Dr. Dropo's Juggling Buffoonery Book

L.G. Moses recounts the stories of the participants in the Wild West shows, using their own words whenever possible to reinforce their individuality. The main theme is the "battle of imagery" of Native Americans, which pitted the "wildness" image reinforced by the Wild West Shows against the "civilized" image advocated by Indian reformers. Despite the negative criticism directed at the shows, Moses suggests that we think not of Show Indians as "dupes," "pawns," or "victims" but rather as real people who earned a relatively good living re-creating part of their history and whose travels ultimately strengthened their cultural identities.