Red Steagalls cowboy gathering

Well I haven't written in quite a while but I have a real good reason for a new post. For the last few years I have been wanting to attend the Red Steagall cowboy gathering and western swing festival. We finally made it this year even though it was a flying trip to cowtown and back. If you love the old west you really owe it to yourself to attend this cowboy paradise.

Upon arriving at the stockyards I quickly realized that a trip to this historical part of Texas was worth it in it's own right but Red's festival made it so much more. The only thing that didn't cooperate was the weather, it rained, I mean rained! If you've ever wondered what the expression "cow peeing on a flat rock" means you should have been in Ft. Worth with us. In true cowboy spirit we didn't let the rain dampen our spirits, there was just too much cool, make that "cowboy cool", stuff to see and do.

The hard rain didn't last but it did shower off and on all day but that's ok I'll take that over a 105 degree heat wave any day. We were able to get in everything we wanted to do in that one day. We did some tourist shopping, ate some great buffalo burgers and took in some fascinating cowboy museums. We also spent a big part of the day talking to the chuckwagon cooks. My mom and dad taught me how to cook in dutch ovens years ago and my dad and I have talked about getting the money together and getting our own wagon someday so we can participate in these little get togethers.

The highlight of the day had to be the poetry and music. There was a full line up of great western musicians we couldn't possibly get it all in and see all the other sites too so we picked and chose who we wanted to see. We started off with Jean Prescott she is a female western singer. I guess you could just call her a cowgirl singer. She was really cool, it makes you think about that really cool aunt that you enjoyed hanging around when you were a kid. I think my mom really became a fan because not only does she have a great sense of humor she also touches a chord with women who live the rural life out in the country. I also read that she lives south of Abilene so I guess we may almost be neighbors. Later in the afternoon we got to see the man himself, Mr. Red Steagall in the flesh. He and his bunkhouse boys performed in an auction arena with a packed house, well as many as you can pack into an old auction barn.

Mr. Steagall is one of my all time favorites. I am such a huge fan because he has mastered the two styles of music I love most, cowboy and western swing. Saturday I learned that he is also a master storyteller that really knows how to work a crowd. He had everyone in the barn bustin' a gut at his stories and poems. He also mixed in a few great cowboy songs to go with the stories.

As soon as Red was done we hurried across the street to catch the end of another one of my favorite cowboy singers Mr. Don Edwards. Don is one of those guys who could sing the phone book and make it sound great! He could have been a star in any genre of music luckily for guys like me he likes to sing about punchers and cattle. I knew he had a great voice but you have to see him live. His voice is phenomenal! He had the crowd enthralled, they were eating out of his hand. This man is a true talent and American treasure.

After we finished Don's show we decided to do a little more shopping, Paw-Paw decided he needed a new vest. While we were doing that my daughter Mariana finally got up the nerve to go over to Red and ask for a picture. She had been nagging me all day to go over and talk to him but I know how busy these guys are and how many people must be bothering them so I have always hated to ask. She wasn't hearing that so she finally asked herself. Then Mr. Steagall, being the true cowboy gentleman he is graciously agreed to pose for a couple with Mariana and my other daughter Mia. He stopped and talked to all of us for a second. He reassured me his tv show on RFD TV has not been cancelled and told me the story of where the Coleman County Cowboy band came from. Come ask me about it some day and I'll pass the story on to you.

So once again if you've never been to the stockyards for his festival you really owe it to yourself. It really makes you proud to be a Texan but it is much bigger than that it just re-enforces everything that we know and love about the west. From cowboys to plowboys, farmers, ranchers, hunters, fishermen, campers and anyone else who loves the great outdoors will truly have a great time hangin' round with Red and the boys.

God and Texas,

Jason Watson

Life Lessons

I usually don't post emails I get but I liked this one. I have always liked listening to the seasoned citizens because wisdom can only come from experience.

Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The PlainDealer, Cleveland, Ohio "To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45lessons life taught me.. It is the most-requested columnI've ever written. My odometer rolled over to 90 in August,so here is the column once more:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone...

4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick.Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree todisagree.

7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than cryingalone.

8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up thepresent.

12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don't compare your life to others. You have noidea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, youshouldn't be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. Butdon't worry; God never blinks.

16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautifulor joyful.

18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make youstronger.

19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. Butthe second one is up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear thefancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wearpurple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words:'In five years, will this matter?'

27. Always choose life.

28. Forgive everyone everything.

29. What other people think of you is none of yourbusiness.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it willchange.

32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one elsedoes.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not becauseof anything you did or didn't do.

35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of itnow.

36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that youloved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waitingeverywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saweveryone else's, we'd grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all youneed.

42. The best is yet to come.

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and showup.

44. Yield.

45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still agift."

God and Texas,
Jason Watson

Coleman Christian Community Fellowship

Thank goodness you don't have to be a great athlete to be saved! That would be the consensus answer from the First Baptist "Chosen", the Sacred Heart "Repenters" and Concho Baptist "Saints"

For those of you that haven't heard, local Coleman Christians have gotten together and formed the "Coleman Christian Community Fellowship". We recently began playing volleyball together in September. We will play again on October 11th and 25th. If your church is interested in joining all you need to do is discuss it with your pastor and congregation then put a team together and choose a name, that's it! If you are interested in playing but cant get an entire team together we still encourage you to come out and fellowship with us, Elm Street Church of Christ and Central Baptist church are in similar situations so dont let that stop you. We welcome all denominations in Coleman, if Christ is your savior you are qualified to come. If you don't know Christ, this is a good place to start.

If you have questions about joining you can contact First Baptist Church at 325-625-3559 or via their website at http://www.fbccoleman.com/ or you can email me at jasonwwatson1@gmail.com . We meet every other Sunday from 3-5 pm at the First Baptist Church Family Life Center (the large red brick bldg. behind FBC). Each church takes turns being the "host" church. The host opens with prayer and maybe a short scripture reading and they also provide refreshments for everyone, usually chips, salsa, cookies and drinks.

In order to put everyones mind at ease our one major ground rule was there will be no proselytizing or "sheep stealing"! This organization is not intended to tell anyone else they are wrong and it is not intended to replace your weekly worship service. Our divisions are man made, but we are united in Christ.

Other than the proselytizing, the other basic rules are as follows; you must be a regular member of your church, if you know a person wants to play but they have not been attending church then by all means do what you can to bring them back into the body of Christ. All players need to be at least 14 years old, it is co-ed. The entire family is welcome to come there is a game room with ping pong and Foosball tables and cartoons for the younger kids. Even if you don't want to play you can always come out and have a big laugh at the expense of some frustrated athletes!

After we finish volleyball this fall our plan is to have basketball games this winter and hopefully softball in the spring. Our prayer is that we can build an organization here in Coleman that collectively promotes the gospel and does our small part to expand the kingdom of God not only by playing sports but also beginning to have community projects and standing together on the issues that bind us all.

Ephesians 2: 19-22

Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

God and Texas,
Jason Watson

Cowboy in the White House

It is a slight understatement to say that I do not support Democrat policies but what we are seeing now days is beyond anything many of us could have ever imagined. I've said it before and I'll say it again, it is a great thing that the country has gotten to a point that we are happily willing to elect a minority president. That is fine, I just wish it wasn't this minority.

Barack Obama is beyond Democrat, way beyond, the things he is proposing to do, not to mention what he has already done goes way, way beyond being a liberal Democrat this is flat out hard core socialism. Just to make sure I was using the right word I looked it up in the dictionary and this is the definition I found "Any of various theories or systems of social organization in which the means of producing and distributing goods is owned collectively or by a centralized government that often plans and controls the economy." Does this not sound like our current president? This guy is so far out in left field that he makes John F. Kennedy and Harry S. Truman look like conservatives!!

I know we shouldn't look back into the past, we should look forward to the next great conservative leader to emerge, but I have to admit, watching Obama makes me long for the good old days.

The man I'm talking about was described by liberals as a clueless, idiot cowboy governor from out west. No, It is not George W. Bush. I liked most of Bush's policies but the man I'm referring to is Ronald Wilson Reagan.

Reagan represented everything that was great about America and he swore to defend that way of life. It is no coincidence that "cowboy philosophy" and conservatism are so similar. I have included a copy of Gene Autry's Cowboy Code below and I am going to compare that simple code used to teach children to our conservative values.


1. The Cowboy must never shoot first, hit a smaller man, or take unfair advantage.

Conservatives are not imperialists, we defend our friends and our national interests.
Conservatives believe in protecting life from conception to natural death.
Conservatives have always been at the forefront of civil rights, we just don't get any credit for it. Abraham Lincoln freed the slaves, Dwight Eisenhower desegregated schools, and Republicans in congress passed the civil rights amendment through the house and Senate. LBJ even admitted it would have never passed without Republican support. Democrats like Robert Byrd (still serving) and Al Gore Sr. voted against it.


2. He must never go back on his word, or a trust confided in him.

Truthfully there is plenty of blame on both sides of the isle on this one but true conservatives like Reagan honored their word and pledged to make this country better for all citizens.


3.He must always tell the truth.

Once again this is similar to the previous one but the fact is the same a real conservative believes in honesty and integrity. I have no use for Republicans that cheat and lie for their own power and personal pleasures.


4.He must be gentle with children, the elderly, and animals.

Conservatives believe in traditional families and family values, we oppose abortion and euthanasia. Most conservatives also happen to be farmers, ranchers, hunters, and fishermen. They are the real environmentalists not these nuts at PETA and the Earth Liberation Front.


5.He must not advocate or possess racially or religiously intolerant ideas.

I mentioned Abe Lincoln before, the Republican party was founded as an opposition party to slavery. Our founding fathers founded this country on Christian ideas and principles but the beautiful thing about it is we welcome anyone in this country to worship how they please or not to worship at all. We just hate it when they try to take that same right away from us Christians.


6.He must help people in distress.

This is who we are, we are people helping people, this is a basic tenement of Christianity, feed the poor, cloth the naked. We just don't believe in huge bureaucratic gaggles wasting money and keeping people perpetually poor.


7.He must be a good worker.

This is similar to number six. We want people to work and contribute to society, then they can get ahead in life and have more than they ever dreamed of, certainly more than a welfare check would ever provide. Ben Franklin once said "Give a man a fish and he'll eat for a day, teach a man to fish and he'll eat for a lifetime."


8.He must keep himself clean in thought, speech, action, and personal habits.

This is so basic to living a full happy life. I really can't expand on this one, this is basic conservatism. It is living this way that makes you and the world better.


9.He must respect women, parents, and his nation's laws.

Liberals like to corner the market on women but women's lib went from a good idea to a bunch of man-hating nuts. As Christians and conservatives we are taught from a young age that women are to be put on pedestals. They are the caretakers of the family and the world. I heard someone say one time that it was really women who tamed the wild west. They are the ones who made homes, established churches, libraries and brought some class and culture. If it was left up to us men we would have just kept on getting drunk and shooting each other! Conservatives are also the voice of reason on law and order. We are a nation of laws and that is what protects the rights of all people.


10.The Cowboy is a patriot.

Quick, name me a ultra-liberal war hero. Of course you don't have to be a war hero to love this country but when you think of names like George Washington, Alvin York, Audie Murphy, George Patton, Bob Hope, Francis Scott Key, Betsy Ross, Abraham Lincoln, Charlie Daniels, Irving Berlin, Benjamin Franklin, Martin Luther King, Jon Voight, Rudy Giuliani, Jimmy Stewart and John Wayne you don't really associate them with Moveon.org or the ACLU.

Cowboys and conservatives go hand in hand and no one epitomised that better on a national political level than Ronald Reagan. He dreamed of a shining city on a hill, right now Obama is making us turn out those lights because of global warming and other crack-pot ideas.

God and Texas,
Jason Watson

Elmer Kelton

“I admired him as an author and citizen of the Concho Valley,” said Rep. Drew Darby. “He will be missed.” Fazlur Rahman said San Angelo has experienced a great loss. “He was a wise man, not only a great writer,” he said. “He had a great life, and brought honor and prestige to our community.” (from Friends Mourn Elmer Kelton, Brandi Ramirez, GoSanAngelo.com)

That's not too bad for a country boy from West Texas who got his start as the farm and ranch editor of the San Angelo Standard Times and later the Sheep and Goat Raisers magazine and Livestock Weekly. Obviously he was much more than an editor of some small West Texas publications, in many people's eyes he was the greatest western author ever.

Elmer grew up around Crane, Texas and graduated from Crane High School. After high school he attended the University of Texas and then joined the U.S. Army as an infantryman and saw combat in Europe during WWII. His wife Ann is a native of Austria, they settled in San Angelo and raised a family while he edited papers and wrote novels on the side.

I know Louis L'Amour is the most famous western novelist of all time, and he is great, I am not disputing that. The difference is that Louis' westerns sound more like stories that are ready to be made into Hollywood movies. Elmer's westerns sound more like the stories you would hear about your neighbors while hanging around the feed store or meeting for lunch after church on Sunday.

The characters are written to be real people with real problems and not sure about the solutions. In Elmer's novels there is no great hero riding in on a big stallion with a white hat and six guns blazing. Maybe that is the reason only one of his novels has been made into a movie.

That movie just happens to be my second favorite western of all time. The Good Old Boys is absolutely fantastic. It comes across less like a movie and more like a documentary of people living in West Texas at the turn of last century. The jist of the story is Matt Damon's, Cotton Calloway, character is a farm boy looking to leave the country and help build the future in some big city, Tommy Lee Jones's character, Hewey Calloway, is an old cowboy living in 1906. The cattle drives are gone and barbed wire is strung up everywhere. Cattle are shipped on rail cars, electric power lines and automobiles are springing up everywhere and he knows he is losing the life he loves to progress. In the mean time they both have to figure out how to save Hewey's brother (Cotton's dad's) farm.

The Good Old Boys is just one of many fantastic tales about regular people in Texas. I have also read The Smiling Country, Bowie's Mine, and parts of The Time it Never Rained and The Day the Cowboys Quit. One of these days I'll get around to finishing all of them.

There was a line from The Good Old Boys that Tommy Lee Jones said at an old cowboy's funeral. After naming off all the things that he and men like him did in their lifetimes he said "...Well here he is and we all better take a good look at him because they aint makin' no more like 'em!" That goes for Elmer himself and I would add that goes for an entire generation of men and women who grew up in the depression, fought in WWII, raised families in the 1950's and '60's and later spoiled grand kids who are now about my age. If you are a native Texan or just a fan of the real west, you should pick up an Elmer Kelton novel. R.I.P.

God and Texas,

Jason Watson

Shane

Last week I posted my top 25 westerns and one movie that was noticeably absent was Shane. I have talked to people from time to time about that movie and told them what I really thought about it. I know it is one of the most legendary movies ever made but for me it just didn't cut the mustard.

People may ask why, well the simple answer was, I never really liked it. I don’t mean to make anyone mad. I know many people love that western. For me, I don’t know, maybe it was just Alan Ladd himself. I just wasn’t sold on him being a westerner. Authenticity is probably the biggest factor in how well I rate a western. For starters, that hat he had on was right out of 1950’s central casting and those clothes looked like a Davy Crockett starter kit.

I think if Jimmy Stewart, Audie Murphy or Gary Cooper had played that part I would like it a lot better. Come to think of it 'Coop would have been great in that role! I will say this for it though, it had Ben Johnson in it which automatically makes any western better. Jack Palance and Edgar Buchanan were also nice western touches.

The first hour of the movie just seemed to drag on and on and on. I know they were trying to build the story line but that thing could have put insomniacs to sleep. It didn’t really pick up until Jack Palance shot that old boy in the street. Gosh, I hate to think that someone had to get killed just to wake me up. Anyway from there the story did seem to pick up a little bit.

The story does pick up from there. The settlers have decided they have had enough and decide to fight back against the cattle barons. Shane has tried to start a new life but he realizes he can run from who he is. It’s like Popeye used to say “I yam what I yam”. The movie does have a pretty climactic ending with the obligatory shootout and Shane rides off in the moonlight.

If any of you have ever seen the movie “The Negotiator” with Samuel L. Jackson and Kevin Spacey they actually discuss this movie. They are arguing whether or not Shane died at the end. Sam Jackson said he lived. Spacey says no he died. After watching the movie; I think I have to agree with Sam I don’t think Shane was dead, just winged a little bit.

Anyway, for what it is worth this is my explanation for Shane. I think it was a great story, it was an ok movie. I recommend Hondo over Shane any day. They are not the same movie but there are a lot of similarities in both of them

God and Texas,

Jason Watson

Top 25 Westerns

Everybody loves a top 25 list because it gives everyone something to argue about. This one should be no exception. If you love westerns the way I do this can keep you arguing for days. One thing I have learned in this cowboy endeavor is that I definitely need a top 50 list so I guess I'll have to post that one in the future. I hope you enjoy.

1.Lonesome Dove

This is the best, hands down, Robert Duval and Tommy Lee Jones look and sound exactly like old time Texans. The most authentic western ever made. If you could time travel and watch real old timers this is pretty much what it would look like. Except for Gus's hat, That "Tom Mix" style didn't come out for about another 20 years.

2. Good Old Boys

This is not one of the more popular westerns but it is really as good as it gets. Just like Lonesome Dove it is painstakingly authentic. Tommy Lee Jones delivers another truly authentic cowboy performance. It doesn't hurt using one of Elmer Kelton's novels either. If you're from around San Angelo and west Texas you can really relate to this one.

3. Barbarosa

Willie Nelson's best performance. Very funny and poignant great storytelling. Represents everything Texas is known for, German immigrants, outlaws, Mexicans etc. etc. Also one of Gary Busey's early performances before he became a total psycho and born again Christian.

4. Rio Bravo

The Duke is the man! He is by far the most represented man on this list. This movie was made in response to High Noon because Duke felt like no self-respecting law man would go around town begging for help. Two more of my favorite people in here too. Dean Martin and Walter Brennan almost steal the movie from Duke.

5. Tombstone

Great Story, again it looks authentic, which is the key with me to a great western. Kurt Russell has always been underrated. This is his best performance. Powers Boothe, Stephen Lang, Harey Carey Jr. and Buck Taylor are great in support.

6. The Cowboys

If I didn't pick Rio Bravo, I would have put this one as the best Duke movie. Where do you even start with John Wayne? I love this guy, hell I was named after him, at least that's my dad's side of the story. I guess I picked this one just because I love stories about actual "Cowboys". Just because a story took place in the 1800's it doesn't mean they were cowboys

7. Conhager

If anyone ever looked the part of the American cowboy; it is Sam Elliott. He does not disappoint at all in this adaption of Louis L'amour's novel. Barry Corbin and James Gammon give great performances. Excellent western!

8. The Shadow Riders

Tom Selleck and Sam Elliott are a tough combination to beat. Throw in my favorite character actor; Ben Johnson and you have a winning combination. Louis L'amour really knew how to write a western but it takes guys like Selleck, Elliott, and Johnson to bring it to life.

9. The Sacketts

Same cast, same author same result. One heck of a western. Tom, Sam and that other brother along with Ben Johnson again. This time it has great western actors like Glenn Ford, Slim Pickens and Jack Elam in it. Don't confuse it with the Shadow Riders they are two totally different movies.

10. The Undefeated

You really have to understand how hard it is for me to pick John Wayne movies. I guess this one is up there

because its about cowboys and it also has Ben Johnson in it. Not to mention Harry Carey Jr. and Dub Taylor, all great western actors.

11. Monte Walsh

Usually I like originals over remakes but this one is an exception. Lee Marvin and Jack Palance are in the original, and it is good but Tom Selleck and David Carridene knocked this one out of the park!

The themes of this story are very similar to The Good Old Boys.

12. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

I love, love, love Jimmy Stewart. Throw him in with John Wayne and you have a cant miss western. Great Story telling. Andy Devine, Lee Marvin and Denver Pyle help make a great cast. They just don't make movies this good anymore.

13 How the West Was Won

This is another type of movie hardly made anymore. An epic about the great westward expansion. It was known as Manifest Destiny. This movie is loaded with stars. Jimmy Stewart, John Wayne, Henry Fonda and the list goes on and on.

14. Centennial

This is very similar to the movie above it. Get ready though this movie is 27hrs long. It took me over two weeks to watch it all but the story is so good you never get bored. If you have ever seen "Into the West" you'll see where the inspiration came from. This movie starts with mountain men in the 1700's goes through settlers in the 1850's to cowboys in the 1870's to railroads and land grab schemes at the turn of the last century to the dust bowl of the 1930's and finally ends with Andy Griffith trying to solve a mystery in Centennial, Colorado in the 1970's. Great movie, great history lesson.

15. The Mountain Men

This is not the most famous western in the world but everyone should watch it. It really does justice to the mountain man era of the 1820's and '30's. Charlton Heston and Brian Keith play wild crazy mountain men (are there any other kind). Funny movie about a rough way of life.






16. Dances With Wolves

This list is getting harder to do. Now I start arguing with myself about which movie should be ranked higher. Kevin Costner told one of the best stories of the west and it showed another, better side of the Indians. It showed that they were real people not just a backdrop. Other movies have done this too but this one really shed light on it all.




17. Big Jake

Big Surprise, another John Wayne movie, this is vintage JW, kicking hind quarters and taking names. A word of advice, don't ever kidnap the Duke's grandson.

18. The Outlaw Josey Wales

I really like Clint Eastwood too,even though this is his only western in my top 25. I think he has a bunch of really good ones but I always thought this one was great. It is also a great history lesson about what happened after the civil war. The old Indian Chief Dan George steals this movie though!





19. Last days of Frank and Jesse James

There have been a ton of movies about Jesse James and his brother but I think this one is the best. If you love country music you'll love this one. Kris Kristofferson (looks just like J.J.) Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, June Carter Cash, Ed Bruce and David Allan Coe.





20. El Dorado

Howard Hawks (director) made a trilogy of movies that involved being held up in a jail. Rio Bravo was the first, Rio Lobo was the last. This was the middle one. The story is very similar to Rio Bravo but it stands alone as it's own movie. No Dean Martin this time but Robert Mitchum is no slouch himself.

21. Jeremiah Johnson

Most people know this movie more than "The Mountain Men" but I don't think it is quite as good. It is still an excellent western dealing with trapping and hunting in the Rockies during the 1840's. Most mountain men re-enactors consider this one a must own!







22. The Alamo

This one counts for John Wayne and Billy Bob Thornton's versions. John's glorifies it and Billy Bob's is meticulous but I'm sure Davy Crockett and Fess Parker would approve of both.

23. Texas

This is James Michener's second entry on my list (Centennial). This is not really historically accurate, because he builds his own fictional story around the Alamo and San Jacinto but it is very entertaining and well acted. Makes you very proud to be a Texan.







24. Red River

I guess this was the first great "cattle drive" movie. If you like Lonesome Dove you'll like this one. Be prepared though John Wayne is a total @#$ in this one. Walter Brennan is also in it. That is one guy that was made to be a sidekick in western movies.

25. Rooster Cogburn

Some people may look at this one and wonder how I could pick it over True Grit. Well the answer is simple I could not stand that girl in True Grit. I kept waiting for Duke to pull out that Colt and plug her just to shut her up. Then I'm supposed to believe that Glen Campbell is a Texas Ranger and the Duke is from Arkansas!
No, TG is a good movie but it is all out of whack for me. This sequel with Katharine Hepburn playing off the Duke was much, much better!

Well like I said in the beginning. I definitely will have to make a 26-50 list because I am thinking of a lot of western flicks that I love that aren't here. So whenever I get that info together I'll post it and we can argue about those too.

God and Texas,

Jason Watson