Codes of the West: Matt’s Wild West Discovery Series Volume One includes learning activities and puzzles around the theme of the code of the west. Most of the heroes in the fictional stories of the Old West were heroes because they adhered to the values commonly expressed in the Code of the West – including iconic heroes like Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, Hopalong Cassidy and the Lone Ranger. Also included is a vintage comic book story reprint of Rex Allen. Available for purchase on Amazon.
In TV Westerns: Matt’s Wild West Discovery Series Volume Two, you can explore the world of 1950s and 1960s TV westerns through puzzles and learning activities, as well as vintage comic books stories featuring Gabby Hayes and Rocky Lane. Also included is the Roy Rogers Riders Club Rules and Creed. Available for purchase on Amazon.
At the Rodeo: Matt’s Wild West Discovery Series Volume Three provides learning activities and puzzles about the western rodeo and the circus cowboys of a century ago. Also included are vintage reprints of comic book stories featuring Annie Oakley and Hopalong Cassidy. Available for purchase on Amazon.
In Parks and Preservation: Matt’s Wild West Discovery Series Volume Four, you will have an opportunity to see how western stars like the Lone Ranger, Roy Rogers, Hopalong Cassidy and Gene Autry contributed to the cause of conservation and preservation. There are also several activities and puzzles to complete that are designed to introduce some of the many wonderful parks and recreation areas available in the western regions of the country. Available for purchase on Amazon.
Wagon trains and railroads played critical roles in the rapid development of the American West and, subsequently, in the story lines of countless western novels, films, TV shows, radio programs, and comic books throughout the 20th Century. In Westbound Trains, the fifth volume in the Matt’s Wild West Discovery Series, there are activities and puzzles that are designed to increase one’s familiarity with the historic railroads and the highway system that is so critical to modern commerce in the West. Also, we highlight the 1950s TV and radio programs of Wild Bill Hickok along with a presentation of his 9-point Deputy Marshal’s Code of Conduct. Available for purchase on Amazon.
With the prospects of mining gold and silver in the latter half of the 1800s, multitudes of people left home and family in the East looking to make their fortune out West. In “Gold Rush Days”, the sixth volume in the Matt’s Wild West Discovery Series, there are activities and puzzles that are designed to increase one’s familiarity with the role played by the discovery of these precious metals in the development of the American West. Also, we highlight the 1950s TV and radio programs of Tales of the Texas Rangers along with a presentation of the 10-point Texas Rangers “Deputy Ranger” Oath. Available for purchase on Amazon.
Long before westerns ever experienced their heyday on television, western heroes like Tom Mix, the Lone Ranger, and Red Ryder were corralling large national audiences by way of their network radio programs. In “Old Time Radio Cowboys,” the seventh volume in the Matt’s Wild West Discovery Series, there are puzzles and activities that provide a fun survey of the “westerns” genre of Golden Age Radio programming. Also in this book, we highlight the 1950s radio program Bobby Benson and the B-Bar-B Riders along with a presentation of the Bobby Benson Riders Pledge. Available for purchase on Amazon.
In the typical cattle drive, ten or twelve cowboys hit the dusty trail and moved their two or three thousand head of cattle fifteen to twenty miles a day to some distant “cow town” where the cattle would then be shipped by rail to eastern markets. In “On a Cattle Drive,” the eighth volume in the Matt’s Wild West Discovery Series, there are puzzles and activities that provide an overview of this legendary part of American history. Also in this book, we highlight the work of western film star Buck Jones and his Buck Jones Cowboy Creed. Available for purchase on Amazon.
By the 1930s, the western had become a genre of its own and songs about the west, especially the Old West, featured themes of cowboys, horses, the wide, open spaces on its prairies and plains, and the beauty of its rugged mountains. What we now think of as western music had become a part of American culture. In “The Musical West,” the ninth book of Matt’s Wild West Discovery Series, there are puzzles and activities that provide the opportunity to enjoy a brief survey of the musical side of the Old West. Also in this book, we highlight the career of writer and western film star Dale Evans. There will also be a sampling of cowboy wisdom as shared in letters from famous western movies stars Tex Ritter and Allan “Rocky” Lane. Available for purchase on Amazon.
MATTHEW McKENZIE 