Stan Paregien, Editor
Glenn Shirley
(Deceased)
Glenn Shirley was born in Payne County, Okla. on Dec. 9, 1916. He received a diploma from the Institute of Applied Science of the School of Criminology in 1937, the Ll.B. in 1940 from the Chicago School of Law, and a diploma from Oklahoma State University in 1950.
Glenn Shirley worked with the police department in Stillwater, Okla. from 1936 to 1957, rising to the rank of assistant chief. From 1957 to 1959 he was the identification officer for the Payne County Sheriff's Department, and from 1959 to 1969 he was chief of security at Oklahoma State University. He also worked for a time as an assistant to the director of the OSU Press. He is a frequent speaker for writer's groups, historical associations and different college classes.
Glenn Shirley is a noted self-taught historian who began writing by submitted crime stories to pulp magazines. His articles have appeared in Old West, True West, Oklahoma Today. He is a special historical consultant to Old West, True West, and Frontier Times magazines.Shirley is a member of Oklahoma Writers Federation, National Association and Center for Outlaw and Lawman History, Western History Association, Kansas Historical Society, Oklahoma Historical Society, and is a past president of the Indian Territory Posse of Westerners International.
He is the author of Toughest of Them All (University of New Mexico Press, 1953), Six-Gun and Silver Star (UNM Press, 1955), Law West of Fort Smith: A History of Frontier Justice in the Indian Territory, 1834-1896 (Holt, 1957; Univ. of Neb. Press, 1978), Pawnee Bill: A Biography of Gordon W. Lillie (UNM Press, 1958), Buckskin and Spurs: A Gallery of Frontier Rogues and Heroes (Hastings House, 1958), Outlaw Queen (Monarch, 1960), Heck Thomas, Frontier Marshal (Chilton, 1962), Born to Kill (Monarch, 1963), Henry Starr: Last of the Real Badmen (McKay, 1965; Univ. of Neb. Press, 1976), and Buckskin Joe: The Unique and Vivid Memoirs of Edward Jonathan Hoyt (Univ. of Neb. Press, 1966).
Also, Shotgun for Hire: The Story of "Deacon" Jim Miller, Killer of Pat Garrett (OU Press, 1970), The Life of Texas Jack (Nortex, 1973), Red yesterdays (Nortex, 1977), West of Hell's Fringe (OU Press, 1978), Temple Houston (OU Press,1979), Belle Starr and Her Times (1982).
Glenn Shirley died on February Feb. 27, 2002, at St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Services were held at 3 p.m. Saturday, March 1, 2002, at Strode Funeral Home Chapel. Guy Logsdon, a life long friend, officiated. Interment was at Fairlawn Cemetery.
Gordon D. Shirreffs
(Deceased)
Gordon Donald Shirreffs was born in Chicago, Ill. on Jan. 15, 1914. He earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in history at California State University in 1967 and 1973, respectively. He trained as an artillery officer with the 39th Artillery Brigade at Fort Bliss, Texas, then saw combat overseas during 1940-45.
Gordon D. Shirreffs worked as a clerk for the Union Tank Car Co. in Chicago from 1935 to 1940, and for a time upon his return from the army in 1946. And he was taking night classes in writing at the Medill School of Journalism at the Chicago campus of Northwestern University. Of those days, Shirreffs later told his daughter: "By this time I had made up my mind I would like to try writing. We were living in a veteran's housing project--a chicken coop, really--and I used to type in the bedroom on an old table. Your mother didn't want me to type when you and Brian were asleep, so I would go into the bathroom at night. It wasn't heated and there was no lid on the toilet, but I sat on it with the typewriter in front of me on a clothes hamper. The water in the shower would drip all night. It was so cold" (Trails West, July 1986, p.3).
Then he became a salesman for Brown and Bigelow of Chicago. But in 1948 he became the owner of "Shirreffs Gadgets and Toys" in Chicago and stayed in that business until 1952, when he moved to California and became a full-time professional writer.He began by writing stories--barely more than captions--for Dell's Wester comics, including Roy Rogers, Johnny Mack Brown, Auntie Duchess and Rin Tin Tin. And then he sold his first novel, Rio Bravo (Fawcett, 1956), for $2,000 and never looked back. He sold six novels per year the first ten years.
Gordon Shirreffs was a member of Western Writers of America, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Disabled American Veterans, National Rifle Association, Authors league of America, and Authors Guild.He wrote over 150 short stories, scripts for four movies and one television series, and wrote children's fiction and nonfiction, as well as Westerns. He had over 80 novels published under his own name and those of Gordon Donalds, Stewart Gordon and Jackson Flynn. His books have also been published in 11 foreign countries. He spent considerable time researching before he wrote, as he had strong feelings about the need for historical accuracy in his novels.
Five of his books have been turned into TV productions: Blood Justice, Massacre Creek, Silent Reckoning, Judas Gun, and Rio Bravo.He is the author of Rio Bravo (1956), Code of the Gun (1956), Arizona Justice (as Gordon Donalds, 1956; 1977), Range Rebel (1956), Fort Vengeance (1957), Gunswift (as Stewart Gordon, 1957), Bugles on the Prairie (1957), Massacre Creek (1957), Son of the Thunder People (1957), Top Gun (as Gordon Donalds, 1957), Shadow Valley (1958), Ambush on the Mesa (1958), Swiftwagon (1958), Last Train from Gun Hill (1958), The Brave Rifles (1959), The Lonely Gun (1959), Roanoke Raiders (1959), Renegade Lawman (1959), Apache Butte (1960), They Met Danger (1960), The Mosquito Fleet (1961), The Rebel Trumpet (1961), The proud Gun (1961), Hangin' Pards (1961), Ride a Lone Trail (1961), The Gray Sea Raiders (1961), and Powder Boy of the Monitor (1961).
And The Valiant Bugles (1962), Tumbleweed Trigger (1962), The Haunted Treasure of the Espectros (1962), Voice of the Gun (1962), Rio Desperado (1962), Action Front! (1962), The Border Guidon (1962), Mystery of Lost Canyon (1963), Slaughter at Broken Bow (1963), The Cold Seas Beyond (1963), The Secret of the Spanish Desert (1964), Quicktrigger (1964), Too Tough to Die (1964), The Nevada Gun (1964), The Hostile Beaches (1964), The Hidden Rider of Dark Mountain (1964), Blood Justice (1964), Gunslingers Three (1964), Judas Gun (1964), Last Man Alive (1964), Now He is Legend (1965), The Lone Rifle (1965).
In addition, Shirreffs wrote The Enemy Seas (1965), Barranca (1965), The Bolo Battalion (1966), Southwest Drifter (1967), Torpedoes Away! (1969), The Godless Breed (1968), Five Graves to Boothill (1968), The Killer Sea (1968), The Mystery of the Lost Cliffdwelling (1968), Showdown in Sonora (1969), Jack of Spades (1970), The Manhunter (1970), Brasada (1972), Bowman's Kid (1973), Renegade's Trail (1974), Shootout (as jackson Flynn, 1974), Apache Hunter (1975), The Marauders (1977), Rio Diablo (1977), Legend of the Damned (1977), Captain Cutlass (1978), Calgaich, the Swordsman (1980), The Untamed Breed (1981), Glorieta Pass, Bold Legend (1982), The Ghost Dancers (Fawcett, 1986), Hell's Forty Acres (Fawcett, 1987). His novel for youth, The Haunted Treasure of the Espectros, has been optioned for possible filming.
PERSONAL NOTE: I first met Gordon Shirreffs in the summer of 1984. At the invitation of Jory Sherman, I drove to Branson, Missouri to attend my first convention of the Western Writers of America. I didn't personally know anyone at the meeting, other than Jory. But about the fourth person I met was Gordon Shrirreffs. I had read more than a half-dozen of his books and in my mind ranked him as the number two living Western writer (behind Louis L'Amour). I was thrilled to be sitting there visiting with him, and delightfully amazed at how open and friendly he was to me. We met at several more conventions over the years, and he and his wife and son were always a pleasure to be around.
Gordon D. Shirreffs died of a stroke on Dec. 4, 1996.
Sky Shivers
Sky Shivers was raised as Fred Shivers in central Oklahoma. He is the great-grandson of a Texas trail drover. He has made two horse-drawn wagon train trips across parts of America (the one in 1976 to Washington, D.C.). He has worked as a cowhand, ranch manager, horse trader, saddlemaker and door-to-door salesman. And along the way he has developed a large talent for writing and performing stories and poetry about the cowboy way of life.
Sky Shivers is a frequent entertainer at schools and conventions across the country. And that act now includes his cowdog, Miss Kitty. He and his family live in Prague, Oklahoma.
Arthur Shoemaker
A native Texan, Arthur Shoemaker has written articles for Old West, Oklahoma Today and True West.
Luke Short
(Frederick Glidden wrote as "Luke Short". See details under his own name)
Red Shuttleworth
Red Shuttleworth, cowboy poet, won the first Spur Award ever given for Western poetry by the Western Writers of America. The award was presented to Shuttleworth at the 2001 convention in Idaho Falls, Idaho.
Red Shuttleworth's book of cowboy poetry is titled, Western Settings (Reno: Nevada Press, 2000).
This listing is far from complete and may contain errors.
Therefore, all Western entertainers and/or their agents
are requested to submit recommended changes by
contacting Stan Paregien through his e-mail address.
The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.
--- Bible: Psalm 103.8
© 2003 by Stan Paregien, Sr.