Jack O'Conner/Outdoor Life magazine

[Colorado Cowboy]

I know a lot of you are way too young to have grown up reading Jack O'Conner's columns in Outdoor Life magazine. I first read one of his stories while sitting in a barber shop in the early 50's and I was hooked. My mother gave me a subscription and I couldn't wait for it to arrive in the mail each month. I have a copy of every book he authored.

A few years back a new book came out "The Lost Classics of Jack O'Conner" edited by Jim Casada. I was looking in my library for something to read and grabbed it and started reading it again. It is a wonderful book with some great stories. As a youngster, it influenced my thinking about hunting and guns.

Some of his sheep hunts to the Yukon and Alaska lasted as long as a month. His African safaris were as long a 3 months. Imagine doing that today.

 

[mallardsx2]

I'm only trying to convince my wife that a 2 week long elk hunt is perfectly "acceptable".

That guy must have been very convincing. lol

 

[JimP]

The only thing that I had against O'Connor was that he was a .270 man at the time I was a 30-06 person.

But you have to give him credit, he was one heck of a shot and a hunter and his stories will entrance you. I remember reading them all back in the 60's and would never pass up the opportunity to read one.

As for the month long sheep hunts and the 3 month safari's all you need to do is read about the lifestyles of the rich and famous. You can still do it if you have the cash.

 

[tim]

I am a fan. the museum in Lewiston is pretty cool.
the month long trips where financed thru outdoor life. the owner said go where ever you want and right the stories. Outdoor life was sent to the troops in ww2. those troops devoured the magazine and Jack became a celebrity.

Colorado cowboy, do you have any of his non hunting novels?

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

The only non hunting books are gun books. I got most of them thru Outdoor Life Book Club.

 

[maine canoe guide]

I read Jack's writings in outdoor life in the 1960's. Now I have a bunch of his books and I'm always on the lookout for more. He writes in such a great style you feel as if you are there. Compared to todays tv shows he is MUCH more entertaining. I'm still looking for a good price on Sheep and Sheep Hunting that's a hard one to find.

 

[Maxhunter]

Colorado did you keep any of those magazines. My dad always got outdoor life I remember reading his stories In the 1960's.

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

No. I wish I had.

 

[JimP]

Magazines back then were read cover to cover and then passed along to someone who couldn't afford them.

Even now most of my outdoor magazines have been sent overseas to our troops who love them. Sadly the person that I was sending them to passed away a couple of weeks ago so now I need to find someone new to pass them along to.

 

[257Roberts]

I gave that book to my son as a Christmas present when he was about 14 . He's 23 now and right or wrong thinks Jack O'Connor is the foremost authority on rifles and big game hunting past ,present and future . we have another book we got from the Outdoorlife book-club called Deer and Deer Hunting....Stories by different authors but a lot by Jack. Its been open so much the binding has come apart.

 

[shootbrownelk]

I have some of O'Connor's books and most of Mike Eastman's and Elmer Keith's as well. I have most of Jim Zumbo's offerings too.

 

[dirtclod Az.]

We keep old Outdoor Life magazines and a few of Jacks books
in our cabin in northern Az.Every time I use the cabin takes me back
in time.We have a book of his short stories"Hunts" that I can read
and never not be taken by his words.

 

[dirtclod Az.]

I have some of O'Connor's books and most of Mike Eastman's and Elmer Keith's as well. I have most of Jim Zumbo's offerings too.

Zumbo is another legend not soon to be forgotten.
It's too bad that Outdoor Life...and Field and Stream
have cut back publications.May have to stop subscriptions
after 50 yrs.Sad day indeed...

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

I have a lot of Elmer Keith's stuff too, but it is all guns, reloading & shooting....no hunting.

Jack O'Conner and Elmer Keith were both advocates for their style of shooting, very different from each other. Keith was a "bigger is better" shooter, O'Conner was Mr. .270. They were competitors, sometimes not so complimentary to each other. I have a book in my collection comparing them. (can't remember the title right now.

 

[dirtclod Az.]

I have a lot of Elmer Keith's stuff too, but it is all guns, reloading & shooting....no hunting.

Jack O'Conner and Elmer Keith were both advocates for their style of shooting, very different from each other. Keith was a "bigger is better" shooter, O'Conner was Mr. .270. They were competitors, sometimes not so complimentary to each other. I have a book in my collection comparing them. (can't remember the title right now.

I missed out on Elmer Keiths stuff,grew up in the 60's and 70's was he
published in something I wasn't akin' to?

 

[JimP]

There are a lot of writers that are now gone that the writers of today couldn't even change their typewriter ribbons for them.

I had a subscription to Sports Afield until they were bought out by the bicycle folks and changed the format and I didn't go back when it was sold again and changed back to the old format. Even reading Outdoor Life wasn't the same as time went on not to mention Field and Stream. I now take a few select magazines that I enjoy but could drop them without even noticing it. Even the gun magazines that I took like Shooting Times and Guns and Ammo lost their appeal to me when they started talking about "black" rifles and all the new semi automatic pistols.

I believe that Elmer Keith was published in Shooting Times and his column was taken over by Skieter Skeleton If I remember right, both were great writers with Skeleton being more of a comic. He also has a few great books to read when you want a book that you can't put down.

 

[Prerylyon]

At 46 I'm younger than some on here, but my dad was an old dude (51 when he started a family!)-so, being raised by a generation or two older than my peers exposed me to more nostalgia while coming up.

My dad's barber had old OL issues stacked in the waiting area-along with SI swimsuit issues! Every other Saturday afternoon, I got to be 'educated' by those magazines. I remember well reading Jack O' Connor, but also Carmichael and Zumbo.

Being somewhat less advantaged coming up in a blue collar household, my folks helped me borrow books often from the local public library. I distinctly remember reading 2 really big books on rifles back when I was 10 yrs old: one from O'connor, the other from Carmichael. Good stuff.

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

Keith was a big caliber pistol guy. If I remember right, he either helped or was responsible for the development of the .44 mag. Always wore a big Stetson and smoked cigars. He was a real character, a lot different than the more conservative O'Conner.

 

[tim]

personally, Craig Boddington is the new Jack O Conner.

 

[buckbull]

I guess I missed out. The only magazine that dad ever bought was Fur-Fish-Game. Great mag by the way. What would you guys consider the must reads from O'Conner?