Cowboys and Cowgirls

"Arizona Kid and His Cow Girls, Reading, Pa., 1941. Arizona Kid, Sun Set, Texas Jean, Moon Beam, Utah Ginny, Montana Patsy, Popeye, Chuckles, Winnie, and Sheriff and Cactus Sam. WYZ."

In addition to the musical instruments--a bass, guitar, mandola (I think), another guitar, accordion, and jug --that the members of this country-western band from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, are holding, there are also three more--a banjo, musical saw , and fiddle--on the floor in front of the group.

A Wild Wild West photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. Printed on the back of this real photo postcard: "Western Photo Gallery, 215 Smithfield St., Pittsburgh, Pa." Note the signs painted on the backdrop: "No trust, no bust," "Dead Man's Gulch Saloon," "Reward, dead or alive, Bad Dick, $5000.00, Sheriff," and "Poker." Ironically, the Western Photo Gallery, which provided the dramatic photo of these gun-toting dudes in their cowboy outfits, was located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania--almost as far east in the U.S. as you can get!

"Best Wishes, Jeff Parson."

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the topic of bring on the clowns or any other circus performer . "Greetings from the Biggest Couple with the Greatest Show on Earth. Fischer. A-132. Campbell's Photo Art, Dayton. Ohio." Mr. and Mrs. Fischer were billed as the "world's tallest married couple" when they appeared with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus ("The Greatest Show on Earth"). Head over to The Tallest Man Web site to see postcards and other memorabilia on separate pages for Gottlieb Fischer and Elfriede Fischer .

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of hold it (people holding something) . These three guys are holding guns and a baton as they pose in cowboy and police costumes. Printed on the back of this real photo postcard: "Metropolitan Photo Studio, 645 Sixth Ave., N.Y." The signs in the background are difficult to read. Two of them are: "Brother Jones' Gin Mill." "We use the best chemicals in our distillery."

A photo of hands on hips for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. (For an entire group devoted to this theme, see Just Put Your Hands On Your Hips .) This novelty photo features such detailed cowboy costumes--including hats, vests, bandanas, chaps, wrist cuffs, gun belts, and revolvers--that it must have taken these fellows a good while to suit up. The signs in the background of this real photo postcard are difficult to read. Two of them are: "Leave your horse outside, also the bull." "Safety first?"

A Kodachrome slide dated July 1959. Still grasping her toy gun, this Dale Evans wannabe--with Buttermilk and Lassie by her side--stands ready to defend Big Rocks against the bad guys. See also Gunfight at Big Rocks and Riding Toward the Sun .

A Kodachrome slide dated July 1959. After a hard day at the Big Rocks shootout, this diminutive Dale Evans has holstered her gun and is shielding her eyes as she heads toward the sun with Buttermilk (if she had waited until evening, she could have avoided the bright light and followed the conventional Western gunslinger practice of riding off into the sunset ). See also Gunfight at Big Rocks and Holding Down the Fort .

A Kodachrome slide dated July 1959. This little gunfighter is wearing a Dale Evans cowgirl hat as she holds her toy gun and prepares to take aim at the bad guys. Perhaps she's pretending that her toy horse is Buttermilk , Dale's trusty steed on TV's The Roy Rogers Show (1951-57), and her pet collie is Lassie , the canine star of the popular and long-lasting television show (1954-73). See also Holding Down the Fort and Riding Toward the Sun .

This could be a scene from a movie —a photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. I know it's only a novelty photo, but the guys in this real photo postcard are so elaborately outfitted—cowboy hats, revolvers, chaps, gun belts, wrist cuffs, vests, and bandanas—that I could imagine them stepping away from the cartoonish saloon backdrop and heading right onto a Western movie set. These kinds of cowboy getups must have been popular. Take a look at these fellows in Shootout at Dead Man's Gulch Saloon (below), which I previously submitted to the Theme Park as a Wild Wild West photo.

And, kids, don't go shootin' up the town and scarin' the neighbors with all your guns, cannons, and fireworks!

"Thanksgiving Day. I'm a firm believer in self-protection."

A handshakes photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. I'm not sure what to make of the young men in this real photo postcard from the Penn Park Studio in York, Pennsylvania. Both are shaking hands with their right hands as they hold cigarettes in their left hands. The fellow on the left is wearing what appears to be a somewhat scruffy military uniform dating to World War I, but the one on the right is outfitted in what may be a cowboy get-up, with a hat, neckerchief, revolver, holster, gun belt, and boots. Compare this photo with another one from the same studio that shows two soldiers shaking hands (below).

A Halloween photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. A Halloween portrait with a kid in a Lone Ranger costume and an eerie (oops, I mean ear-y ) jack-o'-lantern in the window (notice how the lamp ended up on the chair for the picture-taking session). The big ears and toothy smile of the jack-o'-lantern remind me of Alfred E. Neuman . A logo consisting of the numbers "1/55" inside a sideways letter "D" appears on the top border of the full version of this snapshot (see below). I'm not sure what the D refers to, but I take the numbers to mean that the photo was developed in January 1955, which suggests it was taken during Halloween the previous year. The boy's choice of costume reflects the popularity of the Lone Ranger TV series , which ran from 1949 to 1957.

A sideways letter "D" containing the numbers "1/55" (left of center along the top border) suggests that this photo was developed in January 1955. For additional information, see the cropped version :

A photo of children or adults posing with ponies, horses, or other equines for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. Outfitted in a cowboy hat, bandana, and chaps, a young boy sits atop a horse as he poses for a photo.