Bill Jordan and Skeeter Skelton

[papajohn]

Confed, I started subscribing to gun magazines when I was nine, and I DO remember that exchange! I remember laughing at the notion that Dobe Grant was the creator of SS and JJ. Personally, I still think a lot of those stories were at least partially true. My favorite was when they (Me 'n Joe) found the rabbit ears, and the thoughts of what they could buy with all the loot they were gonna get. I was around the same age as the kids in the story, and thought it was funny as hell.

Even if those stories are never re-printed, they should at least be made available online, so future generations can enjoy them!

Papajohn

 

[BigG]

I liked Elmer and Col Chas Askins and Skeeter and Bill Jordan. They were the best, as I recall. JC - the LTC not Jesus was a pale shadow compared to the first four.

 

[CajunBass]

WOW. Did you see the prices they're asking for Skeeters Books?

I used to have both "Handgun Tales" and "Skeeter Skelton on Handguns" years ago. I kept them in near "new" condition for years.

Then when my youngest son got old enough to understand them, he read them, until they literally fell apart.

On the one hand I could kick his butt. :banghead:

On the other hand. I'm glad he got to enjoy one of the best writers to ever put pen to paper.

 

[Confederate]

Yes, I agree. I once shared a cab with Cooper and I found him to be gentlemanly, determined and just a little bit too focused on things. I don't say that in a bad way, but his demeanor was a little too spit and brass, if you know what I mean. Having worked in a military environment for much of my life, I know the mindset well. But there's also a place for visionaries, forward-thinkers who know how to balance the two. It's this balance that seemed to be missing. I didn't get this from the cab ride, mind you, but from also reading many of his articles, where there's just as much between the lines as there is in the lines themselves.

It's hard to believe, but in 1861, armies were still standing in rows and marching towards each other, stopping only to shoot and reload. Dumb. And if you could go back in time, I doubt you would have been able to change anyone's mind about how it was done.

Cooper was clearly a man who had been built up into a Marine, someone who was probably never trained to retreat. Some admire that kind of an approach. In my view, a man's got to be able to use both sides of his brain. In short, Jordan and Skeeter had a good handle on life, and they didn't lock themselves into any one way of thinking.

But we need both kind of men in this world and frankly I liked many of Cooper's outlooks. Other times, though, I got the distinct impression that he was not a man who changed his opinions easily.

In short, I appreciate the sizzle of bacon and the smell of coffee over starched shirts and drum roll, but there's value in both.

 

[bromdenlong]

Confederate wrote:
+++++++++++++++++++++++
It's hard to believe, but in 1861, armies were still standing in rows and marching towards each other, stopping only to shoot and reload. Dumb. And if you could go back in time, I doubt you would have been able to change anyone's mind about how it was done.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++

It wasn't dumb. It was necessary. There were no radios back then, and there was no other way to control large numbers of men in combat.

 

[bannockburn]

Confederate

I subscribed to Guns and Ammo back when I was a kid in the early '70's. Cooper on Handguns was the first thing I always read; next was any feature article written by him. I liked his no nonsense approach to handguns and how he took an almost scientific approach to analyzing combat pistolcraft and one's own personal mindset. He was all business in these matters, and I greatly appreciated his insight and his experience.
Now if I wanted to be thoroughly entertained, then I would pick up my monthly issue of Shooting Times and read Hipshots and any feature article by Skeeter Skelton. Same subject matter, but a whole different perspective. Cooper was more like the instructor or academician; Skeeter was the inveterate story teller. I enjoyed their writings and highly valued them both.

 

[Fat Boy]

Skeeter Skelton, along with his excellent knowledge of firearms, had this great ability to tell such funny stories; Jug Johnson comes to mind, with his rattlesnake chili, etc, etc.

One of my favorites involving both Skeeter Skelton and Bill Jordan was about the time Bill Jordan visited Skeeter Skelton, and the story was (IIRC), that he left in the middle of the night with a half a lemon chiffon pie, some whiskey and a handgun (maybe a ruger single action)? Bill Jordan later offered his own version of events to set the record straight- ...boy I miss those guys and their writings...

 

[Bob C]

"....the time Bill Jordan visited Skeeter Skelton, and the story was (IIRC), that he left in the middle of the night with a half a lemon chiffon pie, some whiskey and a handgun (maybe a ruger single action)..."

It was a S&W Model 19. Jordan left his with Skeeter for Skeeter to give it an action job, with the comment Skeet could have his back when the action on Jordan's was equally smooth.

 

[medmo]

Skeeter, Jordan, Kieth and Cooper.... Those guys made you look forward to the next month's issue. One of the other Hall of Famers who has passed on that isn't mentioned yet is Bob Milek. He was the hunter's hunter and always test fired handguns by spending a weekend bagging something in Wyoming and writing about it.

I don't see any writers today coming close to filling those guy's shoes. That is probably why I don't have any subscriptions. Bart's writing is pretty good but it is obvious that he isn't trying to copy his father. I don't think it would work because it wouldn't come off as authentic.

 

[Confederate]

Everyone has to develop his own "voice" when writing. The thing BJ and SS both could do is write, and they could turn on their respective voices, or turn them off. They also could exaggerate them as the situation required, and that was what made Mark Twain so popular. Twain, a seasoned editor, knew how to gain an audience's ear.

I remember a short column he wrote, which would be lost to today's audiences, of the uniqueness of a one-sided conversation over what was then a new technological marvel, the telephone. Most of us, today, wouldn't see the humor in it because we're so used to hearing people on the phone; but back then it was hilarioius! To hear a person speak and react to something the readers couldn't hear. (For those of you interested, you can find the column here. I goggled it.)

Most people would have found the Mama Mia column also highly amusing, but shooters will find it even more so due to Skeet's inability to sight in his gun or to shoot the squirrel. A modern editor might say, well, we can't run those articles again because he's talking about guns that no longer are made. And that's true. It's also a reason I stopped subscribing to gun magazines. Just because a gun's out of production doesn't mean you can't write an article about it or show photos of it. This is a mindset that is brought about by the crass commercialism of the market. Magazines don't cater to the reader, the editorial staff is there to rake in the advertising bucks, and gun companies, holster makers, ammunition manufacturers and the like all want article on their products. I dare say a lot of folks would love to find articles about the old S&W K-22, the Ruger Security-Six, Dan Wesson's Pistol Pacs, etc. I also get tired of going to the bookstore and going to the magazine rack, only to find the latest plastic gun or snazzy automatic pistol adorning the cover. After awhile they all start to look the same. (In fact, I have to admit there are times when I have unknowingly bought two copies of the same issue of COMBAT HANDGUNS. In the old days I could look at the cover and say, oh, I have that one. But today last issue's cover looks the same as this issue's cover.

But that's another thread. I'd like to see these articles reprinted. If I were a little younger, I'd probably start my own magazine.