Jonah Hex's final wife

A posting about Jonah Hex's return from a post-apocalpytic future notes his eventual marriage to a Native woman, Tall Bird:

Abandoned Love: Jonah Hex Is Stuck in the Future!

By Brian CroninFleisher used Secret Origins #21 to have Hex’s second wife (who is now a very old woman) explain that yeah, Hex came back.Here's the full story:

Jonah Hex--DeathJonah Hex continued to act as a bounty hunter until the age of 66 in 1904, when he was married to a Native American woman named Tall Bird. His life story was documented by Michael Wheeler. The entertainer L.B. Farnham approached him to become part of a Wild West Revue show in his old age, but Hex angrily refused to let them turn him into a sideshow. Hex's last bounty was a gang run by bank robber George Barrow; he succeeded in wiping them out, but Barrow returned for revenge several days later. Playing cards in a Cheyenne saloon, Hex was murdered with Barrow's double-barreled shotgun while fumbling to put on his spectacles. His death was immediately avenged by the lawman Hank Crawford who gunned down the unarmed Barrow in cold blood. In his dying moments, Hex hallucinated and reflected on the life that he'd lived.

Tall Bird and Wheeler attempted to give Jonah a proper Native American burial, but they were robbed at gunpoint by Farnham and an accomplice. Farnham had Wheeler shot and the widow left unconscious to die in a house fire while he stole Hex's corpse for his Wild West Revue. Jonah Hex was taxidermized to be put on display permanently in a gaudy outfit, and the two evil men meet their ends, but his body was transported from location to location. His final resting place was as a dummy at a Westworld theme park. Eventually he was discovered by historians, but Tall Bird s revealed to have survived the fire and she claimed his body. She did an interview with a young scholar to fill in the missing details in her husband's life, but they were assaulted by a Western memorabilia collector who demanded to have the corpse at any cost. The evil collector was shot in the back before he could murder them, and it is implied that Jonah Hex's vengeful spirit returned to protect his wife from beyond the grave.Comment:  For more on Jonah Hex, see Skye Reviews Jonah Hex and The Origin of Jonah Hex.

Skye reviews Jonah Hex

A blogger named Skye reviewed Jonah Hex in her Heroine Content blog. Here's her summary of the first part:I knew nothing about the comic before I went to see the Jonah Hex movie. I hope I still don't. Because if the comic is anything like the film, it goes something like this.

Once upon a time there was a man name Jonah Hex. He fought for the Confederacy because he was a libertarian, not because he supported slavery. He even has a black friend, so we know he's all right. After he married a woman from the Crow Nation and had a child with her, the Crow put him under their protection forever and ever. You never have to see them, but they use their powerful magic to save his life sometimes. That comes in handy when the man is called upon to assist the U.S. Government, which is obviously known for its good relationship with the indigenous people of the North American continent.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Jonah Hex Shows Hollywood's Thinking and Mystical Indians in Jonah Hex.

Airbender, Hex, and hipster headdresses

Indian Comics Irregular #194:  White Actors in Asian Airbender

Jonah Hex shows Hollywood's "thinking"

A critic discusses how the Jonah Hex movie went wrong. In part, by using mystical Indians to give Hex supernatural powers.

Hexed Weekend

By Greg Hatcher"When you're looking at making a wide release feature film, you have to appeal to as many people as possible and as I've said many times before a western is a hard sell regardless of the medium. With the monthly book we write, [readers get] a mash-up of straight western with spaghetti and grindhouse, stories that have a pulp nature, but are firmly rooted in the realism of the old west. I really think the way the film is shot and the differences will appeal to a young audience, and that's what makes sense in terms of marketing."

In other words, the movie people clearly decided, Jonah Hex as a straight western isn't going to be big enough and loud enough for a summer comic book movie. We better tweak it to be bigger and louder. Because we can't sell a western.

Speaking as someone who loves Westerns in general and Jonah Hex in particular, this notion is maddening. Because it seems obvious to me that the core film of Jonah Hex started as something good, the filmmakers clearly meant to do right by the character...but it slowly got tweaked and edited to death in an atmosphere of increasing panic over how to market the thing. And all because "we can't sell a western."

Hollywood can't sell a western? Are you kidding me? Westerns have been successful in movies and television for the better part of a century. Stagecoach. Gunsmoke. The Searchers. Bonanza. True Grit. Rio Bravo. Ride the High Country. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. The Wild Bunch. The Magnificent Seven and the three sequels and TV series that spun out of it. A Fistful of Dollars. High Plains Drifter. And so on.

Oh, sure, those are classics. But they mean you can't market a Western movie to modern audiences.

Uh-huh. So I guess we just won't count Silverado, Tombstone, Wyatt Earp, Unforgiven, Broken Trail, The Quick and the Dead, Young Guns, Lonesome Dove, Deadwood, 3:10 to Yuma, Pale Rider, Dances With Wolves, or any of a dozen others I could name. I didn't even mention the successful series of Louis L'Amour adaptations done for TNT starring Tom Selleck and Sam Elliott, or the Hallmark Channel's equally-successful series of made-for-TV westerns starring Kevin Sorbo, Luke Perry, and Lou Diamond Phillips.Hatcher sums it up:This "westerns are dead" business is one of those things where I can't figure out how the idiot idea ever took hold in the first place, there's a mountain of evidence to contradict it, but it did. The moviemakers got it lodged in their heads that Westerns are a hard sell and so they decreed that Jonah Hex can't look like a Western. Instead, they front-loaded it with Megan Fox and a heavy-metal soundtrack and a lot of CGI and prayed something would stick.Comment:  This Hollywood mentality also explains why studios won't make movies featuring normal or modern Indians. Because the racists people in charge don't think Indians are interesting or "sexy" enough to move audiences. Indians are good only if they're savage warriors or mystical shamans.

Jonah Hex is already tanking at the box office. Once again, we see that Hollywood doesn't know anything. Hundreds of Native filmmakers could take the same actors, equipment, and money and make a better and more profitable movie.

For more on the subject, see Hollywood's Cultural Conservatism and Indians Hold Steady at 0.3%.

Below:  Big explosions always make a movie more exciting.

Mystical Indians in Jonah Hex

The Jonah Hex movie is out and so are the reviews. The critics have overwhelmingly savaged it, giving it a measly 14% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. This suggests it's one of the worst movies of the year.

The following review is typical:

"Jonah Hex":  Hard-boiled heavy-metal idiocy

Josh Brolin, John Malkovich and Megan Fox's impossible waist can't save a messy screen version of the DC comic

By Andrew O'HehirThe movie goes like this: Jonah shows up someplace, apparently teleporting from Nevada mining camps to New Orleans to rural Georgia (journeys that would take weeks in the 1870s). He mutters incomprehensibly at someone out of the corner of his disfigured mouth and then starts shooting people with his Gatling gun, or his automatic crossbow, or his dynamite revolver. (OK, that one is kind of cool.) How-de-dow-de-dow, go the guitars.

Then he gets badly hurt, or pretty nearly kilt, and the Crow Indian medicine men, muttering "Not this guy again!" in their native tongue, have to dance around and chant and rub oregano on his wounds, causing Jonah to barf up an actual, living crow. (Get it? Get it? Oh, you're right, there's nothing to get.) Then it's back to sultry Megan in the New Orleans whorehouse, although all they do is smooch a little in artfully backlit shots, possibly because this is a PG-13 title and possibly because sexual intercourse might cause her to snap in half at that architecturally improbable 20-inch waist.I gather the Indians give Hex the power to speak to the dead and survive near-fatal wounds. He doesn't have this power in the comic books, where he's a straightforward bounty hunter.

The Crow and a crow

So the Apache Indians in the comic books have become Crow Indians in the movie. Why? For the visual pun of the crow in the mouth, I guess, and no other reason.

Of course, this is based on a mistake, since the Crow don't have anything to do with crows. Here's the story of their name:

Crow NationThe name of the tribe, Apsáalooke (IPA: [əpsaːloːke]), was translated into French by interpreters as gens du corbeaux (people of [the] crows). It means "children of the large-beaked bird," a name given by their neighboring tribe, the Hidatsa. The bird, perhaps now extinct, was defined as a fork-tailed bird resembling the blue jay or magpie.I sure hope these characters didn't make it into the movie:



Crow Indians who look like giant crows? Indians as semi-human beast men? Say it ain't so.

Even if these figures appear in a vision, it isn't cool. The Crow simply aren't associated with crows. Similarly, the Blackfeet don't have black feet, the Creek don't live by a creek, and the Winnebago (Ho-Chunk) don't drive Winnebagos.

Magical mystery tour

I don't know if the Indians do anything exceptionally savage in Jonah Hex. It seems the filmmakers have gone for supernatural and otherworldly rather than brutal and bloodthirsty. Either way, it sounds stereotypical.

Jonah Hex gives us a glimpse into the Hollywood mindset. The filmmakers didn't take the Indians seriously. They used Julia Jones and Asian actors, changed the Apache to Crow, and gave them the power to raise the dead. They didn't take the rest of the West seriously either. The movie probably will fail because of its lack of authenticity.

Fortunately, few people will see this stinker. I don't plan to see it either. Let the latest example of magical Indians die a well-deserved death.

For more on the subject, see Alan Eaglewolf on Jonah Hex and Jonathan Joss on Jonah Hex.

Alan Eaglewolf on Jonah Hex

Guest blog:  Alan Eaglewolf BryantThe Hollywood Indian, a term I define as a complete false representation of the Indigenous people of this land.

I believe we have come along way in cinema but still there are those that refuse to look into the true representations of Native culture. I say refuse but perhaps that the film makers just do not want to take the time or spend funding on a consultant to add the true representation in their films. They choose to take the easy way out and continue to use the Hollywood Indian Tribes.

On a couple of my films, I was sent to “Makeup” to get “Dirtied up” to make me look like a filthy savage that never baths and teeth that looks like they are about to fall out of my head. I wondered if they were going to have me run around beating on my lips and raising my hand in greetings saying, “How White Man.”

In the back of my mind, I have wondered if I should have refused and just walked off the set. Instead, I stayed and considered it a great opportunity to teach them some of the truths about the Native culture. As I was being applied with make-up I informed them of the truths of hygiene and the Natives compared to the European culture and their hygiene habits. I took the time to educate others on set as well. I became an advisor on several issues regarding the “Costume,” accessories and hair while on set.

When I was cast for the role on the film Jonah Hex and Unearthed, the casting notice was for Native or “Native look.” On both films as extras, I believe I and maybe one other was of Native blood, the rest of the tribe was of Hispanic and Asian descent. Now, it’s not that they chose them over Native heritage; it’s that no other Natives came to audition for these roles. If we are to move forward in the film industry, I think it’s important for us to look into roles requiring Natives and to educate those on set about the true representation of the accuracy of the indigenous people of this land.Comment:  As we've seen in the cases of Winter in the Blood and New Moon, when producers hold auditions near Native communities, people come out in droves. If you can't find Native performers, you aren't trying. You have to go to them; you can't wait for them to come to you.

For more on the subject, see Bird Men in Jonah Hex and The Origin of Jonah Hex.

Below:  This poster says Jonah Hex is about selling Megan Fox to male viewers, not telling an authentic Western story.

Bird men in Jonah Hex

Alan Eaglewolf's Photos--On set of JONAH HEX

Comment:  In The Origin of Jonah Hex, we learned that Hex was raised by Apaches and raided a nearby Kiowa village. That would place his story in northern Texas or Oklahoma.

The Apaches occasionally used tipis like the ones below. And they may have set up their tipis in forests rather than on the plains occasionally. But I suspect Apache tipis in a forest would be rare if not unknown.



Of course, the movie could've changed Hex's origin. But even if it's set in the northern plains, you wouldn't expect to see tipis in a forest. Maybe among the Cheyenne or Arapaho in the Colorado area, but not in general.

Then there's this:



Really? Indians wearing crows' heads and loincloths? Some Indians of the Pacific Northwest wear elaborate raven costumes and masks for their ceremonial dances, but they don't look like this.

I'm pretty sure I've never seen anything like these masks. I wouldn't swear that they don't exist in some culture, but if they do, they're rare. Whether they're authentic or not, they don't represent Indians well.

Here's the only example of a Native "bird man" I could find:

Medicine Man

I presume the "Medicine Man" is the masked figure on the right. The bird man has real bird's feet, so he isn't a human in disguise. Moreover, I have no idea if this drawing is authentic or even if it depicts Indians. These could be indigenous figures from another part of the world.

Back to the Jonah Hex movie. I suppose its "bird men" could do a holy dance to purify Hex--to cleanse his soul of hate and anger. But I wouldn't bet on it. More likely, they do a devilish dance to prepare Hex for torture and death.

Perhaps not coincidentally, the Jonah Hex listing on IMDB.com doesn't include any obvious Indian characters. I'm getting a strong impression of half-naked, generic savages who capture Hex and perform a macabre ceremony before they (try to) sacrifice him to their dark gods. Please tell me I'm wrong.

I can't even tell if the four guys playing Indians are Native actors. Perhaps they're the Asian actors we heard about before. If so, ugh.

For more on the subject, see Jonathan Joss on Jonah Hex and Casting in Jonah Hex.

Jonathan Joss on Jonah Hex

Made in SA:  Jonathan Joss has the specs on the big screen Jonah Hex

By Sanford AllenTell us more about your character and how he fits into the film.

I play an Apache Indian who stumbles across Jonah Hex and leads him to a cave where he can hide out from these bounty hunters. You’re not really sure whether he’s a real character or a ghost or a figment of Jonah’s imagination. I also summon these crows that attack him, so you’re wondering if my character’s a source of strength for Jonah or if he’s someone he should fear. He wasn’t a Dances with Wolves kind of Native American character, where the writers tried to make him authentic and real. It was more of a comic book character—someone fun to play. I got to smile a lot when I played him, which is rare when you’re playing a lot of Native American roles in Hollywood. He was probably the furthest from a true-life Native American character that I’ve played, but in a way he was probably the truest to the Native American spirit.

You’ve been doing a fair amount of appearances at comic conventions lately, from COMIC-CON in San Diego to the LIVE OAK COMIC SHOW in San Antonio. Are you much of a comic book fan?

I do appreciate comics. Right now, my friend Gerard and I are working on a comic about a Native superhero that we’d like to get that out by yearend. It’s going to be fun to bring a real Native American to the comics instead of a stereotype. A lot of Native American people I know on the rez read comic books. You know, they’re cheap, they let you use your imagination and they let you escape about as far as you can get from the grind of everyday life.

Let’s talk about another one of your comic book connections. You played Marshal Ohiyesa Smith on a time-travel episode of JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED.

That character was a Native American sheriff who was put on another planet to deal with the unruly populace there. He doesn’t have any real super hero powers. It’s kind of a frontier-type situation, and he’s the lawman who keeps everything under control. The Justice League comes to the planet to help him out because some super villains end up there. To be able to work with Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman was bad ass. I mean, what nine-year-old kid wouldn’t love that? I would like to see that character come back around. It was a fun experience.

Are the roles for Native American actors better now than when you first got into the business?

I would love to say things have changed over that time, that there are more mature Native American characters being written, but I’m not sure that’s happened. I can say that at least Native American characters are allowed to think now instead of being the old sidekicks like Tonto, where the Lone Ranger asks “Are those four men on horses?” and Tonto says, “Yes. There are four men on horses.” Our characters now are a little deeper. They’re allowed to have their own thoughts. Sometimes non-Native American writers have us doing things we wouldn’t do or saying things we wouldn’t say—stuff that’s just not in our DNA—but at least we’re getting to think now. I’m still riding horses, shooting arrows and killing white people, so a lot hasn’t changed since I got into the business, but at least it hasn’t gotten worse.Comment:  An Apache character who isn't authentic or real? Who's the "furthest from a true-life Native American character" that Joss has ever played? Wow, I wouldn't brag about it.

Joss may enjoy playing a mystical shaman or whatever, but this confirms what I've been saying lately. Namely, that Hollywood has been going backward in its portrayals of Natives. Every unreal character tells viewers that Indians are an ancient, otherworldly people who vanished into the mists long ago. This puts them on the same plane as elves and fairies.

This is the first I've heard of Joss's creating a comic book. We'll see how that pans out.

Joss is talking about Marshal Ohiyesa Smith aka Powwow Smith, a 1950s comic-book character. I haven't seen that JLU episode, but I probably will someday.

The article also notes that Joss has a musical project, the Redcorn Band, which has released several CDs of "Native American alternative blues."

For more on the movie, see Asian Actors in Jonah Hex and Casting in Jonah Hex Movie. For more on Jonathan Joss as John Redcorn, see The Best (Only) Native Character.

Asian actors in Jonah Hex

Morten Krogh of NativeCelebs posted a note from actor Alan Eaglewolf on Facebook. In part it said:Osiyo brother, how is it going? Working with Josh Brolin was incredible. What a very personal and nice guy. He treated all very nice and introduced and shook hands with us all regardless of extras, cast and crew. As for the Native cast, there was very few of us. Most were of Asian descent.

In regards to the authenticity of the Native parts, it way off but seeing it is based off a comic book character, they weren't going for authenticity. It was still a wonderful experience.In response to this, Roscoe Pond wrote:Cool Morten! You got the scoop. Sounds great.And I wrote:Asians?! There's no reason a movie based on a comic book can't have an authentic cast. Sounds like Jonah Hex is asking for criticism.Comment:  For more on the subject, see The Origin of Jonah Hex and Casting in Jonah Hex Movie. For more on non-Natives cast as Natives, see Friday, Tonto, Jacob Black, et al.

The origin of Jonah Hex

If I ever read the origin of Jonah Hex, the DC Comics Western hero, I don't recall it. Someone mentioned it to me so I decided to look it up.

Alas, it seems to encompass a lot of negative Native stereotypes. This doesn't bode well for the upcoming Jonah Hex movie.

Significant dates in Jonah's lifeJuly, 1851: Jonah's father, a physically abusive alcoholic, sells him into slavery to the Apache in exchange for either a pile of pelts (JH V1, #7) or safe passage through Indian land (JH V2, #14). The two Jonah Hex series have different explanations, and it is unclear which is the correct version of the story.

1853: At the age of fifteen, Jonah saves the tribe's chief from a puma. The chief expresses his gratitude by adopting Jonah as his second son. Jonah eventually exceeds the chief's son, Noh-Tante, in the chief's eyes. (JH V1, #7)

1854: Jonah & Noh-Tante, in a tribal ritual of manhood, raid a nearby Kiowa village to steal ponies. Noh-Tante ambushes Jonah and leaves him to the Kiowas and tells the chief that Jonah is dead. Jonah is either 'rescued' by scalphunters who slaughter the Kiowas and shoot Jonah, leaving him for dead before a trapper finds him and nurses him back to health (JH V1, #7), or Jonah manages to defeat the Kiowas but does not return to the Apache village. (JH V2, #14) Once again, the records are conflicting.

1859: Jonah is engaged to Cassie Wainwright but she is killed by Indians the day before their wedding. (JH V1, #65)

1866: Jonah locates his old tribe and tells the chief how Noh-Tante betrayed him years before. The chief decrees that this must be settled by a tomahawk battle. Noh-Tante secretly sabotages Jonah's tomahawk so that the handle will break. In an act of desperation during the fight, Jonah pulls a knife and kills Noh-Tante. As punishment for breaking the rules, Jonah is bound and the chief presses a heated tomahawk to the right side of Jonah's face giving him "The Mark of the Demon." The tribe then banishes Jonah. (JH V1, #8)

1874: While tracking down the kidnapping of Laura Vanden, Jonah once again comes in contact with the Apache chief and is captured. The chief admits to taking Laura and announces that he will kill Hex at sunrise. Jonah is rescued by White Fawn, his former girlfriend and widow of Noh-Tante. The chief kills White Fawn and Jonah kills the chief before he rescues Laura Vanden. (JH V1, #8)Comment:  I don't know enough about Apache lore to say this couldn't have happened, but it sounds like a lot of stereotypical fighting and killing. The white guy who becomes a better Indian than the Indians and rises to be the chief's substitute son is certainly an old clich;eacute;. Moreover, I don't think the Apache used tomahawks in actual or ritual battles.

For more on the subject, see The Best Indian Movies and Comic Books Featuring Indians.

Casting in Jonah Hex movie

From a MySpace bulletin:

Acting opportunity 4 native actorsDear Mark,

We are casting a Warner Bros. feature called "Jonah Hex" here in New Orleans. It has several principal roles that are Native American. We would love if you could help us get the word out to the Native American actors here in Louisiana so we could give them first shot at the roles. I'm attaching the breakdown of what we are looking for below. If anyone is interested in auditioning in New Orleans for the roles, they could send their picture and resume to jonahhexcasting@gmail.com. We would then contact them to schedule an appointment if they seem appropriate for the role.

INDIAN WOMAN--Finds an injured Jonah and tries to take care of him. Beautiful, soulful.

OLD INDIAN--Wizened, elder or chieftain type. Finds an injured Jonah and tries to help.

APACHE--Indian, 30s to mid-40s, very fit, warrior type. Acts as a helper but tries to kill Jonah.

Thank you!
Tiffany Little CanfieldComment:  So the Jonah Hex movie will include three of the basic Native stereotypes: the beautiful princess, the wise elder or chief, and the savage warrior. All that's missing is the mystical shaman. Nice.

FYI, Mark is Mark Ford, Executive Director, Governor's Office of Indian Affairs in Louisiana. He adds, "I am grateful that they are willing to use real American Indian people to play American Indians in the movie.

"If you know anyone who would be interested please pass on this information."

I'm grateful for that too. But I'm guessing the movie will be at least somewhat stereotypical.

For more on Jonah Hex, see Review of JONAH HEX #23. For more on the subject in general, see The Best Indian Movies.