The Lost Diary of Annie Oakley's Wild West Stagehand

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by Clive Dickinson


  Although we don’t open officially until 9 May, we put on a special show today for a man called Mr Gladstone and his wife. Mr Gladstone used to be Prime Minister in this country – that’s like our president back home. They came for the day, looked round the Indian camp, and had lunch in the cook tent. Then, while Mrs Gladstone visited Annie in her tent, Mr Gladstone had a cigar with Buffalo Bill, Mr Salsbury and Chief Red Shirt.

  6 MAY 1887 – LONDON

  A right royal day. This morning a line of gleaming carriages pulled up at the entrance to the American Exhibition, unlike any other coaches or carriages I’d seen before.

  Word spread through the camp like a prairie fire that Edward Prince of Wales, the man who will be king after Queen Victoria, had come to see the show for himself! Seems he was so impatient, he couldn’t wait any longer.

  Prince Edward didn’t spend too long looking round the exhibition. He made it mighty clear it was the Wild West he wanted to see. By the time Buffalo Bill showed him and the royal party to the royal box, they was chatting like old friends. The Prince is real keen on horses and hunting, and from the moment the Indians galloped in at he start of the show, he was on his feet, leaning forward and as excited as anyone who’s ever seen Buffalo Bill’s Wild West.

  Prince Edward was on his feet for darn near the whole show. And when the old Deadwood stage rocked out of the arena with the last rattle of gunfire, he asked Buffalo Bill to present the “actors” to him.

  “Your Royal Highness – Chief Little Bull… Chief Red Shirt… Buck Taylor… Mustang Jack …” One by one, the stars of the Wild West were called forward to shake the future king and emperor by the hand. Annie was the only one who was different.

  When Buffalo Bill announced, “Miss Annie Oakley”, she stepped forward and shook hands with Prince Edward’s wife, Princess Alexandra, first. Now that ain’t something you do to a crowned prince, leastways not in this country!

  Everyone says Princess Alexandra is a mighty sweet lady, and she gave Annie such a friendly smile. It seems Annie feels kind of sorry for the princess – folks say that Prince Edward has lady friends, and Annie don’t think that’s right when he’s a married man.

  She’s always polite, mind. “You’ll have to excuse me, please,” she told the prince, “because I’m an American and in America, ladies come first.”

  12 MAY 1887 – LONDON

  Prince Edward must sure have enjoyed his visit to the Wild West, because his Ma showed up this afternoon to have a look round the showground for herself.

  A visit by a queen empress is special in anyone’s book, but I hear that Queen Victoria ain’t been to no theatre show outside her home in Buckingham Palace for twenty-six years. That makes the Wild West extra special, I reckon.

  She drove through the stables, saw the Indians ride by in the arena, and then asked to meet Buffalo Bill, Chief Red Shirt, some Indian women and the two shooting girls, Lillian Smith and Annie Oakley.

  Annie made the prettiest of curtsies and walked up to the queen, who told her, “You are a very clever little girl.” Seeing as how Queen Victoria ain’t no giant herself, and seeing as how Annie is a married woman, that seemed a strange thing to say, but Annie don’t mind two bits. All she said was, she reckoned her costume made her look like she was shooting straight from high school, and left it at that.

  11 JUNE 1887 – LONDON

  Annie don’t have no trouble convincing the London crowds that she’s about as good as you can find when it comes to shooting. It ain’t so easy, though, with the top gun clubs. They ain’t used to seeing a woman shooting, and they sure ain’t used to a woman who can shoot better than them.

  The best club is the London Gun Club, on Notting Hill. That’s where Annie was invited to give a private show today in front of the members and their guests – people who know good shooting when they see it.

  Annie put together a routine which included most of the shooting stunts she does in the Wild West show.

  Annie ran through the programme without a hitch, and afterwards she received a special gold medal as a souvenir of her visit.

  Now Annie’s accepted as a top gun among even the highest class of British shooters.

  20 JUNE 1887 – WINDSOR CASTLE, ENGLAND

  Today the whole Wild West show took the train to Windsor, to bring the prairie to the palace by putting on a special performance for Queen Victoria and her family and guests. It’s fifty years since she was crowned – imagine that!

  We ain’t never had so many royal people to see us before. Nor I guess has any other show in history.

  After the grand entry at the start of the show, on came little Annie for her shooting act. She was followed by the cowboys driving the steers into the arena and showing their skills – rounding them up, lassoing them and wrestling them to the ground. Next came a bucking bronco, with a cowboy bouncing in the saddle like a rag doll. After that, a Sioux medicine man beat his drum while Frank Richmond translated the death song he was chanting. Then a Pony Express rider raced round the arena, showing how the mail was first delivered out west, and after he’d galloped out, General Custer again made his “last stand”.

  When the time came for the Deadwood stage to roll over the prairie, Prince Edward asked if he could ride inside with the four kings. Old Utah Frank, the driver, ain’t never had a group of passengers like them before.

  The “Attack on the Deadwood Stage” is a big favourite with audiences, but I wonder how many know that what they see ain’t that different to a real attack on a real stagecoach? Before the railroad was built, stagecoaches were the only way most folks could make the long journey through the mountains and prairies out west. Indians and outlaws used to attack stagecoaches and rob their passengers, and it’s a real Indian attack on a Cheyenne and Black Hills stagecoach which is acted out in the show.

  So that’s what the four kings and the prince found themselves in the middle of, as Utah Frank drove his mules round the arena while the Indians rode beside it, shooting and climbing aboard.

  22 JUNE 1887 – LONDON

  Prince Edward is helping to make Annie even more popular with folks in London and all over this country.

  One of the royal guests at the show we did at Windsor Castle was Grand Duke Michael of Russia, who fancies himself a good shot. He fancies himself in other ways too – I hear he’s in England hoping to marry one of Queen Victoria’s granddaughters, and the British people don’t take too kindly to that idea. Now that Prince Edward and Buffalo Bill are such good pals, the prince suggested that Annie should have a shooting match against the grand duke. So they did and Annie won. She hit forty-seven out of her fifty targets, while Grand Duke Michael could only manage a score of thirty-six.

  Well, to read the newspapers, you’d think Annie had saved the British Empire all by herself. They say the grand duke will be going home soon, empty handed, and they’re congratulating Annie for that.

  20 JULY 1887 – LONDON

  Annie went to a place called Wimbledon today. This is where the champions show up every year for the top competition held in this country. The prizes are mighty impressive too, as much as £14,000.

  Lillian Smith went along yesterday, but she didn’t do too well. In fact she did real rotten. The clothes she wore didn’t impress folks either.

  With Annie it was different, even though the sport at Wimbledon ain’t what she’s used to. At Wimbledon everyone uses rifles. That’s why Lillian fancied her chances. In the show she’s billed as the rifle expert, while Annie’s queen of the shotgun. Even so, Annie made a fairly good score, far and away better than Lillian’s. To cap it all, Prince Edward happened to be watching, and made his way through the crowd to offer her his congratulations.

  Annie ain’t said too much about Lillian, but I know she’s been worried since she arrived in the show. I guess she can sleep easier tonight, knowing she’s proved once and for all that she’s a better shot than Lillian with either a rifle or a shotgun. I kind of wish Buffalo Bill had tried his hand at the W
imbledon championship too. Although we all know what a good shot he is, some English folk are saying he ain’t as good as Annie and don’t want to show himself up in public. I’ve noticed these last months that all the nice things written about Annie in the newspapers and all her invitations to give shooting exhibitions are getting on Buffalo Bill’s nerves. If I didn’t know better, I’d say he’s becoming jealous of her success.

  31 AUGUST 1887 – LONDON

  If I were Frank Butler, I guess I might be feeling a bit on the jealous side this summer as well. Frank don’t make any big show of being Annie’s husband. In fact, he stays in the background so much most folks don’t even realize that Annie has a husband. That may be good for Annie’s popularity, but it sure causes problems when Annie receives offers of marriage. A French count has kissed her hand and asked her to marry him. An English sportsman wanted her to marry him and run his country estate. Another young Englishman sailed to Africa when he found out Annie was married. And a man in Wales sent a very serious proposal with a very serious picture of himself. Annie set this up as a target and put six bullets through it before sending it back with the message “respectfully declined”.

  Frank’s sure going to be busy keeping more would-be Mr Oakleys away.

  31 OCTOBER 1887 – LONDON (FOR THE LAST TIME THIS YEAR)

  The Wild West played its last stand in Earl’s Court today. Tomorrow we start taking down the wooden mountains and loading everything on to the railroad cars. This winter we’re playing indoors in a big arena up north in Manchester.

  I say “we”. That ain’t strictly correct. Just as I feared, things have got so bad between Annie and Buffalo Bill that she and Frank ain’t coming with us. In spite of all her success this summer, they’re quitting Buffalo Bill’s Wild West, which leaves me with some tough thinking to do.

  20 DECEMBER 1887 – NEW YORK

  It ain’t been an easy decision, but in the end I guess I was feeling homesick, so I came home with Annie and Frank and left the Wild West back in England.

  Frank’s got all kinds of ideas for making money. He plans to put Annie in a play called “Little Sure Shot, the Pony Express Rider” – as soon as he finds someone rich enough to pay for it.

  In the meantime, he reckons Annie can pick up $200 a time from shooting matches. The first one will be in the middle of next month, against the English champion shooter, William Graham. Mr Graham is touring America, appearing in shooting matches against the top guns. So far, he ain’t been beat.

  22 FEBRUARY 1888 – EASTON, PENNSYLVANIA

  Today was the third shooting match between Annie and William Graham. They’d won one match each, and the betting was against Annie when they took their marks on the snowy shooting field.

  The bets may have gone against Annie because she insisted on taking Room 13 in the hotel. It’s the same room she and Frank stayed in for the second match three weeks ago. Even though she won that, folks think she’s chancing her luck taking a room with such an unlucky number. Not for the first time, she proved them wrong – by beating Graham forty-seven to forty-five.

  Now she’s beaten one of the best shooters in the world, Frank’s lined up a whole lot more matches this spring. That should keep the money rolling in. So much for superstition!

  2 APRIL 1888 – PHILADELPHIA

  Annie went back on the stage today, and she ain’t lost none of her old touch.

  She’s part of the touring show put together by Mr Tony Pastor. I thought he sounded like some kind of preacher, but I was wrong.

  It turns out that Mr Pastor is just a regular showbiz manager, who provides good, clean family entertainment. Annie’s act fits in just fine. Hers is the last act, the one the audience have been waiting to see, and the posters call her “the wonder of both continents… the greatest rifle and wing shot in the world”.

  24 MAY 1888 – PHILADELPHIA

  Looks like Annie and Frank just had a near miss on a business deal. Frank’s been busy looking for work, and he thought he’d found something real good when he came across a new Wild West show. The money looked real good too, and because Frank knew that the rich man paying for it had a fine reputation in business, he signed Annie up there and then – for $300 a week.

  The trouble was, Frank didn’t look at the other acts in the show first. When he did see them, he realized that he’d made a big mistake. A string of scraggy ponies and a few unhappy-looking Indians was as close as this show came to the Wild West. Worst of all were the so-called cowboys. One look at them and Frank could tell they knew as much about working the range as he knew about the moon!

  OK, they wore the same clothes as cowboys do – a big hat to keep off the sun, a neckerchief to tie round their face in dust storms, leather covers (called chaps) to protect their legs and pants*, tall boots and a six-gun in a fancy holster – but, as Frank says, looks ain’t everything.

  “Any of you guys been to Abilene?” he asked.

  They just looked blank and didn’t answer.

  Now Abilene, as anyone out west will tell you, is one of the most important cattle towns there is. It was the first cattle town as well, from the time of the first big cattle drive in 1867. Texas cattlemen used to hire cowboys to drive the cattle 1,000 miles north to Abilene. Then they could be sent by railroad to the cities back east, where cattle were worth ten times the price they fetched in Texas. There ain’t no cowboy worth the name who ain’t heard of Abilene.

  No wonder Frank had his doubts about these fellas in the show.

  Of course, things today ain’t like they were twenty years ago. Cattle don’t get driven on long trails from Texas like they used to be. Nowadays, cowboys spend their time mending fences and rounding up cattle on big ranches. But this don’t make no difference to how good they are at their work. That was another thing which worried Frank. These so-called cowboys could hardly sit in a saddle, never mind gallop after a steer, throw a lasso over its head and wrestle it to the ground.

  He tried another cowboy question, but the answer was real dumb.

  Buffalo Bill’s Wild West had some of the best buckaroos in the whole country: cowboys who could stay sitting on the back of wild horse as it bucked and jumped around trying to shake him off. Frank also knew from the Mexicans working with Buffalo Bill that “buckaroo” comes from the Spanish word for cowboy, vaquero. Still, it was a pretty funny answer.

  Frank gave them one last chance. “Say, can you fellas tell me where to find the chuck wagon?” That’s where you get the food, between you and me.

  Well, the answers he got had Frank near laughing his head off. One “cowboy” pointed him to the sick tent, and another one said he’d find it hitched up behind the steam engine on the railroad track.

  Abilene, buckaroo and chuck wagon – the “cowboys” in this Wild West show didn’t know ABC about real cowboy life, and I can see why that worried Frank. He don’t want Annie getting mixed up in no cowboy outfit like that.

  2 JULY 1888 – GLOUCESTER BEACH, NEW JERSEY

  Boy, this has been a busy three months!

  Back in April, Annie was starting out on the stage once again. Then it looked like Frank had got her tied up with that dud show. Now she’s starting in a real good one. Not Buffalo Bill’s, of course. His show has come back from Europe, but Annie still ain’t part of that. This new show is run by a guy named Pawnee Bill, on account of the fact that he speaks the language of the Pawnee Indians as well as he speaks English.

  Pawnee Bill’s not his real name of course, just like Buffalo Bill ain’t Mr Cody’s. Pawnee Bill is really Gordon W. Lillie, but his show, like Buffalo Bill’s, is real enough. In fact Pawnee Bill travelled for a time with Buffalo Bill, acting as interpreter for the Indians. He started his own show this year with 165 horses and mules, eighty-five Indians, fifty riders, and thirty trappers, hunters and scouts. They left him with a lot of mouths to feed and some mighty big railroad bills.

  It was only thanks to Frank that Pawnee Bill was able to keep the show on the road. Frank read in a newsp
aper that Pawnee Bill had run out of money in Pittsburgh, and he told the rich man backing the show with the fake cowboys that Pawnee Bill’s show was a much better bet. So Pawnee Bill got the money he needed to stay in business, and Frank got Annie out of a fix and into a show that could really go places. So here we are in New Jersey starting the summer season with two performances a day. Yep, this show could run and run.

  8 AUGUST 1888 – TROY, NEW YORK

  “There is but one Annie Oakley and she is with us” – that’s what the posters say for Pawnee Bill’s Historical Wild West Exhibition and Indian Encampment. But it seems that by the time they got the name of the show sorted out and posters printed, they were already out of date. A month after joining, Annie was on the move again. Frank’s got her another job in the theatre with Mr Pastor.

  31 DECEMBER 1888 – PHILADELPHIA

  It kind of feels like we’re right back where we were last year. Frank finally found someone to pay for his stage play, and Annie opened as the star of “Deadwood Dick, or the Sunbeam of the Sierras” on Christmas Eve.

  Even I can see that it ain’t the greatest play ever written. It wasn’t made any easier when the leading man walked out and never came back. That was the night before the show was going to open, so Annie and the rest of the actors had to make a lot of changes at the last minute. It didn’t improve it none.

  31 JANUARY 1889 – CHAMBERSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA

  Deadwood Dick is dead and buried, and I don’t think Annie is that sorry about it. The show hasn’t been the smash hit Frank was hoping for, and last night it ran out of money. It would be more accurate to say that the money ran out of the show – the assistant manager sneaked out of the theatre taking all the ticket money with him, leaving everyone broke.

  Frank don’t seem too down that Annie’s stage career has only lasted four weeks, because the New Year has brought some real good news for all of us. It seems that Buffalo Bill, Frank and Annie have patched up the trouble that caused the split between them. Now he and Mr Salsbury are mighty keen to have Annie back in the Wild West once again. So we’ll be back with our friends for the new season, and this year we’re going back to Europe!

 

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