W. C. Tuttle (November 11, 1883 – June 6, 1969) was an American writer who sold more than 1000 magazine stories and dozens of novels, almost all of which were

westerns The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly referred ...

Biography

Tuttle wrote mainly for

pulp magazines Pulp magazines (also referred to as "the pulps") were inexpensive fiction magazines that were published from 1896 to the late 1950s. The term "pulp" derives from the cheap wood pulp paper on which the magazines were printed. In contrast, magazine ...

; his main market was ''

Adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extr ...

'' magazine. In a 1930 poll of its readers, Tuttle was voted the most popular writer in the magazine. Tuttle also wrote for other publications such as ''

Argosy Argosy or The Argosy may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Argosy'' (magazine), an American pulp magazine 1882–1978 and revived 1990–1994, 2004–2006 * ''Argosy'' (UK magazine), three British magazines * Argosy spaceship in ''Escap ...

'', ''

Short Stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

'',

Street & Smith Street & Smith or Street & Smith Publications, Inc. was a New York City publisher specializing in inexpensive paperbacks and magazines referred to as dime novels and pulp magazine, pulp fiction. They also published comic books and sporting year ...

’s ''

Western Story Magazine ''Western Story Magazine'' was a pulp magazine published by Street & Smith, which ran from 1919 to 1949.Doug Ellis, John Locke, and John Gunnison, (editors),''The Adventure House Guide to the Pulps'', Adventure House, 2000. (pp. 311–12). It was ...

'', ''

Field & Stream ''Field & Stream'' (''F&S'' for short) is an American online magazine focusing on hunting, fishing and other outdoor activities. The magazine was a print publication between 1895 and 2015 and became an online-only publication from 2020. Histor ...

'', ''West'', ''New Western Magazine'' and ''Exciting Western''. His best known character was Hashknife Hartley, who along with his friend Sleepy Stevens, served as unofficial detectives solving crimes on the ranches where they worked as cowboys. The Hashknife stories combined the western story with the detective story. Fellow western author and editor

Jeff Sadler Geoffrey Willis Sadler (1943-2005), was an English novelist, essayist and editor, most famous for his vast output of western novels published under the pen name Jeff Sadler. Life Geoffrey Willis Sadler was born on 7 October 1943 in Mansfield Woo ...

stated Tuttle's writing is "at its best" in the Hashknife stories.Jeff Sadler, "Tuttle, W(ilbur) C(oleman)" in ''Twentieth Century Western Writers'', edited by Geoff Sadler. Chicago and London, St. James Press, 1991, , (pp. 689-694) Sadler also claims Tuttle's novel ''Vanishing Brands'' is his finest novel:"...terse and dramatic, flecked with dry touches of wit, the novel is an excellent example of the Western form and a credit to its author". Other characters Tuttle created included Cultus Collins, Sad Sontag, and Henry Harrison Conroy, a former

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic compositio ...

actor turned sheriff. In 1950-1951, Tuttle was narrator of the

old-time radio The Golden Age of Radio, also known as the old-time radio (OTR) era, was an era of radio in the United States where it was the dominant electronic home entertainment medium. It began with the birth of commercial radio broadcasting in the earl ...

series ''

Hashknife Hartley ''Hashknife Hartley'' is an American old-time radio Western program. It was broadcast on the Mutual Broadcasting System from July 2, 1950, until December 30, 1951. Schedule ''Hashknife Hartley'' began as a summer replacement series, filling the t ...

'', which featured adaptations of his stories. He was also a screenwriter hailing back to the

silent era A silent film is a film with no synchronized Sound recording and reproduction, recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) ...

. He wrote the screenplays for 52 films between 1915 and 1945. A semi-pro baseball player in his youth, Tuttle served as President of the Pacific Coast Baseball League 1935-1943. Tuttle recommended to the

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...

that the team should ask

Gene Lillard Robert Eugene Lillard (November 12, 1913 – April 12, 1991) was an American professional baseball player. Primarily a pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB), he began his baseball career as an infielder and was a prodigious minor league batsma ...

to join them.Dennis Snelling, ''Greatest Minor League: A History of the Pacific Coast League 1903-1957''. Jefferson, N.C. McFarland & Co. 2019 (p. 148) He was born in

Montana Montana () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West List of regions of the United States#Census Bureau-designated regions and divisions, division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North ...

, and died in

Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is th ...

Bibliography

"Hashknife" Novels * ''Hashknife of the Double Bar 8'' (1920) * ''Thicker Than Water'' (1927) * ''The Morgan Trail'' (1928) * ''Hidden Blood'' (1929) * ''The Valley of Twisted Trails'' (1931) * ''The Silver Bar Mystery'' (1933) * ''Rifled Gold'' (1934) * ''The Medicine-man'' (1939) * ''The Valley of Vanishing Herds'' (1942) * ''The Tin God of Twisted River'' (1945) * ''Wolf Creek Valley'' (1946) * ''The Trouble Trailer'' (1946) * ''Shotgun Gold'' (1950) * ''The Shadow Shooter'' (1955) * ''Passengers for Painted Rock'' (1962) * ''Double-crossers of Ghost Tree'' (1965) * ''The Payroll of Fate'' (1966) * ''Medicine Maker'' (1967) * ''Vanishing Brands'' (1977) * ''Red trail of a forty-one'' (1978) Other Novels * ''Sontag of Sundown'' (1929) * ''The Keeper of Red Horse Pass'' (1930) * ''Mystery At the JHC Ranch'' (1932) * ''Singing River'' (1934) * ''The Flood of Fate'' (1935) * ''Wild Horse Valley'' (1938) * ''Salt for the Tiger'' (1952) * ''Renegade Sheriff'' (1953) * ''Mission River Justice'' (1955) * ''Thunderbird Range'' (1955) * ''The Shame of Arizona'' (1957) * ''The King of Dancing Valley'' (1958) * ''Danger Trail'' (1958) * ''The Trail to Kingdom Come'' (1960) * ''Gold at K-BAR-T'' (1961) * ''Galloping Gold'' (1961) * ''Double Trouble'' (1964) * ''Arizona Drifters'' (1964) * ''Road to the Moon'' (1965) * ''Stockade'' (1965) * ''Buckshot Range'' (1966) * ''The Lone Wolf'' (1967) * ''West of Aztec Pass'' (1972) * ''Greenhorn Trail'' (1976) * ''King of Blue Grass Valley'' (1977)) * ''The Trail of Deceit'' (1985)

Selected filmography

* '' Cinders'' (1920) * '' The Stranger'' (1920) * ''

Fight It Out ''Fight It Out'' is a 1920 American short silent Western film directed by Albert Russell and starring Hoot Gibson. Cast * Hoot Gibson as Sandy Adams * Charles Newton as Duncan McKenna * Jim Corey James Warren Corey (October 19, 1883 ...

'' (1920) * ''

The Man with the Punch ''The Man with the Punch'' is a 1920 American short silent Western film directed by Edward Laemmle and featuring Hoot Gibson. Cast * Hoot Gibson as the stranger (credited as Ed Hoot Gibson) * Jim Corey as Sheriff Jeff Sellers * Charles Newto ...

'' (1920) * ''

Fools of Fortune ''Fools of Fortune'' is a 1990 Irish romantic drama film directed by Pat O'Connor and written by Michael Hirst based on the 1983 novel by Irish writer William Trevor. It depicts a Protestant family caught up in the conflict between the Briti ...

'' (1922) * ''

The Law Rustlers ''The Law Rustlers'' is a 1923 American silent Western film directed by Louis King and starring William Fairbanks, Edmund Cobb and Joseph W. Girard.Munden, p. 426. Synopsis Two ranch hands set off for Alaska but stop in a town on the way, con ...

'' (1923) * ''

The Prairie Pirate ''The Prairie Pirate'' is a 1925 American silent Western film directed by Edmund Mortimer and featuring Harry Carey. Plot As described in a film magazine reviews, Brian Delaney, returning one evening from herding the cattle, finds his siste ...

'' (1925) * ''

Western Pluck ''Western Pluck'' is a 1926 American silent Western film directed by Travers Vale Travers Vale (31 January 1865 – 10 January 1927) was an English-born silent film director. He directed more than 70 films between 1910 and 1926. He wa ...

'' (1926) * ''

Rustlers' Ranch ''Rustlers' Ranch'' is a 1926 American silent Western film directed by Clifford Smith and starring Art Acord, Olive Hasbrouck and Duke R. Lee.Munden, p. 673 Plot Cast * Art Acord as Lee Crush * Olive Hasbrouck as Lois Shawn * Duke R. Le ...

'' (1926) * ''

The Wild Horse Stampede ''The Wild Horse Stampede'' is a 1926 American silent Western film directed by Clifford Smith and starring Jack Hoxie, Fay Wray and Marin Sais.Munden, p. 903 Cast * Jack Hoxie as Jack Tanner * Fay Wray as Jessie Hayden * William Steele as ...

'' (1926) * ''

Driftin' Sands ''Driftin' Sands'' is a 1928 American silent Western film directed by Wallace Fox and starring Bob Steele, Nina Quartero, and William H. Turner. Cast * Bob Steele as 'Driftin' Sands * Nina Quartero as Nita Aliso * William H. Turner as ...

'' (1928) * ''

The Red Rider ''The Red Rider'' is a 1934 American Western film serial from Universal Pictures and starring Buck Jones. It has 15 chapters based on the short story "The Redhead from Sun Dog" by W. C. Tuttle, and is a remake of Buck Jones' earlier 1931 film ...

'' (1934)

References

External links

* * *

Partial Bibliography of Tuttle's Work at FictionMags Index.
''Law Rustlers'', a Hashknife Hartley novelette in ''Adventure'' magazine.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tuttle, W.C. 1883 births 1969 deaths 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters American male novelists American male screenwriters American male short story writers American mystery writers American Western (genre) novelists Pulp fiction writers Western (genre) writers