Doc Holliday

The Life and Legend

By: Gary L. Roberts

Narrated by: Arthur Flavell

Length: 19 hrs and 37 mins

Publisher's summary

In Doc Holliday: The Life and Legend, the historian Gary Roberts takes aim at the most complex, perplexing, and paradoxical gunfighter of the Old West, drawing on more than 20 years of research - including new primary sources - in his quest to separate the life from the legend. 

Doc Holliday was a study in contrasts: the legendary gunslinger who made his living as a dentist; the emaciated consumptive whose very name struck fear in the hearts of his enemies; the degenerate gambler and alcoholic whose fierce loyalty to his friends compelled him, more than once, to risk his own life; and the sidekick whose near-mythic status rivals that of the West's greatest heroes. With lively details of Holliday's spirited exploits, his relationships with such Western icons as Wyatt Earp and Bat Masterson, and the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, this book sheds new light on one of the most mysterious figures of frontier history.

©2006 Gary L. Roberts (P)2019 Tantor

“Watch Tombstone?” You are an idiot

This book is very well researched and written in the Ken Burns style. If you are dumb piece of cod’s wallop just check out Tombstone. If you want to read a detailed, pleasant, informative book, this one is highly recommended. The previous reviewer is clearly not a golfer.

Doc Holliday

This book was okay. It's not that Roberts didn't put in the effort, or that the book isn't decently narrated, or even that it's not the best biography possible, it's that I'm not convinced a Doc-centric biography was a good idea, given the paucity of sources.

We simply know nothing of Holliday until he gets to Tombstone. The writer does his best, but you can tell he's trying to build on smoke. Here is the history of the Holliday clan, it must have affected John this way, had John been born with such-and-such a condition, it surely would have affected his development in the following ways, and so on, and so on. Must have, surely, of course, undoubtedly. When Doc moves out west, Roberts weighs the probabilities of him doing it to preserve his health vs fleeing justice for shooting black people vs a love affair gone south, and it's all carefully reasoned, but it's not explained why any of these is better than "the hell if I know."

As we approach the Gunfight at the O. K. Corral, things noticeably get better documented. The book settles into a Pro-Earp account of the Troubles, Gunfight, Hearing, and Vendetta Ride. Roberts doesn't wow as a storyteller, but I found interesting his portrait of the time and place, especially how the Cowboys fit into the larger picture. Apparently, these people were rustling so hard, it threatened an international incident. The remaining years of Doc's life, which I've only read summarized, gets a full account, which is appreciated.

The book ends with a solid chapter on his growing legend and film portrayals. His gradual movement into the Hollywood archetype of the Good Bad Guy seems fitting. He was an inkblot to people in life, why not in death?

history

I totally enjoyed the book learning a lot of things about this character, I have always had questions about his life that this book cleared up.

Wrong title!

Not a Book about doc holiday. He is a character in the book. Should not be titled doc holiday. Dry, repetitive, and disappointing.

Rose Colored Glasses

I only got through the first four chapters of the book before I had to return it. The narration was fine, but when the author looked back at the history of slavery he kind of put a semi-positive spin on it that bothered me enough to cringe each time it was mentioned, and in the end, not finish the book.

More of a history lesson

This book gets into a lot of details around the life and family/friends of Doc Holliday. It also seemed more of a history of the West and in some places seemed like I was reading a family tree. It was long but I enjoyed most of it.

Title should be : What I imagine Doc Holliday’s Life was like.

I was really disappointed, because I was very interested in learning about Doc Holliday. I would’ve never bought it if I had realized ahead of time that he did not have a memoir or letters. That all the information in the book is either quoted from other people, newspaper articles, or what the author imagines happened, or was said.

Doc Holliday really lived

but this wondering story has more on contemporaries and background than Doc. too speculative.

A very interesting listen.

This book solidified the picture in my mind of Doc Holliday. A deeply flawed man with as deep a burning sense of loyalty to his friends as a hatred towards his enemies.

All biographers should side this as template

One of the best researched and fairly presented biographies I’ve ever read. This the most objective, matter of fact presentations of a biography I’ve ever read/heard. And yet, the author still manages to weave a compelling narrative. This is a must listen!

Through Account

This is a very through account of the life of the doc, nothing like the movie Tombstone, I think he was a good man in bad times.