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Lost Cause: John Wesley Hardin, the Taylor Sutton Feud, and Reconstruction Texas
Book by Jackson, Jack
153 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1998
55 people want to read
About the author
Jack Jackson
138 books6 followersJack Edward Jackson, better known by his pen name Jaxon, was an American cartoonist, illustrator, historian, and writer. He co-founded Rip Off Press, and many consider him to be the first underground comix artist.
Jackson was born in 1941 in Pandora, Texas. He majored in accounting at the University of Texas and was a staffer for its Texas Ranger humor magazine, until he and others were fired over what he called "a petty censorship violation".
In 1964, Jackson self-published the one-shot God Nose, which is considered by many to be the first underground comic. He moved to San Francisco in 1966, where he became art director of the dance poster division of Family Dog. In 1969, he co-founded Rip Off Press, one of the first independent publishers of underground comix, with three other Texas transplants, Gilbert Shelton, Fred Todd, and Dave Moriaty. Despite this, most of his underground comics work (heavily influenced by EC Comics) was published by Last Gasp.
Jackson was also known for his historical work, documenting the history of Native America and Texas, including the graphic novels Comanche Moon (1979), The Secret of San Saba (1989), Lost Cause (1998), Indian Lover: Sam Houston & the Cherokees (1999), El Alamo (2002), and the written works like Los Mesteños: Spanish Ranching in Texas: 1721–1821 (1986), Indian Agent: Peter Ellis Bean in Mexican Texas (2005), and many others.
Jackson was born in 1941 in Pandora, Texas. He majored in accounting at the University of Texas and was a staffer for its Texas Ranger humor magazine, until he and others were fired over what he called "a petty censorship violation".
In 1964, Jackson self-published the one-shot God Nose, which is considered by many to be the first underground comic. He moved to San Francisco in 1966, where he became art director of the dance poster division of Family Dog. In 1969, he co-founded Rip Off Press, one of the first independent publishers of underground comix, with three other Texas transplants, Gilbert Shelton, Fred Todd, and Dave Moriaty. Despite this, most of his underground comics work (heavily influenced by EC Comics) was published by Last Gasp.
Jackson was also known for his historical work, documenting the history of Native America and Texas, including the graphic novels Comanche Moon (1979), The Secret of San Saba (1989), Lost Cause (1998), Indian Lover: Sam Houston & the Cherokees (1999), El Alamo (2002), and the written works like Los Mesteños: Spanish Ranching in Texas: 1721–1821 (1986), Indian Agent: Peter Ellis Bean in Mexican Texas (2005), and many others.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 24, 2017
Twenty years after publication, I finally read this late work of the late, great Jack Jackson, AKA Jaxon. Publisher, Kitchen Sink, quit business shortly after this appeared, which could be part of why I had not found the book. Another reason: complicated Reconstruction stories and family feuds make this more than simply a biography of gunslinger Hardin. Unreconstructed attitudes appear here, and Jackson uses the awkward term "politically correct" to disavow aspects of race conflict in telling this history. Yet, for my introduction to the life story of Hardin, aside from the c. 1968 Bob Dylan song, I found this nonfiction rich in history. Dour aspects of Jackson's work seem deeply set in, yet his cartooning is rich, as ever. We miss his work.
October 1, 2016
I found this book difficult to follow. It introduces such a litany of characters and switches back and forth between their different tales on a frequent basis.
It also sounds downright racist - which the author, unfortunately, doesn't explain until the afterword when he says he has intentionally tried to use the language the individuals he portrays would have used at the time and the conceptions of other (ethnicities) they would have held.
The reason I give the novel three stars is for the clarity with which it displays the level of violence, racism, and all-around poor behavior present in a time often seen as a more idyllic, desirable past.
You'll be shocked by the number of bodies that are dropped at the slightest provocation.
It also sounds downright racist - which the author, unfortunately, doesn't explain until the afterword when he says he has intentionally tried to use the language the individuals he portrays would have used at the time and the conceptions of other (ethnicities) they would have held.
The reason I give the novel three stars is for the clarity with which it displays the level of violence, racism, and all-around poor behavior present in a time often seen as a more idyllic, desirable past.
You'll be shocked by the number of bodies that are dropped at the slightest provocation.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews