The Real Wyatt Earp: A Documentary Biography [Illustrated] [Paperback]

Steve Gatto (Author), Neil B. Carmony (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0944383513 | ISBN-13: 978-0944383513 | Publication Date: May 1, 2000 | Edition: 1

In the annals of the West, only Billy the Kid rivals Wyatt Earp as a household name and figure of history. Yet who was Wyatt Earp? Some biographers, many relying on the memoirs of Earp himself, have portrayed Wyatt’s adventures in Dodge City, Tombstone, and beyond, as the daring-do of a near flawless lawman and Western hero. Others have attempted to portray Marshal Earp as an outlaw and scoundrel of the first rank, a man who hid his crimes behind a badge. In "The Real Wyatt Earp," Steve Gatto has sifted through vivid newspaper accounts, court records and documents of Wyatt Earp’s West, analyzed them, and reproduced them so the reader might judge for himself. He thus uncovers the real Wyatt Earp, a man far more complex and interesting than the lawman of Hollywood and popular history.

Editorial Reviews

Review

In his biography of Wyatt Earp, Steve Gatto presents the frontiersman in his true colors... -- Chuck Parsons, Editor, NOLA Publications

Steve Gatto gives us Wyatt Earp from his birth to his death as his friends and enemies knew him... -- Leon C. Metz

The author deserves applause for the solid research and insightful conclusions presented in "The Real Wyatt Earp". -- Bob Boze Bell, Executive Editor,

About the Author

For more than a decade Steve Gatto has tirelessly researched early Tombstone and the rowdy frontiersmen who made the boomtown famous. Leaving no stone unturned in his quest for facts, he is now one of the foremost authorities on "The Town Too Tough to Die." Steve divides his time between Lansing, Michigan, where he practices law, and Tucson, Arizona, where he continues to study the history of Tombstone and Cochise County. He is the author of "John Ringo: The Reputation of a Lawman," and "Wyatt Earp: A Biography of a Western Lawman." The latter book, now out of print, is a forerunner to the work in hand.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: High Lonesome Books; 1 edition (May 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0944383513
• ISBN-13: 978-0944383513
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,960,215 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Steve Gatto has researched the history of Tombstone, Arizona, and the people and events that made the town famous for more than two decades. He has written several biographies about these legendary Old West figures including "The Real Wyatt Earp, A Documentary Biography" (2000), "Johnny Ringo" (2002), and "Curly Bill, Tombstone's Most Famous Outlaw" (2003).

He has also combined his passion for researching historical facts with his passion for the baseball and the Chicago Cubs. His book "Da Curse of the Billy Goat, The Chicago Cubs, Pennant Races, and Curses" (2004) was the first book to fully document the history of the famous curse that some fans believe prevents the Chicago Cubs from reaching the World Series.

Steve continues to research history and his long anticipated book tentatively entitled "Hurled Into Eternity, The Story of Wyatt Earp and the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral" is expected to be released sometime during Fall 2009.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

53 of 59 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Steve Gatto's Wyatt Earp, June 1, 2000

By 

H. Campbell "W. Campbell" (Spokane, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Real Wyatt Earp: A Documentary Biography (Hardcover)

Steve Gatto, the author, is a lawyer and he is bent on proving that Wyatt Earp was a small-time peace officer and big-time fabulist. His book, "The Real Wyatt Earp," is his legal brief. Like a good prosecutor, he has sifted through the available records and assembled the best case he can make against Wyatt Earp, a life-long windbag, according to Mr. Gatto. The book contains page after page of contemporary newspaper articles, court records, diary entries, and letters that are interspersed with Mr. Gatto's short narratives, comments, and personal opinions. This book is a prosecutor's dream; all offense -- no defense; Mr. Gatto wins his case by default! Documents and issues that conflict with Mr. Gatto's premises are mostly ignored or glossed over. The book presents a grossly oversimplified version of Wyatt Earp's complex life. Unfortunately no one has yet written the companion to Mr. Gatto's book; the case for the defense. Mr. Gatto has made his case well, but it is not truth and it is not history. Truth can only be found by weighing ALL the evidence, not just Mr. Gatto's carefully selected subset. This book is not recommended for those seeking a biography of Wyatt Earp. I highly recommend Casey Tefertiller's "Wyatt Earp: The Life Behind the Legend," a comprehensive and balanced version of Wyatt Earp's life. Mr. Gatto's book will probably be of interest to Earp afficionados who want obscure details from contemporary sources.

"The Real Wyatt Earp" contains 201 pages of text and three appendixes; 23 photos (usual cast of Earp characters). The book's focus is on the Tombstone period of Earp's life which begins on p. 29. Eight pages are devoted to Earp's post-Tombstone years. In Chapter 11, Mr. Gatto cross-examines Wyatt Earp's Tombstone streetfight testimony.

25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars "DREADFUL", March 4, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: The Real Wyatt Earp: A Documentary Biography (Paperback)

To save readers of this review a lot of time and still be informative, I am going to quote the late Bill Cox, author of a splendid little book in the field of Earpiana, when he reviewed Ed Bartholomew's equally transparently biased diatribes on Wyatt Earp: "Dreadful."

Anyone reading this book in hopes of being "fully" informed, would need to discover somehow that they must consult the basic sources quoted to determine if and how they've been twisted, and also have to consult much more to see what was ignored or submerged

The only people who would do that are "researchers" for whom this would be, at best, a road map to basic sources.

For others, save your money. This is another author who seems compelled to pull down images of those who appear to have amounted to something, and Wyatt Earp did in a small arena which has secured lasting fame for him, despite the inevitable clay feet.

32 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Three Strikes against this book, November 24, 2001

By 

EARL CHAFIN - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Real Wyatt Earp: A Documentary Biography (Hardcover)

1-It is BORING. Great bedtime reading. It will put you to sleep.
2-Using selective evidence,it is heavily biased against the Earps
3-Title is a misnomer; there is no documentation to speak of and
nothing new which would justify this books' existence. Author
is a well-know Earpophile and does not present a fair, unbiased
approach to Wyatt Earp, The O. K. corral Shootout or other
events. Thanks to the editor, gone are the mis-spellings and
tortured syntax but author's earlier book on WYATT EARP is
preferable to this revisionist version. 25 years to life!