I have been experimenting for a while with video media. With no formal training and being technologically challenged I decided to take on the task. I managed to create a You-tube channel and use it to promote my books. You can find it here: https://www.youtube.com/@edderousse1/videos
I like history and equestrian activities, especially Western history, so you will find much of that on my channel. Some of my most viewed videos (over 45,000 for the video entitled Wanted Dead or Alive & Steve McQueen) have been from segments I selected from my latest book. My channel has a decent number of subscribers. Some videos, obviously, have more views than others.
Depending on your social media skills, the outcomes, the way your videos look, and your expectations will vary. Writing comes easy for me. Understanding computer language and developing the necessary skills is difficult for me. I am a tactile, hands on, learner so it is difficult for me to transfer what I see or hear on the screen to the actual project. Since I have no one around to physically help me, it is probably for that reason, I use free versions of everything I can. I do the best I can. If you have those skills, definitely take advantage of them. They most assuredly will contribute to the success of your work.
This BLOG is a chapter from my latest Book I Should Have Been A cowboy! History Of The American Cowboy” It is about the American cowboy’s cinematic history. It traces the cowboy’s life from his saddle, to Hollywood, to our televisions. In this BLOG you will find two versions of the chapter. One you will read. The other, if you choose to view, is the video version.
You will find at the end of this BLOG a link to this chapter’s video I Should Have Been A Cowboy.
I Should Have Been A Cowboy!
“A fiery horse with the speed of light, a cloud of dust and a hearty Hi-Yo Silver.” The Lone Ranger
I grew up in the 1950’s as a member of what is commonly referred to as the “Baby Boomer” generation. It really was different back then. Life was simpler, less hectic, and mellower. I think the fifties decade was the best time to be a kid growing up.
It was John Wayne, Kirk Douglas, cowboys, Indians, the neighbor kids, and of course TV.
The television Western was a big part of my life. It dominated the airwaves. I remember watching Saturday morning serials, like Lone Ranger, Annie Oakley, Fury, Roy Rogers, Sky King, Gene Autry, and others.
The American cowboy depicted in those shows seemed to live an adventurous life. I, like many young boys back then, wanted to emulate that adventure lifestyle when I played.
I, and the neighbor kids, were most likely at war with the bad guys or Indians. We’d draw our guns, hide behind trees, buildings, bushes, and other things, trying not to get shot. When one of us was the unfortunate one to get shot, the death scene was dramatic.
We never gave any thought to how many times we could shoot our six guns without reloading, or how many times or how many different places in the yard we could die. Or how many times the bad guy or good guy could stand a couple of feet in front of you, shoot you in the chest, and you would yell “Ya missed me!”
It was cool to draw your six guns out of the holster or grab your rifle off your pretend horse and be the hero.
There was a great deal of world tension in the adult reality back then, but I and the neighborhood cowboys were too busy clearing the West of the bad elements to be much aware of that tension.
I owned the toy pistols and holsters I played with. But to this day, I have never fired a real pistol, let alone draw one from a holster. Sometimes I do, though, find that I return to those days of yester-year and wonder what it would have been like to have been a cowboy. Especially when I ride my horse in my boots, spurs, and cowboy hat.
After I retired, I gave some thought to joining a Cowboy Action Shooting club. I had a horse, the wardrobe, and the “should have been” attitude. I even assigned myself a cowboy nickname. I was going to be “Pistol Pete”. But I did not join.
Today I live the Cowboy life through the various classic Westerns shown on television and my equestrian life and think:
“I Should Have Been A Cowboy!”
On my channel
I Should Have Been A Cowboy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-MU4VM5MgI Days of Yesteryear I Should Have Been A Cowboy
