Happy Tails

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Zine
Title: Happy Tails
Publisher: Leah Rosenthal and Poncho Press, reprinted by Ashton Press
Editor(s): Leah Rosenthal
Date(s): 1984
Series?:
Medium: print zine
Size:
Genre:
Fandom: multimedia and western
External Links: Ashton Press
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cover by Leah Rosenthal

Happy Tails is an explicit het Western 96-page multimedia fanzine originally edited and published by Leah Rosenthal. and later reprinted by Ashton Press. The zine is rated about an “R”. Contains no slash.

From an ad in Datazine: "Question: What do you do with a bunch of good naughty stories about your favorite old TV Western series? Answer: What every red-blooded fanzine editor would do... publish!"

This is not the same zine of the same title as the proposed zine by Rowena Warner.

The art is by Paulie Gilmore, Jo Hansen, Ruth Kurz, Evallou Richardson, Melody Rondeau, Leah Rosenthal, and Ellen Vartanoff.

Contents

Reactions and Reviews

I love the reasons listed in the inside back cover for receiving the zine. They're great! I also liked the cartoons throughout, although I admit (with embarrassment) that it took me three readings to figure out the one on page 11. Dave Gordon's filks were good, and I liked "Tommy's Ballad" by Marty Benedict but my favorite songs were 'Charlotte the Harlot" and "The Old Grey Bustle". When I get back Denver way, I'll’ have to pass that one along to my folklore prof...He'll love them. Do you have a tune for "Charlotte" Or a date? (Whoops! There goes the scholastic brain, again).

The news release on page 96 left me less than amused, for some reason, which is through no fault of its own. But Michele Rosenberg’s "Lusty Listings" and Generic Story were hilarious...Incidentally, I enjoyed the Disclaimer..."Night of the Steaming Blizzard" was...uh... interesting. And...er...handled well. And an eye opener. I'd always thought that my leanings towards Artemus Gordon were just a variation of my usual infracaninophilism

EDITOR'S NOTE: Cindy didn’t just describe an unnatural act. I believe the word means a love of the underdog.

but obviously. I'm not the only one with the hots for Artie. I mean, Jim West is okay, but when it comes to clothes, he needs a little more variety. Personally, I've always liked the shirt Artie word with the big Byronic sleeves...Ahem. I'm getting distracted... Onward.

Desire Knows No Mercy" by Mel Rondeau was written well enough to be enjoyable, in spite of my relative ignorance about LAREDO. My memory of the show is vague at best, but it seems to me that the characterization of Reese, at least, is right on the nail. I liked the twist of Linda Littletrees being attractive under all the clothing, and I really felt sorry for Joe trying to resist her physical blandishments. Being married to Linda Littletrees would definitely complicate his life.

Famine in a One-Whore's Town is a hard story for me to comment on, because in away, it's fun. But in a larger way it's series and raises some serious questions for me. at least...Leslie Fish offers some potent reasons for the decision which the two men eventually reach, and potent reasons why the situation would arise in other circumstances. And I'm not naive enough to think that homosexuality is a modern invention. I know the etymology of "sodomy" as well as anybody. But I do wonder if, in this, "enlightened" age of ours, anyone has done a scholarly look at the topic of sexuality in the American West.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Yup. Readers interested in the topic might want to check out the book: The Cowboy: Six-Shooters, Songs and Sex by Harris & Rainey, Univ. of Oklahoma Press, 1976.

Any writer, especially of television shows, imposes his own morality upon the time and place he is writing about (unless he has chosen to make a specific effort not to do so.) And although there were plenty of irreligious and immoral individuals in the Golden Age, the pressures of social morals and laws were much stronger (although, interestingly enough, there were no laws against abortion in most of the U.S. until the very late 19th, early 20th Century. About the time when male doctors really took over from the midwives.) As the story points out, there were suggestions that could get you shot (except perhaps in New Orleans, which was decadent from the word go.) Anyway, beyond all that, I found the story well-written (I've come to expect that out of Poncho Press) and the characters fairly well drawn. I don't remember "Have Gun, Will Travel", but I didn't need to, to enjoy the story.

"The Chinese Daughter Torture" was hilarious. Lotta Sleaze—whoever he-she-it is, obviously had a great deal of fun writing that one. And the dialogue rang true--not an easy accomplishment for a farce!

"Dirty Tricks" was also very well done. I had a little trouble imagining Adam testing the...er...waters, so to speak. He always struck me as being a bit on the Puritanical side in some ways. Or maybe I just wasn't paying attention. I was only about 14 when I last watched BONANZA on anything approaching a regular basis.

"The Courting of Miss Lizzie" was quite good. I ended up genuinely liking Colonel Mortimer. When I get my hands on my zines again, though. I'll have to look up the other stories with Dr. Bell. I hadn't noticed her patterns of speech as being so formal before. Probably wasn't paying attention.

"1881" and "50-50" were excellent. What's more, they felt absolutely correct for the characters. The course of events, and the eventual resolution of the problems engendered are right for Noname and Jenny. All my writer's bones are in agreement about that, despite the fact that I only know them from the zine stories. My profound congratulations. I was wondering how you were gonna pull that one off. I shoulda known it would be with flying colors.

"Jack of Hearts" I liked, although I do have a couple of minor creebs. The story seems to be set during Heyes' and The Kid's outlaw days, but he gives his name as Thaddeus Jones—which so far as I know wouldn't happen. Lorn Trevors stuck them with "Smith and Jones" when they began the amnesty try. The other creeb is the mustache, which I like on Kid, but think is an anachronism of the same kind. Of course, he might have had a mustache once, before "Smiler with a Gun". Anything's possible. Other than these minor points, the story is very good. And I think it has Kid's character correct. (As you know, I'm very particular on the subject.) It would be just like him to fall very hard for a girl, and then try to get her set up back home where he would never see her again, but she could be respectable. Heart like warm putty and senses to match when it comes to the girls. Anyway, it's a darn good story. And I liked the illo on page 68. [1]

I enjoyed HAPPY TAILS from cover to cover! "Dirty Tricks" was my favorite. The conflict between Ben and Adam was well-drawn. Adam's patience and compassion with Hoss showed clearly that he wasn't just a stubborn man or a cruel one, either. Some people might say his particular ‘dirty trick' was cruel. Was it? Ben is pretty tough. "The Courting of Miss Lizzie" was enjoyable. I’m glad things worked out all right in the end. Interesting to see the development of a sexual relationship between Noname and Jenny. That relationship, sexual or not, is endlessly fascinating because of those two![2]

References

  1. ^ from a letter of comment in "Wide Open Spaces" #9
  2. ^ from a letter of comment in "Wide Open Spaces" #9
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