Elmore Leonard has died at 87, after a long and illustrious career. Most news stories refer to him as a crime writer, which he was for the past several decades, but he got his start writing really good, tight, gritty Western stories, like “Hombre” and “3:10 to Yuma.” I liked best his stories that brought the two genres together, like “Cuba Libre,” set in the late 19th Century as Cuba sought independence from Spain and “The Hot Kid,” about a young U.S. Marshal in Oklahoma during the Depression years.
And, of course, he created Raylan Givens, the coolest character ever to don boots and Stetson.
Thanks for everything, Mr. Leonard.
Wayne says
One of my favorite Leonard Westerns is “Valdez Is Coming” which became a pretty good movie with Burt Lancaster in the title role. We’ll miss Mr. Leonard.