William F. "Buffalo Bill" Cody, star of the American West, began his journey to fame at age twenty-three, when he met writer Ned Buntline. The pulp novels Buntline later penned were loosely based on Cody's scouting and bison-hunting adventures and sparked a national sensation. Other writers picked up the living legend of "Buffalo Bill" for their own pulp novels, and in 1872 Buntline produced a theatrical show starring Cody himself. In 1883, Cody...