Earl W. Bascom American cowboy, artist and printmaker Date of Birth: 19.06.1906 Country: USA

Biography of Earl Bascom

Earl Bascom, an American cowboy, artist, and engraver, was born on June 19, 1906, in a log cabin on a ranch in Vernal, Utah. His father, John, was a sheriff's deputy in Utah and participated in the pursuit of the notorious outlaw Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch Gang. Earl's grandparents were Mormon pioneers who worked on ranches and assisted in fighting crime.

At a young age, Bascom's family moved to a ranch in Alberta, Canada. He dropped out of school in the third grade but later returned with the help of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Bascom even worked as a school bus driver, ferrying students to and from school in an old stagecoach.

Bascom gained fame as a cowboy in the organization "Cowboy Artists of America" and had extensive experience in horseback riding. He worked as a cattle driver, blacksmith, wolf hunter, Hollywood actor, wild horse catcher, and ranch foreman. He became one of the last individuals with such a vast knowledge of the Old West before the era of free-range cattle ended. Reflecting on his days as a cowboy, Bascom once said, "I remember gathering around 7,000 horses in a one-mile corral. And at Knight Ranch, we had 18,000 head of cattle. That was quite a sight. I still remember the look, the sounds, the smell."

In addition to his serious participation in rodeos, Bascom also tried his hand at bullfighting and clowning, entertaining the audience and distracting the bull in case a cowboy fell off the animal. He was recognized as the oldest living rodeo clown in the world shortly after his 89th birthday.

In 1939, Bascom married Nadine Diffey, whose heritage included Native American blood from the Creek and Catawba tribes. They met in Mississippi and got married in Salt Lake City, Utah. Earl and Nadine raised five children together. In later years, Diffey became a sculptor, creating bas-reliefs.

Inspired by an article about Native American athlete Jim Thorpe, who achieved athletic success at an advanced age, Bascom decided to pursue his childhood dream of becoming an artist. He enrolled in art courses and eventually attended Brigham Young University in 1933 at the age of 27. Despite feeling like a "wild horse in a corral," Bascom diligently studied painting and sculpture. He graduated from the university in 1940. His education continued, and in 1966, he began teaching art classes at John F. Kennedy High School and Barstow High School.

Earl Bascom passed away on August 28, 1995, at the age of 90, at his ranch in Victorville, California.