This Vintage Movic Poster of Bill Pickett
in,"The Bull-Dogger",is available along
with other vintage posters and movie
memoribilia from the black film industry
of the early 1900's to the present from.........

(Click Below)

Hall of Fame Cowboy Bill Pickett

Legendary cowboy Bill Pickett was a true American pioneer whose rodeo career spanned more than forty years,bridged two centuries,and enthralled millions of spectators,including the British royal family. Ultimately,Pickett became the first black cowboy ever inducted into the National Rodeo Cowboy Hallof Fame. During his illustious career,Pickett achieved notoriety as the inventor of the rodeo sport,bulldogging. His trademark maneuver in steer wrestling was one in which he would grab the steer by the horns,twist its neck,and bite the steer on the lip,before pulling the stunned steer to the ground while falling backward. Pickett displayed his extraordinary skills throughout Europe,South America,Mexico,Canada,and the United States,Along his own dusty trail around the world,he became known as the Dusky Demon,the "daredevil Negro" who wrestled wild steers to the ground.

In Guts: Legendary Black Rodeo Cowboy Bill Pickett,author Cecil Johnson describes Pickett as an American cult hero-a courageous cowboy who shared center stage in the rodeo arena with the likes of Tom Mix and Will Rogers. However,while Pickett perhaps was to rodeo what Jackie Robinson was to baseball,Pickett didn't receive the hightest honor in his profession until long after his death in 1932. Thirty-nine years later,Pickett finally was inducted into the Cowboy Hall of Fame. Pickett's notoriety reached even new heights in 1993,when the U.S. Postal Service issued a "Legends of the West" stamp series that included Pickett-alas,the wrong Pickett. A photo of Pickett's brother,Ben,was inadvertently used in place of Bill's photo,leaving the postal service with 250 million printed Ben Pickett stamps that were eventually recalled and replaced. Ironically,this glaring mistake probably did more to promote Picketts's status as a genuine hero than any of his actual exploits.

Photo by: Richard Stockton
Provided by: Sue McCafferty/President
The North Fort Worth Historical Society
131 E. Exchange Ave.,Fort Worth,Texas 76106
817-625-5082

To order your copy of
Cecil Johnson's
Guts:Legendary Black Rodeo Cowboy Bill Pickett,
Please call 1-800-462-6420

$19.95 U.S.A

$26.95 Canada

Cecil Johnson

Photo and article are from the book "Guts",which was written by Mr. Cecil Johnson

Cecil Johnson, a longtime rodeo enthusiast,was an editoral writer and columnist for the Fort Worth Star Telegram for nearly twenty years. He worked as a stringer for Time magazine and has moderated the weekly talk show "Reporters' Roundup" on ABC-TV's Dallas affiliate station. Johnson has taught at the University of Texas at Arlington and Texas Christian University. He is now retired and lives in Fort Worth with his wife Linda and their daughter Ceiti.