Changing The World, One Cowboy Movie At A Time

I'm a fan of pop culture, especially pondering how it intersects with larger societal trends. So I was thrilled to see a new movie video-essay by Bob Chipman (a.k.a. "MovieBob") about the Hopalong Cassidy film series. It was especially fascinating to discover how much influence one man – actor William Boyd – had on the genre and even entertainment itself for quite some time.

The video's just shy of an hour, so get ready for a day on the trail. It's quite possible you'll walk away with a newfound appreciation for a couple eras of American culture – including no small part of omni-cultural geek-tangential trends that continue today. And if you're anything like me, you may even have a desire to crack open a copy of GURPS Old West or The Good, the Bad, and the Munchkin . . .

-- Steven Marsh