Journal Notes

The Kellys travel with me next to South Dakota. Can’t wait to be back in Deadwood.

American gangster George Kelly Barnes (1895 – 1954), aka Machine Gun Kelly, with his wife Kathryn at their trial for the kidnapping of businessman Charles F. Urschel, at the Federal Court in Oklahoma City, 9th October 1933. Kelly has a bump on his head after being hit with a pistol butt during an altercation on his arrival at court. Kelly and his wife pleaded guilty and were sentenced to life imprisonment. (Photo by FPG/Archive Photos/Getty Images)

Machine Gun Kelly’s real name was George Kelly Barnes – he was born on July 18, 1895, in Memphis, Tennessee.

He earned his nickname from his favorite weapon – a Thompson submachine gun (“Tommy Gun”), which Kathryn reportedly encouraged him to pose with to build his gangster reputation.

Kathryn Thorne Kelly was born Cleo Lera Mae Brooks in 1904 in Oklahoma, later changing her name after multiple marriages and adopting the “Kathryn Thorne” persona.

Kathryn played a major role in shaping Kelly’s criminal image – she bought him the Tommy gun and spread stories to inflate his notoriety, ensuring he was feared in the underworld.

The couple’s most infamous crime was the 1933 kidnapping of oil tycoon Charles Urschel in Oklahoma City, for which they demanded and received a $200,000 ransom (equivalent to several million dollars today).

Urschel’s intelligence helped the FBI track them down – despite being blindfolded, he carefully noted details about his captivity (like airplane sounds, farm chores, and even the weather), which agents used to locate the hideout.

Machine Gun Kelly was captured without a fight – on September 26, 1933, FBI agents surprised him in Memphis, where he allegedly shouted “Don’t shoot, G-Men! Don’t shoot!” (helping popularize the term “G-Men” for federal agents).

Both Kelly and Kathryn were convicted of kidnapping and sentenced to life in prison under the newly strengthened Federal Kidnapping Act, also known as the Lindbergh Law.

Machine Gun Kelly spent much of his sentence at Alcatraz before being transferred to Leavenworth, where he lived out the rest of his life until his death from a heart attack in 1954.

Kathryn Thorne Kelly was released from prison in 1958 after serving nearly 25 years. She largely disappeared from public life afterward, dying quietly in 1985.

To learn all about the gangster duo read

Meet the Kellys: The Story of Machine Gun Kelly and his Moll Kathryn Thorne.

Join award-winning author Chris Enss at Las Vegas Books in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Saturday, August 23, from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM, as she signs copies of her riveting book, Meet the Kellys: The True Story of Machine Gun Kelly and His Moll Kathryn Thorne.

“I’m fat, fair, and plan on losing no weight. Am a No. 1 lady, well fixed with no encumbrance: am in business in city, but want a partner who lives in the West.” Matrimonial News Ad #245

“A girl who will love, honest, true and not sour; a nice little cooing dove, and willing to work in flour.” Matrimonial News Ad #292

“A few lady correspondents wanted by a bashful man of 36, of fair complexion, 5 feet 5 inches tall, weight 130 pounds. Would prefer a brunette of fair form about five feet, between 18 and 25 years of age. Object, improvement, and if suited, matrimony.”  Matrimonial News Ad #282

“I am fond of fun, age 18, height 5 feet 5 inches, weight 140 pounds, have auburn hair, dark eyes; I want a gentleman correspondent, from 20 to 25. Object fun and perhaps matrimony if suited.” Matrimonial News Ad #225

“An intelligent young fellow of 22 years, 6 feet height, weight 170 pounds. Would like to correspond with a lady from 18 to 22. Will exchange photos; object, fun and amusement, and perhaps when acquainted, if suitable, marriage.” Matrimonial News Ad #287

“Two good looking men in a Missouri town, having money at their disposal would be pleased to correspond with two jolly young ladies. Object, a quality time and its results.” Matrimonial News Ad #268

“I move in the best society, am 28 years of age, weight 168 pounds, height 5 feet 8 inches, light complexion, heavy mustache, and would like to correspond with some young lady, object matrimony.” Matrimonial News Ad #252

“A lady, tall, young and handsome, wishes to marry and have a home of her own; she is amiable, and would make a bright and happy home for any man.” Matrimonial News Ad #173

“A lady, 22, tall, fair, and very handsome, with $500 a year, wishes to marry.” Matrimonial News Ad #169

“I am a widower 5 feet 7 inches, 35 years old, weight 150 pounds. I am merrily disposed and would like to make the acquaintance of some honorable lady 30 to 35 years, who would like to share a pleasant home, a kind companion, widow preferred.”  Matrimonial News Ad #229

To learn all about the risky business of mail-order matchmaking on the Western frontier read

Object Matrimony. 

Available wherever books are sold.

“Aim for the high mark and you will hit it.  No, not the first time, not the second time and maybe not the third. But keep on aiming and keep on shooting for only practice will make you perfect. Finally, you’ll hit the bull’s- eye of success”  Annie Oakley

“If you win, be gracious, if you lose be gracious.”  Vera McGinnis

“I think there are always many women who are living a social butterfly existence who would dearly love to go in for something worthwhile.”  Adele Von Ohl

“If we never had any storms, we couldn’t appreciate the sunshine.”  Dale Evans

“If I could start over again, I’d marry the other cowboy who asked me.”  Anne Jeffers

“Let any normally healthy woman who is ordinarily strong screw up her courage and tackle a bucking bronco, and she will find the most fascinating pastime in the field of feminine athletic endeavor.  There is nothing to compare, to increase the joy of living, and once accomplished, she’ll have more real fun than any pink tea or theatre party or ballroom dance every yielded.”  May Lillie

“A politician is a fellow who will lay down your life for his country.”  Texas Guinan

“Handle your horse and your husband the same way.” Pauline Goodard

“I certainly do get angry when I hear someone say, “I bet she didn’t do that herself.”  Helen Gibson

“You’ll learn nothing’ if only good things happen to you.”  Mary C. Clayton

To learn more about the daring and iconic women of the rodeos, films, and Wild West Shows read Along Came a Cowgirl.

Available wherever books are sold.

Enter now to win a copy of The Trials of Annie Oakley

Fans of Annie Oakley sought the famous shooter out after every performance.  In addition to granting requests for autographs, she took time to speak with her followers who wanted to know all about her.  As a courtesy to her devotees, she supplied them with a short list of facts about herself.

Answers to Ten Questions I Am Asked Every Day.

I was born in Woodland, Ohio.

I learned to shoot in the field.

I do not think I inherited my love of firearms from my parents, for they were Quakers, and were very much opposed to my using such weapons.

Having traveled in fourteen countries, and having hunted in almost all of them, I have shot nearly all kinds of game.

While I love to shoot in the field, I care very little for exhibition shooting, and only do it as a matter of business.

I never use the word “champion” in connection with my name and always request my friends not to address me as such.

My guns weigh about six pounds each and are of many different makes.  There is no such thing as the best gun maker.  The best gun is the gun that best fits the shooter.

I use pistols, rifles and shotguns.  I do not believe in using cheap guns.  To me, the use of a cheap gun is like driving Star Pointer with a clothes line – you never know when the line is going to give way.

I like pigeon shooting when the birds are first-class flyers, but I am very much opposed to shooting pigeons from the trap during the three summer months.

I use 39 grains of Schultz Smokeless Powder and one ounce of shot, loaded in the U.M.C. Smokeless shells.  I don’t say that this is the only load, but it is good enough for me.

To learn more about Annie Oakley and the shooting school she ran in Pinehurst, North Carolina, read The Trials of Annie Oakley

Proud to announce that the Doctor Was A Woman:

Stories of the First Female Physicians on the Frontier is a finalist for the

Women Writing the West WILLA Award.

Thank you, WWW, for recognizing these amazing doctors

and their fight to practice medicine in the rugged West.

Enter now to win a copy of The Trials of Annie Oakley

Long before the silver screen showed the face of Mary Pickford to millions of Americans, Annie Oakley, born as Phoebe Anne Oakley Moses on August 13, 1860, had won the right to the title of “America’s Sweetheart.” Having grown up learning to shoot game to help support her family, Annie won first prize and met Frank Butler at a shooting match when she was fifteen years old. He convinced her to change her name to Annie Oakley and became her husband, manager, and number-one fan for the next fifty years.

Annie quickly gained worldwide fame as an incredible crack shot, and could amaze audiences at her uncanny accuracy with nearly any rifle or pistol, whether aiming at stationary objects or shooting fast-flying targets from the cockpit of a moving airplane.

In August 1903, when she was well known as a champion shot in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, Oakley became a target of defamation by a reporter for a newspaper owned by media magnate William Randolph Hearst. The libelous story alleged that the famous sure shot had been arrested for stealing and buying drugs. Annie sent a telegram denying the claim and asked the story to be retracted. Hearst refused and the story was then published in all his newspapers. Miss Oakley responded with a libel suit and spent seven years in court fighting the well-known businessman.

During the long, drawn-out legal battle, Annie was struggling with health issues. Despite these trials she poured her energy into advocating for the US military, encouraging women to engage in sport shooting, and supporting orphans.

To learn more about Annie Oakley’s legal battle with William Randolph Hearst read

The Trails of Annie Oakley.

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📚 Book Signing Event – Las Vegas! 📚

Step back into the thrilling Gangster Era with Meet the Kellys: The True Story of Machine Gun Kelly and His Moll Kathryn Thorne by New York Times bestselling author Chris Enss!

🗓 Saturday, August 23
🕚 11 A.M. – 2 P.M.
📍 Las Vegas Books – Las Vegas, Nevada

As one 5-star Amazon review raves:

“Chris Enss…brings the Kellys to life where you can shake hands and drink a Manhattan cocktail with them. Follow them through their exploits of bootlegging, bank robbery, and even kidnapping… Fast-paced and fascinating, you’ll turn the pages because you have to see what comes next.”

Come meet Chris, get your copy signed, and dive into the high life of caviar, champagne, and adventure with one of the most colorful criminal couples of the 1920s and ’30s.

💥 Cocktails and bullets on the run—don’t miss it!