When you visit Tombstone, Arizona, you will be struck by how small the town is yet how big a role it plays in the mythical version of American history. My Darling Clementine is the third movie I have seen about Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, and the gunfight at the OK Corral (Tombstone, 1993, & Wyatt Earp,  1994, are the others). John Ford (director) gave this 1946 version a different look and sensiblity.  Shooting landscapes for along time, he is trying to give you a sense what it felt like to live in the West in the 1880s. David Brooks identified correctly that the challenge in the Wild West was to build communities in the absence of a strong local governments (see his editorial).  Wyatt Earp is even shyer with ladies (Clementine) than in the other films. There is a funny line when Wyatt has fallen in love with Clementine who by anyone’s standards is a stunning lady. Wyatt to the Bartender:  “Have you never been in love.”  Bartender:  “No, I have been a bartender my entire life.”

If you make it to Arizona, stop in Tombstone marvel about the multifunctionality of the Birdcage Theatre.