The Western Romance features loner cowboys and women strong enough to travel under harsh conditions and live in isolated areas. This sub-genre waxes and wanes in popularity.
Some western romances are romps, others are deadly serious.
I recently asked author Cheryl St. John to explore the allure of the Western Romance. I went to bed at night dreaming scenes of living on the Ponderosa with that dreamy studmuffin, and I resented every actress who played a romantic interest opposite Michael Landon. And yes, even then, Clint Eastwood charismatically held a young audience in awe with his role as Rowdy Yates on the series Rawhide . Wagonmaster, Ward Bond wasn t exactly a typical leading man, but Wagon Train held America s attention weekly. Must have been Robert Fuller.