The Hollywood Posse: Story of a Gallant Band of Horsemen Who Made Movie History, The [Paperback]

Diana Serra Cary (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 15, 1996

After 1912, when the great cattle empires began to crumble, hundreds of seasoned cowboys found themselves jobless. A handful of discarded horsemen, however, stumbled upon an entirely new frontier-Hollywood. In a rare insider’s view, Diana Serra Cary tells the story of these cowboys, who survived for another fifty years as riders, stuntmen, and doubles for the stars. Filled with humorous anecdotes, The Hollywood Posse reveals the full story of the cowboys’ long and bitter feud with autocratic director Cecil B. De Mille; their relationships with the great Western stars-from the flamboyant Tom Mix to the durable John Wayne; and above all, their touching loyalty, code of honor, and devotion to each other.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Diana Serra Cary dates her knowledge of Hollywood back to the two-reeler day when she was the famed child star "Baby Peggy." Now a Western American history, she is the author of Hollywood's Children and, most recently, Whatever Happened to Baby Peggy?

Product Details

• Paperback: 330 pages
• Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press (April 15, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806128356
• ISBN-13: 978-0806128351
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,578,864 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb narration about the early years of motion pictures., May 27, 1999

By 

Ed Phillips ([e-mail]) (Simi Valley, Ca) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Hollywood Posse: Story of a Gallant Band of Horsemen Who Made Movie History, The (Paperback)

Filled with adventure, romance and intrigue coupled with its historical setting this book tells the story of the early background players in motion pictures. Although it revolves around the authors father, cowboy, stuntman Jack Montgomery the tales she tells are indicative of a way of life that are long gone as are most of the background players of the golden era of western movies. It tells of the "real" cowboy migration of the western plains to become the "reel" cowboys of motion pictures and the code that they brought with them. This book will make you laugh and cry; it will fill you with excitement; provide insight to the disdain for human and animal care by early Hollywood. This book answers the question, "Where did they come from and how did they do it."

4.0 out of 5 stars She'll do to ride the river with, June 30, 2011

By 

Eric O. Allstrom (Leesburg, VA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Hollywood Posse: Story of a Gallant Band of Horsemen Who Made Movie History, The (Paperback)

Though Ms. Cary gets quite a few facts wrong (she has the Texas-to-Kansas trail drives starting in 1871), and she glosses over her family's troubles with fame and money, but her graceful writing and her bone-deep affinity for her subject make this essential reading for any lover of the west and western movies. The facts you can get anywhere, but you'll never find a clearer portrait of old-time cowboys, captured as their sunset rides were recorded on film.