SHANE the real story

A few weeks back, the deputy Mayor and the mayor were relaxing, reading some important documents and channel surfing. Lo, and behold, the 1953 movie classic,SHANE, appears on the TV. Having seen it many times and recognized Alan Ladd, I knew that this was an opportunity for the deputy mayor to study some past American culture( 50's cinema) and get a glimpse into the way past as constructed by an author in 1949. The deputy mayor lost interest after the first 10 minutes. The Mayor watched it through, enjoying those moments as Hollywood portrayed the settling of the "wild west" yet again.
The horse opera as these films were labelled derisively, was nearing the end of its run as 'fodder' for theaters around the country. Advances in video technology, film production, and post war American social change all contributed to the transformation of entertainment through the medium of film. For young boys and men, it was the last glimpse of the 19th century and early 20th century when America rode on horseback to work. Of course, Hollywood made it look romantic and cool, a viewer couldn't smell the horse,etc., nor swat the flies, or get tossed into a muddy river.
The Mayor began to wonder,"Who wrote the book, SHANE?" Google, then one knows. it was Jack Schaefer, from Westport, Connecticut. A graduate of Oberlin College, he was a writer for newspapers for years and decided to try fiction. SHANE was his first novel of many. Although he kept a horse at his house, he didn't move west until 1955, years after the novel, and a few after the movie. As a trained reporter/writer, he developed an eye for detail, and a style that appealed to readers at many levels(the newspaper training). In the short novel, or novelette, he describes the character of Shane over and over again, giving the reader more and more details of the enigmatic figure who rides into the lives of a family setting down roots, literally, in Wyoming in 1889. Despite the descriptions, the reader, like the family in the book, knows little of Shane, past or present. Rumors abound, cast about by the usual cast of characters: townsfolk, cowboys, and drifters.
As the story develops, local conflicts come to a head and a confrontation occurs that places a decision on Shane: reveal the past(and his former role) or not, and abandon the family that has adopted him to the fates. Hollywood, being what it is, and the writer, telling a good story, give the reader and viewer much to chew on and savor as the action reaches its climax. In the end, Shane saves the family by his actions(confronting the interlopers), is wounded but survives, and now must move on.
The deputy mayor pointed out that Shane and the settler's wife were beginning to develop certain feeling toward one another. The author, Schaefer, clearly noted in passing, that this was true! Captured delicately in the film, using the small boy observer, and the solid but weaker father, Shane and Marian, the wife, acknowledged the mutual interest, and Shane knew he had to move on, again. At the end, the lonely cowboy road off into the darkness, leaving the family safe and secure. A classic.
The lonely cowboy icon survives in many forms to this day. Whether Jedi knight or vengeful warrior/cop/agent/ assassin/reformer, the image continues to sell well.