Jack Slade, Scurrilous Frontier Scoundrel, Comes to Life July 17 During American West Program at Colorado State

Most of us nowadays carry wallets, keys and other accoutrements of modern life in our pockets. In the wild frontier days, however, a rascal named Jack Slade carried… something else altogether.

Find out more about the nefarious Slade during an American West Program discussion called "An Ear in His Pocket – The Life of Jack Slade" by Kenneth Jessen from Loveland, Colo., July 17 at Colorado State University.

Jessen has written 12 books on Colorado and the West, including the recently published third volume of "Ghost Towns, Colorado Style." He also is author of more than 620 published articles and several booklets. He belongs to the Colorado Historical Society and is a founder of the Western Outlaw-Lawman Historical Association.

The talk is part of the 24th American West Program, which continues through July 31. Highlighting the series this year is an appearance next week by Belle Starr, the "Bandit Queen" of the West, as portrayed by performance artist VanAnn Moore.

Following is a schedule of events for the series. All talks begin at 7:30 p.m. in Room C146 Plant Sciences Building except for the July 24 program, which takes place in the Lory Student Center Theatre. All events are free and open to the public.

This year’s American West Program is supported by the Office of the Academic Vice President/Provost and by the Lilla B. Morgan Memorial Fund.

For more information, call Harry Rosenberg, history professor and coordinator of the American West series, at 491-5230.

• July 17 – "An Ear in His Pocket – The Life of Jack Slade," Kenneth Jessen, Loveland, Colo.
• July 24 – "Belle Starr, the Lady Bandit," VanAnn Moore, Belen, N.M., accompanied by Mark Zwillig, Denver. The performance takes place in the Lory Student Center Theatre.
• July 31 – "No God West of Fort Smith: The Outlaws of the Indian Territory," Garrick Bailey, Department of Anthropology, University of Tulsa, Okla.