Howdy, Driver!
Say, are y'all sure 'bout that "Dangerous *Bob*" handle there,
Pardner? Seems a mite mild-mannered and citified for a rootin',
tootin', shootin' cowboy.
Gazin' out over the lone prairie, watchin' the Sun set behind the
jailhouse, I'm a-thinkin' that y'all might really be a-thinkin' of
"Dangerous Dan McGrew", a no-account, hair-trigger card sharp. Dan
slapped leather a mite too slow one evenin' down at the old Malamute
Saloon, fightin' over a woman. Ain't nothin' new, is there?
When I heerd that gunplay, I jumped right out of my chair, grabbed a
scattergun (almost forgot my badge!), and moseyed right on over to
that Den of Iniquity. Doors were a-swingin', folks were a-runnin', and
gunsmoke was a-clearin' away when I walked in. Dangerous Dan lay on
the barroom floor, breathin' and bleedin' his last in that old yeller
sawdust.
Dan's sweetheart, Lou -- a mighty fine lookin' woman, if y'all don't
mind me sayin' so -- was a-wailin' so mournfully that I almost shed a
tear myself. But that's agin' the Code of the West: cryin' jest ain't
right for the man who wears the star. Gave her my hanky, though.
Well, after Dan's last ride up Boot Hill, the tale of The Shootin' of
Dangerous Dan McGrew (and his lady friend Lou) spread far and wide.
Why, I'll be danged if some of them Hollywood folks didn't make movin'
pitchers 'bout old Dan! Can y'all imagine that? I even heerd one of
them funny fellers pretendin' he was Dan on the ray-dee-o!
Now if y'all agree that Dangerous Dan is your man, I'll sharpen up my
pencil stub, write up a proper and fittin' Answer, and collect that
ree-ward you been offerin'.
Might even give some of it to Lady Lou, too, if she's still 'round.
Deal?
Signed,
G.A.R. Huntsman, Sheriff
P.S. - Jest in case y'all want to pick up on Dangerous Dan's trail,
here's some facts of the matter. And if y'all get droopy-eyed readin'
this, help yerself to that pot of hot coffee on the stove:
-----
Robert W. Service (1874-1958)
"The Shooting Of Dan Mcgrew" [Poem]
http://www.library.utoronto.ca/utel/rp/poems/servic3c.html
"A bunch of the boys were whooping it up in the Malamute saloon;
The kid that handles the music-box was hitting a jag-time tune;
Back of the bar, in a solo game, sat Dangerous Dan McGrew,
And watching his luck was his light-o'-love, the lady that's known as
Lou."
-----
Monarchy-Free Canada
Arts and Culture
http://www.monarchyfreecanada.org/canadians.htm
"Robert Service (1874 - 1958) Born in England of Scottish parents. He
emigrated to Canada in 1894 and took a job with the Canadian Bank of
Commerce in Whitehorse, Yukon, where he was stationed for eight years.
It was while there that he published his first book of poems that was
to make him famous - Songs of a Sourdough. Several of his novels and
his poem "The Shooting of Dan McGrew" were adapted to movies."
-----
Movie References
http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Chateau/9765/moviereferences.html
"Here is a list of Hollywood made movies that are about Canada. One
not so subtle detail we noticed was that a large number of the movies
made between 1916 and 1954 featured the Yukon as the setting..."
"The Shooting of Dan McGrew (1915), based on a poem by Robert W.
Service."
-----
Northeast Historic Film
North Woods Dramas: The Forgotten Genre
http://www.oldfilm.org/exhibits/NorthWoodsExhibit.htm
"The Shooting of Dan McGrew, 1924.
[Movie poster with screen credits]
From poems by Robert W. Service. Set in Alaska's Malamute saloon, with
Lew Cody (Louis Coté of Berlin, NH), as Dangerous Dan McGrew. S -L
Productions."
-----
Jerry Haendiges Vintage Radio Logs
http://otrsite.com/logs/logj1007.htm
"Series: "The Jack Benny Show", "The Chevrolet Show""
"The Shooting Of Dan McGrew" ... 6 ... 11-12-33 ... :30:00*
-----
Films on the Hill
The Spoilers (1942)
The Shooting of Dan McGoo (1945)
http://www.filmsonthehill.com/F-42-Spoilers.html
The Spoilers -
"Poet Robert W. Service who wrote The Shooting of Dan McGrew, appears
as himself [in The Spoilers], writing his famous poem in the saloon.
Marlene doesn’t sing but the song “Little Joe the Wrangler” from
Destry Rides Again is heard as background music in the saloon."
The Shooting of Dan McGoo -
"A technicolor cartoon based on the poem The Shooting of Dan McGrew by
Robert W. Service with Droopy as McGoo, Red (Tex Avery's fantasy
woman...) as Lady Lou, and the Wolf."
"Droopy was the first and longest-lasting character created by Tex
Avery ... got his second appearance and his name in his second outing,
The Shooting of Dan McGoo."
"Tex Avery made two cartoon versions of The Shooting of Dan McGrew,
the first was Dangerous Dan McFoo (1939) with two dogs duking it out
for the love of the Lady Named Lou -- a thinly disguised canine
version of Bette Davis. The Shooting of Dan McGoo, made in 1945,
credits the poet, but changes the setting to the U.S..."
"Robert W. Service (1874-1958) emigrated to Canada from Great Britain
in 1894 ... and after roaming the land with visions of becoming a
cowboy, took a job with a Canadian bank in Whitehorse, Yukon."
"[Service] claims that coming back from one of his walks, passing a
bar in Whitehorse, the line "A bunch of the boys were whooping it up"
popped into his head and became the first line of his most famous poem
[The Shooting of Dan McGrew]."
"Several of his novels and his poem McGrew were adapted to movies. The
first film version of McGrew was made in 1915 and a second in 1924. In
The Spoilers he appeared in a scene with Marlene Dietrich, as himself,
busily scribbling The Shooting of Dan McGrew in a corner of the
saloon. There was one more reincarnation of McGrew in 1942 as a ballet
production."
"Production Credits [The Shooting of Dan McGoo]:
Produced and Distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Directed by Tex Avery
Story written by Heck Allen from the poem The Shooting of Dan McGrew
by Robert W. Service
Released on 14 April 1945"
-----
One more little thang. I wouldn'ta found any of this here evydence
without my good old hound dawg Google sniffin' around:
"dangerous dan" tv series western
://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=%22dangerous+dan%22+tv+series+western
"dangerous dan mcgrew"
://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=%22dangerous+dan+mcgrew%22
canadian western movies mcgrew
://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=canadian+western+movies+mcgrew |
