2 cups trimmed fresh strawberries
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
& teaspoon salt
& cup milk
1 tablespoon Mexican vanilla
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
6 large eggs (2 whole eggs and 4 egg whites), room temperature
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Strawberry buttercream frosting (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin tins with cupcake liners and set aside.
Place strawberries, lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon of the sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Blend until smooth and set aside.
In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add sugar and beat until well combined. Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add, one at a time, 2 whole eggs and 4 egg whites. Mix until just blended. With mixer on low, add half of the flour mixture. Add milk, vanilla, and strawberry puree and mix until just blended. Add remaining flour mixture and continue to mix until flour is incorporated. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups and bake until a cake tester comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Transfer muffin tins to a wire rack and cool completely before icing.

Strawberry Buttercream Icing

4 large egg whites, room temperature
& teaspoon salt
2/3 cup water
1 1/3 cups plus 3 tablespoons sugar, divided
2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup strawberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice

In the bowl of a food processor, puree strawberries, lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon sugar until smooth. Press puree through a fine sieve to remove seeds. (Note: I like to use a tea strainer, the kind that fits inside a teapot, placed over a coffee cup to strain the seeds. It may seem to be a little more trouble, but it will give you a much smoother frosting.)
Stir together water and 1 1/3 cups sugar in a heavy saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat without stirring. When syrup reaches a boil, start beating egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixture fitted with the whisk attachment at medium speed until whites are frothy. Gradually add remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and beat at medium-high speed until whites just hold soft peaks.
Put candy thermometer into sugar syrup and continue boiling until syrup registers 238 to 242 degrees. Immediately remove saucepan from heat and, with mixer at high speed, slowly pour hot syrup in a thin stream down the side of the bowl into the whites. Continue to beat at high speed until all syrup is incorporated and the mixer bowl is cool to the touch, about 10 minutes.
Reduce mixer speed to medium and gradually add softened butter 1 tablespoon at a time, beating well after each addition. Continue beating until buttercream is smooth. (Note: The Mixture may look curdled before all of the butter is added, but it will come back together by the time you are finished beating. If the meringue was too warm when you started adding the butter and the frosting gets soupy, place the mixing bowl in the refrigerator for a few minutes, then continue beating at high speed until frosting comes together.)
Add vanilla and strawberry puree, and beat until incorporated. If you would like the frosting to be more pink, just add a small amount of red food coloring.

Simple Strawberry Ice Cream

3/4 cup sugar
3/4 pound trimmed strawberries
2 cups half-and-half
1 tablespoon Mexican vanilla
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

In a food processor, grind sugar until fine. Add strawberries and blend until smooth. Scrape mixture into a bowl and stir in half-and-half, vanilla, and lemon juice. Tast and add additional lemon juice or sugar if needed & the mixture should taste a touch too sweet at room temperature. Freeze in ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions, and serve piled high with fresh strawberries.

Jammin' at the Opry

Monday, May 24, 2010 at 10:48 am

When country superstars Brad Paisley, Vince Gill, Ricky Skaggs and Steve Wariner pick up their guitars for an all-star Grand Ole Opry show Tuesday evening -- you can watch them live without having to buy a plane ticket to Nashville. The show -- set to both raise funds for Middle Tennessee flood relief and kick off the Opry&s months-long 85th Birthday Celebration -- will be be available via live stream, powered by iClips, at www.opry.com beginning 8 p.m. CT. The show also will be available on iClips.net as well as various other web destinations, and broadcast live on 650 WSM-AM and wsmonline.com.

According to Opry officials, each of the four artists will give solo performances, then join forces for a guitar jam finale featuring the group&s take on some of the most popular songs in the Opry&s 85-year history. Throughout the show, fans will be invited to contribute to the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee and its flood relief efforts. For the Opry, flood damage hit close to home -- literally. Tuesday evening's performance will be presented at Nashville's historic Ryman Auditorium, as the Opry has been temporarily displaced from its permanent home -- the Grand Ole Opry House -- in the aftermath of this month's natural disaster.

Our Favorite Episodes: Have Gun - Will Travel

Friday, May 21, 2010 at 12:12 p.m.

Note to Readers:& We've received several requests for more content about classic western television shows - you asked, and we listened.& Please join us in welcoming the newest member of our blogging team, Vicki Jackson, as she writes each week about her favorite episodes of Rawhide, Gunsmoke, Bonanza, and keeps you up-to-date on the latest airdates for the best Westerns on TV.

Like many a Baby Boomer who grew up in the Fifties, I can remember when my mother had to call me to dinner more than once because I was sitting on the floor glued to our television set watching the CBS series Have Gun - Will Travel. Back in those days, we had some great television westerns. I rarely missed Gunsmoke, Annie Oakley, or Have Gun & Will Travel and considered myself an amalgamation of Matt Dillon, Annie Oakley, and Paladin. For a girl of 8, there were not many female heroines to pattern myself after, so I took on the personas of what I watched every day & cowboys.

When the January 4, 1958, episode of Have Gun - Will Travel aired, it became one of my all-time favorites. Ella West, played by Norma Crane, was only 24 years old and already part myth, part legend and considered more famous than Calamity Jane and Bell Star put together. As a sharpshooter in Tomahawk Carter&s Wild West Show, Ella wore buckskins, a cowboy hat, gun, and holster. She was loud and proud. I thought she was fantastic. One of her lines, that I put to memory, was, &I can out ride, out shoot, out cuss, out spit, out chew, and out drink anyone of you.&

Paladin was hired to tame Ella, but soon realized that he had his work cut out for him. Paladin stated, &There is one wild thing that man will never civilize & woman.& I didn&t know what that meant, but I now know that a woman learns to define herself, and that she can be a lady and still wear buckskins, boots, and a hat. Yee-ha!

Kevin Costner to the rescue?

Thursday, May 20, 2010 at 11:48 am

Who can save us from ecological catastrophe? Would you believe... Kevin Costner? Seriously: According to the New York Daily News, Costner "has invented a device that cleans oil from sea water." And British Petroleum -- which, let's face it, is getting pretty dadgum desperate at this point -- gave the OK yesterday to test six of Costner's devices "after the Army Corps of Engineers gave the machine a thumb's up."

But wait, there's more: "Costner's $24 million centrifuge machine has a Los Angeles-perfect name, 'Ocean Therapy.' Placed on a barge, it sucks in oily water, separates out the oil and spits back clean water." And believe it or not: Costner "started paying a team of scientists millions to create the device" back in 1995 while working on -- yes, you guessed it -- Waterworld.

Art Exchange Austin

Thursday, May 20, 2010 at 10:39 am

We'd be remiss if we didnt recognize the Art Exchange Gallery's newest location in Austin, Tx. Late in 2009 the New Mexico based Art Exchange Gallery expanded to Austin, hoping to spread the word about some of the excellent artists the gallery already represents, and complementing that work with established artists from around Central Texas. The brand-new 1700 square feet of gallery space space accommodates a variety of work. Jeff Tabor, one of our favorite landscape painters, owns and operates the galleries out of Santa Fe.

If you're in Austin, check them out. The gallery hours are Noon to 8 p.m. daily, located at 1611 W. 5th Street STE. T-2A Austin, TX 78703. Call (512) 992-0130 for more information.

Gamers go gunning with 'Red Dead Redemption'

Wednesday, May 19, 2010 at 2:31 p.m.

Red Dead Redemption is lassoing rave reviews from video-game enthusiasts, with Seth Schiesel of the New York Times describing the Western-themed Rockstar Games release as "a tour de force" that establishes "a new standard for sophistication and ambition in electronic gaming," and Claire Walla of Vanity Fair likening its vivid imagery to scenes from The Searchers and The Wild Bunch. CNET.com critic Justin Calvert sums up his glowing notice: "This stunning Wild West epic raises the bar for open world action games, and stakes its claim as one of the most engaging games this year."

You can preview Red Dead Redemption in this video. And if you can't rustle up your own copy of the game right away, you might consider these alternatives:

Red Steel 2 -- Available only on the Nintendo Wii platform, this Wild West/Far East mash-up is a first-person action game featuring straight shooting and sword-slashing in a futuristic sci-fi setting.

Lead & Gold: Gangs of the Wild West -- A third-person shooter game that allows you to choose your own character -- Gunslinger, Deputy, Trapper or Blaster -- and form gangs with other players for competitive gunfights.

Westward IV -- The latest in a series of Wild West games available for PC download from Sandlot Games, with an emphasis on town-building rather than gunslinging.

Jessica Lange saddling up for 'The Big Valley'

Wednesday, May 19, 2010 at 11:54 am

Looks like those early reports that Susan Sarandon would star in a big-screen version of The Big Valley were just a tad premature. According to the showbiz trade paper Variety, Jessica Lange is the leading lady who'll be stepping in Barbara Stanwyck's boots as Victoria Barkley, matriarch of a wealthy 1870s ranching family. The movie version of the enduringly popular 1960s TV Western is scheduled to start filming July 19 in and around Baton Rouge, La. According to Internet Movie Data Base, Richard Dreyfuss and Bruce Dern have been signed for supporting roles -- and newcomer Jason Alan Smith is set to play Nick Barkley, Victoria's hot-tempered son, a character played in the original TV show by Peter Breck.

Give Thanks for Friends with Sausage to Spare

Wednesday, May 19, 2010 at 10:11 am

My friend Patrick has a deer lease down near his parents' home in Seguin, Texas, where he grew up. Every year he goes on a couple of hunting trips and brings back the field-dressed deer (or wild boar) meat for processing at Kuby's Sausage House in Dallas. This last time, I was able to convince him to part with several pounds of the smoked chipotle-jack and jalapeno-cheddar venison links that he had stockpiled in his garage freezer. Melissa likes to eat the fully cooked sausages straight up, sliced thin like pepperoni, but last weekend I decided to roast a turkey breast for Sunday dinner and make a mini springtime Thanksgiving meal using the jalapeno cheddar links in a simplified one-bowl sausage stuffing. The roast turkey, vegetables, and stuffing are a meal in and of themselves, but for the whole Thanksgiving experience, add some mashed potatoes and peas to the plate.

And next time you find yourself with some extra venison or boar meat, take it to Kuby's and ask for my other favorites, the breakfast sausage or Italian sausage mix. Your friends and family will happily dispatch with the results, leaving your freezer freed up for your next hunting trip.

Roasted Ancho Chili Turkey Breast with Roast Carrots and Sweet Potato

1 whole turkey breast, with skin and bone on
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon ancho chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons dried oregano
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1 pound carrots
1 pound sweet potato
1 whole bulb onion with green stem
1 tablespoon olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Rinse turkey breast and pat dry. Season with salt inside and out, and let sit and room temperature for 30 minutes.

Peel carrots and sweet potato(es) and slice into a 1-inch dice. Cut bulb onion, including green stem, into a 1-inch dice. Toss vegetables with olive oil and place in the bottom of a roasting pan.

Mix together softened butter, garlic, salt, ancho chili, cumin, and oregano. Using your fingers, work the butter mixture under the skin of the turkey breast and inside the cavity.& Place turkey breast on top of vegetables in the roasting pan, and pour 1 cup of water in the bottom of the pan. Roast for approximately 2 hours, or until a meat thermometer reaches 170 degrees. During the roasting, stir the vegetables and add water as needed to prevent them from burning or drying out.

Simple Venison Sausage Cornbread Stuffing

1/2 pound of smoked jalapeno-cheddar venison sausage (or the smoked sausage of your choice), diced
1 cup cornmeal
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 eggs
1 cup nonfat yogurt
1 can creamed corn
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 red pepper, diced

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9 x 9 inch baking dish.

Saute sausage and red pepper in a skillet until pepper softens and sausage begins to brown. Set aside to cool.

In a medium bowl, mix all remaining ingredients together. Add sausage and red pepper. Pour into baking dish and bake about 30 minutes, until stuffing starts to pull away from edges and top is browned.

Wednesday Western: 'Invitation to a Gunfighter'

Wednesday, May 19, 2010 at 8:18 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: Invitation to a Gunfighter, a tense 1964 drama starring George Segal as a former Confederate soldier who's not welcome when he returns home after the Civil War, Yul Brynner as a gunfighter hired by the locals to dispose of the outcast, and Janice Rule as the young woman who's drawn to both men.

Happy Birthday, George Strait!

Tuesday, May 18, 2010 at 5:01 p.m.

As we celebrate George Strait&s birthday & The King of Country Music turns 58 today & let&s also send a grateful shout-out to the U.S. Army for helping King George be all that he can be. Seriously.

It was back in the early 1970s, while he was stationed at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii as part of the 25th Infantry Division. &That&s when I decided I was going to try and have a career in country music,& Strait recalls. He played with an Army-sponsored band, Rambling Country, which occasionally performed off-base gigs.

&I think it was the very first time I played a club, while I was in Hawaii. Funny place for a country music career to start, but that's where mine started. After that first night I knew that this was what I wanted to do. I spent many years playing clubs and dance halls after that before I ever got signed to MCA Records in 1981. But it was all worth it. And I have a lot of good memories of those years.&

Which only seems fair, considering all the wonderful memories & and the terrific music & he&s provided for his many fans. Happy Birthday, King George!

Wynonna's working undercover

Tuesday, May 18, 2010 at 3:21 p.m.

Great balls of Firestone! Are things so bad that Wynonna Judd needs a part-time gig as a tire store salesclerk? Not quite. Rather, the country music star simply is playing along with the premise of I Get That a Lot, the CBS show that invites celebrities to pose as ordinary folks in everyday jobs -- much to the confusion of customers who can't decide whether they're seeing a real superstar or an astonishing lookalike. Wynonna will be featured on the one-hour special episode airing at 8 pm ET Wednesday, May 19. Other celebrity participants: Wayne Brady (Let's Make a Deal) working behind the front desk at an upscale hotel, style icon Tim Gunn behind the counter at a fast food joint, The Jonas Brothers' Nick Jonas working at a girls' clothing shop, Jay Mohr (Gary Unmarried) as a coffee house barista and Martha Stewart as a craft store employee.

Prime-time drama deep in the heart of Texas

Monday, May 17, 2010 at 2:24 p.m.

Chief among the new fall series announced today by the Fox network: Lonestar, a prime-time soap opera described by a Fox executive as "a modern-day Dallas," starring Oscar-winner Jon Voight and Saturday Night Lights veteran Adrianne Palicki. Scheduled to air on Monday evenings, it's being hyped as "a sophisticated and provocative drama set against the sprawling backdrop of big Texas oil." So far, however, there's no word as to whether Voight will be playing a benevolent father figure, or the 21st-century version of J.R. Ewing.

Alan Jackson Concert To Benefit Mining Disaster Families

Monday, May 17, 2010 at 11:37 am

Country music superstar Alan Jackson will dedicate profits from a May 22nd concert& to the families who lost loved ones in the Upper Big Branch mining disaster last April.& Proceeds from the event will go to the Montcoal Mining Disaster Fund administrated by the West Virginia Council of Churches.

&This is a very wonderful donation from Alan and, on behalf of our state, I&m honored for our miners, their families and the rescue workers,& said West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin. &Alan is a world-famous entertainer who has never forgotten his small-town roots and the importance of family.&

Jackson recently received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and is on tour to support his current album Freight Train.

On April 5, twenty-nine miners lost their lives and two were injured in the tragedy at the Upper Big Branch Mine, about 30 miles south of Charleston, WV.& It was the country&s worst mining disaster in four decades.

Tickets for the Alan Jackson concert are available at www.ticketmaster.com.& Ticket prices for a portion of the venue have been reduced to $20.00, and numerous vendors and suppliers to the show have reduced their fees for the benefit concert.

It's official: 'Cowboys and Aliens' will blast off July 29, 2011

Thursday, May 13, 2010 at 3:10 p.m.

OK, it's well over a year away. But the folks at DreamWorks Pictures obviously feel it's not too early to start stoking the hype for Cowboys and Aliens, the big-budget sci-fi Western action-adventure that kicks off production next month in New Mexico under the helm of Iron Man 2 director Jon Favreau. They've already slated an official opening date for the flick -- July 29, 2011 -- which stars Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde and Sam Rockwell, and is based on the graphic novel created by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg and written by Fred Van Lente and Andrew Foley, with art by Dennis Calero and Luciano Lima.

What's it all about? According to the DreamWorks press release:

"1873. Arizona Territory. A stranger (Craig) with no memory of his past stumbles into the hard desert town of Absolution. The only hint to his history is a mysterious shackle that encircles one wrist. What he discovers is that the people of Absolution don&t welcome strangers, and nobody makes a move on its streets unless ordered to do so by the iron-fisted Colonel Dolarhyde (Ford). It&s a town that lives in fear.

"But Absolution is about to experience fear it can scarcely comprehend as the desolate city is attacked by marauders from the sky. Screaming down with breathtaking velocity and blinding lights to abduct the helpless one by one, these monsters challenge everything the residents have ever known.

"Now, the stranger they rejected is their only hope for salvation. As this gunslinger slowly starts to remember who he is and where he&s been, he realizes he holds a secret that could give the town a fighting chance against the alien force. With the help of the elusive traveler Ella (Olivia Wilde), he pulls together a posse comprised of former opponents&townsfolk, Dolarhyde and his boys, outlaws and Apache warriors&all in danger of annihilation. United against a common enemy, they will prepare for an epic showdown for survival."

Cowabunga!

Get a Rope

Thursday, May 13, 2010 at 1:38 p.m.
When I told Brandy, our associate publisher, that I was going to New York City for a few days to visit friends, she responded like a true Texan: "Get a rope." I'm not saying I want to live there (one summer in law school was plenty), but I sure do like to visit. And these days, Westerners have plenty of reasons to feel at home in the Big Apple.

Big Apple Barbecue Block Party: The 8th annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party will take place in Madison Square Park June 12-13 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Pitmasters include Texas' own Michael Rodriguez from the Salt Lick in Driftwood and Joe Duncan from Baker's Ribs in Dallas. Admission is free and barbecue goes for $8/plate. Proceeds support the Madison Square Park Conservancy, the organization responsible for the ongoing maintenance of the historic park that is believed to be the birthplace of baseball & Alexander Cartwright formed the first baseball club there in 1845, the New York Knickerbockers.
Robert Rauschenberg and the Marlboro Man at the Guggenheim: The latest exhibit at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, Haunted: Contemporary Photography/Video/Performance, examines the ways that modern photography and video are often haunted by the past. Featured works include mixed-media silkscreens by Port Arthur, Texas-native Robert Rauschenberg and one of photographer Richard Prince's iconic images of the Marlboro Man. On display through September 6.
Cowgirl Fashion at the Met: Check out riding habits from the turn of the 19th century to see how horsewomen rode in style, along with examples of women's high fashion from the 1890s through the 1940s, as part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's exhibit American Women: Fashioning a National Identity. On display through August 15.
Teddy Roosevelt's Birthplace: Only one president was born in NYC, and he just happens to be the one that inspired a stuffed animal, was immortalized in stone in South Dakota, and established our National Park system. See his Rough Rider uniform and rancher gear on display in his former midtown home, now a National Historic Site. Guided tours are available Tuesday to Sunday, every hour on the hour, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
National Museum of the American Indian: There are three exhibits worthy of a trip to the NYC branch of the National Museum of the American Indian this summer. Hide: Skin as Material and Metaphor (on display through August 1) explores the use of animal skin as art and material, as well as perceptions of our human skin and race. If you happened to like my article about Douglas Miles and his Apache Skateboards team in the June 2009 issue of C&I, you'll want to be sure to check out Ramp It Up: Skateboard Culture in Native America (on display through August 8). And then there's A Song for the Horse Nation (on display through July 2011),which documents the equine's influence on American Indian tribes from the 1600s to the present.

Photography courtesy of the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party

Wednesday Western: 'McClintock!'

Wednesday, May 12, 2010 at 12:02 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: McClintock! The original advertising tagline said it all: "He likes his whiskey hard... His women soft... and his West all to himself!" John Wayne gives a big, blustery and bodaciously funny performance here as George Washington McClintock, an Arizona cattle baron who finds it difficult to ride herd on his spirited wife (Maureen O'Hara) and their college-educated daughter (Stefanie Powers).

Two Woman Show at Sorrel Sky

Tuesday, May 11, 2010 at 5:40 p.m.

On the evening of April 2, Sorrel Sky debuted a "Two Woman Show" to a packed gallery, featuring work by two very different artists: Carrie Fell and Star Liana York.

The Durango, Colorado, gallery is one of the region's premier sources for jewelry and fine art -- but they're also well-known for vibrant and exciting receptions. Artists and patrons mingled as collectors snapped up several pieces that highlighted two women's unique perspectives on the West.

Artist Carrie Fell's work was as colorful and lively as the conversation. Fell likes to portray her images of cowboys and cowgirls in bright hues -- her vision of the West is free-spirited and spry, yet sophisticated and demure enough to appeal to a wide audience.

Star Liana York, on the other hand, is best known for her captivating bronzes. For York, the process of creating is about revealing the expressive personality to be found in a fleeting moment or gesture. “When character emerges from a work I am sculpting, I feel touched at a deeply intimate, subconscious level. It is this essence in a work of art that makes it intensely personal, and entirely universal at the same time,” she says.

The success of the "Two Woman Show" will undoubtedly be echoed on September 10 when a "Two Man Show" featuring Jim Eppler and Michael Lewis will be displayed.

If you can't wait until then to get in the art spirit, Sorrell Sky will participate in Durango's Spring Gallery Walk on May 14th, featuring masterful work by Nocona Burgess.

FYI: Sorrel Sky Gallery -- 870 Main Avenue, Durango, Colorado, 81301, 970.247.3555. www.sorrelsky.com

Farewell to two CAA greats...

Tuesday, May 11, 2010 at 3:49 p.m.

The Cowboy Artists of America said goodbye to two long-time members in recent weeks: Bill Moyers, who passed away on May 3, and Fritz White, who passed away on April 11.

Moyers joined the Cowboy Artists of America in 1968 and White in 1972. Both were active in the CAA as Emeritus members and won multiple awards in painting and sculpture over the years.

Proficient in a wide variety of media, from watercolor to bronze, Moyers &was one of the first members and a well-respected artist. It is with great sadness that we say goodbye to him,& said CAA President Fred Fellows.

During his association with the CAA, artist Fritz White won three Best of Show medals, one watercolor medal and ten medals in sculpture. Closely associated with the foundry scene centered around Loveland, Colo., White was responsible for several sculptures owned by the city.

Cowboys & Indians offers our sincerests condolences to their familes.

For more information on the Cowboy Artists of America, visit www.cowboyartistsofamerica.com

Final nominations announced for CMT Music Awards

Tuesday, May 11, 2010 at 1:37 p.m.

The competition for the 2010 CMT Music Awards is shaping up as a battle between blazing-hot newcomers and veteran superstars, according to CMT.com. Carrie Underwood, Jason Aldean, Lady Antebellum and Taylor Swift are locked in a four-way tie for the most nominations, with three nods each. But the list of finalists also includes such notables as Reba McEntire, Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, Tim McGraw and Miranda Lambert. Fans can vote online at CMT.com through June 8 to determine the winners in most categories. But you'll have to wait until June 9, during the live telecast of the CMT Music Awards in Nashville, before you can vote to determine Video of the Year.

Finding Your Way at the Santa Fe Farmers Market

Tuesday, May 11, 2010 at 12:15 p.m.

Growing up, the start of May meant that it was time to plant tomatoes, petunias, and impatiens in the black, clay soil in our backyard. Mr. Gambrel, our local nursery owner, would line up rows of empty plastic flats, and my little brother, sister, and I would break apart the plastic sleeves of brightly colored flowers and race to fill up the flats with the most outrageous combinations we could muster. My dad still loves to tell the story about how, when I was about 4 years old, I marched up to Mr. Gambrel and demanded, "George, whaddya got for us this year?"

Now, for me, May means the start of farmers market season. Even though the Dallas Farmers Market is open year-round, May is when Shed 1, the local farmers' shed, starts filling up with young tomato and chili plants, potted herbs, and flats of fresh strawberries and pickling cucumbers. Things are also springing up this month and next at the Santa Fe Farmers Market, which is now open Saturdays from 7 a.m. to noon and Tuesdays from 8 a.m. to noon. In addition to grassfed yak and bison, dried chiles, and fresh mushrooms from local vendors, check out these upcoming classes and tours to experience the best produce and cuisine the City Different has to offer:

Santa Fe Farmers Market guided tour with chefs Lois Ellen Frank and Walter Whitewater(Saturday June 12 from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.): Your day will begin with a tour of the Santa Fe Farmers Market, where you will meet the vendors and discover local produce and herbs from New Mexico. Later, you'll learn about the traditional foods of native Mexican and American cultures from Frank, the James Beard Award-winning author of Foods of the Southwest Indian Nations, and Whitewater, a Navajo chef and Food TV regular. With the chefs' guidance, you will prepare and enjoy a four-course meal. Check out our upcoming September issue for a feature on Native American cookery that includes an interview with Frank, along with her recipe for Pinon Chile Beans.

Shop with chef Ridgeway at the Santa Fe Farmers Market (Saturdays 10:00 a.m.): This summer, plan a visit to the Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi where you can enjoy the Shop in Style Package, which includes discounts at local shops and galleries, gifts with purchase, and a private shopping hour with cocktails at Back at the Ranch. But keep your Saturday morning free and head over to the farmers market to meet up with Anasazi's chef, Oliver Ridgeway, who will take you on a tour of the market while he picks up the ingredients for that evening's appetizer and entree.

Santa Fe School of Cooking restaurant walking tour: Are you more interested in sampling what the experts have to offer than cooking for yourself? Put on your walking shoes and stretch-waist pants and head for the internationally recognized Santa Fe School of Cooking for a meet and greet with your chef/guide, who will take you on a tour of four of Santa Fe's most prestigious dining destinations. You'll visit chef Martin Rios' newly opened Restaurant Martin, currently nominated for the James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant of the Southwest; Luminaria at the Inn at Loretto, where Chef Brian Cooper uses indigenous seasonal ingredients flavored with Southwest spices to create his own historically influenced cuisine; The Plaza Cafe, where the Razatos Family has served authentic New Mexican food for more than 50 years; and Il Piatto, led by chef/proprietor Matt Yohalem, who works with local farmers to offer a uniquely delicious regional Italian cuisine. Each stop will include a private tasting and audiences with the chefs.

Honoring women who helped settle the West

Monday, May 10, 2010 at 1:24 p.m.

From the Los Angeles Times comes word of an ambitious new exhibit at the Gene Autry Museum of the American West: "Home Lands: How Women Made the West," a celebration of women and their contributions to the settlement of the West. The landmark exhibition will be on view from April 16 to Aug. 22.

C&I Congratulates Kentucky Derby Co-Winners

Friday, May 7, 2010 at 2:14 p.m.

C&I would like to congratulate Kentucky Derby co-winners Bill and Susan Casner of Flower Mound, Texas. The Casners, co-owners of WinStar Farms of Versailles, Kentucky, were thrilled to see Super Saver&s first Kentucky Derby win. Jockey Calvin Borel rode Super Saver to a win in just under 2:05 at last Saturday&s race.

Although Derby weekend was overshadowed by the tragic flooding that continues to affect Kentucky and Tennessee, the horse industry will undoubtedly add some economic power to the recovery when the upcoming World Equestrian Games makes its first U.S. appearance when it comes to Lexington later this year.& Look for more about the WEG and our Kentucky coverage in our upcoming July issue.

Flood relief will flow from 2010 CMA Music Festival

Thursday, May 6, 2010 at 5:31 p.m.

In response to the devastating floods that have ravaged Nashville and Middle Tennessee, the Country Music Association announced today that 50 percent of the net proceeds of next month's 2010 CMA Music Festival -- scheduled for June 10-13 -- will be donated to the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee for flood relief. This will be in addition to CMA's already established annual donation of 50 percent of the net proceeds to Metro Nashville Public Schools for music education through the Keep the Music Playing program. In other words, 100 percent of the net proceeds of the event will be given to benefit Nashville's public school students and Middle Tennessee families in need. Pretty impressive, eh?

Says CMA board chairman Steve Moore: "This year with all the downtown businesses as well as our tourism industry suffering huge losses due to flood damage, it is vitally important to the Nashville business community that CMA Music Festival continues as planned. CMA is proud to step up and help our area by donating half of the CMA Music Festival's net proceeds to the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee to help its flood relief efforts while we continue our important commitment to children and music education."

"CMA has always been a great supporter of Music City through the Association's Keep the Music Playing initiative," says Nashville Mayor Karl Dean. "This added contribution to aid in flood recovery efforts will be incredibly helpful and demonstrates the great partnership that exists between the City of Nashville, CMA Music Festival, and the Country Music industry."

Ellen Lehman, president of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee adds: "Millions of lives have been affected by this disaster. While some will recover quickly, others will take months or years to rebuild, and The Community Foundation's disaster funds will continue to strategically address needs as they emerge and evolve. It has been incredible to see this community's outpouring of generosity, and we are thrilled, but not surprised, to see CMA join in leading the efforts to help this city rebuild."

The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee has activated its Metro Nashville Disaster Response Fund in partnership with the Mayor's Office of Emergency Management to support relief efforts. Grants from the fund will be made to nonprofits supporting relief, restoration, and clean-up efforts in the Davidson County area.

CMA Music Festival is Nashville's signature music event, drawing 56,000 people from the region as well as every state in the nation and visitors from 26 countries around the world. It's estimated that the festival generates more than $22 million in direct visitor spending to the local economy.

Tom Selleck talks Westerns at the Gene Autry Museum

Thursday, May 6, 2010 at 12:35 p.m.

If you want to see more of Tom Selleck -- his latest Jesse Stone TV-movie, No Remorse, airs Sunday on CBS. And if you want to read more about Selleck, check out this USA Today interview.

'Last American Cowboy' will be roaming on Animal Planet

Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at 4:11 p.m.

Animal Planet has announced a June 7 premiere date for Last American Cowboy, an ambitious series that will bring viewers to the cattle country of Montana for an up-close view of life at three family-owned and operated ranches. "The families featured in Last American Cowboy have extraordinary and compelling stories of grit and determination as they struggle to preserve their way of life for future generations," says Marjorie Kaplan, president and general manager of Animal Planet Media. "The rawness and tenacity of the American West has built their character and continues to test it every day, and we are privileged to offer our viewers a glimpse into an authentic way of life few get to see first hand."

Wednesday Western: 'Outlaw Trail: The Treasure of Butch Cassidy'

Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at 12:41 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: Outlaw Trail: The Treasure of Butch Cassidy, a fanciful, family-friendly flick set in 1951 Utah, where the great-nephew of the notorious Butch Cassidy joins his Boy Scout buddies in a search for -- what else? -- the outlaw's long-lost stash of gold.

Let Your Mama Know She Raised You Right

Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at 10:54 am

If your mama let you grow up to be a cowboy (or cowgirl), you can show your appreciation on Mother's Day with this light-as-air dessert. She can indulge without fretting about her waistline, and you can show off with a dollop of sunny yellow citrus curd on top. Which, when you get down to it, is just a fancy name for pudding.

Angel Food Cake with Mango-Lime Curd
12 egg whites (let stand at room temperature for 1 hour)
1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
1 cup cake flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons lime zest

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift together confectioners sugar, flour, and salt. Beat egg whites in mixer until frothy. Add cream of tartar and beat at medium speed until they form soft peaks. With beaters on, add granulated sugar slowly, and continue beating until whites are thickened and form soft, droopy peaks. Beat in extract and lime zest. Sprinkle one-fourth of sifted dry ingredients over whites and fold in with a rubber spatula, being careful not to overmix. Gently pour batter evenly into an ungreased angel food cake pan. Bake 40-45 minutes or until top is light golden and cake springs back when touched lightly. Invert pan and stand on feet until cooled completely. To remove cake, run tip of knife around outer edge of pan and invert.

Mango-Lime Curd

1 pound ripe mangoes
1/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons lime juice
4 egg yolks
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup butter

Puree mango, sugar, lime juice, egg yolks, and salt in food processor until smooth. Strain puree through a fine sieve into a metal bowl or saucepan. Set metal bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (do not let bowl touch water), and whisk puree until thick and temperature reaches 170 degrees. Remove from heat and whisk in butter one piece at a time. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

The story of a horse and the boy who loved him... and World War I

Monday, May 3, 2010 at 5:57 p.m.

According to the showbiz trade paper Variety, filmmaker Steven Spielberg has selected his next project: A big-screen adaptation of Michael Morpurgo's novel War Horse, an epic drama about "the extraordinary friendship between a boy and a horse who are separated, but whose fates cointinue to intertwine over World War I." No word yet as to who Spielberg intends to cast as the boy. Or the horse.

Big Girl Lunch

Monday, May 3, 2010 at 4:27 p.m.

My friend Ayeh has two beautiful little girls: Madison, age 5, and Ava, age 3. Not too long ago we all made a trek to the American Girl store at the Galleria Dallas for a special birthday treat. For someone who does not have children of her own, only two nephews who love to throw, kick, hit, or chase pretty much anything, it is a bit of a shocker to walk into what can only be described as a cross between Barbie&s dream house and a natural history museum, with historical dioramas of American girls living out every era of history equipped with the perfect survival accessories, from a Navajo loom and metate to a snowboard and matching helmet.

If only I had known then what I know now: That just across the street in the Westin hotel was another kind of acrylic display case, only one made for someone my size & for someone, as my friend Charlotte Anne would say, who is &a whiskey kind of girl.&

Take the escalator up to the second floor of the hotel and you&ll discover a glass-walled jewel box of a restaurant/bar titled, appropriately, the Second Floor. The second joint venture of husband and wife team Scott and Gina Gottlich (Bijoux being their very successful first), the Second Floor offers a mod-lit bar scene with a stunning 4-page Scotch menu. But behind the bar you&ll find a small, quiet restaurant that is just perfect for a post-shopping lunch.

Head chef J. Chastain (formerly a sous chef at Stephan Pyles and the Mansion on Turtle Creek) offers a seasonal menu that includes a number of standouts, like short ribs served with a blue cheese and onion bread pudding, the best Brussels sprouts I have ever eaten, and a creamy celery root puree.

And I&ll tell you right now, the next time I find myself at the American Girl store, I&m taking my little shoppers Madison and Ava to the Second Floor for a &big girl& lunch. We&ll start with heaping spoonfuls of the piquant piquillo pimento cheese spread slathered on buttery brioche toast sticks, order a pizza, and split the sorbet tasting for dessert. Pink strawberry-Meyer-lemon for Madison, &lello& banana-caramel for Ava, and my personal favorite, the green honeydew-basil, all for me.

Visit the Second Floor this Sunday for their Mother's Day "Brunch," which runs from 10:30 a.m. until 10:30 p.m. You have your choice of three courses for $35 per person, $15 for children, and $20 for wine pairings. Choices range from mascarpone lemon crepes, english pea ravioli, and watermelon gazpacho for starters to a prawn frittata with asparagus, hollandaise, and pommes frites or a short rib flatbread with scrambled eggs, spinach, and roasted peppers for a main. For dessert? I would be tempted by the strawberry shortcake trio of pound cake, profiterole, and scone, but make sure someone at your table orders the sorbet sampler. As our waitress pointed out, "They're like the fruit, only better."

Piquillo Cheese with Toasted Brioche and Lavosh
Ingredients for about 3 1/2 cups:
12 oz. Cantalet or similar aged farmhouse cheddar, shredded
2 small piquillo chile peppers, diced
4 oz. cream cheese
2 oz. carrot juice
2 oz. whole milk
3 oz. mayonnaise
1/2 tsp. jalapeno powder (this ingredient can be found at Central Market)

Beat cream cheese in mixer till softened. Add remaining ingredients except for Cantalet. Mix well till completely incorporated.

Fold in cantalet. Serve with toasted brioche toast points or your favorite crackers.

Coming soon to a theater near you: 'Jonah Hex'

Friday, April 30, 2010 at 12:09 am

In the unlikely event that David Hofstede's story hasn't already got you fired up to see Jonah Hex, take a look at this trailer for the forthcoming supernatural Western.

Mixed Grill

Thursday, April 29, 2010 at 12:05 p.m.

In my neighborhood in Oak Cliff, there's a well known family-owned restaurant called El Ranchito, or, as Cliffdwellers call it, "the Chito." For the longest time, I was scared to venture inside despite the festive exterior because a) it billed itself as a "cafe and club" on the sign, and b) there were no windows. Every time I would drive by I would speculate as to what "club" meant. Were there dance parties? Was it simply a bar? Did they even serve food? But when my hairdresser told me I had to go, I summoned up my courage, grabbed Melissa, and we headed in on a Friday night, come what may.

My fears were put to rest as soon as I saw the tortilla stand in the center of the sombrero-strewn room, where two women were churning out flour tortillas by hand. We were seated in what appeared to be a quiet alcove by the kitchen, and quickly ordered the irresistible Parillada Mexican for two. Soon we found ourselves surveying our own personal cast-iron grill covered with sizzling hunks of beef, sausage, and ribs. There was no need for conversation. Between the boundless meat and the roving bands of mariachis with full horn sections that soon squeezed into our corner, we couldn't communicate if we tried.

But out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a table of four young men across the way. They had clearly put in a long week of work, and were ready to relax. They each had a large, strawberry margarita in front of them & yes, strawberry & and no one seemed to be in a hurry to order food. One of them caught my eye and made a comment in Spanish, but I couldn't understand him, or hear, so I smiled and waved in the general direction of the mariachis, shrugged my shoulders, and returned to my smoking grill of meat. This time he came over to the table. I apologized, I speak only a smattering of Spanish, mostly related to food, but we hoped they were having a lovely evening. He smiled and nodded, then returned to his friends.

Next thing we knew, the waiter brought over two strawberry margaritas to our table. "We didn't order these," I shouted above the horns. The waiter smiled and gestured toward the table of men. "They sent them over with their regards," he said. We turned to their table and did the universal female nod-and-wave of appreciation that signifies, "Thanks, the gift is too kind. Do not even consider approaching further." We returned to our meal, soon finished to bursting, and the waiter came to take our check.

"Will you please put a round of drinks on our tab and deliver them to the other table after we leave?," I shouted as he stood beside me. He looked at me blankly. "We'd like to buy them a round to thank them, but I don't want you to take them to their table until after we're gone," I yelled in his ear. "Ah, yes," he said, smiling. "No problem. I'll be right back." Soon I saw our waiter heading in our direction with a tray full of pink frozen drinks. He set them down on the other table. I saw him point in our direction. I saw the men look at each other, then at the drinks, then at us. There were smiles all around. Melissa looked at me in horror. I froze.

The man who had approached our table earlier stood up and came over. He smiled and started talking rapidly to me. I shrugged my shoulders and apologized again. "Lo siento. No hablo Espanol." He unfolded a stack of bills and started peeling off twenties, one by one. "What is he doing?" I shouted at our waiter, starting to become concerned. "He's paying for the drinks you sent over," said the waiter with a grin, "and for your dinner."

The moral of the story? If only I had known how to request a mariachi song and keep my table occupied, I would have had to pay for my own dinner. Wait a minute. How about, The return should always be greater than your investment. Or a strawberry margarita in the hand is worth more than two on a neighboring table if you end up with a free meal.

Regardless, next time I'll be prepared having just read Robb Walsh's The Tex-Mex Grill and Barbacoa Cookbook, which recommends five mariachi songs to request when you need a quick diversion. My next getaway song? "Volver, Volver." I'll remember it because it's the title of my favorite Penelope Cruz movie.

Like El Ranchito, I wasn't sure what to expect looking at the outside of Walsh's cookbook, but the renowned food critic for the Houston Press and James Beard Award winner doesn't disappoint. This is my kind of cookbook. It's a little frightening (goat leg steak? venison sausage?) and very comforting (slow-simmered stews and backyard brisket). There are quick rubs, salsas, and sauces and all-day, whole-hog recipes. And on top of it all, Walsh, identifies the best taco trucks in Portland, Oregon.

Whole Foods just had the last of this season's Texas Rio Star grapefruit on sale, so I opted for Walsh's intriguing grapefruit chicken fajitas. Their simplicity and surprisingly bright flavor were an unexpected joy.

Grapefruit Chicken Fajitas
Sal Ramirez sat behind his pick-up truck grilling chicken. He had marinated two boneless skinless chicken breasts in red grapefruit juice and seasoned them with paprika and lemon pepper.
&You baste the chicken with more grapefruit juice while it&s on the grill,& he said as he demonstrated his technique. There were more grapefruit sections ready to garnish the finished chicken, which he served in slices over salad greens. &The grapefruit comes from a tree in my backyard,& Ramirez told me. He looked to be in his late sixties or early seventies, and he said he used the skinless chicken because he was watching his cholesterol.
Four 7-ounce boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons ground Mexican oregano
Juice of 2 Texas red grapefruits
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper
6 flour tortillas
Texas Red Grapefruit Salsa
Pound the chicken breasts flat between two sheets of plastic wrap. Combine the garlic, Mexican oregano, juice from 1 grapefruit, and olive oil in a mixing bowl. Add the chicken breasts to the mixture and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight. Discard the marinade.
Heat the grill. Season the breasts with salt and pepper and grill over hot coals for 2 minutes on each side. Move the chicken to a cooler part of the grill. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes, basting with the juice from the second grapefruit, until cooked through. Heat the tortillas on the grill, turning often. Transfer the chicken breasts to a cutting board and slice them into long strips. Place the chicken strips on a serving platter. Bring to the table (or tailgate) with the warm tortillas, grapefruit salsa, and other condiments such as chopped lettuce or black olives. Invite your guests to make their own fajita tacos.

Texas Red Grapefruit Salsa
2 Texas red grapefruit
1 medium tomato, chopped fine
1 cup diced green, red, and yellow bell pepper in any combination.
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
3 tablespoons chopped red onion
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Salt to taste

Supreme the grapefruit and dice the sections. Combine with the other ingredients in a medium bowl and mix well. Allow to mellow for 30 minutes in the refrigerator for the flavors to combine.

A roadblock on the road to Broadway for 'Pure Country'

Thursday, April 29, 2010 at 12:04 p.m.

Things are tough all over, so it shouldn't be a surprise that even Broadway producers are feeling a financial pinch. According to CMT.com, plans for a musical stage version of Pure Country -- the enduringly popular 1992 George Strait movie -- have been delayed indefinitely because of the current economic crunch. And that means rising country star Joe Nichols -- who had been cast in the lead role originally played by Strait -- may have to pull out of the show in order to concentrate on touring and recording.

Wednesday Western: 'West of the Divide'

Wednesday, April 28, 2010 at 12:01 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: West of the Divide, a 1934 Western starring John Wayne as Ted Hayden, a two-fisted, straight-shooting hero who poses as an outlaw to infiltrate a notorious gang of bandits -- only to learn that the gang's leader is the varmint who killed his dad. He doesn't take kindly to this.

Little Laura is all grown up, but still on the 'Prairie'

Monday, April 26, 2010 at 12:43 p.m.

For those of us who remember prime-time airings of Little House on the Prairie, it&s a little disconcerting to see that Melissa Gilbert, who played young Laura on that enduringly popular &70s TV series, now is old enough to play Laura&s mom in a musical stage production that, like the television show, is based on the classic books about American pioneer life by Laura Ingalls Wilder. At this rate, we likely can expect The Waltons: The Musical with Richard Thomas as Grandpa Walton. Well, life goes on -- and Little House on the Prairie: The Musical continues on the road. The show kicks off a 12-performance run Wednesday in Houston, and is booked for upcoming engagements in Dallas, Fort Worth, Atlanta, Kansas city and Sioux Falls, S.D. Check out the website for more details.

Observing ... the Cowboy Way

Monday, April 26, 2010 at 10:27 am

I haven't yet had the pleasure of dining at Grady's Restaurant in Fort Worth, but I'm a huge fan of Grady Spears' cookbooks (see the June 2010 issue of C&I for a review of Cooking the Cowboy Way). One day I'll sign up for the cooking class that he teaches at his restaurant before it is sold out. In the meantime, Spears is hosting the restaurant's first art show on May 2 for David Griffin, a Dallas-based artist whose cowboy-themed work will be featured in the September issue of C&I. Wine and appetizers will be served from 5-7 p.m. R.S.V.P. 817.922.9980.

Fill 'Er Up

Monday, April 26, 2010 at 9:53 am

There's a phenomenon in Texas known as the destination gas station. In a state this vast, where highways traverse from Cypress choked swamps to bluebonnet carpeted fields to red rock crusted deserts, a gas station can't just be a source for fuel and microwaved burritos. It has to be a destination in and of itself, a place known for its kolaches, barbecue, or turkey jerky, a place you would drive miles out of your way to visit even if you didn't have anywhere else to go.

Having been to the Czech Stop in West (I always get a blueberry and cream cheese kolache, a hot chubbie, and, if I'm on my way home, a package of Czech Stop hot sausages for the grill) and Woody's Smokehouse in Centerville (the gas station/barbecue joint has locations on both the north and southbound sides of I-45, so you can hit it coming and going), I was still unprepared for the Chef Point Cafe.

First of all, I had never heard of it, even though the gourmet restaurant located in a Conoco station in Wautauga, just north of Fort Worth, has been featured on the Food Network show Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. Second, it's not only a gourmet restaurant in a gas station, it has, hands down, the best fried chicken I have ever eaten, anywhere. So why had it taken me five years to find it?

Apparently, my friends in Fort Worth don't like me all that much.

Luckily my Dallas friend Caroline had seen Guy Fieri's show, so we made a Sunday night pilgrimage to check the place out. When we arrived around 7 there was a line out the convenience store door, but it didn't take long for us to get a seat. Don't let the hype fool you: For all of its well-deserved accolades, the place is still a gas station. It's not trendy. There's no modern interior or sleek chrome styling. There's no retro hipster art or vintage diner fixtures. There's just a large open room full of slightly beat-up tables and booths to the left of the checkout counter, which is fully stocked with lottery tickets and smokes.

But the food, now that's worth traveling for. Nigerian-born chef Franson Nwaeze and his wife Paula Merrell decided to go the gas station route when Nwaeze discovered that it was easier to get a loan to finance the purchase of a stop-and-go than a restaurant. Their motto? "Fill 'er up outside, fill 'er up inside." And fill we did. In addition to the fried chicken, we tried the meatloaf and shepherd's pie, both on the Sunday Comfort Food menu. And for dessert? Melissa, who also came along for the ride,& took one heaping spoonful of the hot cognac sauce pooling around the bread pudding and declared it "liquid yum." We'll all be back for more. Till then, here's the recipe:

Chef Point Cafe Bread Pudding

Willie Nelson Latest: "Country Music"

Friday, April 23, 2010 at 2:10 p.m.

You die-hard Willie Nelson fans probably already have your copies of "Country Music" in-hand (the album went on sale earlier this week), but if you're on the fence about buying Willie's latest, you can check out a streaming release of the CD online for a few more days.

"Country Music" marks the artist's 67th album, and his first with producer T-Bone Burnett.

Nelson, who turns 77 on April 30th, commented on the album title in a press release, saying &You hear all kinds of ideas about country music: This is country, or this is, or that was and this ain&t. And it&s all a matter of opinion. But in my opinion, this is the original country music. So I&m really excited for people to hear it.&

Wednesday Western: 'Alias Jesse James'

Wednesday, April 21, 2010 at 9:16 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: Alias Jesse James, a hilarious 1959 spoof starring Bob Hope as a bumbling insurance agent who's mistaken for the notorious outlaw -- just after he's sold the real Jesse James (Wendell Corey) an insurance policy with a huge pay-off. Look closely, and you'll see comic cameos by such then-popular TV Western stars as Ward Bond, James Arness, Hugh O'Brian, Fess Parker -- and Roy Rogers.

Happy Cowboy Poetry Week

Tuesday, April 20, 2010 at 1:30 p.m.

Thanks to a 2003 U.S. Senate resolution (which you can read online at the Library of Congress), April 18-24 is when we Westerners officially recognize Cowboy Poetry Week. Here at C&I, we feature poetry every issue from our good pal Red Steagall in his column "Cowboy Corner".

We receive numerous poetry submissions via email and good-old-fashioned letters, but we don't always have room for them in print. Now, you too can share the spotlight each week as our homepage will present our Poem of the Week.

Thanks to reader R.V. Schmidt for his submission "Rodeo Cowboy", which kicks off the series. Help us continue to celebrate the West, past, present, and future, by submitting your own.

Send your cowboy poetry to mail@cowboysindians.com (please put "cowboy poetry" as the subject line or the spam filter may eat it), and don't forget to include your contact information.

Slaw Dogs With Moose Chili

Saturday, April 17, 2010 at 1:18 p.m.

My friend Karl and his wife, Becky, have a farm in Ennis, Texas. They keep a small menagerie of a couple turkeys, about a dozen chickens, two hounds, and a 500-pound wild boar named Mo that Karl found as a piglet wandering along the side of his country road.

Every year, Karl and Becky travel to faraway exotic locations, from South Africa to New Zealand, to hunt big game. On Karl's last trip, to Nova Scotia, he shot a moose and had the meat and hide shipped back to his home. The moose head is now mounted in the brand new trophy room that he built by hand, and several pounds of the meat ended up in my freezer.

I wasn't sure what to do with the moose meat until I saw Peggy Woodard's Texas State Fair-winning recipe for venison chili that appears in the July issue of C&I. I substituted ground moose for the venison, added my own mix of dried ancho and chipotle chilies, then served it up heaped on grilled hot dogs, topped with a bit of adobo cole slaw. The creamy slaw makes a nice foil for the spicy chili.

Slaw Dogs with Moose Chili
Moose Chili:
2 pounds ground moose (or venison, elk, or beef)
4 slices of bacon
3 cups diced white onion
2 tablespoons ancho chili powder
1 tablespoon chipotle chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons Mexican oregano
2 teaspoons salt
4 tablespoons flour
3 cups water

Adobo Cole Slaw:
1/2 head of green cabbage, shredded
1 large carrot, peeled and grated
1/4 small red onion, sliced thinly
1/4 cup lowfat sour cream
1/4 cup lowfat mayonnaise
Juice of two limes
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons of adobo sauce from a can of chipotle chilies
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Hot Dogs:
8 hot dogs
8 buns

Make chili. Cook bacon in a heavy pot over medium heat until you have about 2 tablespoons of bacon drippings. Remove bacon and save for another use. Cook onions in bacon drippings until translucent. Add moose and cook until meat is browned. Add both chili powders, cumin, oregano, and salt and cook for a few minutes. In a small bowl, mix flour with a small amount of water to create a thick paste. Mix paste into pot. Add water and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low, so chili is just simmering. Stir as needed. Cook 1 1/2-2 hours, adding water if necessary.

Make adobo cole slaw.
In a small bowl mix together sour cream, mayonnaise, lime juice, vinegar, sugar, and adobo sauce. Add salt and pepper to taste. In a large bowl, mix together cabbage, shredded carrot, and sliced onion. Toss with dressing. Cover and regrigerate for 1/2 hour for flavors to blend.

Assemble slaw dogs.
Cook hot dogs on grill or on stovetop. Serve in hot dog buns with chili and adobo cole slaw on top.

Western Weekend - William S. Hart Museum

Friday, April 16, 2010 at 5:45 p.m.

This month the Postal Service will release a series of four stamps, Cowboys of the Silver Screen. Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, and Tom Mix are among the more familiar names, but if you don't know William S. Hart, this weekend is your chance to learn a bit more about his legacy.M

Hart was one of the most famous& leading men of the silent film era.& Known for for his powerful presence and serious approach, his acting skills were honed by years of experience.& Hart insisted on authentic depictions of the Old West, from the wardrobe to the tack to the scenery. He often played a cowboy with a soft spot for a horse, and was known the world over.

In 1921 Hart purchased a ranch house and surrounding property in Newhall, north of Los Angeles, building a 22-room mansion and filling it with Western art and Native American artifacts. Later, Hart bequeathed the 230-acre estate to L.A. County for the enjoyment of the public at no charge. Slent movie screenings take place frequently at the Hart Museum, and you can even see a small herd of bison if you visit.

A special ceremony will be held at the William S. Hart Park and Museum on April 17 to unveil the Hart Stamp.& Beginning at 10 with the stamp unveiling, special activities and tours continue throughout the day.

Visit www.hartmuseum.org for more information.

Celebrating Billy Bob's

Thursday, April 15, 2010 at 3:56 p.m.

Congratulations to Billy Bob's Texas for being named the Academy of Country Music's Music Nightclub of the Year. This is the eighth time Billy Bob's has received the honor from ACM. Add that to the three Club of the Year awards it's been given by the Country Music Association, and you've got -- well, 11 good reasons to visit next time you're in Fort Worth. Billy and Pam Minick will represent Billy Bob's in Las Vgeas this weekend during the ACM awards presentation.

Two Grammy winners hang out at the White House

Thursday, April 15, 2010 at 3:39 p.m.

Garth Brooks appeared in the Oval Office of the White House yesterday to receive the Grammy on the Hill Award for his leadership in advancing the rights of music makers. The guy on the left? He won the 2007 Grammy Award for best spoken word album for his book The Audacity of Hope. It's got a great beat, but you can't dance to it.

Extreme Mustang Makeover Deadline

Wednesday, April 14, 2010 at 11:40 am

If you haven't heard of the Extreme Mustang Makeover yet, the event gives horse trainers the opportunity to pick up a wild mustang, train it for 90 days and return to a 2 day competition for the chance at big prize money. The tour hits six locations across the U.S.: Oregon, Texas, Colorado, Nebraska, Tennessee and California. When its all over, the horses are made available to the public for sale by auction.

On April 24th at 11:00 AM CST you can watch as 100 five and six yr. old mustang geldings and mares go for adoption on RFD-TV, Dish Network Channel 231 and DirecTV Channel 345 -- the adoption application deadline is already closed, but if you're interested, you may want to make sure you can fulfill the guidelines for next time.

Adopters of the 100 "Supreme" Mustangs are eligible to compete for $100,000 in prize money during the Supreme Extreme Mustang Makeover held in Ft. Worth, TX, August 13-14, 2010.

If you missed entry deadline for the "Extreme Supreme" in Ft. Worth, you can still make the April 15th deadline for the Nebraska competition, Sept. 24th-26 at the Lancaster Events Center in Lincoln. Joining the Nebraska event is Craig Cameron's Extreme Cowboy Race. The race is held Friday Sept. 24th and will be open to any trainer accepted to compete in the Extreme Mustang Makeover event (see www.extrememustangmakeover.com for more info on training requirements). Cameron spoke to Red Stegall about ranching, horsemanship, and the Fat Stock Show back in our January issue - you can hear the whole interview online.

George Strait ropes another record

Wednesday, April 14, 2010 at 10:22 am

According to the music industry trade paper Billboard, George Strait has become the very first artist in the history of Billboard charts to hit the Top 10 for 30 consecutive years. Strait landed his initial Top 10 hit in 1981 with his first charting single, "Unwound." With his current single &I Gotta Get to You& (from his hit CD Twang) jumping from No. 12 to No. 9 on Billboard&s radio airplay list, Strait&s number of Top 10 releases now totals 82.

Billboard writes: &Thirty years into his unparalleled career, the King of Country shows no signs of abdicating the throne.& Strait responds: &It just continues to be one heck of a ride that I'm enjoying every minute of. Time does fly when you&re having fun. Thanks to all of my fans for their support. Long live country music!&

Wednesday Western: 'The Trail Beyond'

Wednesday, April 14, 2010 at 10:09 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: The Trail Beyond, a 1934 Western showcasing an incredibly young John Wayne as a cowboy who goes looking for a missing girl, and finds himself smack dab in the middle of deadly battle for control of a gold mine. Directed by Robert Bradbury, a filmmaker who cranked out a passel of low-budget sagebrush sagas -- including several others with The Duke -- during the 1930s and '40s.

And the Pulitzer goes to... Hank Williams?

Tuesday, April 13, 2010 at 1:35 p.m.

Not that we're complaining, mind you. Earlier this morning the annual winners of the Pulitzer Prize were announced - be sure to check out Mary Chind's amazing photo of a flood rescue in Iowa - with the usual news organizations winning most of the coveted awards. A special award went to music legend Hank Williams, recognizing the body of work he completed during his career and the impact he had on modern popular music.

In keeping with the celebration, here's some excellent footage of Williams performing "Cold Cold Heart" ( Keep you eyes peeled for Roy Acuff and June Carter).

Going Western on Facebook

Tuesday, April 13, 2010 at 10:11 am

First there was FarmVille. Then Mafia Wars. And now Facebook friends will be able to go Western with FrontierVille, a new social game that, according to Geek.com, will reward players for raising livestock, building homesteads and constructing general stores.

'Cowboys & Aliens' on-line

Monday, April 12, 2010 at 1:50 p.m.

Just in case you've been wondering what all the fuss is about: Here is a link to the online version of Cowboys & Aliens, the sci-fi Western graphic novel that's being filmed with Daniel Craig (a.k.a. James Bond) and (reportedly) Harrison Ford for release next year in theaters and drive-ins everywhere. Keep in mind: The plot might go through some changes -- and some characters may be expanded or deleted -- during the translation from page to screen.

Harrison Ford Will Kick Alien Butt

Friday, April 9, 2010 at 3:49 p.m.

Well - I guess the announcements could be more official than this, but we'll take what we can get.

After a lot of speculation and rumor from various media outlets, director John Favreau claims (via Twitter) that Harrison Ford will join the film adaptation of the 2006 graphic novel Cowboys & Aliens .

Ford joins Daniel Craig (Quantum of Solace) and Olivia Wilde (House M.D.) in this comic book adaptation about cowboys and Indians who are forced to team up to battle a common enemy: alien invaders.

But don't get your popcorn ready yet -- the project isn't slated for release until 2011.

Wilma Mankiller, Cherokee

Thursday, April 8, 2010 at 10:52 am

There have already been hundreds of postings and articles out there about the passing of Wilma Mankiller, but there could never be enough.

Mankiller was prinicpal Chief of the Cherokee Nation between 1985 and 1995, and served in numerous leadership and advisory capacities throughout her life. Mankiller passed away April 6 at age 64 after a bout with pancreatic cancer.

Under her leadership the Cherokee nation pursued a series of successful social programs and reforms, growing to be the second largest tribe in the country. Her work bore fruit, and upon her retirement she spread her message throughout the academic world and beyond.

She battled health issues much her life - a car accident nearly killed her in 1979. She suffered from the muscular disorder myasthenia gravis, underwent a kidney transplant in 1990 and battled lymphoma and breast cancer.

Through it all, she managed to achieve remarkable things and overcome insurmountable barriers, inspiring people both inside and outside her tribe. May she rest.

Wednesday Western: 'Paradise Canyon'

Wednesday, April 7, 2010 at 10:47 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: Paradise Canyon, a two-fisted 1935 action-adventure starring John Wayne as a government agent who goes undercover with a traveling medicine show to track down a counterfeiter played by legendary Western actor/stuntman Yakima Canutt.

Rabbi Harvey rides again

Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at 12:39 p.m.

From The Huffington Post comes news about a clever graphic novel series about a most unlikely Wild West sheriff: Rabbi Harvey, a "tough, tall, black-garbed hero who looks like Clint Eastwood's Jewish cousin -- except that Harvey always shoots from his brain, never from his hip."

Jason Aldean, Lady Antebellum and Sugarland lead early voting for CMT Music Awards

Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at 12:18 p.m.

The race is on for the 2010 CMT Music Awards. And with four nominations each, Jason Aldean, Lady Antebellum and Sugarland are leading the pack in the first round of voting. Nipping at their heels with three nominations each: Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood and The Zac Brown Band.

Fan voting currently is underway at CMT.com to determine final nominees for the ninth annual CMT awards show, which will take place June 9 at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena -- and will be telecast live, of course, on Country Music Telelvision. CMT will announce four finalists in every category except Video of the Year May 11. After that, fans can cast their votes online to determine winners in all categories -- except, again, Video of the Year -- through June 8. Final nominees for Video of the Year will be announced at the start of the live telecast. And that's when you'll finally be able to vote -- at CMT.com and via text message -- for the big winner to be announced at the end of the show.

Reba's ready for some prime-time song and dance

Monday, April 5, 2010 at 2:38 p.m.

When you're hot, you're hot. And, more than likely, you'll wind up as a very special guest on Dancing with the Stars. No kidding. Just look at Reba McEntire, who's positively sizzling right now after scoring the biggest chart hit of her illustrious career with "Consider Me Gone," which spent four consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Country Chart and the USA Today/Country Aircheck Chart. Reba will perform "Consider Me Gone" and another fan favorite, "I Want a Cowboy," when she appears tomorrow night on Dancing with the Stars: The Results Show. The song-and-dance extravaganza stars at 8 p.m. ET Tuesday on ABC.

Jackalopes And Other Mythical Critters

Monday, April 5, 2010 at 1:17 p.m.

Johnny, our production manager, is a vegan Texan. Which is sort of like a jackalope & an animal that, if it existed, I'm sure would only eat leafy greens and avoid all animal products. But Johnny certainly exists, and he's not the only one of his kind.

I met one once before at Thanksgiving dinner at a friend's home in Houston. He sat down beside me, his plate piled high with turkey and smoked brisket. I thought at first that maybe he had noticed my own rapidly dwindling plate of food and was kind enough to bring me a refill so that I wouldn't have to stand up and risk popping a button. But when he didn't start forking the meat onto my plate, I looked at him quizzically. If you haven't noticed, I wear my disdain on my sleeve and am known as a bad liar. He noticed. "Only 10 percent of my diet is meat," he said without irony, and tucked in to the bacon-seasoned green bean casserole. I wasn't sure what a 10-percenter was called, but I was pretty sure it wasn't a vegan.I admire Johnny. He is eating healthy and setting a good example for his new son. And his own rules include exceptions for barbecue in Conroe and barbacoa in Mexico, which I have to respect. So for his birthday, I promised to make him a vegan pie. How hard could it be, I thought, to modify my peach crumble pie and get rid of the butter. Oh, how naive was I.

It started with the peaches. I have two peach trees in my backyard, but the young fruit is still green with at least a couple of months to maturity. And I ate the entire crop straight off the branch last year, so I didn't have any in my freezer. Instead, I headed to the Mexican grocery store down the street where I was pleased to find a big display of Chilean peaches. Which I'm sure are usually lovely, but when I got home after work and started to blanch and peel them, it was clear that with their pale flesh and muted scent they weren't going to be good enough for a birthday pie. But I was undeterred. I had spent last July in Edom, Texas, at Blueberry Hill Farms picking berries in 100-plus degree heat, just so I would have enough to last the year, and I still had some bags in the freezer.

Substitute fruit, check. Now on to the crust. First I tried one with flour and Crisco. No go. It felt way too soft. So I tried one with vegan margarine. Which just smelled funny. By now I was almost out of flour. And butter alternatives. But I had a jar of coconut oil, and just enough flour, if I mixed in some whole wheat, for one more try.

This time, using coconut oil cut with a bit of margarine and a dash of demerera sugar for sweetness, I ended up with a firm dough that turned out a delicious, flaky, butter-less crust. And with a little flaked coconut added to the crumble topping, the pie had a whole new flavor.

Back at the office, no one seemed to notice the lack of lard: By early afternoon, there was nothing left but a lone crumb. Was it worth it? For the most part, I'll stick to my standard butter crust. But this makes a decidedly delicious alternative.

Blueberry Coconut Crumble Pie
Fruit Filling:
5 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons flour
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
1/8 teaspoon salt

Crumble Topping:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup demerera or maple sugar
1/3 cup old-fashioned oats
1/3 cup unsweetened flaked coconut
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup coconut oil, chilled

Coconut Oil Pie Crust:
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tablespoons demerera sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup chilled coconut oil
2 tablespoons vegan margarine,chilled
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
3-5 tablespoons ice water

Make pie crust. Place dry ingredients in food processor and pulse 2 or 3 times to mix. Add coconut oil and margarine to the bowl of the processor and pulse just until mixture resembles coarse meal with some small pea-sized lumps.

Drizzle water and vinegar into the processor and pulse just until dough begins to hold together. Do not overwork or crust will be tough.

Gather the dough into a ball and flatten into a disk. Wrap the disk in plastic and chill for 15 minutes. Roll dough out on floured board with floured rolling pin to fit a 9-inch pie plate. Place dough in pie plate and crimp edges. Refrigerate pie crust until ready to use.

Make fruit filling.
Mix filling ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.

Make crumble topping.
Mix topping ingredients together in a separate bowl, working coconut oil in with your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal.

Assemble pie. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove pie crust from refrigerator and fill with fruit filling. Sprinkle crumble topping evenly across filling. Bake pie for 1 hour or until blueberries have begun to burst and juices bubble thickly.

Read A Slice of Pie by Ellise Pierce for more pie recipes and crust-making tips.

Oh, What A Beautiful Mornin'

Sunday, April 4, 2010 at 12:26 p.m.

A few years ago, my friend Caroline and I were visiting her father, Jim, at his lake house near Greer, South Carolina. By lake house, I mean a double-wide trailer on an Appalachian mountain pond, surrounded by a dense canopy of hemlock trees and white oaks, at the end of a long and winding dirt road. It was almost September, and it was still blazing hot.

We spent most of the day swimming in the lake, and when we returned to the trailer, Jim, an incurable Southern charmer, was quick to attend to our every need. "Can I get you anything, darlin'? Are you comfortable? Would you like another beer? A glass of wine? Can I move the fan in your direction?" I soon felt like I was at the Four Seasons with my own personal concierge. Minus the Four Seasons.

That afternoon we drove into town to pick up some groceries to cook for dinner. We stopped at a farmer's market that was still selling bushels of fresh peaches and bought a basketful. When we got back to the trailer, Jim grilled up some steaks and asparagus, then Caroline asked for something sweet. I dug around in the trailer's cupboards. There wasn't much, but I found some flour and sugar, along with a box of oatmeal and part of a stick of margarine. So I made a simple crumble with the peaches, and we ate it all straight out of the pan. "How on earth did you do that?" Jim asked in true amazement. "Ah mean, we had next to nothin' in the pantry. Ah just cannot believe that you could make that dessert out of thin ayer."

The next morning, still water-tired, I stumbled out of bed, grabbed a cup of coffee, and wandered down to the end of the dock. Jim was already at the water, enjoying the cool morning air. As soon as he saw me he stood up. "Don't you just look beautiful this mornin'?" he declared with a big smile. I looked down at my sweatpants and bare feet. "You are just a vision. I have never seen you look so lovely." I reached up to tuck my unwashed hair behind my ears and took a sip of coffee, demurely dropping my gaze. I think it was the crumble talking. But that was just fine with me.

This pie was inspired by that weekend. I pull it out when I want a pie but am feeling too lazy for two crusts. When I want all of the glory without any of the fuss.

Peach Crumble Pie
Fruit Filling:
3 pounds ripe peaches
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon Mexican vanilla extract
1/3 cup (packed) light-brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons half-and-half

Crumble Topping:
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup butter, chilled

Pie Crust:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
2-4 tablespoons ice water

Prepare pie crust.
Combine flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse 2 or 3 times to combine. Add butter while pulsing, one piece at a time, until the mixture resembles coarse meal.
With the machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream until the dough just begins to hold together. Remove from bowl, form into a disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1/2 hour.

Prepare topping.
Mix dry topping ingredients together in a bowl. With your fingers, work in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Refrigerate topping until ready to use.

Prepare filling.
Using a paring knife, cut a small "X" in the bottom of each peach. Drop the peaches into a pot of boiling water for 1 minute. Remove peaches and place in a bowl to cool. When they are cool enough to touch, slip off the skins (if the skins are still hard to remove, place them back in the boiling water until they begin to loosen). Cut the peaches into 3/4-inch slices and place in a large bowl. Immediately toss with the lemon juice to prevent discoloration. Add the vanilla, brown sugar, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, half-and-half, and flour. Toss well.

Assemble pie.
Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Remove pie crust dough from the refrigerator and roll out to fit a 9-inch pie plate, then fit dough into plate. Trim edge, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang, then fold overhang under and crimp decoratively. Spoon filling into pie shell. Sprinkle crumble topping evenly over filling and bake, uncovered, until crumble is browned, filling is bubbling, and peaches are tender, about 1 hour. Cool completely before serving.

Make the Dallas City Market Peach Cobbler featured in the Dallas Morning News.

'Coots' Matthews, 1924-2010

Friday, April 2, 2010 at 2:42 p.m.

Longtime Houston legend E.O. 'Coots' Matthews, the "Coots" half of Boots & Coots, passed away from natural causes at his home in Humble, Tx.

During his 50-year career in the "hellfighting" business, Matthews, along with Asger &Boots& Hansen and Paul &Red& Adair, helped lay the foundation for the well control and firefighting technologies used in the energy industry worldwide.

Together, their exploits in the oil and gas industry were the inspiration for the 1968 John Wayne movie Hellfighters. Matthews served as a technical adviser to ensure the film's special effects were convincing enough to mimic a real well blowout, and to ensure the safety of the crew.

After splitting with Adair in the 1970's and founding Boots & Coots, Matthews continued to fight fires across the globe, including a 1991 stint in Kuwait where he helped extinguish some 700 fires after the Persian Gulf war. Matthews would retire in 1994.

He is survived by a sister, Maurine Matthews, daughter, Sharon Scott, four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Below, left to right, are Matthews, Adair, Wayne, and Hansen on the set of Hellfighters.

C.J. Box booked for book tour

Friday, April 2, 2010 at 11:24 am

When he isn&t tracking lost hikers or enforcing fishing codes, Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett earns his paycheck by battling environmental terrorists, animal mutilators, crazed cowboy assassins, rogue grizzly bears, marauding mountain men, homicidal animal rights advocates and dangerously dysfunctional families. It&s a dirty job but, hey, somebody&s got to do it. And Pickett has done it spectacularly well since 2001, when he was introduced in Open Season, the first in a series of acclaimed novels by Edgar Award-winning author C.J. Box.

Nowhere to Run, the latest Joe Pickett adventure, is set to hit bookstores next week, so Box is hitting the road to promote it. His itinerary includes book-signing appearances in Houston (April 7), Austin (April 8), Denver (April 9), Scottsdale, Ariz. (April 14) and several other cities. You can learn more about the tour here, and more about Box and his books here.

More stars signed for 2010 CMA Music Festival

Thursday, April 1, 2010 at 1:03 p.m.

Trace Adkins -- this month's C&I "Live From" interviewee -- has joined the star-studded line-up of country music greats set for the 2010 CMA Music Festival in Nashville. Josh Turner and Blake Shelton also are new additions to a list that already includes notables such as Jason Aldean, Alan Jackson, Lady Antebellum, Reba McEntire, Tim McGraw, Brad Paisley, Carrie Underwood and Keith Urban. The CMA Festival, which runs June 10-13, includes daytime performances on the riverfront in downtown Nashville, and nightly concerts at LP Field.

Wednesday Western: 'Hell Town'

Wednesday, March 31, 2010 at 12:10 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: Hell Town, a 1937 action-adventure (also known as Born to the West) starring John Wayne and Johnny Mack Brown as cousins who vie for the heart of a spirited beauty (Marsha Hunt), but set aside their romantic rivalry when crooked gamblers interfere with their plans for a large cattle drive.

Cats and horses living together: Innocent fun, or sign of the apocalypse? You decide!

Monday, March 29, 2010 at 1:19 p.m.

We dare you to look at these photos on The Equinest and not crack a smile. We double-dog dare you.

Wrangling sheep

Monday, March 29, 2010 at 1:05 p.m.
Documentary filmmakers Ilisa Barbash and Lucien Castaing-Taylor turned their cameras on the last sheep drive in Montana for Sweetgrass, a documentary that's earning praise and attracting audiences during its early theatrical engagements. Indeed, at least one writer has likened the film to Red River. That may be a bit of a stretch, but...

Tom Cruise and Reese Witherspoon may be ready to rodeo

Monday, March 29, 2010 at 11:13 am

According to the Los Angeles Times, Tom Cruise and Reese Witherspoon may team up for Paper Wings, a love story about a rodeo champ who falls for an up-and-coming country singer. And before you ask: No, Witherspoon isn't the one looking to play a prize-winning bull-rider.

Stuck for words? Try quoting 'Tombstone'

Friday, March 26, 2010 at 11:43 am

"You gonna do something or just stand there and bleed?" According to writer Rachel Hanley, that's just one of the snappy one-liners worth repeating from Tombstone.

Coming soon to the Nashville Film Festival: Brad Paisley

Thursday, March 25, 2010 at 2:09 p.m.

Back when we talked to Brad Paisley last November, the Country superstar claimed that, despite his abiding love and respect for his wife, actress Kimberly Williams, he had no desire to dabble in her profession. "I don't want to be an actor," he said. "I mean, I'll do it for videos. And I probably could do it. I think I'm someone who would actually have that ability if I worked at it. But I'm not foolish enough to think that just because I stand up on a stage and sing that I have any sort of talent for acting."

Pressed on the subject, Brad admitted that he might be too independent to ever feel comfortable taking anyone else's direction: "The best thing abut my job, in my opinion, is that no one tells me what to wear, or where to stand, or what to say. I book the shows, I go play the shows I want to play, and I sing the songs I wrote. I&m writing my own ticket here. And I love it. But actors, for the most part, are at the mercy of a script, a director, a wardrobe person, a make-up artist and so on. It&s like, they&re never themselves."

Judging from a recent announcement by the Nashville Film Festival, Brad may have changed his mind about all that. But, then again, maybe that's because he finally found the right director to work with.

Happy Birthday, Steve McQueen

Wednesday, March 24, 2010 at 3:54 p.m.

Today the &King of Cool& would have turned 80. Steve McQueen was known for his antihero persona, his stunning balance of masculinity and sensitivity, and an enthusiasm for racing that allowed him to perform his own stunts.

Terrence Steven McQueen had an unusual upbringing, fitting for a man who would one day become a pop culture legend. He was a troubled youth who spent much of his childhood involved in a gang, circus, and reform schools. He went on to work as a towel boy in a brothel, as a lumberjack, and on an oil rig.

After serving a stint in the Marines, McQueen used his G.I. Bill financial assistance and money earned from motorcycle races to fund his acting studies at Sanford Meisner&s Neighborhood Playhouse. His first breakout role was that of bounty hunter Josh Randall on the western television series Wanted: Dead or Alive, where he proved that he looked just as natural riding a horse as he did riding a Harley. Appropriately, the first cinematic role that secured his position as a Hollywood mainstay was also in a western & The Magnificent Seven. He went on to star in some of the greatest and most testosterone-fueled films of all time, such as Bullitt, The Thomas Crown Affair, The Great Escape, and The Towering Inferno. But he returned to westerns with his second-to-last performance in Tom Horn. Though underrated like many westerns of that period, the film was hailed by many critics as the strongest acting of McQueen&s career. Unfortunately, he died that same year at the age of 50. An appreciation and rememberance of McQueen appeared in the October 2004 issue of C&I, pictured here.

Writers earn their Spurs

Tuesday, March 23, 2010 at 2:12 p.m.

Acclaimed novelist John D. Nesbitt and former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor are among the winners and finalists announced for the 2010 Spur Awards given by the Western Writers of America. O'Connor (along with illustrator Tom Pohrt) won the Storyteller Spur for best illustrated children's book, Finding Susie, a semi-autobiographical account of growing up on an Arizona cattle ranch. And Nesbitt earned two Spurs, for Best Original Mass Market Paperback Novel (Stranger in Thunder Basin) and Best Western Short Fiction Story ("At the End of the Orchard"). All Spur Award winners and finalists will be honored at the WWA Convention, June 22-26 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Sherman Alexie Wins 2010 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction

Tuesday, March 23, 2010 at 1:00 p.m.

Congratulations to Sherman Alexie on winning the 2010 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction.

The award, analyzing more than 300 books from more than 90 publishing houses, small presses, and academic presses, went to Alexie for his short story collection War Dances.

Faulkner award judge Al Young the book praised "the caring, eye-opening beauty of this rollicking, bittersweet gem of a book." Past winners include literary luminaries like E. Annie Proulx, Philip Roth, and John Updike.

Check out C&I's interview with Alexie and our review of War Dances from our October issue - you can also read the first story from the book here.

Happy Birthday, Louis L'Amour

Monday, March 22, 2010 at 11:22 am

If I had to pick a single author most commonly associated with the Western genre, it would have to be Louis L'Amour. The author of Hondo, How the West Was Won and dozens of others was born March 22, 1908.

As a young man L'Amour contributed to his hometown paper but began his career in earnest during the 1930s writing pulp stories. His first Western saw print in 1940 when The Town No Guns Could Tame appeared in the New Western Magazine. Writing under the pseudonyms of Tex Burns and Jim Mayo, L'Amour would go on to write 89 novels, 14 short-story collections, and two full-length works of nonfiction.

"I am probably the last writer who will ever have known the people who lived the frontier life," wrote L'Amour in his autobiography, Education of a Wandering Man. "In drifting about across the West, I have known five men and two women who knew Billy the Kid, two who rode in the Tonto Basin war in Arizona, and a variety of others who were outlaws, or frontier marshals like Jeff Milton, Bill Tilghman, and Chris Madse, or just pioneers."

L'Amour died of lung cancer in 1988, leaving a legacy of 89 novels and millions of fans across the globe. Not bad for a kid from North Dakota who dropped out of the tenth grade.

If you'd like to show your appreciation, there is an ongoing drive to petition the postal service for a Louis L'Amour commemorative stamp. Find details and learn more about L'Amour at his official website. Tell 'em C&I sent you.

Fearlessly historical

Monday, March 22, 2010 at 10:49 am

It's official: Taylor Swift's phenomenal Fearless has been recognized as "the most awarded album in the history of country music."

Remembering the Harvey Houses

Monday, March 22, 2010 at 10:25 am

Call him the restaurateur who helped win the West, and you won't be far off the mark. Jonatahn Eig of the Wall Street Journal reviews Appetite for America: How Visionary Businessman Fred Harvey Built a Railroad Hospitality Empire That Civilized the West by Stephen Fried.

R.I.P.: Fess Parker (1924-2010)

Thursday, March 18, 2010 at 5:40 p.m.

Fess Parker, known and loved by millions of baby boomers as TV's Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone, passed away Thursday at the age of 85. Leonard Maltin shares some fond memories of interviewing his childhood idol here, and Julian Sancton of Vanity Fair invites you to an appropriate singalong here.

Wednesday Western: 'The Westerner'

Wednesday, March 17, 2010 at 3:26 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: The Westerner, starring Gary Cooper as a drifter who faces a hanging by Judge Roy Bean, the infamous Texas saloon-keeper and Justice of the Peace.

Blasts from the past: 15 Intros from '60s TV Westerns

Thursday, March 11, 2010 at 4:12 p.m.

OK, we admit: Some of the clips aren't in such spiffy shape. But at least you can listen to the opening themes of Lancer, The Dakotas, Cimarron Strip, The Legend of Jesse James, The Guns of Will Sonnett and more.

The fall and rise of Brad Paisley

Thursday, March 11, 2010 at 11:29 am

Brad Paisley took a nasty tumble on stage the other night during a concert in Charleston, S.C. ("I hit hard," he wrote shortly afterward on Twitter. "And I mean freakin' hard.") But even after losing his blance, he maintaned his high spirits -- and actually posted pictures of himself being treated in the emergency room of MUSC Hospital. Now he's back on his feet and raring to perform Thursday night at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. Which only goes to show you: It always pays to stay in shape. Especially when you're on the long-distance marathon of an extended concert tour.

As Brad told C&I a few months back: "I go for a two-mile run almost daily. And I work out with weights in my home, on a regular basis. You see, the thing is, you want to feel good about yourself before you walk out in front of 10,000 people. I mean, sure, I have days like everybody else does where you wake up and you don&t feel like you look good. You feel like you&re in a funk, or you haven&t had a chance to work out in a while or whatever. And yet, the people are there to see you at your best. And for some of these fans, it may the first and only time they&ll come to see you. And if you walk out and you don&t feel you&re at your best & well, it&s not a good feeling.

&But you know,& Brad added with a chuckle, &when you think about it, we really do a pretty good workout at every concert. I&d love to know what the calorie burn-off count is by the time we&re done. I&ll bet every show is the equivalent of running a couple of miles.&

Wednesday Western: 'The Great American West of John Ford'

Wednesday, March 10, 2010 at 3:18 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: The Great American West of John Ford, a 1971 documentary portrait of the legendary filmmaker, featuring commentary from Henry Fonda, James Stewart -- and, of course, John Wayne.

Mystery Cake

Wednesday, March 10, 2010 at 1:16 p.m.

The party game went like this: "Guess what fruit the dessert is made from." Everyone took a tentative bite. "Apples?" "No." Bigger bite. "Pears?" "No." "Persimmons?" "No." People were helping themselves to a second slice. "Canataloupe?" Please. "Here's a clue & the name of the fruit starts with the same letter in both its fresh and dried forms." Long pause.

"Raisins!" Sigh. "Raisins and grapes don't start with the same letter." By now the dish was empty. "Prunes!" I announced, the guessers defeated. "Are you serious? That was fantastic. It tasted like caramel. It was so moist. Make it again."

And I will.

When I first saw the recipe, I had been slightly skeptical. I mean, Ree Drummond, aka the Pioneer Woman, may call her husband the Marlboro Man and live on his working cattle ranch in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, and she may have a film coming out about her based on her blog (a countrified Julie and Julia) in which Reese Witherspoon will play Ree and Tom Cruise will play her husband, and she may have recently published her own cookbook, The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl, which has hung out on the New York Times bestseller list, but how good could her great-grandmother's prune cake really be?

Darn good, it turns out.

Iny's Prune Cake With Buttermilk Icing
Makes one 9 x 13-inch cake

I was fortunate enough to happen upon my great-grandmother Iny&s prune cake recipe a couple of years ago. It was written by her frail, small hands, and I rushed out to buy the ingredients the same day. Marlboro Man will never eat this, I thought later that day, as I mashed up the cooked prunes according to Iny&s instructions. Anything with the word prune in it, I reasoned, would be instantly marked off the list.
Marlboro Man returned from working cattle a little while later and noticed the warm cake sitting on the kitchen counter. Before I had a chance to tell him what it was, he&d cut himself a big piece and gobbled it up. Then he gobbled up another piece. Then he had more for dessert that night.
Since then, I&ve made this cake more than a dozen times, and have never let my dear husband in on the ingredients. And today, I&m tired of living that lie.
Honey, it&s me. That delicious, gooey coffee cake I make for you so often? The one you gobble up in seconds? It&s called Prune Cake. Please forgive me. Love, your wife

Ahhh. I feel so much better now.

Cake:
1 cup prunes
1& cups all-purpose flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon allspice
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk (if you don&t have any, add 1 tablespoon distilled white cup low-fat milk and stir together)

Icing:
1 cup sugar
& cup buttermilk (see above)
4 tablespoons (& stick) butter
& teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
& teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 300&F and butter a 9 x 13-inch baking pan.
2. Place the prunes in a small saucepan. Cover them with water. Bring to a low boil and cook until soft and mashable, about 8 minutes.
3. Drain the water and mash the prunes on a plate. It&s okay to leave little chunks behind. Gives the cake some character! I just love cakes with character.
4. Set the prunes aside and make the cake. Sift together the flour, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, and allspice. Mmmm . . .smells like the holidays.
5. In a separate bowl, mix together the sugar, eggs, oil, and vanilla.
6. Combine the wet and dry ingredients and splash in the buttermilk. Stir until just combined. The mixture will be slightly lumpy.
7. Now throw in the mashed prunes. And if your honey walks in as you&re completing this step, shield the bowl with your body and stir quickly. What he doesn&t know won&t hurt him.
8. Pour into a buttered baking pan and bake at 300&F (a low temperature) for 35 to 40 minutes. Grandma Iny was adamant: do not overbake the cake. You want it to be nice and moist.
9. When the cake has about 5 minutes left to bake, make the icing: combine the sugar, buttermilk, butter, baking soda, corn syrup, and vanilla in a medium saucepan. Stir to combine.
10. Bring to a slow boil over medium-high heat. No need to stir. Continue boiling until the icing turns a light caramel color, 5 to 7 minutes. Important: The icing should be the color of caramel, but not yet firm and sticky. It needs to be pourable.
11. Pull the cake out of the oven. Try not to faint, as it smells absolutely divine.
12. While the cake is very warm, pour the icing evenly over the top. Work fast, as it will quickly start to soak into the cake.
13. Spread to coat evenly . . . then please, do yourself a favor: lick the spatula. It&ll make you smile.
Serve immediately, or feel free to let the cake sit on the counter for a while before serving. It only gets better with age.
I just loved my Grandma Iny. Aside from being a dear lady, she&s brought many a culinary joy into my life¬ the least of which is this magnificent creation. Enjoy!

Helpful Hint: Serve without revealing the fact that the cake contains prunes.

Visit the Pioneer Woman on her website for more stories and recipes.

Going country for Oscar gold

Monday, March 8, 2010 at 10:59 am

Twenty-six years after another much-respected Hollywood veteran earned a long-overdue Oscar by playing a faded country music star, Jeff Bridges grabbed the gold Sunday night at the 82nd annual Academy Awards. Bridges was honored for his richly detailed and deeply affecting performance as Bad Blake, a gone-to-seed singer-songwriter who gets one last shot at redemption, in Crazy Heart -- a movie that just happens to co-star, and was co-produced by, Robert Duvall, who won the Best Actor prize back in 1984 for playing a similarly wayward character in Tender Mercies. Which raises a provocative question: Who do you think was more convincing, in terms of musicianship as well as acting skill, as a country music artist -- Duvall or Bridges?

Kenny Chesney, Steve Miller take their tunes to Tootsie's

Thursday, March 4, 2010 at 11:49 am

Kenny Chesney will take the Texas-size stage at Reliant Stadium tonight for his eagerly awaited Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo concert. Two nights ago, however, he and legendary rocker Steve Miller played an impromptu gig in a much smaller Nashville venue. According to CMT News, the dynamic duo performed together while taping an episode of CMT Crossroads, then "followed a long country music tradition -- dating back to the days of Hank Williams -- by heading out the Ryman Auditorium's stage door, across the alley and into the back door of the historic Tootsie's Orchid Lounge." At Tootsie's, arguably the greatest little joint in Music City, Chesney and Miller took the small stage in the bar's front window, overlooking Lower Broadway, and played past midnight for a delighted crowd of Tootsie's regulars and tourists." Delighted and amazed, I'll bet. Talk about being in the right place at the right time...

Wednesday Western: 'The Bushwhackers'

Wednesday, March 3, 2010 at 3:34 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: The Bushwhackers, a 1952 drama starring John Ireland as a Confederate Army vet who longs to hang up his guns and live in peace after the Civil War. But when the minions of a ruthless varmint (Lon Chaney Jr.) try to force settlers off their land, our hero has to seriously reconsider his vow of non-violence. Look for Dorothy Malone, Jack Elam and Lawrence Tierney in supporting roles.

Lady Antebellum: At the top and on the road

Tuesday, March 2, 2010 at 3:05 p.m.

C&I offers a heapin' helping of congratulations to Lady Antebellum. The Grammy-winning trio -- singers Hillary Scott and Charles Kelley, and multi-instrumentalist Dave Haywood -- led the pack with seven honorable mentions this morning during the announcement of nominations for the 45th annual Academy of Country Music Awards. (Following close behind: Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood, with six nominations each; Taylor Swift with five; and Kenny Chesney and Brad Paisley, with four a piece.) The good news comes at a great time, just when Lady A is preparing to take New York by storm with musical performances on The Today Show (7 a.m. ET Wednesday), followed by March 8 appearances on The View and Late Show With David Letterman. Also on the trio's agenda: A March 15 gig at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.

&You dream and pray your whole entire childhood to one day do what you enjoy and love doing the most," said a grateful Hillary Scott. "I feel blessed beyond measure, and am so appreciative of everyone in the country music community for thinking of us. I'm overwhelmed to say the least."

Ironically, said Charles Kelley, he, Scott and Haywood heard about the nominations just as they were flying out of Las Vegas -- where the ACM Awards show will be presented April 18. &I can&t wait to get back here," Kelley said. "It's always one of the most fun events of the year, and we have really special memories of winning the &New Artist& award here a few years ago. I never thought we&d have a bigger night than that... All of this is just unreal!&

Clint Eastwood: Still standing, still outstanding

Monday, March 1, 2010 at 2:26 p.m.

Film critic David Denby admiringly appraises the remarkable career of Clint Eastwood in the latest issue of The New Yorker. Not surprisingly, much of his essay focuses on Eastwood's Westerns, from A Fistful of Dollars to Unforgiven. But Denby also offers insightful commentary on many of Eastwood's other movies (rest assured, Dirty Harry is given its due) while examining how the 79-year-old superstar -- who turns 80 next May! -- has evolved, advanced and endured throughout more than five decades in show business.

"Being underestimated is, for some people, a misfortune," Denby writes. "For Eastwood, it became a weapon. Certainly, no one meeting him in his twenties, before his movie career began, would have seen much more than a good-looking Californian who loved beer, women, cars, and noodling at the piano -- a fun guy to hang out with. Since those unprepossessing days, he has done the following: starred in a hit TV show, Rawhide; appeared in more than fifty movies and directed thirty-one, often acting, directing, and producing at the same time; added several menacingly ironic locutions to the language, such as &Make my day,& which Ronald Reagan quoted in the face of a congressional movement to raise taxes; become a kind of mythic-heroic-redemptive figure, interacting with public desire in a way that no actor has done since John Wayne; served as the mayor of Carmel; won four Oscars and received many other awards, including a hug from Nicolas Sarkozy while becoming commander of the Légion d&Honneur, last November. Those who were skeptical of Eastwood forty years ago (I&m one of them) have long since capitulated, retired, or died. He has outlasted everyone."

Johnny Cash milestones

Friday, February 26, 2010 at 5:00 p.m.

78 or 10 billion - take your pick.

J.R. Cash would have been 78 today, and earlier this week we learned his song "Guess Things Happen That Way" was the 10 billionth song downloaded from iTunes.

The happy customer, Louie Sulcer of Woodstock, Ga, won a $10,000 iTunes gift card (don't lose that one, pal), and says he's pretty sure his children and grandchildren are set for music for the forseeable future.

This month also marks the release of American VI: Ain't No Grave, the last of the archived recordings that Cash made in the months before his passing in 2003.

If you're in California, you might want to think about heading out the Fender Performing Arts Center, home of the world's longest ongoing Johnny Cash museum exhibit, for the big birthday celebration tomorrow in his honor. Cash's daughter Cindy will be unveiling her late father's newest certified Gold record.

Stuck in Folsom Prison?& Why not dig on Johnny Cash Radio, a fantastic streaming program hosted by his official site.& Lots of rare interviews, recordings and otherwise delightful stuff to be heard there.

I usually wouldn't reccomend going to MTV.com these days, but it just so happens they have a copy of Cash's final interview in 2003.

Continuing to captivate, charm, and comfort his fans even in his absence, Johnny Cash's music is an American treasure in my opinion, and its a life well worth examining and celebrating.

Happy Birthday, Buffalo Bill!

Thursday, February 25, 2010 at 2:53 p.m.

The Billings Gazette reports from Cody, Wyoming: "As the town named in his honor celebrates Buffalo Bill Cody&s birthday Friday, residents will get a chance to hear real-life accounts highlighting the more mundane and human elements of the famous showman&s life. "We wanted to humanize the Wild West show and humanize Cody. And there&s no better way to do that than through these stories and a flood of anecdotes,& said John Rumm, curator of the Buffalo Bill Museum at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center. Rumm&s Friday evening presentation, Backstage with Buffalo Bill, will draw from newspapers, correspondence, photographs and other primary sources to offer insight into what daily life was like for Cody and others in the Wild West show."

Jason Aldean is ready to rodeo

Thursday, February 25, 2010 at 2:08 p.m.

A sure sign that you've hit the big time as a country music performer: You're signed to headline a show at the annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. Looks like chart-topper Jason Aldean is ready for his moment in the H-Town spotlight.

Wednesday Western: 'The Lawless Frontier'

Wednesday, February 24, 2010 at 2:19 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: The Lawless Frontier, a two-fisted 1934 Western starring John Wayne and Gabby Hayes, with typically impressive stunt work by the great Yakima Canutt. Wayne plays John Tobin, a vengeful cowboy who comes to the aid of a crotchety prospector (Hayes) and his beautiful granddaughter (Sheila Terry) while hunting the varmints who killed his parents.

A brand new star for a new take on 'True Grit'

Tuesday, February 23, 2010 at 5:32 p.m.

Mike Fleming of Deadline Hollywood reports: "After auditioning more than 15,000 teenage girls, Paramount and True Grit directors Joel and Ethan Coen have found their Mattie Ross in Hailee Steinfeld. The 13-year old will play the centerpiece of a new adaptation of the Charles Portis novel, with Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon and Josh Brolin starring. Mattie Ross is the 14-year old spitfire whose father has been mowed down in cold blood by Tom Chaney (Brolin). Determined to bring the killer to justice, Mattie enlists hard-drinking U.S. marshal Rooster Cogburn (Bridges) to track the killer before a Texas Ranger (Damon) does." Filming is set to start next month in New Mexico, for a planned Dec. 25, 2010 release.

Tarantino aims to film a 'Southern'

Monday, February 22, 2010 at 3:17 p.m.

When recently asked about plans for his next movie project, Inglourious Basterds director (and diehard Western fan) Quentin Tarantino indicated that he'd like to do something with saddles and six-guns. "I'd like to do a Western," he told the New York Daily News. "But rather than set it in Texas, have it in slavery times. With that subject that everybody is afraid to deal with. Let's shine that light on ourselves. You could do a ponderous history lesson of slaves escaping on the Underground Railroad. Or, you could make a movie that would be exciting. Do it as an adventure. A spaghetti Western that takes place during that time. And I would call it 'A Southern.'"

Stars are aligning for 2010 CMA Musical Festival

Friday, February 19, 2010 at 10:28 am

Brad Paisley, Reba McEntire and Keith Urban are among the latest luminaries added to the lineup of performers for the nightly concert series at the 2010 CMA Music Festival in Nashville. Also confirmed: Jason Alden, Lady Antebellum, Martina McBride, Rascal Flatts, Darius Rucker, Carrie Underwood and the Zac Brown Band. Formerly known as "Fan Fair," the uniquely enormous CMA Music Festival is an annual four-day extravaganza devoted to giving country music fans everything from star-studded stadium concerts to up-close encounters with celebrities. This year's event will take place June 10-13 -- you can order your tickets here -- and if it's anything like last year's edition, a great time is guaranteed for all.

Happy Birthday, Wallace Stegner

Thursday, February 18, 2010 at 4:17 p.m.
Today would have marked Wallace Stegner's 101st birthday. The man known as "The Dean of Western Writers" was born in 1909 and passed away in 1993 from complications after an automobile accident that year. Stegner was most famous for his 1972 Pulitzer Prize-winning epic Angle of Repose and was named one of the 25 best Western authors of the 20th century by the Western Writers Association.

"Something will have gone out of us as a people if we ever let the remaining wilderness be destroyed... We simply need that wild country available to us, even if we never do more than drive to its edge and look in." (from The Sound of Mountain Water)

A prolific author with over 30 books to his name, Stegner taught writing at Harvard, Stanford and the University of Wisconsin. You might have heard of one of his students - Lonesome Dove author Larry McMurtry.

"A writer is an organism that will go on writing even after its heart has been cut out." (from Angle of Repose)

Tip of the hat to C&I Associate Editor Jennings Brown for the reminder.

Cheyenne River Disaster Relief

Wednesday, February 17, 2010 at 2:52 p.m.

The recent severe weather that shook up the nation hit the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe harder than many, with power and water still unreliable for some. You can help, however, by making a donation to the tribe and ensuring a reliable source of safe water for the future. Tribal Chairman Joe Brings Plenty says, "We have been trying to get this water system replaced for decades. It is a public shame for any community in America to be without safe drinking water."

Due to expanding hydroelectric dam projects, the tribal agency moved from its original location near the river bottom decades ago. As a result, much of the tribes existing infrastructre -- including the water management system -- was eventually submerged but never fully replaced when the tribe relocated.

The Bush Foundation has pledged $25,000 in 1:1 matching for donations made through Native Americans in Philanthropy, or you can donate directly through the tribe by clicking here.

For further information, contact the Tribal Chairman's office at (605) 964-4155.

Alan Jackson keeps it plain and simple for 'Freight Train'

Friday, February 12, 2010 at 11:07 am

While previewing the forthcoming "Freight Train" album by country superstar Alan Jackson, critic Chet Flippo sagely notes what separates enduringly successful artists from fleetingly flashy wanna-bes: "The song is the thing. Plain and simple." Jackson, Flippo writes, "has been at it for more than 20 years, and he's had many more hits than misses, but it's obvious he still pays close attention to his songs. Jackson and his closest contemporary, [George] Strait, share many common traits. Chief among them may be that care in selecting songs. They are also very private individuals and publicity-averse, but the key thing they share is a love for and respect for a good song -- which is also sometimes a great song. They also share unusually good ears for listening to and filtering out the wheat from the chaff."

Will Susan Sarandon fill Barbara Stanwyck's boots?

Thursday, February 11, 2010 at 10:28 am

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Susan Sarandon is "in talks" to lasso the lead role of Victoria Barkley, matriarch of a wealthy Old West family, in a big-screen version of The Big Valley.

A first for Miranda Lambert

Wednesday, February 10, 2010 at 3:56 p.m.

Stop the presses: Miranda Lambert will kick off "Roadside Bars and Pink Guitars" -- her first official headlining tour -- with a March 18 concert in Beckley, WV. She's set to make stops in at least 22 cities, and will be joined by such luminaries as David Nail, James Otto, Randy Hauser and Wade Bowen. "In the last five years," Miranda told fans, "I have learned so much from all the amazing artists I&ve toured with. Now it's my turn to venture out and do more shows of my own. I&m happy that there are a lot of great new artists who are willing to come out and support my tour.&

And if that's not enough to keep her busy, consider this: During the next several weeks, Miranda also will find time to take part in the prestigious Lilith Fair Tour, and to perform at the 2010 Bonnaroo Music Festival (June 10-13) in Manchester, TN. But wait, there's more: While she's winding up her stint as part of Brad Paisley's "American Saturday Night" tour, she will tape two segments in Los Angeles for The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson. (Air dates for the latter will be announced soon.) Hey, it's just like Jerry Reed used to sing: When you're hot, you're hot.

Where Wyatt Earp once rode (and drank)

Wednesday, February 10, 2010 at 1:10 p.m.

The Edmonton Journal suggests that if you're planning a drive through Arizona to view the southern rim of the Grand Canyon or the red rock country of Sedona, you should consider taking a detour off the Interstate for a look at the one-time watering hole of legendary lawman Wyatt Earp: "The oldest frontier bar in Arizona (some say west of Mississippi) is located in the landmark Palace Hotel in the mile-high city of Prescott, about a 90-minute drive northwest of Phoenix and an hour south of Sedona."

*Ed. note: For more on saloons of the wild west, check out this feature from our January issue.

Wednesday Western: 'The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw'

Wednesday, February 10, 2010 at 11:44 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw, an amusingly spoofy Western romp starring Kenneth More as a very proper Englishman who sets out as a gun salesman in the Wild West, and winds up serving as sheriff in an untamed town where Jayne Mansfield is the gorgeous proprietor of a rowdy saloon. Trivia buffs, take note: Director Raoul Walsh -- whose credits also include The Big Trail (1930) with John Wayne, and They Died With Their Boots On (1941) with Errol Flynn -- filmed Fractured Jaw on location in Spain, where one of its standing sets later was used for Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars.

Quentin Tarantino hails Kirk Douglas' 'Watergate Western'

Tuesday, February 9, 2010 at 3:07 p.m.
The Santa Barbara Independent reports that maverick moviemaker and diehard Western fan Quentin Tarantino ranks Posse -- a savvy and cynical 1975 drama directed by and starring Kirk Douglas -- as one of his all-time favorite films. And that's why he eagerly assumed duties as master of ceremonies for Sunday's revival screening at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. "There&s no genre in cinema that reflects the decade they came out in more than Westerns,& Tarantino told festivalgoers, adding that Posse -- the darkly ironic tale of a politically ambitious U.S. marshal (Douglas) -- "is truly the Watergate Western." After the Sunday screening, Tarantino led a spirited Q&A with the 93-year-old Douglas -- who, according to the Independent, seemed pleasantly surprised that anyone, least of all Tarantino, would remember his relatively little-seen '75 effort. &That was a long time ago,& Douglas said to Tarantino. &I&ve made over 90 movies, so when you said you wanted to show Posse, I said, 'Posse?!'&

If you love country music, and love someone who loves country music...

Monday, February 8, 2010 at 11:57 am

Country Music Television has assembled a list of twelve appropriately romantic music videos to share with your special someone on Valentine's Day. (We don't have to tell you that Taylor Swift's "Love Story" made the final cut, do we?)

Brad Pitt as Matt Dillon?

Friday, February 5, 2010 at 11:38 am

According to the Los Angeles Times, Brad Pitt and The Proposal star Ryan Reynolds are among the A-listers who are gunning for the lead role in a proposed Gunsmoke movie.

Weekend TV Preview: 'Temple Grandin'

Friday, February 5, 2010 at 10:44 am

Trailer

Aptly described on her website as "the most accomplished and well-known adult with autism in the world," Temple Grandin -- currently a professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University -- is one of this country's leading experts in humane livestock handling. Her remarkable life and accomplishments are documented in Temple Grandin, a biographical drama that will have its world premiere at 8 p.m. ET Saturday on HBO. Claire Danes (Shopgirl, Me and Orson Welles) plays Grandin, David Strathairn (Good Night, and Good Luck) co-stars as her mentor at a boarding school for gifted teens -- and TV critic Jace Lacob previews the production here.

Ten years, 50 videos -- and Carrie Underwood is No. 1

Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 1:04 p.m.

CMT.com has compiled a countdown of the Top 50 Music Videos of the past decade, based on votes cast by on-line readers. Frankly, we're a little surprised to see Brad Paisley's "Waitin' on a Woman" and Trisha Yearwood's "This is Me You're Talking To" didn't make the final cut. And we're downright amazed that Johnny Cash's "Hurt" and The Soggy Bottom Boys' "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow" didn't rank higher on the list. But congratulations to Carrie Underwood for claiming the No. 1 spot. With this triumph behind her, and a Super Bowl appearance set for Sunday, the next challenge for her will be... well, would you believe, a major movie role?

Wednesday Western: 'Duel at Diablo'

Wednesday, February 3, 2010 at 5:57 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: Duel at Diablo, a gritty 1966 Western directed by Ralph Nelson (Lilies of the Field, Soldier Blue) starring James Garner, Sidney Poitier, Bibi Andersson -- and former Gunsmoke co-star (and future McCloud star) Dennis Weaver.

Will we be "Crazy" for "True Grit"?

Wednesday, February 3, 2010 at 4:17 p.m.
This week Jeff Bridges got his fifth Oscar nomination for his turn as country singer Bad Blake in Crazy Heart. The film received a total of three Oscar nominations, and we can only hope Bridges will bring that kind of performance to his role as Rooster Cogburn in the forthcoming remake of True Grit by filmmakers Joel & Ethan Cohen. From the latest issue of C&I, check out our interview with the Cohen Brothers, who talk about remaking the beloved film. And if you've never read book by Charles Portis, I can't reccomend it highly enough - its absolutley hilarious and riveting at the same time.

A Texas Transplant Digs In

Tuesday, February 2, 2010 at 1:17 p.m.

One of my first distinct food memories is of my fifth birthday party. My mom asked me what kind of cake I wanted, and I requested what I thought of as her Famous Peppermint Stick Ice Cream Pie, a pink and green concoction of store-bought ice cream studded with hidden nuggets of crunchy candy scooped into a crushed chocolate wafer crust, covered in thick fudge, then frozen and topped high with freshly whipped cream. To me, that was way better than the other option, a Duncan Hines sheet cake baked in an aluminum pan with canned frosting spread on top. But my mom sat me down and issued a stern warning: &The other kids won&t eat it,& she said. I was undeterred. It was my birthday, the one day a year I got to choose my meal, and I wasn&t going to squander the opportunity. Besides, my mom was certainly underestimating the progressive food attitudes of my Midwestern friends.

The kids arrived, spaghetti and meatballs were eaten, the lights were dimmed. My dad carefully secured five candles in the hardened ice cream and my mom started the song. I made a wish, I blew. My mom sliced up generous portions of pie with a knife warmed under the sink tap. And, one by one, my party guests left their plates untouched and politely asked to be excused, filing quickly down the basement stairs to play on the train my mom had built out of refrigerator boxes. It may ultimately say more about my stubborn personality than my adventurous palate, but I sat upstairs with my parents and enjoyed every last bite of my slice of birthday pie.

I&m grateful for what I learned about myself in my fifth year: I will eat that. Sometimes for worse, but mostly for better. Because food should be an adventure, a surprise, a pleasure, a challenge, an expression. It should be savored and shared and experienced. It should take you out of your comfort zone and return you to your childhood. It should stop you in your tracks and make you exclaim out loud. It should make you healthier. It should make you wiser. It should change what you know of the world and of yourself.

Fast-forward several decades. Now, Ohio born and raised, I live in Texas, a land of no basements (I panicked during the first tornado warning & where to hide? The closet? The bathtub? Get in the car and drive?!), where my own Canadian border twang is a constant source of amusement and my buckeye candies, made annually for the Ohio State v. University of Texas football game, are viewed as rare oddities (&Well, bless your heart, this tastes just like a Reese cup.&). And I love everything about my new home. The weather (except this winter, when I realized I can no longer live without a snow shovel or salt). The food (there are three kinds of gravy & brown, white, and giblet). The restaurants (who knew you could get two kinds of salsa with your meal & different colors, ingredients, and hotness, temperature and flavor). And, most of all, the markets.

I am obsessed with Mexican grocery stores and farmers markets. My sister Amy, in Broomfield, Colorado, complains of paying $6/pound for chicken breasts, while I can walk out with a cart full of fresh tortillas (corn, flour, wheat, or even cactus), avocados, jicama, tomatoes, peaches, whole coconuts, spinach, fresh ham, Gulf oysters, fatty cuts of brisket, dried pintos, and every chile under the sun (fresh or dried) for less than a Ullysses S. Grant.

I discovered taco stands, elotes, and agua frescas. I gained 10 pounds on chicken fried steak alone. I learned the difference between gumbo and shrimp Creole and how to eat a crawfish. I found myself collecting pecans off of neighbor&s lawns and eating wild boar sausage. I planted a pomegranate tree. A fig tree. Two peach trees. I started putting hot sauce on my eggs.

And now, as the Managing Editor at Cowboys & Indians magazine, I get to write about food. I&m not a fancy or fastidious chef (my mother&s mantra to &clean as you go& never quite sunk in), but I am a feverish one. From preserves to tamales to Dutch oven cobblers, I&ll try it all. And I hope you&ll sit with me at the table, just for a slice.

Battle of the blondes?

Friday, January 29, 2010 at 11:55 am

Bryan Curtis of The Daily Beast asks: Carrie Underwood and Taylor Swift face off at Sunday's Grammys for the title of Country Queen. Whose side are you on?

Why did Westerns go that-a-way?

Thursday, January 28, 2010 at 2:09 p.m.

Connecticut entertainment writer Elissa Bass wonders: Why have Westerns vanished from the TV landscape?

'Faces of the Frontier'

Wednesday, January 27, 2010 at 1:13 p.m.

From the Voice of America: "Hollywood has shaped our perception of the American West. Images of cowboys in saloons, American Indians in feather headdresses, and outlaws robbing trains at gunpoint come to mind. But visitors to the Faces of the Frontier exhibition organized by the National Portrait Gallery [in Washington D.C.] can learn more about the real personalities who helped shape the West."

Unfortunately, the exhibit closed earlier this week in Washington D.C. But don't despair: Faces of the Frontier will travel to the San Diego Historical Society, California, from March 12 through June 6, 2010, and to the Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma, from Oct. 9, 2010, through Jan. 2, 2011.

Wednesday Western: 'The Lone Ranger'

Wednesday, January 27, 2010 at 12:47 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: The very first episode of The Lone Ranger, with Clayton Moore in the title role, Jay Silverheels as the faithful Tonto -- and Glenn Strange (later to appear as barkeep Sam Noonan on TV's Gunsmoke) as the villain of the piece. Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear...

R.I.P.: Pernell Roberts (1928-2010)

Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 12:31 p.m.

A year before he signed on for Bonanza, Pernell Roberts rode tall in the saddle as a preening, scheming &ex-bandit eager to relieve bounty hunter Randolph Scott of a captured outlaw in Budd Boetticher's Ride Lonesome. After he departed the Ponderosa, he periodically appeared as a guest star in series such as&Gunsmoke, The Big Valley&and Alias Smith and Jones, and later enjoyed seven seasons of success -- one season longer than his stint on Bonanza -- as the title character in the popular&medical drama Trapper John M.D. But for most TV Western fans -- and, arguably, for most TV viewers, period --&Roberts always remained most widely recognized and fondly remembered as Adam Cartwright, the eldest and most urbane of rancher&Ben Cartwright's three sons, in the second longest-running Western (after Gunsmoke) ever to air in prime time.&Roberts&left the show in 1965 -- it would continue eight more seasons without him -- after repeatedly railing against&what he saw as the absurdities of his TV character. Among his biggest complaints: He couldn't&understand why a thirtysomething, highly-educated&man would&be so unfailingly deferential to his "Pa." (As the Associated Press noted in his obituary, Roberts once asked a reporter: "Doesn't it seem a bit silly for three adult males to get Father's permission for everything they do?")&&But never mind: As long as there are televised reruns and compilation DVDs, Roberts -- who,& until his death Sunday at age 81,&was the last surviving member of the original Bonanza cast -- will continue&to be part of the Cartwright clan, just the way fans of the series, and the actor, would like to remember him.

Looking West: Our annual photo contest

Friday, January 22, 2010 at 5:34 p.m.

Winners of our annual photo contest were announced in the March 2010 issue (on sale now), but now you can get a closer look at all the winners and the best of the contest entries in our online galleries. Don't forget to enter our 6th annual photography contest, which runs until October. & Take your best shot, and you might wind up on the cover like reader Lynne Kastal. Home on the Range, shot in Lamar Valley, Wyoming, was submitted to our wildlife cateogry and was chosen for the cover amid brutal competition. Congratulations to Lynne Kastal and all the winners, and best of luck to everyone submitting to our next contest.

R.I.P.: Robert B. Parker (1932-2010)

Tuesday, January 19, 2010 at 3:33 p.m.

The prolific and prodigious Robert B. Parker is best known for his mystery novels -- particularly those featuring Spenser, the brawny yet brainy Boston private eye played by Robert Urich in a popular 1985-88 TV series, and Jesse Stone, the small-town police chief who's been portrayed in several well-received TV-movies by Tom Selleck. But the late, great author also proved to be every bit as masterful in the Western genre with Gunman's Rhapsody (2001) -- an impressive account of &Wyatt Earp's date with destiny at the O.K. Corral -- and a critically acclaimed trilogy about gunfighters Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch: Appaloosa (filmed in 2008 with Ed Harris as Cole and Viggo Mortensen as Hitch), & Resolution and Brimstone.

In a 2005 interview with Cowboys & Indians, Parker noted that, even though some of his long-time fans were surprised when tried his hand at Westerns, he felt he hadn't moved very far from familiar ground: "My doctoral dissertation -& which, I admit, is not all that important -& was about the evolution of the cowboy hero into the private eye. Frontiersman into urban dweller. Leslie A. Fielder once said something like, 'The private eye is merely the cowboy dismounted and moving gracefully through the streets of the city.' &I agree."

In one of the Spenser novels, Parker revealed that his private eye actually was born in Laramie, Wyoming. Did that mean the guy was, at heart, a true-blue Westerner? Yes, indeed.

"Spenser was born in the West," Parker said, "and he has brought some of those frontier virtues and values along with him. He has decided to believe some things, and live life on his own terms. And to do what he thinks he should do, what he wants to do. He doesn&t over-analyze why he feels that way. But he&s tough enough to support that sort of innocence."

Some small-town cowboy culture on the big ol' World Wide Web

Sunday, January 17, 2010 at 7:15 p.m.

Coming to you "live from sparkling San Augustine, Texas, from the second floor of the Hightop Feed and Seed," it's Ralph's Backporch, a little bit of small town Lone Star culture -- conversation, Western-style music and cowboy poetry -- broadcast by way of Internet radio three nights a week. And according to the Associated Press, it's reaching "a few thousand listeners throughout the nation and in Britain, New Zealand, Brazil and about 20 other nations."

Coming soon to a theater near you: Kenny Chesney in 3-D

Wednesday, January 13, 2010 at 12:43 p.m.

According to CMT News, Kenny Chesney is busy working on a new album, and preparing for his first appearance at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo in five years. But his fans may be more excited about something else on the Country superstar's agenda -- a 3-D concert movie set for an April theatrical release.

Wednesday Western: 'The Broken Star'

Wednesday, January 13, 2010 at 12:21 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: The Broken Star, one of many Westerns directed by prolific filmmaker Lesley Selander, starring Bill Williams as a deputy sheriff who suspects -- with ample justification -- that a friend and fellow deputy (Howard Duff) is behind the murder of a Mexican rancher.

Downey won't be ambushing 'Aliens' after all

Tuesday, January 12, 2010 at 3:38 p.m.

According to the Los Angeles Times, director Jon Favreau is galloping forward with plans to film Cowboys & Aliens -- a science-fiction Western based on the&graphic novel by Fred Van Lente and Andrew Foley-- for a Summer 2011 theatrical release. But it looks like Favreau will have to make the movie without his Iron Man star Robert Downey Jr., who has dropped out of the project because of scheduling conflicts. That's a pity: It might have been a hoot and a half to see Downey in the lead role of Zeke Jackson, a grizzled gunslinger who leads an alliance of cowboys and Native Americans in an uprising against extraterrestrial invaders in 19th-century Arizona. We'll let you know who lands this plum part just as soon as the recasting is announced.

Return with us now to those thrilling Westerns of yesteryear

Thursday, January 7, 2010 at 12:12 p.m.

Thanks to a tip from C&I reader John Guidry, we're able to offer this link to The Western Silent Films Lobby Cards Collection of Yale University's Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. It's a very impressive&accumulation of &106 lobby cards and publicity stills -- most of them dating between 1910 and 1930 -- originally used to promote Western movies during the silent era. Enjoy.

RFD-TV: 13 million viewers strong, and growing

Thursday, January 7, 2010 at 10:35 am

Forbes Magazine calls Patrick Gottsch -- founder of RFD-TV -- "The Ted Turner of Rural TV." The secret of his success? Blending four program genres -- agriculture, horses, rural living and country music -- into a mix that attracts 13 million weekly viewers. Of course, it also helps that RFD-TV airs Red Steagall's In the Bunkhouse at noon and 10 pm CST Wednesdays.

Wednesday Western: "'Neath the Arizona Skies"

Wednesday, January 6, 2010 at 6:14 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: 'Neath the Arizona Skies, a 1934 John Wayne &action-adventure in which The Duke comes to the aid of a half-Indian girl (Shirley Jean Rickert) who stands to inherit oil-rich land worth $50,000. The movie's highlight: A climactic fistfight between Wayne and legendary stunt coordinator Yakima Canutt.

TV alert: 'Wyatt Earp' on PBS

Monday, January 4, 2010 at 5:20 p.m.

After profiling Annie Oakley, Buffalo Bill, Kit Carson and Jesse James, &American Experience is ready to saddle up for another study of an Old West icon:&Wyatt Earp -- an hour-long film written, directed and produced by Rob Rapley -- is set to air at 9 pm ET Jan. 25 &as part of the acclaimed PBS series. Rapley promises that his documentary will offer a fair and balanced portrait of a man whose real-life complexities &seldom have been fully examined in TV and movie dramas. &&A lot of people feel strongly that Wyatt Earp was either hero or villain," Rapley says. "The real story is a lot more interesting than that.&

Whither Western wear?

Monday, January 4, 2010 at 2:17 p.m.

Just a few days before the start of the&2010 National Western Stock Show in Denver, &Associated Press writer Dan Elliott wonders: If a real cowboy (or cowgirl) from the Old West era were to somehow stumble into the event, would he (or she) recognize the garb on display? Not likely. &"Western wear today," Elliott writes, "doesn't look much like what the legendary young cowhands wore from the 1870s through the 1890s, designers and historians say. The clothing has adapted to meet changing styles, just as cattle have been bred to meet evolving tastes." You can read the rest of the story here.

Encore Westerns: Happy New Year, pardners!

Thursday, December 31, 2009 at 1:35 p.m.

The Encore Westerns cable network has come up with a rootin'-tootin' way to ring in 2009: Three -- count 'em, three! -- holiday weekend marathons of classic TV Westerns. Starting at 12 am ET Jan. 1, you can watch back-to-back episodes of The Virginian until... well, until 12 am ET Jan. 2, when Encore switches over to Have Gun, Will Travel. Twenty-four hours later, a day-long Gunsmoke marathon begins.&But wait, there's more: All three series will continue to air at various times throughout the new year, joining an Encore schedule that already includes, in addition to&feature films, Cheyenne, Maverick, Cimarron Strip -- and The Gene Autry Show.

Stamp of approval

Wednesday, December 30, 2009 at 4:14 p.m.

Four legendary cowboys of the silver screen -- Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Tom Mix and William S. Hart -- are among the luminaries who'll be honored on U.S. postage stamps in 2010.

Westerns corralled at National Film Registry

Wednesday, December 30, 2009 at 11:00 am

Under Western Stars, the 1938 action-adventure that showcased the great Roy Rogers in his first starring role, and Once Upon a Time in the West, Sergio Leone's classic "spaghetti Western" starring Henry Fonda and Charles Bronson, are among the latest group of "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant movies that have been added to the Library of Congress' National Film Registry. Chief among the Westerns previously selected for inclusion in the registry: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Shane, Stagecoach and Red River.

The registry, which now consists of 525 titles, was established by Congress in 1989 to preserve various cinematic works -- everything from dramatic features to music videoes -- for posterity. Not necessarily the "best" films, mind you, but works of enduring importance to American culture. Like, for example, movies with singing cowboys.

The National Film Registry "spotlights the importance of protecting America's matchless film heritage and cinematic creativity," says Librarian of Congress James H. Billington. "By preserving the nation's films, we safeguard a significant element of our cultural patrimony and history."

Once upon a time in Nazi-occupied France... scalps were sought

Tuesday, December 29, 2009 at 1:33 p.m.

The folks at Fresh Air -- the popular National Public Radio series -- are marking the end of 2009 by re-posting on their website some of the memorable interviews they've aired this year. Among the best: An Aug. 27 chat with cult-fave filmmaker Quentin Tarantino, who says his smash-hit World War II adventure Inglourious Basterds was heavily influenced by Sergio Leone's Once Upon a Time in the West.& As he tells Fresh Air host Terry Gross: "I actually thought the idea of doing a World War II movie in the guise of a spaghetti Western would just be an interesting way to tackle it."

But wait, there's more: Tarantino also alludes to more traditional Hollywood Westerns while portraying one of his lead characters -- Lt. Aldo Raine, a Tennessee-born solider played by Brad Pitt -- as leader of a "bushwhackin' guerrilla army" on the loose in Nazi-occupied France. Raine, who identifies himself as part Apache, orders his men to take no prisoners -- and to bring back Nazi scalps. For Tarantino -- who, not incidentally, is part Cherokee himself -- this far-fetched plot twist is a roundabout tribute to the fictional Raine's real-life ancestors: "The Apache Indians were able, from different points in time ... to fight off for decades both the Spaniards and the Mexicans and the U.S. Calvary for years because they were great guerrilla fighters, great resistance fighters," Tarantino says. "And one of their ways of winning battles was psychological" & ambushes, scalpings, and even more brutal tactics that left their enemies terrified of being captured by an Apache.

For Reba McEntire, 'tis the season to be No. 1

Tuesday, December 22, 2009 at 1:28 p.m.

Reba McEntire received an early Christmas present yesterday -- the good news that her lastest single, "Consider Me Gone," has reached the No. 1 position on both the Billboard Country Songs Chart and the USA Today/ Country Aircheck Chart (powered by Mediabase). It's second hit single from Keep on Loving You, her first album for the Valory Music Co. &label, and the 34th No. 1 chart-topper of her career. Says Reba: &My Valory Music Company family gave me the best Christmas gift ever -- &a number one record! &Our team&s hard work and enthusiasm continue to amaze me. 'Consider Me Gone& is a great song, and I&m just proud to be a part of it. &2009 has been great. &Thirty-four No. 1&s are great. &And, I feel like we are just getting started!&

You can enjoy an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the making of Reba&s &Consider Me Gone& music video at 6:30 pm ET/ 5:30 pm CT today (Tuesday) on the Great American Country Channel. &And you see Reba again when she performs on the CBS special A Home for the Holidays at 8 pm ET/ 7 pm CT Wednesday.

Do you have enough 'Grit' to be a movie star?

Monday, December 21, 2009 at 5:05 p.m.

The search is on for a feisty young lady to play one of the lead roles in Joel and Ethan Coen's remake of True Grit. Specifically: Paramount Pictures has begun an open casting call to find a Caucasian girl between the ages of 12 and 16 to play the lead role of Mattie Ross, described by the studio as a "simple, tough as nails young woman in post-Civil War Arkansas." If you know of a likely prospect, check out this site for info regarding how to submit an audition tape.

Merry Christmas from Joey +Rory

Monday, December 21, 2009 at 12:55 p.m.

Joey+ Rory get into the holiday spirit for a music video filmed at their farmhouse. Enjoy.

Wednesday Western: 'Fury at Showdown'

Wednesday, December 16, 2009 at 10:03 p.m.

Free for you from Hulu.com: Fury at Showdown, a rip-roarin' 1957 Western starring John Derek as a gunfighter who hangs up his shootin' irons to raise cattle with his younger brother (Nick Adams). But when land-grabbers ambush his sibling... well, a man's got to do what a man's got to do.

Critics go 'Crazy' for Jeff Bridges

Wednesday, December 16, 2009 at 4:55 p.m.

The early reviews are trickling in for Crazy Heart, the much-talked-about indie movie starring Jeff Bridges, Maggie Gyllenhaal and C&I reader favorite Robert Duvall.&And so far,&it looks like the critics have nothing but raves for& Bridges' lead performance as&Bad Blake, a fading Country music star who desperately needs a shot at redemption.&"It's a juicy, career-crowning role," writes Peter Travers of Rolling Stone, "and Bridges -- a master of subtle brilliance --&plays the hell out of it." &Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times feels Bridges "is on the road to an Oscar" for what Leah Rosen of People magazine describes as&"a deeply felt performance, one as authentic and lived-in as the worn couch in Blake's living room."&

As for the movie itself:&A.O. Scott of The New York Times thinks Crazy Heart-- which writer-director Scott Cooper adapted from a novel by Thomas Cobb --&compares favorbaly to another memorable drama about a wayward Country artist:&"When Robert Duvall... turns up as one of Bad&s old friends, you might also remember Mac Sledge, the Bad Blake figure [Duvall] played in Bruce Beresford&s 1983 film, Tender Mercies. Mr. Cooper&s movie owes an obvious debt to that one, but there can never be too many songs about drinking, loving and feeling bad, and there is always room for another version of that old song about the guy who messed it all up and kept on going. Especially when that guy can play the tune as truly and as well as Mr. Bridges." It's worth noting, of course, that Duvall won the Oscar as Best Actor for Tender Mercies.

Crazy Heart opened today in New York and Los Angeles. According to the Los Angeles Times, it will expand to four more cities (Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas and Phoenix)&Christmas Day, then open wider&Jan. 8.

'Saturday Night' is all right by Time

Monday, December 14, 2009 at 5:43 p.m.

According to no less an authority than Time Magazine, the No. 1 album of 2009 is....

Garth Brooks, plain and simple

Monday, December 14, 2009 at 2:15 p.m.

Garth Brooks may be the new toast of Las Vegas-- but that doesn't mean he's no longer a down-to-earth kind of guy. Indeed, he's not ashamed to admit that when he and Trisha Yearwood recently celebrated their fourth anniversary, they didn't spend a lot while telling each other that they're "lovin' it."

Just in time for the Bowl Season...

Friday, December 11, 2009 at 2:25 p.m.

Looking for that perfect holiday gift for college football fans? Check out these colllege boots from Nocona. Three schools are currently available, and the renowned bootmakers are giving away a pair a week thru Bowl Season. Visit www.collegeboots.com to enter.

R.I.P.: Gene Barry (1919-2009)

Friday, December 11, 2009 at 12:48 p.m.

For three seasons (1958-61) on NBC, Gene Barry neatly balanced affability and authority as the elegantly attired hero of &Bat Masterson, &the enduringly popular TV Western with the indelibly memorable theme song. ("Back when the West was very young, there lived a man named Masterson...") Barry went on to star in two other successful &series -- Burke's Law and The Name of the Game -- but Masterson remained his signature role. So it seemed only fitting when, decades after the original Bat Masterson show signed off from prime time, Barry again donned the derby hat and picked up the gold-handled cane so that -- much to the delight of admiring fans -- he could reprise his definitive portrayal of the Old West icon for a 1989 episode of Guns of Paradise (alongside Hugh O'Brian as Wyatt Earp) and the 1991 TV-movie The Gambler Returns: The Luck of The Draw. &Barry died Wednesday in Los Angeles at age 90.&But thanks to the man named Masterson, he'll continue to enjoy a unique sort of immortality.

Wednesday Western: 'Winds of the Wasteland'

Wednesday, December 9, 2009 at 11:43 am

Free for you from Hulu.com: John Wayne and Lane Chandler are partners vying to become Pony Express contractors in this 1936 Western from Republic Pictures.

Gaming and gunslinging

Tuesday, December 8, 2009 at 2:20 p.m.

Paradox Interactive is aiming to please video game fans with Lead and Gold: Gangs of the Wild West, a team-based, third-person shooter extravaganza set to hit the console market in early 2010. According to Paradox, Lead and Gold "features intense gunfights in beautifully rendered Western settings," and invites players "to relive the excitement, danger and mystery of the Wild West."

Wild horse advocates tell bureaucrats: Whoa!

Tuesday, December 8, 2009 at 12:49 p.m.

From The New York Times: "A government plan to round up and relocate thousands of wild horses in the West faces opposition from advocates who say the proposal is inhumane and unnecessary. At a hearing near Reno, two dozen advocates pressed the U.S.&&Bureau of Land Management's&National Horse and Burro Advisory Board Monday for a moratorium on roundups until an independent audit of mustang numbers can be conducted." More on the story here.

This week on 'In the Bunkhouse'

Monday, December 7, 2009 at 1:22 p.m.

Robert Fuller -- the straight-shooting star of Laramie, Wagon Train and Return of the Seven&-- will be Red Stegall's special guest&this week on In the Bunkhouse, the "cowboy variety" series presented by Cowboys & Indians on the RFD-TV network. Watch for the episode at 1 and 11 p.m. EST Wednesday, Dec. 9.

TV alert: Carrie Underwood

Monday, December 7, 2009 at 12:32 p.m.

Country music chart-topper and four-time Grammy Award winner Carrie Underwood will host her very own two-hour musical extravaganza -- aptly titled Carrie Underwood: An All-Star Holiday Special-- at 8 EST/7 CST tonight (Monday) on Fox. She'll be joined on stage by Brad Paisley, Dolly Parton and David Cook as she performs new music from her upcoming CD, familiar tunes from past albums -- and, of course, holiday-themed classics.

Tim McGraw is ready for another close-up

Friday, December 4, 2009 at 12:54 p.m.

Even while he's still on view at megaplexes everywhere as Sandra Bullock's supportive spouse in The Blind Side, Tim McGraw is preparing for his next acting gig. &In Love Don't Let Me Down, an ensemble drama set to start filming next month in Nashville, McGraw will play the husband-manager of a fallen-from-grace Country artist (Oscar winner Gwyneth Paltrow) who sets out on a comeback tour with a hunky young singer-songwriter (Garrett Hedlund) and a beauty queen turned recording artist (Leighton Meester of TV's Gossip Girl). Consider the possibilities.

Not just a Country gal anymore

Thursday, December 3, 2009 at 4:28 p.m.

Just how phenomenal is Taylor Swift? Well, as CMT.com admiringly notes, the country-pop superstar didn't merely snag eight nods -- second only to Beyoncé -- when nominations for the 52nd annual Grammy Awards were announced Wednesday evening. No, &Swift did something even more remarkable: She got herself nominated in three top categories representing all major genres of music. Talk about being a "crossover" artist!

'Tough Trade' for a Nashville music dynasty

Tuesday, December 1, 2009 at 1:55 p.m.

Just a few weeks ago, Brad Paisley announced plans to develop a weekly dramatic TV series about up-and-coming performers in Nashville. Now it looks like there's a second Music City drama on the drawing boards: Tough Trade, a project in development at the recently launched EPIX cable network, features Sam Shepard as patriarch of the Tucker family, a three-generation Nashville music dynasty. The bad news: Drink, debauchery and divorce have left the once-mighty Tuckers on the verge of bankruptcy. The worse news: Ol' Man Tucker's grandson, an exceptionally talented singer and guitarist, has no interest in joining the family business -- because he prefers to make a living by selling illegal ammunition around Nashville. Lucas Black of All the Pretty Horses, Sling Blade and the forthcoming Get Low plays the prodigal grandson, and Cary Elwes of The Princess Bride has signed on to play his father. The pilot episode for Tough Trade starts shooting this week in Nashville, under the direction of filmmaker Gavin Hood, whose credits range from Tsotsi (winner of the 2006 Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film) to X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

This week on 'In the Bunkhouse'

Tuesday, December 1, 2009 at 12:46 p.m.

James Drury -- yes, The Virginian&himself -- will swap stories with Red Stegall this week on In the Bunkhouse, the "cowboy variety" series presented by Cowboys & Indians on the RFD-TV network. Watch for the episode at 1 and 11 p.m. EST Wednesday, Dec. 2.

A Satellite in store for Jeff Bridges?

Monday, November 30, 2009 at 3:15 p.m.

In the status-conscious universe of showbiz, the Satellite Awards are to the Golden Globe Awards what the Golden Globes are to the Academy Awards. Even so, it's worth noting that Jeff Bridges was included among the finalists in the Best Actor (Drama) category when nominations for this year's Satellites were announced today. Bridges was honored for his critically acclaimed performance as a fallen-from-grace Country music star who gets a shot at redemption in Crazy Heart, a drama set to open Dec. 16 in New York and Los Angeles. (A wider release is tentatively planned for early 2010.) And if you can believe the advance buzz, winning a Satellite might be Bridges' first step in a march toward Oscar gold. FYI: The Satellite Awards are given by the International Press Academy. And winners will be announced Dec. 20.

Wednesday Western: John Wayne in 'Blue Steel'

Wednesday, November 25, 2009 at 12:37 p.m.

Free for you, from Hulu.com: Blue Steel, a fast-paced 1934 Western in which an incredibly young John Wayne saves a small town from financial ruin by leading the citizenry to a gold strike.

Remembering Elmer Kelton

Wednesday, November 25, 2009 at 12:19 p.m.

Elmer Kelton may be gone, but he's certainly not forgotten. According to this Wall Street Journal report, the good folks in San Angelo, Texas are planning to dedicate a bronze statue honoring the late Western author next year. And Forge, Kelton's publisher, recently issued Other Men's Horses, the eighth novel in Kelton's series on the Texas Rangers.&There's also one more title -- Texas Standoff -- set for publication in 2010.

Basket cases

Thursday, November 19, 2009 at 3:52 p.m.

The Voice of America reports that the Autry National Center of the American West has unveiled an impressive exhibition of traditional and modern Native American basket weaving. The exhibit -- set to run through May 30, 2010 -- is drawn from nearly 14,000 baskets in the extensive collection of the Autry Center's Southwest Museum of the American Indian. More than 250 objects are &on view, ranging from small Pomo feather baskets made for sale to tourists to massive Apache olla baskets used for storing large quantities of seeds.

Three for the road

Thursday, November 19, 2009 at 2:41 p.m.

Platinum recording artist Lee Ann Womack has signed on to appear with King of Country George Strait and superstar Reba McEntire for a cross-country concert tour that kicks off Jan. 22 in Batltimore, MD, and continues through late spring. There's just one hang-up: "I'm trying to figure out what to wear," says Womack, "'cause you can't out-starch George, and you sure can't out-spangle Reba!"

A Thanksgiving Day feast for Clint Eastwood fans

Wednesday, November 18, 2009 at 1:59 p.m.

On Thanksgiving Day, even before you start feasting on turkey, you can savor a heaping helping of spaghetti. Spaghetti Westerns, that is. MGM HD -- the high-definition, 24/7 movie channel available on cable and satellite systems nationwide -- &will serve up a triple bill of Sergio Leone's A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly starting at &9 am EST -- and repeating at 6 pm EST, if you prefer to have your spaghetti after the turkey -- Nov. 26. &Known collectively -- if not accurately -- as the "Man with No Name Trilogy," the three films are justly famous for showcasing Clint Eastwood &as a sharp-shooting, cheroot-chewing bounty hunter who aims to please no one but himself. If you're a true-blue Western fan, this golden opportunity to watch all three movies back-to-back in high-def format is -- well, something to be thankful for.

Cowboy Museum expands inclusion of Indians

Wednesday, November 18, 2009 at 1:06 p.m.

The National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City has begun a $180,000 facelift of its Native American Gallery that will add even more artifacts to its collection. "We had the opportunity to capture the greater story of the American West," says museum director Chuck Schroeder. &"That really does have worldwide appeal."

More 'Pure Country,' with less George Strait

Tuesday, November 17, 2009 at 11:41 am

Country megastar and C&I cover boy George Strait has been signed to play what's described as a "very limited role" in A Pure Country Gift -- a follow-up to his 1992 movie&Pure Country. The new film is not a sequel, strictly speaking, but rather "a movie in the Pure Country genre." At least, that's the word from filmmaker Chris Cain, who directed the enduringly popular '92 original, and currently is filming&Pure Country Gift on location in Nashville. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Cain -- who also directed the 1988 Western Young Guns -- has cast Country artist Katrina Elam in Pure Country Gift as&a singer who's blessed with a beautiful voice by three angels. Complications arise when she abuses that great gift.

The Collected Louis L'Amour Shorts

Monday, November 16, 2009 at 4:23 p.m.

Those of us who are fiends for the printed word were thrilled to hear another volume of Louis L'Amour short stories was going to be available, and we were not dissapointed. Over the past several years, the late author's estate has put out six superb volumes of Western, Crime, and Adventure genre fiction. &The Collected Short Stories of Louis L&Amour - Volume 7, Frontier Stories," was released just a few weeks ago. The late author's wife, Kathy L'Amour, will be on hand to sign copies of the book at Sorrel Sky Gallery in Durango, Colorado, November 28th from 12-3 p.m.

"My father told a good story,'' said Beau L'Amour, the writer's son, told the New York Times in 1998. ''And the western provides a great format for looking at our society, how we got here. What happened on the frontier has a lot to say about who we are.''

FYI: Sorrel Sky Gallery, 870 Main Avenue, Durango, CO, 81301, 970.247.3555. www.sorrelsky.com

Annual WRCA Ranch Rodeo Championships

Friday, November 13, 2009 at 12:05 p.m.

If you're within driving distance of Amarillo you can catch the 14th Annual Working Ranch Cowboys Association (WRCA) Championship Ranch Rodeo this weekend at the Amarillo Civic Center. Watch the dirt fly as top hands and hard-luckers from across the country compete for the title. If you're not in Amarillo, keep your eyes on RFD-TV for the broadcast date to be announced soon.

FYI: www.wrca.org

Winners and Losers at the 2009 CMAs

Thursday, November 12, 2009 at 3:47 p.m.

To the surprise of many fans and critis, Darius Rucker won the CMA for New Artist of the Year, despite (or perhaps in spite of) his previous career experience as a multi-platinum performer.

Other highlights:

• Brad Paisley took 60% of the fan votes online for Entertainer of the Year, but lost out to Taylor Swift.

• Lady Antebellum topped Rascall Flatts for Vocal Group of the Year, also taking Single of the Year for "I Run to You."

• Jamey Johnson lost to the aforementioned Darius Rucker for New Artist but snagged Song of the Year with "In Color."

• Sugarland beat out Joey & Rory, Brooks & Dunn, and Big & Rich for Vocal Duo of the Year (I guess ampersands are out of style).

Congrats to all the winners and performers at the 42nd annual CMAs for putting on another great show.

The return -- maybe -- of the TV Western

Wednesday, November 11, 2009 at 12:40 p.m.

Are TV Westerns poised to make a prime-time comeback? Perhaps. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the FX cable network is developing Reconstruction, a drama set in a Missouri town during the post-Civil War era. The series would center on a character named Jason, described as "a proper East Coast gentleman who returns from the war a changed man and seeks refuge in the border state." And while it may be too early to officially announce the start of a trend, the showbiz trade paper also notes: "FX has picked up the contemporary Western Lawman... and several Western-themed projects are in development at the broadcast networks."

From Country charts to comic books

Tuesday, November 10, 2009 at 5:52 p.m.
First, Country superstar Trace Adkins tried his hand at horror movies as a Southern-fried Satan. Now he's gone over to the side of the angels -- sort of -- as the inspiration for a fearless comic book hero: Luke McBain. The premiere issue in a four-part series will be available in more than 4,000 comic book stores starting Wednesday, with subsequent issues scheduled to be released monthly through February 2010. Fans can purchase a copy at Trace's website, or at 12gaugecomics.com. But wait, there's more: A special limited Tour Edition of Luke McBain will be available at Trace's concerts starting Nov. 21.

Red Steagall corrals Dean Smith for 'In the Bunkhouse'

Tuesday, November 10, 2009 at 12:20 p.m.
This week on In the Bunkhouse,&Red Steagall's special guest is living legend Dean Smith,&winner of the 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.&&Smith, who earned&a gold medal as a relay runner in the 1952 Summer Olympics,& spent 50 years in the movie business as a stuntman and actor, working with the likes of Robert Duvall, Burt Lancaster, Robert Redford and Stuart Whitman in such&memorable& Westerns as The Alamo (1960), Two Rode Together (1961), How the West Was Won (1962), McLintock! (1963), Cheyenne Autumn (1964),&True Grit (1969), Jeremiah Johnson (1971) and Ulzana's Raid (1972). You can catch him swapping stories with Red when In the Bunkhouse airs at 1 and 11 p.m. EST (12 noon and 10 pm CST) on RFD-TV.

Live from Houston -- it's Susan Hickman!

Monday, November 9, 2009 at 12:51 p.m.
Up-and-coming Texas country-rocker Susan Hickman will take her live show global Thanksgiving weekend when she live-streams her Saturday night gig at the Houston-area night spot Rowdy Buck's Saloon on&her SusanHickman.com website. &As the tech-savvy Hickman explains: "The Internet has given me some amazing opportunities to connect with my fans.&This is something I've always wanted to do -- and I'm excited to be connecting to a larger audience." The 24-year singer&already has shared stages with the likes of Jo Dee Messina, Kevin Fowler and The Lost Trailers. But &her Rowdy Buck's Saloon show -- set to start at 9:30 p.m. Nov. 28 -- will be her very own personal showcase. And you can safely assume that her brand new single -- "Whipping Post," a high-energy cover of the Greg Allman classic -- will be on her song list for the evening.

5th Annual Photo Contest Update

Monday, November 9, 2009 at 12:38 p.m.

Thanks to all you contestants who entered the 5th Annual C&I Photo Contest. Our deadline for submissions was October 16, 2009, and we've received over 1,700 entries. The grading, sorting and appreciating process has begun. Please remain patient... if your entry is chosen as a potential finalist, we'll contact you no later than December 18, 2009. As a brief teaser, please take in this terrific entry "Big Sky" by Morgan Dabbs. If you missed the deadline this time, you can start thinking about 2011 by clicking here.