Welcome to the History Tricks where any resemblance to a boring old history lesson is purely coincidental.

Hello everybody we're doing things a little differently today.

It was the holiday season and it was really just too challenging to get a hold of each

other in our distant locations and so we decided to bring you two stories of legendary

ladies of the Wild West.

First Susan's going to cover the story of Calamity Jane and then I will swing in halfway

through the episode with the tale of Bell Star the bandit queen of the Wild West.

We're looking forward to separating fact from fiction as much as we ever can and so with

no further ado on with the show.

And here's your 30 second summary.

Martha Jean Canary was orphaned in 11 raised her five siblings worked as a prostitute

in Indian Scout a soldier in a stage coach driver.

She was a nurse during a smallpox epidemic.

She loved and married Wild Bill Hickock and she caught his murderer.

She always wore men's clothing and got her nicknamed Calamity Jane from a military captain

whose life she saved in battle.

She was a star in Buffalo Pills Wild West show, wrote her autobiography, lived her life hard

and however she wanted.

Some of that's true.

Most of that's a myth.

Let's figure out which is which.

Let's talk about Calamity Jane.

...