Bruce Kiskaddon (1878–1950) has been called the quintessential cowboy poet of the 20th century and is widely considered to be the cowboy

poet laureate A poet laureate (plural: poets laureate) is a poet officially appointed by a government or conferring institution, typically expected to compose poems for special events and occasions. Albertino Mussato of Padua and Francesco Petrarca (Petrarch ...

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. His poems were widely published in calendars and books throughout his lifetime. In the mid-1980s, the birth of the cowboy poetry renaissance renewed interest in his work.Reynolds, William C. "At the Edge of the Spotlight." ''Cowboys & Indians'' July 2007: 100-101. Bruce Harvey Kiskaddon was born in 1878 in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...

. He started his cowboy life in 1898 working in the Picket Wire district of

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. Kiskaddon worked for ten years as a cowboy. He frequently amused his fellow cowboys by writing parodies of songs and putting into rhyme the happenings around the ranch and on the trail.Coggin At the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, Kiskaddon joined the Army and served honorably in France with the cavalry. He remained overseas, spending time in the ranches of Australia as a

jackaroo A jackaroo is a young man (feminine equivalent jillaroo) working on a sheep or cattle station, to gain practical experience in the skills needed to become an owner, overseer, manager, etc. The word originated in Queensland, Australia, in the ...

. When he returned to the United States, he found employment with Tap Duncan, a well-known and successful cattle rancher.Reynolds Kiskaddon entertained his fellow cowboys with his creative rewriting of popular songs. In 1922, with the encouragement of his employer, he wrote western poems about what life was really like in the west. With Duncan's encouragement, Kiskaddon began writing poetry that was both popular with cowboys and the general reading public. In 1924, he published his first book of poetry. In 1926, Kiskaddon left the cowboy life behind for a career in films. He traveled to

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

to audition for a job as an extra in the movie ''

Ben-Hur Ben-Hur or Ben Hur may refer to: Fiction *'' Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ'', an 1880 novel by American general and author Lew Wallace ** ''Ben-Hur'' (play), a play that debuted on Broadway in 1899 ** ''Ben Hur'' (1907 film), a one-reel silent ...

''. He stayed in Hollywood the rest of his life, working as an extra and taking bit parts in

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 ...

. He supported himself mainly working as a

bellhop A bellhop (North America), or hotel porter (international), is a hotel employee who helps patrons with their luggage while checking in or out. Bellhops often wear a uniform (see bell-boy hat), like certain other page boys or doormen. This occupa ...

in Hollywood hotels. He included several of his poems relating to hotel life in his book ''Just As Is'' published in 1928. For years, Kiskaddon's poetry appeared in calendars from the Los Angeles Union Stock Yards. He continued to write and consolidate his poetry and reminisces of life on the range in the '' Western Livestock Journal''. He published collections of his poetry in 1928, 1935, and 1947. The Los Angeles Union Stockyards continued to publish his poems and illustrations in calendars through 1959. Bruce Kiskaddon died in 1950. Today, he is remembered and admired by Cowboy Poetry enthusiasts for his authenticity and skill at invoking life in the west as it once was.

References

External links

Cowboy Poetry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kiskaddon, Bruce 1878 births 1950 deaths Cowboy poets Cowboys