Rattlesnake Under His Hat: The Life & Times of Earl Brockelsby

by Sam Hurst

Earl Brockelsby was a fearless showman, an intrepid entrepreneur, an icon of western tourism and a complex man who struggled with his own demons. Brockelsby’s remarkable biography offers rare insight into the evolution of tourism in the American West in the years after World War II when millions of families piled into their automobiles and set out on vacation adventures that shaped the national identity and fueled the mythology of the region. Born in Kadoka, South Dakota in the last days of the Western frontier, Brockelsby grew up in the badlands and the Black Hills. The oldest of three children, he came of age in the Great Depression. With the carving of Mount Rushmore in progress, he awed tourists at a local roadside attraction by hiding a live rattlesnake under his hat. As a scout and sergeant for the Army in Europe, he witnessed the horrors and depredations of World War II. Brockelsby’s entrepreneurial drive was unleashed after he came home from the war. But as Rattlesnake Under His Hat reveals, his creative mania was paired with bouts of depression and even a nervous breakdown. His Reptile Gardens became one of the most successful roadside attractions in the Hills—the largest private collection of reptiles in North America. College students beat down the doors to “wrestle a gator” for the tourists in the summer and sit around the campfire listening to Earl talk about his adventurous travels into the jungles of Papua New Guinea in search of the largest crocodiles in the world. In Rattlesnake Under His Hat, former NBC News producer, documentary filmmaker and Emmy Award- winning journalist, Sam Hurst, paints a vivid portrait of Earl Brockelsby’s complex life and his influence on the development of western tourism.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

295 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 11, 2016

Reviews

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun book about the conception of Reptile Gardens in Rapid City, SD, and the Brockelsby family.

[Kristi Thielen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Earl Brockelsby is a Black Hills of South Dakota icon; the founder of famous tourist attraction “Reptile Gardens,” and a decades-long and tireless promoter of tourism to that area.

His life story, as related by Sam Hurst in this excellent, enjoyable book, is a tale about the evolution of tourism through the 20th century. As such, it is a valuable read for anyone in tourism. But it is also a story about the evolution of a family, as it encounters the social and political changes of that same century. That gives the book an appeal far beyond the borders of Brockelsby’s home state and chosen profession.

Brockelsby’s depression, business traumas and family dysfunction are dealt with honestly: this is not a sugar-coated story.

Brockelsby’s WW2 experiences are also related candidly. Earl hated the slapdash waste and pointless regimentation of the military and saw American soldiers behave immorally, and criminally, during his time of service. That he (and Hurst) found the courage to reveal this is refreshing, given that many of the book’s readers will be conservative South Dakotans – and that Americans are expected to all but deify WW2 vets.

The book is highly recommended to anyone looking for an engaging biography about someone who took an especially unique life path. And along the way, you’ll learn new things – about rattlesnakes!

[Mark Petruska · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a Rapid City resident, I'd never given much thought to the story behind Reptile Gardens, one of the area's most popular tourist attractions—but after reading the biography of Earl Brockelsby, an extremely complex entrepreneur, businessman, and visionary, I have a deeper respect than ever for the place.

This well-researched biography almost reads like a novel as we follow Earl's adventures from early homesteader to front-line WWII soldier to showman and world traveler. Hurst had access to Earl's family and friends and, to his credit, doesn't shy away from discussing Earl's flaws...but in the end you can't help but admire the man for his salesmanship (he once sold a handful of gravel from the parking lot to a tourist for a dime), generosity, and commitment to creating and maintaining a unique and very special place for future generations.

A fascinating read, even if you have never set foot in South Dakota!

[Roger Amick · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a wonderful story of a life well lead.

Since I grew up in Rapid City South Dakota and went to school with Johnny B, it's a fantastic story. Earl Chase and his family lived a block away from our house. I knew or met many of the people who worked at The Reptile Gardens. I didn't know about his issues, and only met Earl a few times. As Boy Scouts, Earl Chase would take us there in the off season. We got to handle some snakes. I wrapped up a blue snake around my neck and shoulders, and would come up behind the other Scouts, and scare them. Sometimes they didn't like that. But the book is a great story of a unique individual.