A dying dentist, a violent frontier, and the making of Doc Holliday

Behind the gunslinger myth was a dying man with a degree in dentistry, a gambling habit, and an ever-ticking clock counting down his days.

Fascinated by the legend of Doc Holliday, as a kid, I read Stuart Lake’s “Wyatt Earp: Frontier Marshall” and Josephine Sara Marcus Earp’s “I Married Wyatt Earp.” I treasure both copies to this day. Most of what we know about John Henry Holliday comes from two accounts: interviews with Earp and a book by his wife, written to ensure no one contradicted hi…