1930 – “The Blue Angel” starring Marlene Dietrich in her breakthrough role premieres in Germany
Travels to Deadwood
Spent some of the day making plans to travel to Deadwood in a couple of months to launch the new book An Open Secret. Preston and Harriet Lewis will be in Deadwood, too, promoting their book More Cat Tales of the Old West. And Carol Markstrom will be a part of the tour. More information to come.
June 16: History on the Lawn: An Open Secret: The Story of Deadwood’s Most Notorious Bordellos – The official launch of American author Chris Enss’ latest book, An Open Secret, focuses on infamous cat houses like the Beige Door, those individuals who managed the businesses, their employees, their well-known clientele, the various crimes committed at the locations, and their ultimate demise. Bring a lunch and enjoy the Historic Adams House lawn; 12:00 noon; free for members and $5 for non-members. In case of inclement weather, the lecture will be moved to the Homestake Adams Research and Cultural Center (HARCC).
June 17: An Open Secret: The Story of Deadwood’s Most Notorious Bordellos Official Book Launch with Chris Enss – Chris Enss is a New York Times Best Selling author, scriptwriter, and comedienne. Enss will be signing copies of her book, An Open Secret, from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at The Brothel Deadwood. This event is open to the public. Donations are appreciated. Stop by to meet Chris Enss and tour The Brothel. Snacks and beverages will be served throughout the day.
This Day…
1894 – George Bernard Shaw‘s comedy play “Candida” premieres at Theatre Royal, South Shields, England
The Talk about Kate
Enter now to win a copy of
According to Kate:
The Legendary Life of Big Nose Kate, Love of Doc Holliday
Featured Reviews
Julie L, Reviewer
| My Recommendation |
| Having recently read “Doc” by Mary Doria Russell, I was very interested in reading this book, which was Kate’s version of her life, including her 15 years spent with Doc Holliday. No one can say she didn’t have an action-packed life. Having lost both parents within months of each other, she soon decided to hit the road and make a life for herself. There are many words that could be used to describe her. Well educated, stubborn, strong, opinionated, would probably do anything for a dollar. Were all her claims in the story true? I’m not sure, as there’s no way to prove some of them. She lived a long and sometimes difficult life, but I’ll bet if you’d ask her, she wouldn’t have changed a thing. Interesting book if you enjoy memoirs and stories of the Old West with many photos throughout. 4🌟 |
Dave V, Reviewer
| My Recommendation |
| As a keen reader and student of western American history, it was a pleasure reading this book. Chris Enss has done a true service in documenting fact and debunking fiction in the many tales about “Big Nose Kate.” The book is able to vividly portray not only the life of Kate, but to put in perspective the often difficult struggles of living in the new and expanding raw west of her times. It includes excellent descriptions of the various towns springing into existence with minimal social constraints during this dramatic time in our history. It is well worth adding to your library of western lore! |
Heather B, Reviewer
| My Recommendation | ||
| According to Kate is a fascinating biography of Big Nose Kate and her life in the Old West. Chris Enss definitely did her research, and the book is well written.
Carol M, Reviewer
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Stacie T, Reviewer
| My Recommendation |
| I found this novel to be immensely fascinating. I have loved every story that I could get my hands on, regarding the lives of Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday. And while I have often wondered about the women in their lives, I haven’t found many reliable sources to go on. Until, that is, I discovered According to Kate. Kate was the longtime companion of Doc Holliday, and an incredibly astounding woman. I loved reading about her, and thanks to the brilliant writing of Chris Enss, I feel as though I was given the opportunity to meet her personally. I now have a new “obsession,” if you will, to find more about Miss Kate (I refuse to call her Big Nose Kate!) and the amazing life that she led. My thanks to the author, and a definite recommend! |
Sunday A, Reviewer
| My Recommendation |
| Chris Enss has written a highly readable and captivating biography of Mary Katherine Horony-Cummings. (aka Kate Elder, Big Nose Kate, etc,) Mrs. Cummings was born in Hungary and came to the United States as a child, with her physician father, mother and siblings. After both her parents died, she was sent to a convent with her sister to further her already excellent education. Convent life did not suit her, however, and she ran away as a teenager. Prostitution ended up being her main occupation, and she had no shame about being a “sporting lady”. Eventually, she met Doc Holliday, which would end up making her a very famous American Old West woman. Yes, it’s all here–Doc Holliday, the Earps, Johnny Ringo, Tombstone, Dodge City, etc. Chris Enss sees Mrs. Cummings as being most importantly a shrewd businesswoman in her day, as opposed to being just a prostitute and Doc Holliday’s woman. A surprisingly really interesting read. |
Lori S, Librarian
| My Recommendation |
| The legend of Doc Holliday and Kate Elder is one familiar to most people. Over the years, the famous and infamous couple have appeared in movies, articles, books, etc. Chris Enss has chosen a different tale. One focused on Kate Elder and determined to find the woman behind the myth. Stated simply, Enss succeeded in telling the true story of Kate Elder. From her beginnings as Mary Katherine Horony in Hungary to her humble end, Kate Elder lead a life few could compare.
Enss is a wonderful author. She has a way of giving the facts without losing the story. According to Kate brings the reader along for the journey into the past. Elder becomes a real person with dreams, heartache, love, and hardships. The factual evidence is there, but the author is able to weave those into the story. Although the book does not read like a historical fictional novel, it comes close. It is even better because it is not fiction. It is a true story about someone who experienced a life so unlike our lives today.
Not only is According to Kate and enjoyable read. The book is filled with photographs of the people and places discussed. Scattered throughout the text, the photographs allow the reader to connect even more to the story.
I can easily say this is my first book by Chris Enss, but won’t be my last. |
This Day…
1915 Typhoid Mary [Mary Mallon] is arrested and returned to quarantine on North Brother Island, New York after spending five years evading health authorities and causing several further outbreaks of typhoid
Kate Elder Sets the Record Straight
Last Week to Enter to Win a Copy of According to Kate:
The Legendary Life of Big Nose Kate, Love of Doc Holliday
“As a keen reader and student of western American history, it was a pleasure reading this book. Chris Enss has done a true service in documenting fact and debunking fiction in the many tales about “Big Nose Kate.” The book is able to vividly portray not only the life of Kate, but to put in the perspective of the often-difficult struggles of living in the new and expanding raw west of her times. It includes excellent descriptions of the various towns springing into existence with minimal social constraints during this dramatic time in our history. It is well worth adding to your library of western lore!” Dave Vickery – Goodreads
This Day…
Praise for Big Nose Kate
Enter now to win a copy of
According to Kate:
The Legendary Life of Big Nose Kate, Love of Doc Holliday
In According To Kate, Chris Enss sorts through the facts and the myths surrounding Kate Elder (aka Big Nose Kate) one of the west’s most mysterious figures. Enss constructs a clear and credible time line as Kate and Doc Holliday made their way across the country and into history. This is a must for studies on Kate and Doc Holliday.
Thomas Cobb— author of Crazy Heart and Darkness the Color of Snow
Oftentimes in western history, the women have been left behind. Fortunately for that history—and for us—author Chris Enss repeatedly chips away at stone, delivering one passionate account after another of the West’s women. In her latest work, According to Kate, Enss provides a picture of Kate Elder’s life, including her decades after Doc Holliday and the Gunfight at the OK Corral, as she continued to make her own way on her own terms in the bawdy West.
Deborah Morgan, award-winning author in both the western and mystery fields
Kate Elder believed her story was worth a small fortune, and Chris Enns proves she was right. Chris has won a galaxy of awards for her storytelling and earned every one of them. As one of the most reliable researchers in the trade, she traces Maria Izabella Magdolna from her birth Hungary in 1850 to her death as Mary Cummings at the Arizona Pioneers’ Home at Prescott only five days shy of her ninetieth birthday. As Chris writes, Kate Elder mostly left historians “only the legend to draw from—and that’s a fact.”
Wister Award Winner, Best Selling Author, Will Bagley
Once again, master story-teller Chris Enss has enriched the annals of American history with her blockbuster chronicle of “Big-Nose” Kate Elder, a woman whose life over nearly a century intertwined with such noted Western figures as Doc Holliday and the Earp brothers. From Kate’s birth in Hungary in 1850, through her sometimes risqué exploits across the United States, to her death in Prescott, Arizona in 1940, Kate Elder led a most interesting life, and Chris Enss reveals it all in this meticulously-researched and well-documented biography.
Wister Award Winner, Best Selling Author, James Crutchfield
To learn more read According to Kate
This Day…
1933 – U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a bill legalizing the sale and possession of beer and wine containing up to 3.2% alcohol.
Go Back to School…Way Back
Coming Soon!
Between 1847 and 1858, more than 600 women teachers traveled across the untamed frontier to provide youngsters with an education, and the numbers grew rapidly in the decades to come, as women took advantage of one of the few career opportunities for respectable work for ladies of the era. Enduring hardships, the fifteen women whose stories are told in the pages of Frontier Teachers: Stories of Historic Women of the Old West, demonstrated the utmost dedication and sacrifice necessary to bring formal education to the Wild West. As immortalized in works of art and literature, for many students their women teachers were heroic figures who introduced them to a world of possibilities—and changed America forever.
