The late Russ Cochran was well-known for his love and enthusiasm for the great EC comic books of the 1950s. He devoted much of his life to their legacy, publishing reprints in hardcover, soft cover, and individual comic book formats over a period of decades. But did you know that he had many other areas of expertise as well?

One of his last projects during his tenure with us at Gemstone Publishing was producing Hopalong Cassidy: An American Legend, a wonderful book by Grace Bradley Boyd (Hoppy’s widow) and Michael Cochran.

It’s an incredible tale: A 12-year-old girl goes to the movies in Brooklyn with her mother in 1926. The girl sees a larger than life image on the screen of actor William Boyd, and she falls madly in love. She writes his name in her school books. She starts collecting articles about him in movie magazines. She fantasizes that someday she will marry him. The girl is Grace Bradley.             

In 1931 a talent scout from Paramount Pictures sees Grace dancing in a New York cabaret and offers her a screen test. She is immediately signed to a contract with Paramount and moves to Hollywood with her mother. She still thinks of William Boyd, but makes no attempt to contact him after she is living in Hollywood.              

In 1937 her phone rings and the voice on the other end says “This is William Boyd. May I speak to Grace Bradley?” Grace is shocked and thinks someone is playing a joke on her until she hears the famous Bill Boyd laugh, then she knows it is the real thing. Three weeks later to the day, they are married.

This beautiful $75 hardcover is packed with memories and tons of photos. The book is lavishly produced (we never saw a Russ Cochran book that wasn’t) and if you’re looking for insight into one of the biggest pop culture icons of the first half of the 20th century, look no further! You can find it on our website.