author
John M. Burke
d. 1917
A gifted showman behind the scenes of the American West, he helped shape the public legend of Buffalo Bill with a flair for promotion and storytelling. His own writing offers a lively window into frontier mythmaking at the end of the 19th century.
1 Audiobook
About the author
Best known as "Arizona John," he was an American publicist, manager, and press agent who became closely associated with Buffalo Bill Cody and the Wild West show. Born in 1842 and dying on April 12, 1917, he built a reputation as a tireless promoter who knew how to turn western spectacle into national fame.
He also wrote about the world he helped publicize. His best-known book, "Buffalo Bill" from Prairie to Palace, played a major role in spreading the larger-than-life image of Cody and the frontier to a wide audience. That mix of publicity, performance, and storytelling makes his work especially interesting today.
For listeners and readers, his writing is valuable not just as biography, but as a glimpse into how the mythology of the American West was packaged and shared in its own time.