Buffalo Bill Cody: The Man Behind the Legend [Hardcover]

Robert A. Carter (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 2, 2000

"An excellent book based on exhaustive research and written with fresh insight. It is a spellbinding accomplishment and brings both the man and his era to life. . . . It is an extraordinary achievement."
-Arizona Daily Star

"Carter presents this astounding tale in a very balanced fashion, providing both the nineteenth-century rationale and his repug-nance at acts today considered shocking. . . . Through Carter's writing, the heroic and ultimately sad life of a remarkable human being makes a deep impact."
-Richmond Times Dispatch

"A comprehensive, sharply rendered life of showman William 'Buffalo Bill' Cody pries realities away from legend. . . . A splendid portrait of Cody's life and times, at once poignant, boisterous, and disturbing."
-Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"There's a large audience for American, and particularly Western, history, and those readers will not want to miss this genial account."
-Publishers Weekly

"This is the remarkable story of an amazing life. Cody not only lived the adventure of the frontier, he helped create the American West of the imagination. A fascinating story and a must-read for anyone interested in the evolution of the Western myth."
-Casey Tefertiller
author, Wyatt Earp: The Life Behind the Legend

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Historical judgments of Buffalo Bill have varied wildly over the years, in large measure according to the political winds of the time. In the 1950s, he was portrayed onscreen by Charlton Heston as a founding hero of the Old West; as depicted in a 1976 Robert Altman film, he's a "hopeless drunk" and a "flamboyant fake." Contemporaries called him "the most renowned of men"; recent historians have likened his actions to those of the Ku Klux Klan. Carter's project in this sharply written biography is to set aside myth and agenda and simply to describe the life, which was wild enough in fact to eliminate the need for fiction. As a teenager, William Cody herded cattle and rode vast distances for the Pony Express. As an adult, he scouted for the Union during the Civil War, fought in the Indian Wars, and killed buffalo by the thousands. But even with all this, Carter posits, what really secured Buffalo Bill's fame was his turn to showmanship and his invention of the world-famous traveling Wild West show. Part theater, part exhibition, part circus, the Wild West show was Buffalo Bill's "infotainment" version of the taming of the frontier and of his own (somewhat exaggerated) role in history. It was seen by an estimated 50 million people, including Queen Victoria, and turned Buffalo Bill into "America's first media hero." Carter is a novelist by trade, but his work as historian in this comprehensive biography is astute and well balanced; he succeeds in his larger goal of teasing apart the life from the legend. There's a large audience for American, and in particular western, history, and those readers will not want to miss this genial account. (Oct.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Carter has separated fact from myth in this exhaustive biography of Buffalo Bill Cody, owner of Buffalo Bill's Wild West traveling show and symbol of America's conquest of the West. Carter explores Buffalo Bill's life, moving from his childhood to his marriage to his years as a scout, expert marksman, peerless Buffalo hunter, and, finally, entrepreneur-entertainer to the world. Carter includes biographies of major individuals in Buffalo Bill's life, among them his wife and friends Sioux leader Sitting Bull and sharpshooter Annie Oakley, and he discusses Cody's significance in major historical events such as America's ongoing warfare against Native Americans. While another recent biography of Cody by Jill Kasson (Buffalo Bill's Wild West: Celebrity, Memory, and Popular Culture, LJ 7/00) centers on the historical relation between the Wild West show and American national identity. Carter's work sticks more to the incredible life and simply seeks to demolish the myths as it narrates the nevertheless epic story of a man who took on mythical qualities. Recommended for public and undergraduate libraries.
-Charles L. Lumpskins, Pennsylvania State Univ., Philadelphia
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 512 pages
• Publisher: Wiley (October 2, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471319961
• ISBN-13: 978-0471319962
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.5 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,425,149 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A biography that reads like a page-turning novel., October 8, 2000

By 

S.R. Moore (Northern New Jersey, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Buffalo Bill Cody: The Man Behind the Legend (Hardcover)

Here is that rare kind of book that's equally rewarding to two kinds of readers -- people looking for a ripping good yarn, and serious students of the Old West. It's beautifully written in clear plain language that captures the epic sweep of the period, its tragedies, and even its bawdily comic moments. The text is tastefully sprinkled with excellent photos and illustrations. Thorough source notes are also included -- at the end, where they don't get in the way of your reading, along with a bibliography and useful index.

"Buffalo Bill Cody, the Man Behind the Legend" is the first complete biography of this marvelous old cuss in more than 30 years, and far and away the most accurate one ever written. It traces the life and many careers of Buffalo Bill from ox-driver, prospector, and Pony Express rider barely out of his childhood to adult adventures as Army scout, Medal of Honor winner, and finally as the boozy myth-making old showman whose geniality could accommodate both Sitting Bull and Annie Oakley under the same tent.

Buffalo Bill Cody knew virtually everyone worth knowing in the Old West, and most of those people make guest appearances in this book -- Wild Bill Hickock, Bat Masterson, George Armstrong Custer, and many others.

Robert A. Carter manages to tell the vivid story of his subject while also treating the reader to insights into the sights, sounds, smells, and ethos of the period in general, and he does it in a writing style remarkable for its wit and charm. I intend to keep this book in my personal library, both as a reference and to read again.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A legend redeemed and a new perspective, February 14, 2001

By 

"echodell" (Colorado Springs, Co) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Buffalo Bill Cody: The Man Behind the Legend (Hardcover)

This is an edit of my original review. I was chastised in a kindly manner by the author for some of my original statements, and as I reread my review I belive with good reason. Though I am entitled to my opinion I don't have the right to presume that which I do not know for a fact. Based on Mr. Carters comments I will remove the those which he has refuted or corrected. Mr. Carter, my humble apologies. The boys of my generation have a firm tribal memory of Cody. His career as a pony express rider, the "first scalp for Custer", the Wild West show performance before Queen Victoria is the kind of knowledge one just seems to "know". Perhaps the generations that have followed my own have forgotten and this book will redeem his reputation as well as rescue him from the haze of the 19th Century. It is a "good read" and is full of facts and anecdotes. Mr. Carter often presents the evidence and leaves it up to the reader to decide the verity of the story. This is a great technique and it leaves the reader with the feeling he has uncovered the truth. It might be called the multiple choice method of biography. However, it is the use of this technique that detracts from a well researched study. That said and in spite of some barbs on my part I do think this is among the finest and possibly best researched treatment of the man.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A sure besteller!, October 25, 2000

By 

Lee Simmons (Port Washington, NY USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Buffalo Bill Cody: The Man Behind the Legend (Hardcover)

Robert Carter has brought Buffalo Bill back from near oblivion, and presses his case that Cody was a major American figure in graceful and masterfully written prose.