Welcome to Durango Wild West Talent

Providing Wild West Entertainment

Call Us for More Information

(970)570-7687 (Scott)

Call Us for More Information

(970)570-7687 (Scott)

At Durango Wild West Talent, we celebrate our Wild West Heritage and want you to experience it with us! We present 1800s-style Vaudeville Shows and Victorian Fashion Shows. Each of our hour-long presentations is filled with excitement and beauty.

The preservation and celebration of Durango's history are our primary objectives, and we look forward to re-living this rich and colorful history with you. Our cast is also available for film and print work with the background of the area’s rugged mountain beauty. We can also provide “Wild West” flavor and historical presentations to any party or corporate event.

Situated in the beautiful Animas River Valley, Durango is a true “Old West” town in Colorado. Its history is filled with cowboys, Native Americans, brothels, hangings, and shoot-outs in the street.

Some Little-Known Nuggets of Durango’s History

Lawman Wyatt Earp lived in Durango for awhile. He joined his pals, Doc Holliday and Bat Masterson, in Silverton to help another friend bring order to his bar. Decorated Combat Soldier and Actor, Audie Murphy lived on Third Avenue. Western Author Louis L’Amour and his family spent summers at the Strater Hotel, living in the large second floor room on the corner of Main Avenue and 7th Street. Durango was his inspiration.

The railroad came to town in 1881, which was the year Durango was incorporated as a city. Distinguished men who arrived on the train would walk across the street to check in at the Southern Hotel, which has since burned down and is now a parking lot. There were “soiled doves” working on the top floor of the hotel. The most frequented brothels were on Main Avenue between 9th and 10th Streets. Proper women stayed on the east side of Main Avenue. Proper men also stayed on the east side of Main, unless they wanted to spend time with the soiled doves. If they were so inclined, they would descend into the tunnels that traverse between the east and west sides of Main Avenue between 9th and 10th Streets. This enabled them to maintain their enviable reputations above ground, while partaking of their pleasures by trekking underground.

El Rancho Tavern, on the corner of Main Avenue and 10th Street, is the oldest continuously operating bar in town. The famed boxing legend, Jack Dempsey, fought across the street at the Jarvis Building.

In 1906 a gunfight broke out at El Moro Saloon (945 Main Avenue) between Sheriff William Thompson and Town Marshal Jessie Stansel. The state governor had recently outlawed gambling, and Sheriff Thompson thought that Marshal Stansel was not strictly enforcing the new law. The Sheriff had been drinking heavily at the El Moro that fateful afternoon, and began yelling profane insults at the Marshal. The Marshal left the building and was leaning against a light pole outside, when the Sheriff stormed outside shooting at him. The Marshal returned fire, and they kept shooting until both ran out of bullets. The Sheriff died of his wounds but the Marshal survived his injuries. The Marshal was exonerated at trial for lack of evidence that he fired the bullet that killed the Sheriff, as there was a stranger with a gun hanging around outside, who could have fired the deadly shot. There were many people who wanted the Sheriff dead because of his tough stance on gambling.

Countless movies have been made in Durango. Most notably, “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” was filmed in various locations in the area. Marilyn Monroe and John Wayne also filmed movies here.

Durango is a delight for the historian and the outdoorsman, with excellent fishing, rafting, horseback riding, hiking, and mountain biking in the immediate area.

We hope you enjoy your stay!