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Lady at the O.K. Corral: The True Story of Josephine Marcus Earp
Lady at the O.K. The True Story of Josephine Marcus Earp by Ann Kirschner is the definitive biography of a Jewish girl from New York who won the heart of Wyatt Earp.For nearly fifty years, she was the common-law wife of Wyatt hero of the O.K. Corral and the most famous lawman of the Old West. Yet Josephine Sarah Marcus Earp has nearly been erased from Western lore. In this fascinating biography, Ann Kirschner, author of the acclaimed Sala's Gift, brings Josephine out of the shadows of history to tell her a spirited and colorful tale of ambition, adventure, self-invention, and devotion. Reflective of America itself, her story brings us from the post–Civil War years to World War II, and from New York to the Arizona Territory to old Hollywood.In Lady at the O.K. Corral, you’ll learn how this aspiring actress and dancer—a flamboyant, curvaceous Jewish girl with a persistent New York accent—landed in Tombstone, Arizona, and sustained a lifelong partnership with Wyatt Earp, a man of uncommon charisma and complex heroism.
320 pages, ebook
First published March 5, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 97 reviews
March 22, 2019
Josephine Marcus Earp made it difficult for biographers to accurately portray her life. Later, she would tell her history how she wished it had been or cover up the parts she didn't want people to remember. It makes it hard for historians to paint an accurate picture of who this complicated woman actually was.
But I think Ann Kirschner, in this biography, does as good of a job as anyone could be expected to considering how convoluted the history is surrounding Josephine.
"The gunfight at the O.K. Corral was a love story, fought over Josephine Marcus, a woman of beauty and spunk barely out of her teens, escaping the restrictions of birth and seeking adventure, independence, and romance." pg 3
It's a shame really. We know so much about Wyatt Earp and his friends. But the women around them have been almost swept into obscurity.
"A sizable group of authenticated photographs testified to Wyatt Earp's undeniable good looks at any age, while there was not a single undisputed photograph of young Josephine, only ones in which she looked more like Sophie Tucker than Penelope Cruz." pg 5
The fragments that are left reveal a woman who was brave and craved adventure. She seemed to have loved deeply and enjoyed gambling. Through extraordinary highs and lows, multiple states, and even the unbelievable gold rush of Nome, Alaska, Josephine lived life to the fullest.
"There was far too much excitement in the air for one to remain long a child," Josephine recalled." pg 22
Josephine's Jewish family seemed rather conservative when compared to her wandering existence. She had siblings who married and raised families, like ordinary folk. One imagines that holiday gatherings were rather interesting.
"The most common occupation for a woman in Tombstone was prostitute or performer. Or both: many of the more attractive prostitutes also performed at the theaters and dance halls in town." pg 47
The end of Josephine's life was devastating compared to the decades of adventure that proceeded it. Penniless and perhaps suffering from dementia, one of the writers she worked with trying to create a definitive history of her life wouldn't answer the door when she came calling. Instead, he'd record the abuse she wrote on notes that she slid under the door.
Her aggressiveness frightened him, and he began to keep track of her visits with handwritten notations on the back of calendar pages, with quotes from her: "I'll get back at you — good and hard." ... Once she stuck her arm through the screen door to reach the doorknob." pgs 217-218
How could that happen? A woman who had once captivated two of the most legendary men in the West reduced to delivering threats when an acquaintance wouldn't let her in the door. Lady at the O.K. Corral helps the reader understand some of the complicated twists and turns in the life of Josephine Marcus Earp, but I'm not sure that historians will ever be able to completely untangle the mixed-up threads of this woman's life.
"As Wyatt's biographer Stuart Lake put it: 'In back of all the fighting, the killing and even Wyatt's duty as a peace officer, the impelling force of his destiny was the nature and acquisition and association in the case of Johnny Behan's girl. That relationship is the key to the whole yarn of Tombstone.' pg 49
I wish there were more historical records to remember this extraordinary woman. It's just sad.
Also, it makes me consider the type of documentation and oral record I'm leaving behind. How history will remember me? Will I be someone with a legacy to remember or just another shadow clinging to the arm of a more successful man? Stay tuned.
But I think Ann Kirschner, in this biography, does as good of a job as anyone could be expected to considering how convoluted the history is surrounding Josephine.
"The gunfight at the O.K. Corral was a love story, fought over Josephine Marcus, a woman of beauty and spunk barely out of her teens, escaping the restrictions of birth and seeking adventure, independence, and romance." pg 3
It's a shame really. We know so much about Wyatt Earp and his friends. But the women around them have been almost swept into obscurity.
"A sizable group of authenticated photographs testified to Wyatt Earp's undeniable good looks at any age, while there was not a single undisputed photograph of young Josephine, only ones in which she looked more like Sophie Tucker than Penelope Cruz." pg 5
The fragments that are left reveal a woman who was brave and craved adventure. She seemed to have loved deeply and enjoyed gambling. Through extraordinary highs and lows, multiple states, and even the unbelievable gold rush of Nome, Alaska, Josephine lived life to the fullest.
"There was far too much excitement in the air for one to remain long a child," Josephine recalled." pg 22
Josephine's Jewish family seemed rather conservative when compared to her wandering existence. She had siblings who married and raised families, like ordinary folk. One imagines that holiday gatherings were rather interesting.
"The most common occupation for a woman in Tombstone was prostitute or performer. Or both: many of the more attractive prostitutes also performed at the theaters and dance halls in town." pg 47
The end of Josephine's life was devastating compared to the decades of adventure that proceeded it. Penniless and perhaps suffering from dementia, one of the writers she worked with trying to create a definitive history of her life wouldn't answer the door when she came calling. Instead, he'd record the abuse she wrote on notes that she slid under the door.
Her aggressiveness frightened him, and he began to keep track of her visits with handwritten notations on the back of calendar pages, with quotes from her: "I'll get back at you — good and hard." ... Once she stuck her arm through the screen door to reach the doorknob." pgs 217-218
How could that happen? A woman who had once captivated two of the most legendary men in the West reduced to delivering threats when an acquaintance wouldn't let her in the door. Lady at the O.K. Corral helps the reader understand some of the complicated twists and turns in the life of Josephine Marcus Earp, but I'm not sure that historians will ever be able to completely untangle the mixed-up threads of this woman's life.
"As Wyatt's biographer Stuart Lake put it: 'In back of all the fighting, the killing and even Wyatt's duty as a peace officer, the impelling force of his destiny was the nature and acquisition and association in the case of Johnny Behan's girl. That relationship is the key to the whole yarn of Tombstone.' pg 49
I wish there were more historical records to remember this extraordinary woman. It's just sad.
Also, it makes me consider the type of documentation and oral record I'm leaving behind. How history will remember me? Will I be someone with a legacy to remember or just another shadow clinging to the arm of a more successful man? Stay tuned.
February 13, 2013
I had understood, but I don't know from where, that Wyatt Earp had a longstanding relationship with a woman from San Francisco and that they both lived long enough to be involved in the early days of Hollywood. I was glad to pick this volume from the Vine program because the woman in Earp's life had to be intriguing.
This book tells the story of the O.K. Corral and how Josephine Marcus was a central, but long neglected, element of this story. Josephine Marcus was the wife of the Sheriff and rival to Wyatt Earp. After the shoot- out, and after Tombstone, she is inexplicably traveling with Wyatt Earp as his wife. She is not a legal wife, but a common law wife, and Wyatt already had a common law wife with a mortgage document as proof.
The travels of this pair read like a term paper - lots of reporting and no analysis. "The Earps" arrive in town and all of a sudden own a bar or Wyatt becomes a law man, and just as suddenly they leave. In the narrative, Earp just happens to have enough money to participate in the San Diego real estate boom and Josephine has "friend" to cover her gambling debts. Even though the couple is scrambling for money, Wyatt gives a mining claim that seems to turn a profit to Josephine's wealthy sister. In later life they live at what is called a "camp" in Vidal, CA. There are a lot of gaps, but Wyatt and Josephine sound like grifters.
The last chapters of the book explain a little of the first. There is a lot Josephine does not want known about herself and Wyatt. She took great care to keep herself out of the story and to make Wyatt a hero. This is the best section of the book, most likely because there are living sources. Author Amy Kirchner has done her homework here and lays it in a readable fashion.
I'm glad this has been brought together. The story of Josephine, regardless of the various interpretations, is an example of how diverse "The West" must have been. Very few women's stories or Jewish stories have emerged, but this book shows that women and Jews were not just there, but part of the story. The final days of Wyatt show how brief a time this "West" existed.
Josephine's story provokes thought. Has women's history been hidden by the women themselves? Were the adventurous women so restrained by the mores of the time that they needed, like Josephine, to keep a "clean story" which would not be as possible for themselves as it would be for men?
The book from Amazon's Vine program has no photos, which could surely add to the test. There is no index. Family trees of the Earp and Marcus families would be helpful. Perhaps these will be included in the final copy.
This book tells the story of the O.K. Corral and how Josephine Marcus was a central, but long neglected, element of this story. Josephine Marcus was the wife of the Sheriff and rival to Wyatt Earp. After the shoot- out, and after Tombstone, she is inexplicably traveling with Wyatt Earp as his wife. She is not a legal wife, but a common law wife, and Wyatt already had a common law wife with a mortgage document as proof.
The travels of this pair read like a term paper - lots of reporting and no analysis. "The Earps" arrive in town and all of a sudden own a bar or Wyatt becomes a law man, and just as suddenly they leave. In the narrative, Earp just happens to have enough money to participate in the San Diego real estate boom and Josephine has "friend" to cover her gambling debts. Even though the couple is scrambling for money, Wyatt gives a mining claim that seems to turn a profit to Josephine's wealthy sister. In later life they live at what is called a "camp" in Vidal, CA. There are a lot of gaps, but Wyatt and Josephine sound like grifters.
The last chapters of the book explain a little of the first. There is a lot Josephine does not want known about herself and Wyatt. She took great care to keep herself out of the story and to make Wyatt a hero. This is the best section of the book, most likely because there are living sources. Author Amy Kirchner has done her homework here and lays it in a readable fashion.
I'm glad this has been brought together. The story of Josephine, regardless of the various interpretations, is an example of how diverse "The West" must have been. Very few women's stories or Jewish stories have emerged, but this book shows that women and Jews were not just there, but part of the story. The final days of Wyatt show how brief a time this "West" existed.
Josephine's story provokes thought. Has women's history been hidden by the women themselves? Were the adventurous women so restrained by the mores of the time that they needed, like Josephine, to keep a "clean story" which would not be as possible for themselves as it would be for men?
The book from Amazon's Vine program has no photos, which could surely add to the test. There is no index. Family trees of the Earp and Marcus families would be helpful. Perhaps these will be included in the final copy.
April 23, 2013
I felt as if this author really WANTED to write a book about Josephine Earp, but didn't really have the material to do so. I left this book having no better idea of Josephine than before I read it (and I really didn't have any idea of her before.) She presents contradicting information but never really makes the case that either of the pieces of information are true. Worse, it seems as if she is given pieces of information but either doesn't follow up on them, or doesn't share it with us. (Such as when she shares that Josephine only saved one letter from her mother, but then doesn't tell us what the significance of this letter is.) No.
May 19, 2013
After reading Mary Doria Russell's Doc, I was excited to get a book on another larger-than-life figure from the O.K. Corral.. well, kind of. Still, a look at the woman who was married to Wyatt Earp was pretty darn close to that figure, and I was very, very curious about her.
The Lady at the OK Corral is the story of Josephine Earp, the common-law wife of Wyatt Earp (or one of many apparently). Not much of this book is spent on the big showdown at the corral which is, apparently, just as Josephine would have wanted. But the result is a story about lawsuits, libel suits, and fighting over a biography that, to be honest, I had never heard about.
Josephine was a spunky woman, there's no denying that. The parts of the book that focus on her actual life talk about the rough manner of living she and Wyatt embraced - traveling, never putting down roots, living through intense heats and bonedeep colds. What struck me the most was just how mobile they were, and just how much money Wyatt Earp was capable of making. Throughout the book there is mention time, and time again, of how Earp was cheated of the royalties from people using his name...but I saw over and over how he and Josephine really used that name to make quite a bit of money (at one point, in one year, I believe the equivalent was 1 million dollars today).
The result? This book ends up seeming like a cross between a grand adventure and a whine-fest. And, ultimately, the whining and lawsuits got to me and I just lost interest. Such a shame - I was hoping to hear more stories and less about her battles to make sure that Earp was portrayed as a "good" man.
The Lady at the OK Corral is the story of Josephine Earp, the common-law wife of Wyatt Earp (or one of many apparently). Not much of this book is spent on the big showdown at the corral which is, apparently, just as Josephine would have wanted. But the result is a story about lawsuits, libel suits, and fighting over a biography that, to be honest, I had never heard about.
Josephine was a spunky woman, there's no denying that. The parts of the book that focus on her actual life talk about the rough manner of living she and Wyatt embraced - traveling, never putting down roots, living through intense heats and bonedeep colds. What struck me the most was just how mobile they were, and just how much money Wyatt Earp was capable of making. Throughout the book there is mention time, and time again, of how Earp was cheated of the royalties from people using his name...but I saw over and over how he and Josephine really used that name to make quite a bit of money (at one point, in one year, I believe the equivalent was 1 million dollars today).
The result? This book ends up seeming like a cross between a grand adventure and a whine-fest. And, ultimately, the whining and lawsuits got to me and I just lost interest. Such a shame - I was hoping to hear more stories and less about her battles to make sure that Earp was portrayed as a "good" man.
July 23, 2019
I really liked this because you finally get to know the woman who became the common-law wife of Wyatt Earp. It tells of her life in Tombstone and then her life and adventures of life with Wyatt. It tells of the mining adventures to Alaska and in other places, their ups and downs. It tells of how Josephine wanted the world to know that Wyatt was a good man and that he never did any wrong. She painted a picture of a man with no flaws because she did not want the world to know her past and all the times he cheated on her. All in all I think she and Wyatt were just two people who lived in a time were you did what you had to do to survive. I think Wyatt lived by his own code some of it good and other times outside the law, and she lived her life (after she met him) devoted to him.
July 23, 2016
While the life of Josephine seems like an interesting one, this biography was a disappointment. I read an advanced copy, so some roughness was to be expected, but the writing was repetitive, choppy, and there were some odd choices in how the narrative flowed which amounted to an uncomfortable read. I was also disappointed in how much of the story was supposition or hearsay. As another reviewer notes, this book is an interesting read into the history of how history is reinterpreted, and the story of how Wyatt's and Josephine's stories were reinterpreted and re-imagined by different generations more than a biography of Josephine.
All that said, the bit about their adventures in Alaska made me want to read more about the history of the gold rushes in Alaska, particularly Nome.
All that said, the bit about their adventures in Alaska made me want to read more about the history of the gold rushes in Alaska, particularly Nome.
August 7, 2013
I thought I would love this book. I really enjoy American history and genealogy. I thought this would be a great way to learn about Wyatt Earp and his Jewish wife. Unfortunately, I felt the writing style was choppy, and the factual base shaky at best, and moved it to my Could Not Finish shelf.
Read
March 8, 2013Kind of an odd book. It felt more like the story of Wyatt Earp told through the eyes of Josephine Marcus than the story of Josephine Marcus. But Wyatt was pretty kick-ass, so.
April 8, 2021
Really enjoyed the book and the immense amount of research. Still not sure how I feel about Josephine.
January 18, 2013
There were three women he had considered himself married to before her, but Josephine Marcus Earp was Wyatt Earp’s common-law wife for fifty years. She was around for the famous shoot out at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona, she panned for gold by his side in the wilds of Alaska, and she tried to mold his image to her liking in the early days of Hollywood while leaving herself as far out of the story as possible.
Josephine was Jewish, but though she returned to her roots and buried Wyatt in a Jewish graveyard when he died, religion wasn’t a big part of her life during the years she and Wyatt were together. Her family had moved from Poland to New York City and then San Francisco while she was still young, but the limitations of city society didn’t offer Josephine the life she wanted. She left for Tombstone as a teenager seeking adventure, and she and Wyatt were living as husband and wife to other people when they met. The fact that Wyatt deserted a woman who later died as a prostitute to be with her was embarrassing to Josephine, and it was part of the reason she didn’t want the particulars of her past tainting the legend of the man she loved.
Since Josephine actively tried to suppress her own part in Wyatt’s life, author Ann Kirschner had a challenging job researching this book, but she has succeeded in making Lady at the O.K. Corral fascinating as both a biography of a spirited woman and a history of the rapidly changing American West. Though Josephine only wanted one side of his story told, Wyatt Earp was a lot more complicated than the brave, courageous and bold frontier man who cleaned up the West in the 1950’s TV show. It’s true Wyatt was briefly a lawman but he also spent time in jail himself, and he earned his living as a respected saloon owner, a prospector, a gambler and a pimp while he and Josephine moved from boomtown to boomtown, seeking their fortunes.
Josephine was Jewish, but though she returned to her roots and buried Wyatt in a Jewish graveyard when he died, religion wasn’t a big part of her life during the years she and Wyatt were together. Her family had moved from Poland to New York City and then San Francisco while she was still young, but the limitations of city society didn’t offer Josephine the life she wanted. She left for Tombstone as a teenager seeking adventure, and she and Wyatt were living as husband and wife to other people when they met. The fact that Wyatt deserted a woman who later died as a prostitute to be with her was embarrassing to Josephine, and it was part of the reason she didn’t want the particulars of her past tainting the legend of the man she loved.
Since Josephine actively tried to suppress her own part in Wyatt’s life, author Ann Kirschner had a challenging job researching this book, but she has succeeded in making Lady at the O.K. Corral fascinating as both a biography of a spirited woman and a history of the rapidly changing American West. Though Josephine only wanted one side of his story told, Wyatt Earp was a lot more complicated than the brave, courageous and bold frontier man who cleaned up the West in the 1950’s TV show. It’s true Wyatt was briefly a lawman but he also spent time in jail himself, and he earned his living as a respected saloon owner, a prospector, a gambler and a pimp while he and Josephine moved from boomtown to boomtown, seeking their fortunes.
April 23, 2013
As a resident of Arizona for the past twenty years I find the history interesting, sometimes captivating and quite revealing for "what I thought" I knew. This is not memoir or historical fiction, which I think would have made for a more enjoyable and easier read. This is straight biography, well-researched and alive with new info. However, the research (when you get to the end) is the pinnacle of its substance. There must be fifty pages of documented sources.
SO Wyatt Earp, good-looking keeper of peace (?) and straight-up guy (?) left his common law wife, Mattie, for the likes of a Jewish beauty. They were committed to each other in some way no doubt, either kinky or not, and there is much to learn as you plough through their lives and exit. No winners, no clear unequivocal opinion on just what happened at the O.K. Corral, among other things.
However, since I have lived here for so long and do in my own way have adopted the spirit of the west and have visited Tombstone many times, it was an okay read. No pun intended.
SO Wyatt Earp, good-looking keeper of peace (?) and straight-up guy (?) left his common law wife, Mattie, for the likes of a Jewish beauty. They were committed to each other in some way no doubt, either kinky or not, and there is much to learn as you plough through their lives and exit. No winners, no clear unequivocal opinion on just what happened at the O.K. Corral, among other things.
However, since I have lived here for so long and do in my own way have adopted the spirit of the west and have visited Tombstone many times, it was an okay read. No pun intended.
April 25, 2013
My reactions to this book are mixed. On the one hand, we need more biographies of the women in American history who have long been background players. Kudos for writing about a women who was strong-willed, resilient, and adventurous. The book is also a great drama of how history is shaped by those who record it (including the players themselves), the vagaries of memory, and the sins of ego and greed.
On the other hand, Josephine Earp spent so much of her time trying to shape her and Wyatt's story that we never see her except as a reflection of her devotion to Wyatt. She covered up much of her personal history and lived in the shadows as a companion. After Wyatt's death, she worked hard to shape his reputation, and many found her unlikeable and manipulative.
Like the picture on the cover (which may or may not be Josephine) this book may or may not reveal Josephine's true story. The author does a great job of uncovering the evidence of the complicated woman "behind" the legendary lawman.
On the other hand, Josephine Earp spent so much of her time trying to shape her and Wyatt's story that we never see her except as a reflection of her devotion to Wyatt. She covered up much of her personal history and lived in the shadows as a companion. After Wyatt's death, she worked hard to shape his reputation, and many found her unlikeable and manipulative.
Like the picture on the cover (which may or may not be Josephine) this book may or may not reveal Josephine's true story. The author does a great job of uncovering the evidence of the complicated woman "behind" the legendary lawman.
April 15, 2015
Spirited and splendid book about Wyatt Earp's little known common-law missus and the life she and her famous husband led. The Earps seem to have lived everywhere - Arizona, California, Alaska - and always at the time when that locale was making history.
Josephine had a lifelong desire to bury most of her own history, while working feverishly to maintain her husband's. But her desire to sanitize his story put her at odds with the various biographers she sought out through the early decades of the 20th century. The story of her on-again, off-again relationships with a number of beleagured writers makes the book especially compelling.
If only Josephine could be alive today! Her Jewish birth, her colorful but unladylike background, her unconventional marriage - the very things she sought to hide - are the ones for which she is, and should be, celebrated.
Josephine had a lifelong desire to bury most of her own history, while working feverishly to maintain her husband's. But her desire to sanitize his story put her at odds with the various biographers she sought out through the early decades of the 20th century. The story of her on-again, off-again relationships with a number of beleagured writers makes the book especially compelling.
If only Josephine could be alive today! Her Jewish birth, her colorful but unladylike background, her unconventional marriage - the very things she sought to hide - are the ones for which she is, and should be, celebrated.
August 10, 2013
This is an interesting account of the real-life adventure and life experience of those who chose to venture around the Wild West. From Arizona to Alaska and back again, the Earps lived the trail of gold, sometimes for the better and sometimes not so glittery. Its an interesting read--and although it starts off with the clearly stated issue that Josephine is a Jewish person in the Wild West--it does not appear that religion was a factor in how her life unfolded in all those years with Wyatt Earp.
I love reading bios of those who made a name for themselves in the Wild West--I read one every summer. This is worth the time to read. It made me realize that NOW is not the only time in American history when things can change very quickly. . .
March 21, 2013
Josephine Marcus Earp spent a good portion of her life sanitizing the story of her common law husband Wyatt Earp to present him in the best light. Josephine was an interesting woman that lived a vibrant life. It is a shame that she was so worried that the truth of her past would get out. Now it has and she can finally be better known.
March 22, 2013
I tried to read this book but could not get past her writing. It's awful.
January 19, 2016
I really liked this book! The story of Josephine Earp, Wyatt's wife. A study in contrasts with history admirably researched and told.
October 29, 2025
I recently finished watching Wynonna Earp (a now-concluded SyFy television original that I would highly recommend) and realized that, beyond the tidbits in the show and the movie Tombstone from when I was a child, I didn't actually know anything about Wyatt Earp's wives (I find him less interesting). Luckily, my library had a copy of this book.
Kirschner did an excellent job of constructing a biography of a woman who tried to hide various aspects of her life from the historical record. Including the fact that she and Wyatt Earp appear to have never been legally married. By using interviews and primary sources, Kirschner was able to put the pieces together of Josephine's life to provide a portrait of a complicated woman married to a man viewed as more myth than man.
I will say that I did struggle to buy Kirschner's argument that the OK Coral was the result of a conflict between Behan and Earp for Josephine's attention. I can see that it could have been a factor in the events that unfolded, but it didn't feel like there was enough evidence to prove that Josephine was the catalyst. Especially since Kirschner details how Behan and Earp had a complicated relationship surrounding politics before Earp and Josephine became involved.
Overall, I did not walk away from this book particularly liking Josephine as a person, but I think this speaks to Kirschner's dogged research. Kirschner was able to show Josephine "warts and all" and show that the last Mrs. Earp was a complicated woman who devoted her life to the legacy of her beloved husband. All while continuing to chase adventure and mischief wherever she went.
This book also caused me to seek out other books on Josephine, as well as the other women married to Wyatt and his brothers. I'm particularly interested in the tragedy of Mattie Earp. Kirschner's exploration of Mattie's story, even though brief, highlighted how Wyatt horribly mistreated her and how that mistreatment was compounded by history forgetting her. This part of the story also endeared Ali Earp to me.
If you are interested in learning about the women present for the OK Coral, I would recommend this book. There is a brief period in the middle where Josephine sort of disappears from view, being subsumed by the sources that focus more on the men involved in the story, but you finish having learned a great deal about Josephine Marcus Earp.
CONTENT WARNINGS
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Murder, Toxic friendship
Moderate: Antisemitism, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation
Minor: Racism, Dementia, Death of a parent, Pregnancy
Josephine has a pregnancy that results in a stillbirth. Wyatt participates in what history refers to as the Vengeance Ride. He is technically a member of the law at this point, but his actions were not within the bounds of the law.
Kirschner did an excellent job of constructing a biography of a woman who tried to hide various aspects of her life from the historical record. Including the fact that she and Wyatt Earp appear to have never been legally married. By using interviews and primary sources, Kirschner was able to put the pieces together of Josephine's life to provide a portrait of a complicated woman married to a man viewed as more myth than man.
I will say that I did struggle to buy Kirschner's argument that the OK Coral was the result of a conflict between Behan and Earp for Josephine's attention. I can see that it could have been a factor in the events that unfolded, but it didn't feel like there was enough evidence to prove that Josephine was the catalyst. Especially since Kirschner details how Behan and Earp had a complicated relationship surrounding politics before Earp and Josephine became involved.
Overall, I did not walk away from this book particularly liking Josephine as a person, but I think this speaks to Kirschner's dogged research. Kirschner was able to show Josephine "warts and all" and show that the last Mrs. Earp was a complicated woman who devoted her life to the legacy of her beloved husband. All while continuing to chase adventure and mischief wherever she went.
This book also caused me to seek out other books on Josephine, as well as the other women married to Wyatt and his brothers. I'm particularly interested in the tragedy of Mattie Earp. Kirschner's exploration of Mattie's story, even though brief, highlighted how Wyatt horribly mistreated her and how that mistreatment was compounded by history forgetting her. This part of the story also endeared Ali Earp to me.
If you are interested in learning about the women present for the OK Coral, I would recommend this book. There is a brief period in the middle where Josephine sort of disappears from view, being subsumed by the sources that focus more on the men involved in the story, but you finish having learned a great deal about Josephine Marcus Earp.
CONTENT WARNINGS
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Murder, Toxic friendship
Moderate: Antisemitism, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation
Minor: Racism, Dementia, Death of a parent, Pregnancy
Josephine has a pregnancy that results in a stillbirth. Wyatt participates in what history refers to as the Vengeance Ride. He is technically a member of the law at this point, but his actions were not within the bounds of the law.
July 19, 2021
If you didn't know that Wyatt Earp was buried in a Jewish cemetery, or that his companion for 45 years was a Jewish woman from New York...join the club.
These intriguing facts were enough to get me to read Ann Kirschner's lively and informative biography of Josephine Marcus, by all accounts a petite, sexy woman who fled middle class comfort and conformity for a life of nomadic adventure. She hailed from a middle class Jewish family that moved to San Francisco from New York City. From an early age, Josephine was the family rebel, running away from home to seek adventure in the untamed west.
For a while she was the, uh, consort of the smooth-talking, back-slapping Johnny Behan, sheriff of Cochise County, who was also Wyatt Earp's bitter political and professional adversary. Frustrated that the good sheriff never divorced his wife, Josephine switched horses, so to speak, and became Earp's common law wife for the next half-century--a less than kosher status that Josephine tried to keep hidden. There are strong suggestions that the bad blood between the sheriff and Marshall Earp over Josephine Marcus led to the deadly confrontation at the OK Corral. Interestingly, Kirshner does not describe that famous shootout itself in any detail.
In telling story of Marcus, Kirschner also tells the checkered story of Wyatt Earp, admired as a legendary frontier lawman or reviled as a cold blooded killer. In most versions of the Wyatt Earp saga, Josephine Marcus is pretty much invisible, though much of her life was invested in keeping Earp's reputation as pristine and iconic at the Marlboro Man. Indeed Wyatt Earp's Wikipedia entry identifies Josephine as his "concubine" -- even though they lived as husband and wife for nearly a half-century. (Someone ought to correct that entry!)
Wyatt Earp may have been a legend, but he also had to eat. Kirschner shows how Earp and Marcus travelled from one boom town to the next, trying to make enough money to live large, sometimes successfully, other times not so much.
Interestingly, Wyatt Earp was of the generation that lived through the violent, wild west era to see the beginnings of Hollywood. Though many books and movies were made about the Earp brothers and the gunfight at the OK Corral, Earp did not profit from them, much to Marcus' chagrin. When Earp died in 1929, it was Josephine that had him cremated and his ashes buried in her family's plot in Hills of Eternity Jewish cemetery in San Francisco. Marcus herself died in December 1944 and her ashes were put to rest near Earp's.
This is an enjoyable read, one that has enough 'gee-whiz-I-didn't-know-that' pop to keep you turning the page.
These intriguing facts were enough to get me to read Ann Kirschner's lively and informative biography of Josephine Marcus, by all accounts a petite, sexy woman who fled middle class comfort and conformity for a life of nomadic adventure. She hailed from a middle class Jewish family that moved to San Francisco from New York City. From an early age, Josephine was the family rebel, running away from home to seek adventure in the untamed west.
For a while she was the, uh, consort of the smooth-talking, back-slapping Johnny Behan, sheriff of Cochise County, who was also Wyatt Earp's bitter political and professional adversary. Frustrated that the good sheriff never divorced his wife, Josephine switched horses, so to speak, and became Earp's common law wife for the next half-century--a less than kosher status that Josephine tried to keep hidden. There are strong suggestions that the bad blood between the sheriff and Marshall Earp over Josephine Marcus led to the deadly confrontation at the OK Corral. Interestingly, Kirshner does not describe that famous shootout itself in any detail.
In telling story of Marcus, Kirschner also tells the checkered story of Wyatt Earp, admired as a legendary frontier lawman or reviled as a cold blooded killer. In most versions of the Wyatt Earp saga, Josephine Marcus is pretty much invisible, though much of her life was invested in keeping Earp's reputation as pristine and iconic at the Marlboro Man. Indeed Wyatt Earp's Wikipedia entry identifies Josephine as his "concubine" -- even though they lived as husband and wife for nearly a half-century. (Someone ought to correct that entry!)
Wyatt Earp may have been a legend, but he also had to eat. Kirschner shows how Earp and Marcus travelled from one boom town to the next, trying to make enough money to live large, sometimes successfully, other times not so much.
Interestingly, Wyatt Earp was of the generation that lived through the violent, wild west era to see the beginnings of Hollywood. Though many books and movies were made about the Earp brothers and the gunfight at the OK Corral, Earp did not profit from them, much to Marcus' chagrin. When Earp died in 1929, it was Josephine that had him cremated and his ashes buried in her family's plot in Hills of Eternity Jewish cemetery in San Francisco. Marcus herself died in December 1944 and her ashes were put to rest near Earp's.
This is an enjoyable read, one that has enough 'gee-whiz-I-didn't-know-that' pop to keep you turning the page.
July 29, 2020
Rather mixed feelings about this tome.
On the one hand, it's vital that we have reliable accounts of the women involved in the Old West. I am all for this! And we were certainly overdue for a biography of Josie after Glenn Boyer's "I Married Wyatt Earp" was discredited. Kirshner considers Josie's life at length, and there's some really fascinating episodes such as the winter she and Wyatt spent in Rampart, Alaska, which sounded like the happiest months of her life. Kirschner also explores Josie's later efforts to tell and/or control Wyatt's story and then her own, and what happened to all the manuscripts and so on after Josie's death. All good stuff.
On the other hand, the title made me cringe and the OTT introduction was worse. Kirschner seems to want to place Josie at the core of the conflicts that led into and away from the OK Corral. The Behan-Josie-Wyatt-Mattie mess is interesting enough without trying to make it anything more than a privately played-out subplot. We don't need to exaggerate these things in order to make the women important. They're already important.
My annoyance at this was only exacerbated by the condensed and at times inaccurate retelling of the Tombstone story. Josie cast a veil over this period in her own memoirs, due (we assume) to her embarrassment over the love quadrangle and her guilt over the discarded Mattie. So Kirschner recounts this part under her own steam, and doesn't always get it right.
On the plus side again, this is the first time I've heard of diarist George Parsons mentioning (and condemning as sinful) a lesbian couple in Tombstone, embracing in public no less. Huzzah!
So, I'm glad this book exists, and I did get plenty from it. I just wish it was a little more polished.
On the one hand, it's vital that we have reliable accounts of the women involved in the Old West. I am all for this! And we were certainly overdue for a biography of Josie after Glenn Boyer's "I Married Wyatt Earp" was discredited. Kirshner considers Josie's life at length, and there's some really fascinating episodes such as the winter she and Wyatt spent in Rampart, Alaska, which sounded like the happiest months of her life. Kirschner also explores Josie's later efforts to tell and/or control Wyatt's story and then her own, and what happened to all the manuscripts and so on after Josie's death. All good stuff.
On the other hand, the title made me cringe and the OTT introduction was worse. Kirschner seems to want to place Josie at the core of the conflicts that led into and away from the OK Corral. The Behan-Josie-Wyatt-Mattie mess is interesting enough without trying to make it anything more than a privately played-out subplot. We don't need to exaggerate these things in order to make the women important. They're already important.
My annoyance at this was only exacerbated by the condensed and at times inaccurate retelling of the Tombstone story. Josie cast a veil over this period in her own memoirs, due (we assume) to her embarrassment over the love quadrangle and her guilt over the discarded Mattie. So Kirschner recounts this part under her own steam, and doesn't always get it right.
On the plus side again, this is the first time I've heard of diarist George Parsons mentioning (and condemning as sinful) a lesbian couple in Tombstone, embracing in public no less. Huzzah!
So, I'm glad this book exists, and I did get plenty from it. I just wish it was a little more polished.
June 9, 2020
I enjoyed reading this book about the life of Josephine Marcus, common law wife to Wyatt Earp. I had read a novel about her life, and decided I wanted to read a non-fiction biography about her interesting life to learn more about the real Josephine.
I found the beginning part, especially writing about the OK Corral as a dull part of the book. Often, Josephine is placed here, and then there, without really getting to know her well. Once I got accustomed to this style of writing, the book picked up. The travels of Josephine and Wyatt were of most interest. Living in Alaska, hanging out in San Diego, San Francisco...I learned about Josephine from all the historical events taking place.
She was an outlier of her time. She gave up the life of a traditional wife and mother, for a life of adventure and excitement. Living in the moment, horse racing, gambling, yes, Josephine was a unique woman of her time.
It was sad toward the end of her life, how she conducted herself. Most likely, she was suffering from dementia and became very paranoid of writers wanting to make a buck off the Earp legend. Wyatt was her life; she made no bones about it. She was faithful to her own version of the stories, and was what some might call "a tough broad!"
I enjoyed this book and I learned a lot. It's powerful to read about the women behind the man, women who defied the norms of their times.... Josephine lived her life the way she wanted and was with the man she loved and cared for deeply.
I'm glad Ann Kirschner has given Josephine a rightful place in history. Well-researched and well- chronicled book!
I found the beginning part, especially writing about the OK Corral as a dull part of the book. Often, Josephine is placed here, and then there, without really getting to know her well. Once I got accustomed to this style of writing, the book picked up. The travels of Josephine and Wyatt were of most interest. Living in Alaska, hanging out in San Diego, San Francisco...I learned about Josephine from all the historical events taking place.
She was an outlier of her time. She gave up the life of a traditional wife and mother, for a life of adventure and excitement. Living in the moment, horse racing, gambling, yes, Josephine was a unique woman of her time.
It was sad toward the end of her life, how she conducted herself. Most likely, she was suffering from dementia and became very paranoid of writers wanting to make a buck off the Earp legend. Wyatt was her life; she made no bones about it. She was faithful to her own version of the stories, and was what some might call "a tough broad!"
I enjoyed this book and I learned a lot. It's powerful to read about the women behind the man, women who defied the norms of their times.... Josephine lived her life the way she wanted and was with the man she loved and cared for deeply.
I'm glad Ann Kirschner has given Josephine a rightful place in history. Well-researched and well- chronicled book!
December 15, 2023
As someone who didn't know much of anything about Josephine Marcus Earp, other than whatever accurate-or-not portrayal we saw of her in the movie, "Tombstone," this was fascinating reading, and I particularly enjoyed the parts describing Wyatt and Josephine's time in the hinterlands of Alaska. That must have been a harrowing affair, both living there and getting back and forth to places like Nome and Rampart. In some ways, Josephine was a trailblazer, in that she eschewed some aspects of the traditional feminine mystique of the time, donning regular pants and gear to accompany Wyatt on their mining expeditions and (possibly) posing for certain provocative photographs at Behan's place in Tombstone. But in most every other way, she intentionally always stood - behind - her man and worked, apparently until her dying day, to elevate Wyatt's story and veil her own.
As the reader, almost a century hence from Josephine's death, it is difficult from Kirschner's account to suss out what actually happened in Josephine's life beyond the high points, and I'm not sure that, given the myriad books that preceded this one, how much of it is new information, such that "Lady at the O.K. Corral," fascinating as it is, reads almost like a summary of the available research up to this point (in 2013) on Josephine's life. If anything, the book did make me interested in checking out Casey Tefertiller and Allen Barra's books about Wyatt to see if there are more details not covered here.
As the reader, almost a century hence from Josephine's death, it is difficult from Kirschner's account to suss out what actually happened in Josephine's life beyond the high points, and I'm not sure that, given the myriad books that preceded this one, how much of it is new information, such that "Lady at the O.K. Corral," fascinating as it is, reads almost like a summary of the available research up to this point (in 2013) on Josephine's life. If anything, the book did make me interested in checking out Casey Tefertiller and Allen Barra's books about Wyatt to see if there are more details not covered here.
April 15, 2019
So excited to finish this book as it was one of the many I purchased on a Costco shopping spree and started years ago. Probably started when I allowed myself to start the 10 other books I also bought at Costco that day ha!
I'm always a sucker for autobiographies when there are pictures involved. But besides putting a few pictures in this book, the author does a great job sorting fact from fiction and tracking down connected lineage to Wyatt Earp's third wife, Josephine Marcus Earp. As with any good western cowboy ghost, there is many a fable that follows him and his wives. It's very apparent in this book that Ann Kirschner had her work cut out for her as she traced the Earp's galavanting from the California deserts to Chicago, Josephine's New York lineage, Wyatt's infamous OK Corral skirmish in Arizona, gold digging in Nome, Alaska, and even a small homage to my home town area near the northern regions of Idaho in Spokane, Washington.
"In that long road trip she took from Tombstone to Hollywood with Wyatt, she was not always the driver, but you can bet that she was never in the back seat. She was the one holding the map and laughing all the way."
I'm always a sucker for autobiographies when there are pictures involved. But besides putting a few pictures in this book, the author does a great job sorting fact from fiction and tracking down connected lineage to Wyatt Earp's third wife, Josephine Marcus Earp. As with any good western cowboy ghost, there is many a fable that follows him and his wives. It's very apparent in this book that Ann Kirschner had her work cut out for her as she traced the Earp's galavanting from the California deserts to Chicago, Josephine's New York lineage, Wyatt's infamous OK Corral skirmish in Arizona, gold digging in Nome, Alaska, and even a small homage to my home town area near the northern regions of Idaho in Spokane, Washington.
"In that long road trip she took from Tombstone to Hollywood with Wyatt, she was not always the driver, but you can bet that she was never in the back seat. She was the one holding the map and laughing all the way."
June 12, 2025
My husband and I both enjoy historical information about the Old West so this book really just leaped out at me. I really had little to no knowledge regarding Wyatt Earp's life...other than what I'd seen on TV. So, this was a fascinating look I how life was for Wyatt and Josephine...never really married but together for 40 plus years. Most of their lives were spent in traveling about and having adventures. They would sometimes live in fancy hotels and sometimes in rough camping situations, but Josephine was definitely an important part of Wyatt's life and protected him to the best of her ability from the time they got together to the day she died. Very interesting book.
November 27, 2025
An interesting read but I’m still not quite convinced that the fight at the OK Corral was about Josephine. Seems a lot of information Josephine presented was questionable because she was trying to preserve Wyatt‘s name. All in all an enjoyable read especially the last few chapters; just knowing these historical figures lived into relatively modern times seeing cars, phones and movies.
July 11, 2020
All about the woman in Wyatt Earp's life. Read this along with Ride the Devil's Herd: Wyatt Earp's Epic Battle with the West's Biggest Outlaw Gang. It was like stepping back in time to a very wild and sometime lawless setting. Adventures galore, in the life of Josephine as she travels with Wyatt.
March 16, 2024
I enjoyed reading another perspective of the events and people Tombstone, the O.K Corral and what transpired in ensuing years. I now have a more rounded view of both Wyatt Earp and his wife Josephine.
April 14, 2024
This is an excellent history and biography. I read it 10 years ago when I met the author at a book talk at the Autrey Museum. My book club picked it and I just re-read it. Excellent research, excellent writing, very interesting people. Very honest.
September 20, 2024
Just One of Wyatt Carl's Common Law Wives
An interesting, if overlong, biography of Josephine Marcus Earl - the third common law wife and the one whose marriage lasted nearly fifty years. Josephine jumped through hoops, figuratively, to protect Wyatt's image and her own.
An interesting, if overlong, biography of Josephine Marcus Earl - the third common law wife and the one whose marriage lasted nearly fifty years. Josephine jumped through hoops, figuratively, to protect Wyatt's image and her own.
December 1, 2024
This book was a disappointment...it is a fascinating story, but written like a dry research report. I love history, but had a difficult time reading this book. The author definitely did her research well, and covered the facts of a story that has been told inaccurately many times.
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