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172nd out of 296 books
—
64 voters
Doc Holliday: A Family Portrait
John H. Holliday, D. D. S., better known as Doc Holliday, has become a legendary figure in the history of the American West. In Doc Holliday: A Family Portrait, Karen Holliday Tanner reveals the real man behind the legend. Shedding light on Holliday’s early years, in a prominent Georgia family during the Civil War and Reconstruction, she examines the elements that shaped h...more
Paperback, 368 pages
Published
March 15th 2001
by University of Oklahoma Press
(first published April 1998)
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This book on one of the Wild West's most famous figures is written by his great-grandniece. Holliday came from genteel Southern aristocracy who were horrified at the noteriety he gained in his lifetime. As the author states, they "circled the wagons" and never talked to outsiders about him.
Now that it's been so long, Tanner decided to write a book on her ancestor based on family memoirs and stories. What we get is a sympathetic look at Holliday, especially his early years and family.
The best par...more
Now that it's been so long, Tanner decided to write a book on her ancestor based on family memoirs and stories. What we get is a sympathetic look at Holliday, especially his early years and family.
The best par...more
Doc Holliday: A Famil arched and written. Karen Holliday Tanner draws on family history, papers, albums and oral stories to augment hard research of libraries, museums, historical societies and personal collections. Through her exhaustive research, Ms. Tanner puts to rest some of the wild exaggerations of killings, life of a con man, and criminal schemes supposedly perpetrated by Doc during his life.
Young John Henry Holliday’s early days were spent in Griffin, Georgia with his father Henry Holl...more
Young John Henry Holliday’s early days were spent in Griffin, Georgia with his father Henry Holl...more
It was interesting to read this just to get a sense of what life was like in the west at that time. It's crazy the way people moved around. Holliday lived in Houston, west Texas, Denver, Dodge City, Tombstone, Deadwood, Leadville, Las Vegas (new mexico), Glenwood Springs, and I'm forgetting some too. It seems that gamblers especially just moved to new towns as soon as possible, and after a little while the new towns would pass anti gambling laws, so the gamblers would pack up and go to another t...more
Oct 07, 2011
Kathy Petersen
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
x-feb-11-thru-jan-12,
read-non-fiction
I admired Tanner's meticulous research and am almost envious that she has put it together in such a readable fashion -- while my own research is stuffed in folders and file drawers. Despite this admiration, I found her writing to be rather dull, and her method of pushing every detail she discovered into the story grew rather tedious.
there aren't a lot of facts about DH so it felt a bit light but it was a nice followup to the Russell book (amusing that she managed an entire book out of what is covered in 3 or 4 pages in this bio).
This book was written by a Holliday family member, using family papers not available to other researchers. I was more interested in this than in The Last Gunfight. I would expect as much as I am more interested in the workings of people than of events.
A
very interesting point of view
A really interesting look at the "family" side of the legend.
Very interesting book. Always wanted to know about Doc's life. Very detailed. Realized now how "Hollywood" the movie Tombstone is.
Jan 31, 2011
Cynthia (aka Artemis)
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Readers of US History, Western
One of the best books I have read on Doc Holliday. You won't be disappointed. Today his ancestors still reside in Georgia.
Used as research into my maiden name... Holliday.
Not related to Doc, though. At least not directly.
Not related to Doc, though. At least not directly.
Fantastic book. Slow begininng but real insight to the real actions of this well know hero.
May 01, 2013
Travis Williams
marked it as to-read
May 01, 2013
Man Solo
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Apr 30, 2013
Ashley
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Apr 24, 2013
Marisa
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Mar 24, 2013
Colin Braley
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Mar 13, 2013
Laura Grow-nyberg
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Mar 10, 2013
Terry Jarrett
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Mar 03, 2013
Cindy
marked it as to-read
Feb 07, 2013
Ben Ferrell
marked it as to-read
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