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Thursday, April 17, 2014

O is for the Oriental Saloon

My theme for A- Z is the year my book takes place: 1881. I"ll be posting about people, places, and random facts about the year as it relates - however distantly - to my book, West of Paradise.

Today we have the Oriental Saloon, one of many that inhabited Tombstone in the 1880s.



At one point Wyatt Earp held a quarter interest in the place and he invited Bat Masterson to come out and help run the faro tables. In this scene, Alanna has just come over from the Grand Hotel where she's staying...


 She could feel eyes on her as she walked past the ornately carved bar, which was lined with crystal glasses and colored bottles, all sparkling beneath the brilliance of the suspended chandeliers. The Brussels carpet was soft and plush beneath her heeled shoes as she made her way toward one of the faro tables. The pungent smell of cigars and whiskey hung in the air and the room was abuzz with talk and laughter and the sound of cards being shuffled.

11 comments:

  1. You really had a fun time researching and incorporating it into your story, didn't you?

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  2. I want to lie down on that plush carpet and have a nap! :P

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  3. SO very cool!! I love what you are doing =)

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  4. I just love your theme this year. I feel like I've been to the Oriental Saloon and it wasn't what I was expecting. Thank you for giving me context to something I thought I knew... but didn't really.

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  5. Love the photo! I visited Wyatt Earp's birthplace years ago and met his cousin (she was very old:).

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  6. I really love to look and vintage photographs!

    Excellent excerpt, Marcy!

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  7. Okay, now I really want to visit a saloon. What a cool photo. I love how you set the scene in that excerpt and hit all of the senses!

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  8. It must have been a wild time.

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  9. You've certainly brought that picture to life. Love it. :)

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