Mark J. Dworkin
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Mark J. Dworkin | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 21, 1946 |
| Died | August 31, 2012 (aged 66) |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1990–2012 |
Mark J. Dworkin (January 21, 1946 – August 31, 2012) [1] was a Canadian writer of American Western history and an author, notable for his publication, American Mythmaker: Walter Noble Burns and the Legends of Billy the Kid, Wyatt Earp, and Joaquín Murrieta.[2] Dworkin was a noted historian, researcher and editor, and considered an expert on Central and South American cultures. In 1990, he wrote Mayas, Aztecs, and Incas: Mysteries of ancient civilizations of Central and South America[3], a popular textbook, still in use in many schools[4]
Walter Noble Burns Biography
Mark J. Dworkin compiled American Mythmaker: Walter Noble Burns and the Legends of Billy the Kid, Wyatt Earp, and Joaquin Murrieta, the biography of Walter Noble Burns. Burns's books brought Wild West legends to American culture during the 1920s, which included movies, radio programs, new books about the Wild West - and later, 1950s television shows about the Wild West. Without Burns, few Americans would likely know about Billy the Kid today.[5] Dworkin showed how Burns had introduced the American West to the 1920s readers - during which time, Burns made his subjects household names.[6]
During the 1920s, Walter Noble Burns was America’s popular chronicler of the American Old West. His newspaper reporter background enabled him with research skills that most Western writers were lacking, and his publications were marketed as true histories. Dworkin sought to establish that Burns wasn’t just writing potboilers, but was an early practitioner of creative non-fiction. Dworkin argued that Burns intentionally created mythology for America. [7] American Mythmaker brought Mark J. Dworkin a 2012 Spur Award finalist nomination for best Western short nonfiction, prior to his death.[8]
Wild West Editing Career
Mark J. Dworkin's articles were published in Wild West Magazine, True West Magazine and several others.[9] Dworkin served as book review editor of the Wild West History Association Journal[10] [11] and for almost four years as the editor of the Wild West History Association's "Review of the West" column.[12] He also wrote several Wyatt Earp related articles, as well as for Virgil Earp for the Western Outlaw-Lawman History Association, WOLA.[13] Those articles provided well-researched facts about the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona on October 26, 1881.
Publications
- American mythmaker : Walter Noble Burns and the legends of Billy the Kid, Wyatt Earp, and Joaquin Murrieta, by Mark J. Dworkin, 2015
- Mayas, Aztecs, and Incas : Mysteries of ancient civilizations of Central and South America, by Mark J. Dworkin, 1990
External links
- Worldcat Overview & works, Mark J. Dworkin
- American Mythmaker: Walter Noble Burns and the Legends of Billy the Kid, Wyatt Earp, and Joaquín Murrieta, by Mark J. Dworkin, University of Oklahoma Press, 2015.
- Stanford University Libraries, summary of American Mythmaker by Mark J. Dworkin
- Mark J. Dworkin at Goodreads.com
- American Mythmaker, by Mark J. Dworkin at books.google.com
References
- ^ "[1]", Mark J. Dworkin at Findagrave.
- ^ "[2]", History.net: Walter Noble Burns, The Wild West's Premier Mythmaker
- ^ "[3]" Mayas, Aztecs, and Incas: Mysteries of ancient civilizations of Central and South America, by Mark J. Dworkin at books.google.com
- ^ "[4]" Wild West History book news, review of Mark J. Dworkin's book, American Mythmaker
- ^ "[5]", Mark J. Dworkin by Preston Lewis, Billy the Who?
- ^ "[6]", Worldcat.org summary of American Mythmaker, by Mark J. Dworkin
- ^ "[7]" Historical Novel Society review of Mark J. Dworkin's book, American Mythmaker
- ^ "[8]", Mark J. Dworkin discussion, Roy B. Young
- ^ "[9]", Wild West magazine at history.net
- ^ "[10]", Project Muse, Mark J. Dworkin, author of American Mythmaker
- ^ "[11]", Wild West History Association
- ^ "[12]", Roy B. Young, tribute to Mark J. Dworkin
- ^ "[13]", Worldcat.org Identity, Western Outlaw-Lawman History Association, WOLA