The Buckaroo and Buckarette STAGECOACH HOLD-UP!

This photo was originally supposed to be in my book Tattered and Lost: Buckaroos and Buckarettes until I saw it in the proof. The image just didn't work, the details got lost. So I replaced it with the image of the boy with the fort. But I love this shot. You are only seeing a portion of it. I wanted to highlight the details of this diorama probably built by some kid in their backyard. I'm very glad someone had the good sense to take a photo of it. I so want to be a kid again playing in the backyard with my imagination running wild.

Enjoy!


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JUMBLED MESS for a Buckaroo and Buckarette

Mike Brubaker from TempoSenzaTempo made a comment yesterday about the image of the boy playing with his fort, indians, and cowboys. The problem he pointed out was that the toys always ended up in a jumbled mess with a little "cross pollination" going on with all the little plastic figures. I think the photo below illustrates his point. This image did not make it into Tattered and Lost: Buckaroos and Buckarettes.


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MARX TOYS for Buckaroos and Buckarettes

When I was around 5 or 6 I remember the boy across the street had the Roy Rogers Chuck Wagon made by the Louis Marx Company. I loved that chuck wagon. I coveted that chuck wagon. I STILL want that chuck wagon.

The set came with all sorts of accessories, including all the pots and pans that were kept in the back of the wagon. You can see one here on ebay (the link of course will not work once the item is sold). Marx made a lot of toys I either wanted or in some cases had.

Among the most enduring Marx creations were a long series of boxed "playsets" throughout the 1950s and 1960s based on television shows and historical events. These include "Walt Disney's Davy Crockett At The Alamo", "Gunsmoke", "Wagon Train", "Battle Of The Blue and Grey", "The Revolutionary War", "Tales Of Wells Fargo", "The Untouchables", "Robin Hood", "The Battle Of The Little Big Horn", "Arctic Explorer", "Ben Hur", "Fort Apache", "Johnny Tremain", and many others.

Playsets included highly detailed plastic figures and accessories, many with some of the toy world's finest tin lithography. A Marx playset box was invariably bursting with contents, yet very few were ever priced above the average of $4–$7. Greatly expanded sets, such as "Giant Ben Hur" sold for $10 to $12 in the early 1960s. This pricing formula adhered to the Marx policy of "more for less" and made the entire series attainable to most customers for many years. Original sets are highly prized by baby boomer collectors to this day. Collector's books titled "Boy Toys" and "The Big Toy Box At Sears" feature the original advertisements for many of these sets and are well worth having as a visual reference. (SOURCE: Wikipedia)

This little fella with his fort, wagons, cowboys, and indians was in seventh heaven and obviously one of his parents wanted to capture what he'd created. He too is in my book Tattered and Lost: Buckaroos and Buckarettes.

Buckaroos and Buckarettes - HERO OR SIDEKICK?

If you were a buckaroo or buckarette as a kid were you the hero or the sidekick? In other words, were you Roy Rogers or Gabby Hayes? I think most of us probably were a bit of both, depending on the game at hand.

One of my favorite sidekicks was Jack Elam in Support Your Local Sheriff. It was a farce, but it makes me laugh every time I watch it.

The photo below is also from Tattered and Lost: Buckaroos and Buckarettes. I think of this little fella as a perfect sidekick.

HARVESTING THE CROPS and Buckaroos and Buckarettes

My submission for this week's Sepia Saturday is a rather lovely scene of "gardening" on a larger scale than the Sepia photo. Sadly the photo is not in good shape, but it still reminds me of a sketch that might have been done for an old painting. I have no idea where it might have been taken, but imagine the architecture of the houses would be a good clue. If anyone has any suggestions I'd love to hear them. Click on the image to see it larger.


Click on image to see it larger.

Buckaroos and Buckarettes

The second part of my post is a repost from a couple days ago introducing the latest book in my Tattered and Lost series.

Do you have memories of riding the range though you never left your neighborhood? You might have been a buckaroo or buckarette.

Do you remember thinking you could vanquish the bad guys with a song in your heart and a six-gun on your hip? You might have been a buckaroo or buckarette.

Do you remember singing Happy Trails and knowing all the words? You might have been a buckaroo or buckarette.

Introducing the latest volume in the Tattered and Lost series of vintage snapshot books available at Amazon. Tattered and Lost: Buckaroos and Buckarettes should easily fill that void of forgotten memories when all kids dreamt of joining their heroes Roy, Gene, Hoppy, and Annie. You'll smile, you'll laugh, you'll wonder how you ever lost the dream.

Need a special gift for someone? Tattered and Lost: Buckaroos and Buckarettes might just be what you're looking for. Sure to start conversations for people of any age.

104 pages with 94 photos, available at Amazon. Photos from the early part of the 20th Century through the early 1960s.

BUCKAROOS AND BUCKARETTES

Do you have memories of riding the range though you never left your neighborhood? You might have been a buckaroo or buckarette.

Do you remember thinking you could vanquish the bad guys with a song in your heart and a six-gun on your hip? You might have been a buckaroo or buckarette.

Do you remember singing Happy Trails and knowing all the words? You might have been a buckaroo or buckarette.

Introducing the latest volume in the Tattered and Lost series of vintage snapshot books available at Amazon. Tattered and Lost: Buckaroos and Buckarettes should easily fill that void of forgotten memories when all kids dreamt of joining their heroes Roy, Gene, Hoppy, and Annie. You'll smile, you'll laugh, you'll wonder how you ever lost the dream.

Need a special gift for someone? Tattered and Lost: Buckaroos and Buckarettes might just be what you're looking for. Sure to start conversations for people of any age.

104 pages with 94 photos, available at Amazon. Photos from the early part of the 20th Century through the early 1960s.

HOPPY, Gene, and Roy

Hoppy, Gene, and Roy were the one name heros for many of us. I don't think the boys cared about Dale and Annie, but the girls did. I had an official Dale Evans cowgirl outfit. And I had an Annie Oakley outfit given to me by the neighbors when their daughter, Cecila, outgrew it. For years it was too big for me so my mother always had to pin it. It was black with white plastic fringe. Dale's was a series of rust colors and yellow. I loved both of those outfits and would run all over my neighborhood in Maryland. I imagine I even wore them when I went up and down the sidewalk wearing my skates. A tiny blond cowgirl on skates, must have been a site to behold.

I give you one little boys portrait in his Hop-a-long Cassidy outfit. He was surely proud to be Hoppy for a day. Now it's just an old faded yellowed photograph. The glory days of Hoppy are gone.

THIS is what made Seinfeld angry

I think maybe it's kids like this that annoyed Seinfeld. The ones whose doting parents bought them the whole get-up. They had the perfect hat and chaps and pony to sit on. Yeah, I can remember being jealous of kids who supposedly had ponies. I was also jealous of kids who had ponies show up just for their birthday party. I never went to one of those parties. I only heard about them through the 6 year old tin can grapevine. I can't imagine what kids feel these days with some parents doing all but renting Cirque de Soleil for their oh so special little ones. It's really gotten out of hand.

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Do you think when this little buckaroo was off the horse he would take a half step forward and then BAM! right down on his face? I mean, the chaps are too long little dude? They have to be a good 6 inches too long. Not a dignified way for a cowboy to walk. Perhaps he had to hold them up like the hem of a dress. Of course his folks said "He'll grow into them", but by then was he out of the whole cowboy infatuation? Did he sell them to get parts for a 56 Chevy?

For those interested in collecting vernacular photography I'm tellin' ya this is a category. Kids on horses. Kids on live horses. Or maybe kids on dime store stationary horses. That might be interesting to collect. Don't think I've ever come across a snapshot of a kid on a dime store horse. NOTE TO SELF...new category.

And to end today's buckaroo post I give you Ragtime Cowboy Joe done as only Lucy could do it. Here's to the 1950s kids who loved cowboys and cowgirls!

YOU LOOKIN' AT ME?

I really don't know what to say about this one. I think the front and back say it all. Okay, I do have one thing to say...is it wise to give a two year old a gun that's bigger than him? Especially when he seems to be channeling Travis Bickel? I'm just sayin'. The gloves aren't the first thing my attention is drawn to.

Click on either image to see it larger.