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Emerson Hough

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Author

The Resume

    (June 28, 1857-April 30, 1923)
    Born in Newton, Iowa
    Best known for Western novels and short stories
    Author of best-sellers 'The Covered Wagon' (1922) and 'North of Thirty-Six' (1926)
    Other works included 'The Way of a Man,' 'The Sagebrusher,' 'Maw's Vacation,' 'Heart's Desire,' 'The Purchase Price,' 'The Mississippi Bubble,' 'The Way of the West', 'Singing Mouse Stories,' 'The Passing of the Frontier,' and 'The Story of the Outlaw'
    Contributed articles to the publications 'Forest and Stream Magazine,' 'Field & Stream Magazine,' and The Saturday Evening Post

Why he might be annoying:

    He made his living penning glossy Cowboy lore - most of which hasn't aged well.
    His debut magazine article was titled 'Far from the Madding Crowd' (ya can't even come up with an original title?).
    He was accused of adopting a political tone for some of his Western novels.
    For example, he dedicated his first volume of '54-40 or Fight,' in 1909, to his good friend Theodore Roosevelt, and the second, in 1910, to Senator Albert Beveridge of Indiana.
    He dedicated his 1912 book 'John Rawn' to Woodrow Wilson, but came out against him four years later.
    This extended to signing a letter sent by the Roosevelt Authors' League criticizing President Wilson's foreign policy on very harsh terms, and calling for Teddy Roosevelt to oppose him in the 1916 election.
    His partisan tone was panned by one critic, who called one of his books neither 'a novel' nor 'art' at all, but rather Republican progressive 'propaganda.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    He held a degree in philosophy.
    He worked as a schoolteacher, lawyer, and newspaper reporter before pursuing writing full-time.
    He collaborated with L. Frank Baum on several unstaged plays.
    He was a co-founder of The Izaak Walton League (1922).
    He became a wildlife preservationist after seeing hundreds of buffalo killed, during an 1893 trip he made to Yellowstone National Park.
    Several of his articles, an 1894 one in particular, moved Congress to push through legislation to protect the vulnerable bison herd population.
    He served as a captain with the Intelligence Service, during World War I.
    Several of his books became popular Hollywood silent movies.
    He was one of the first 'cowboy western novelists' to make a successful transition to the motion picture industry.
    When he was asked to provide some details of his own life after returning from the war, he replied: 'This is no time for autobiography of men of letters. This is the day of biography for men who have been privileged to act in the great scenes of today. It is the time for boys of 23. At least we can bless them and back them the best we know. I will not tell about myself. It is of no consequence.'

Credit: BoyWiththeGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 11 Votes: 90.91% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 9 Votes: 44.44% Annoying