The Real Laramie
Please note this is not a Fan fiction story but a report on my recent visit to the real Laramie and the real Jess Harper AKA Robert Fuller!
The Real Laramie
Laramie Jubilee Days 2017
By Patty Wilkinson
I finally had the chance to travel to Laramie in July 2017 to see the place I have been writing about for over five years. The perfect opportunity came along when I heard that Robert Fuller was to attend. He plays the character Jess Harper in the old Laramie TV show on which all my stories are based and was to be the Parade Grand Marshall. So not only did I get to see Laramie, but also the hero of all my stories…..amazing!
So a snapshot of my journey from a small Shropshire village over 4,000 miles to Laramie Wyoming via Gatwick, Iceland and Denver to Laramie Airport:
…. The wonderful black and white photographs of legendary Native Americans lining the concourse of Denver Airport and the hauntingly beautiful panpipes music echoing around the vast space…The contrast between Denver and the tiny Laramie Airport…Our plane carrying just twelve passengers, one baggage handler received us…”What a purty suitcase!”
Arriving in a thunderstorm my travel buddy, Linda, and I quickly surmised there was no taxi rank, our cell phones didn’t work….and we were seven miles out of town….. It was to be a kindly lady who held the door open for us as we lugged our heavy cases outside that saved our bacon. She was a shining example of the kindness and warmth we were to receive from every living soul we met throughout the trip. She called a taxi for us at once. Sometime later the wonderful Joseph arrived….Not only did he provide transport, but also called in at Walmart so that we could stock up on basics and also carried them into our rental cottage for us out in the forest area of Laramie….
As I said to a friend later, after the rather rough ride out to Laramie in a thunderstorm.. I was beginning to think maybe the plane had gone down and I’d died and landed in some sort of Disney heaven… Sitting out in the front yard the silence and peace were wonderful…The only sound, that of squirrels scampering up the huge surrounding cottonwoods. Rabbits basking in the sun, a bright eye watching me with no fear…. A local would pass by; how was my day panning out? Was I from Britain? Gee tell me about it…Where about in the UK are you from? Everyone so kind, so interested, so darned NICE…. I love Americans!
Then the fun of getting to grips with the rental car an SUV Jeep….automatic…never driven one before….and on the wrong side of the road too…err or should I say the right side! It took only a matter of hours before I was in love….loved that car….especially the app for parking…I want one here back in the UK!!!
We spent over a week getting to know Laramie and especially downtown with its array of wonderful shops from antiques to western apparel and not to be missed, The Spectacle Emporium run by the wonderful Optician and guide extraordinaire Mr Steve Grabowski. He was a fountain of knowledge on the local area and gave us an excellent guided tour of old town complete with facts of where the various shootings and hangings took place! Not to mention the ground breaking history telling of Louisa Gardner Swain, the first woman to vote in the world… Wyoming isn’t called the Equality State for nothing!
So to go back to shootings, another place on our agenda was the Buckhorn bar in old town Laramie…A gem of a place with stuffed animals crowding the walls, from cougars to bison…and a genuine bullet hole in the mirror behind the bar….. Thanks to all the cowboys in there who made us so welcome….bought us drinks, took our photographs and generally had some good fun and banter with us gals.
I noted in the Boomerang’s supplement (local paper) they stated that, ‘Our parade Grand Marshal this year is Robert Fuller, from the old TV show Laramie. He’s bringing quite a following. I think he’s going to provide an extra little boost of fun to Jubilee Days‘….Well there’s the understatement of the year! Quite a following? …Hundreds of fans, ten from the UK alone…and an extra little boost of fun…..what! He was sensational as was perceived by one and all, as the huge cheers went up as he drove by in the parade!
The weekend of the Parade dawned bright and sunny….and what an amazing spectacle… From the start with the police cars blaring their sirens to announce the beginning of the massively colourful and loud procession, through to the horse drawn carriage bearing Mr Robert Fuller and on to the horse riders, truck drivers and all in between it was indeed awesome…the like of which I have never witnessed before.
We also attended Bull Riding and a Rodeo over Jubilee and both were unique experiences for us Brits….The atmosphere of excitement…the brave cowboys riding and roping.. The moment of prayer and National Anthem before the mayhem began…all so special, so American…did I say I love Americans?
Then to the Fandom events laid on for us Robert Fuller fans, by the Laramie Tourist Board, many thanks to Debs and Mike…. did we have some fun times! From the Q& A session where I was privileged to present Bob with some gifts from his Brit fans.. through to the VIP dinner and autograph signing, he gave freely of his time and put his many fans first as always…Along with Tony Gill, the Ramrod of the Fandom he made the Jubilee Celebrations really special for one and all…..
So going full circle, Robert asked me about my journey home on the last day and was amazed that I, along with many others, had a very long trip back home….and was truly humbled that so many folk travel so far to see him and enjoy the wonderful atmosphere of Laramie and Jubilee..
To conclude….Laramie is the friendliest place I have ever visited. Full of wonderful genuinely kind folk….did I mention I love Americans? Meeting and spending some time with Tony and Robert was the icing…err should that be frosting….on the cake…. Two very special guys… So would I make that long, tiring, difficult journey again? You bet ….in a heartbeat…. Thank you so much to everyone in Laramie, all the lovely people who came up and commented on my stories and all my friends in the Fandom….until next time….