Winnetou and Old Shatterhand picspam
After a long search, I have at last found high-quality pictures of Winnetou and Old Shatterhand! And I want to share them - only partly because I harbor a vague hope that someone will feel inspired to make icons, which I will then be able to snag. *g*
Warning! This is picspam of the worst kind. Dial-up users beware.
Who are these people?
Most of you, I suspect, have no idea who these people are or why they are posing so dramatically.
Let me explain: This is my first OTP, the true and slashy OTP of my childhood, from long before I imagined such a thing as slash existed. The deep friendship and love between Charlie - aka Old Shatterhand, legendary hero of the Wild West - and Winnetou, great Chief of the Apaches, lies at the heart of a series of 19th-century adventure novels by Karl May.
In Germany, Karl May is a household name, and his books are still read by most children today. There are several Karl May festivals where scenes from his books are enacted outdoors, with horses, shooting and everything. In the 1960s, there was a series of movies, some better than others - and that's where most of these pictures come from. :-)
When I was young I read and re-read Karl May's books obsessively, again and again, to the point where I know passages by heart even now. The "Winnetou" trilogy was among my favorites.
May isn't historically accurate (or accurate in any other way), and of course he isn't politically correct by today's standards - though by the standards of his time, he was very progressive. But he wrote damn fine adventure novels, as well as entirely lovely sentimental accounts of an epic friendship between men from two different worlds. And because they were written in the 19th century, the first person narrator is not at all shy about expressing his love for his friend.
Beware of bad 'translations'...
I recommend these books highly. There's a translation problem, however, so be careful when choosing your reading material...
Most of the major May books have recently been translated by an Australian team of translators and are available in an affordable PDF/e-book format. I bought Winnetou I - I haven't read it all the way through, but my impression so far is that it's a solid translation that's worth the money. (If you want to give this translation a try and run into problems, drop me a line! The online shop isn't the best, and there was a problem with the download link they sent me, but everything worked out in the end.)
There's a number of other translations that I'm less satisfied with (such as the one by David Koblick, who happily states that he "left out the boring bits"), as well as some I've spotted but haven't checked out. Most of them are probably okay. But be warned! If you ever come across an English translation of Karl May's "Winnetou" (or other Wild West) books, check if it features a certain Jack Hildreth. If it does, drop it like a live coal - it's not a translation, it's a horrible travesty undeserving of the name "adaptation" that destroys everything that is interesting and fun about the books. It even replaces the hero with someone else entirely.
If, on the other hand...
Slashiness
Warning: adjective overload to follow.
If, on the other hand, the hero is called Charlie and rhapsodizes for pages on end about his beloved friend, the most noble, honest, just, courageous, strong, intelligent, loyal and brave of men, with skin of the loveliest bronze, velvety dark eyes, glorious blue-black hair, a sleekly muscular and supple physique, beautifully and yet modestly clad in lovingly described garments... bearing no sign of his standing, yet needing none, as it is immediately obvious that he is far from being an ordinary warrior, being rather so very obviously the most noble and most kingly of men... with features stamped by a rare male beauty... then you are in the right place.
This kind of thing goes on for pages more or less whenever Winnetou appears. You think I am exaggerating?
Allow me to present a direct quote about Winnetou's lips:
"The gentle, lovingly mild and yet so energetic bow of his lips was always visible, those half-full, I want to say kissable lips"...
Yes, this is a direct quote. I kid you not.
Enough said. :-)
On to the picspam!
Spoiler warning: One set of pictures gives away a major plot point of "Winnetou III" - but since it's a plot point that's immediately announced at the beginning of "Winnetou I", it doesn't really qualify as a spoiler IMO. Still, proceed at your own risk!
Introducing our heroes
Charlie (Karl), also known as Old Shatterhand for his amazing ability to strike his enemies unconscious with a single blow of the fist. Called "Scharlie" by Winnetou (usually in a soft tone of voice never otherwise heard).
Winnetou ("Burning Water"), great Chief of the Mescalero Apaches, beloved blood brother of Charlie.
Winnetou and Iltschi, his noble steed.
Old Shatterhand and his noble steed, Hatatitla. Hatatitla was Winnetou's first present to his blood brother and is Iltschi's twin brother.
Winnetou and his fabled weapon, the "Silberbuechse" ("Silver Rifle", adorned with numerous decorative silver nails). Old Shatterhand can recognize the unique sound of Winnetou's rifle from many miles away.
Old Shatterhand and his fabled weapon. Or rather, one of them, because he has four: his fists, the "Henrystutzen" ("Henry-Rifle", which fires 25 shots without reloading and is the only weapon of its kind), and the "Baerentoeter" ("Bear Killer", a heavy single-shot rifle). Of course Winnetou recognizes the sounds made by (or bruises left by) all of these weapons.
And, as a special bonus: Winnetou behind a rather fake-looking boulder.
Winnetou and Old Shatterhand
They belong together, of course.
Not long after their tempestuous first meeting, characterized by near-fatal misunderstandings - as well as immediate and deep mutual admiration - our two heroes become blood brothers.
Winnetou's father and sister, Chief Intschu-tschuna and Nscho-tschi, look on approvingly.
From then on, the two are inseparable.
They even share the same vices. ;-)
Our heroes with other people
Occasionally, other people intrude.
Old Surehand and Winnetou.
Old Shatterhand and Sam Hawkens. It's not what it looks like. Honest.
Winnetou and a hopelessly star-struck fan.
Tragedy strikes...
From "Winnetou III" - the one Karl May book that I usually only re-read halfway, because I just couldn't bear to read on.
Assorted images
Back to happier times... because sometimes, even heroes are dorks.
Some heroes have Bad Hair Days, too. *g*
An artist's version of the "blood brothers" scene. Winnetou's hair is far more true to the books here than in the movies, probably because this hair-style is, in fact, impossible to wear in real life - or even in movies.
Movie posters for "Winnetou I + II" and "Der Schatz im Silbersee" ("The Treasure in Silver Lake").
The author
This is Karl May himself. Yes, he is dressed as Old Shatterhand. That's because Old Shatterhand is a big ol' Mary Sue.
The fact that May's hero Old Shatterhand's given name is Karl, or Charlie, is no coincidence: Karl May actually claimed to be identical with his narrator and to have lived through all of the recounted adventures.
I dare say no-one really believed this, though. Or would you believe this man could fell his enemies with one blow of a fist?
Der Schuh des Manitu
This relatively recent movie - released in 2001 - is a parody of the older Karl May movies, and was a huge success in Germany. The film was released in the US under the name "Manitou's Shoe", but I doubt anyone understood what the point was, let alone what was supposed to be funny about it - most of the humor requires knowledge of Karl May and the older movie versions, or is based on untranslatable puns and regional dialects.
Note the typical pose of Our Heroes at the Marterpfahl (stake? torture pole? totem pole? is there truly no word for this thing in English?), where they have just been bickering like an old couple over just whose fault it is they always end up tied to stakes. (Winnetou and Old Shatterhand managed to get into such fixes with astonishing regularity, though of course there was no bickering. Just manly endurance, pride and confidence in each other's strength and abilities, and dramatic escapes in the nick of time.)
The parody even includes a slash fangirl. *g*
Warning! This is picspam of the worst kind. Dial-up users beware.
Who are these people?
Most of you, I suspect, have no idea who these people are or why they are posing so dramatically.
Let me explain: This is my first OTP, the true and slashy OTP of my childhood, from long before I imagined such a thing as slash existed. The deep friendship and love between Charlie - aka Old Shatterhand, legendary hero of the Wild West - and Winnetou, great Chief of the Apaches, lies at the heart of a series of 19th-century adventure novels by Karl May.
In Germany, Karl May is a household name, and his books are still read by most children today. There are several Karl May festivals where scenes from his books are enacted outdoors, with horses, shooting and everything. In the 1960s, there was a series of movies, some better than others - and that's where most of these pictures come from. :-)
When I was young I read and re-read Karl May's books obsessively, again and again, to the point where I know passages by heart even now. The "Winnetou" trilogy was among my favorites.
May isn't historically accurate (or accurate in any other way), and of course he isn't politically correct by today's standards - though by the standards of his time, he was very progressive. But he wrote damn fine adventure novels, as well as entirely lovely sentimental accounts of an epic friendship between men from two different worlds. And because they were written in the 19th century, the first person narrator is not at all shy about expressing his love for his friend.
Beware of bad 'translations'...
I recommend these books highly. There's a translation problem, however, so be careful when choosing your reading material...
Most of the major May books have recently been translated by an Australian team of translators and are available in an affordable PDF/e-book format. I bought Winnetou I - I haven't read it all the way through, but my impression so far is that it's a solid translation that's worth the money. (If you want to give this translation a try and run into problems, drop me a line! The online shop isn't the best, and there was a problem with the download link they sent me, but everything worked out in the end.)
There's a number of other translations that I'm less satisfied with (such as the one by David Koblick, who happily states that he "left out the boring bits"), as well as some I've spotted but haven't checked out. Most of them are probably okay. But be warned! If you ever come across an English translation of Karl May's "Winnetou" (or other Wild West) books, check if it features a certain Jack Hildreth. If it does, drop it like a live coal - it's not a translation, it's a horrible travesty undeserving of the name "adaptation" that destroys everything that is interesting and fun about the books. It even replaces the hero with someone else entirely.
If, on the other hand...
Slashiness
Warning: adjective overload to follow.
If, on the other hand, the hero is called Charlie and rhapsodizes for pages on end about his beloved friend, the most noble, honest, just, courageous, strong, intelligent, loyal and brave of men, with skin of the loveliest bronze, velvety dark eyes, glorious blue-black hair, a sleekly muscular and supple physique, beautifully and yet modestly clad in lovingly described garments... bearing no sign of his standing, yet needing none, as it is immediately obvious that he is far from being an ordinary warrior, being rather so very obviously the most noble and most kingly of men... with features stamped by a rare male beauty... then you are in the right place.
This kind of thing goes on for pages more or less whenever Winnetou appears. You think I am exaggerating?
Allow me to present a direct quote about Winnetou's lips:
"The gentle, lovingly mild and yet so energetic bow of his lips was always visible, those half-full, I want to say kissable lips"...
Yes, this is a direct quote. I kid you not.
Enough said. :-)
On to the picspam!
Spoiler warning: One set of pictures gives away a major plot point of "Winnetou III" - but since it's a plot point that's immediately announced at the beginning of "Winnetou I", it doesn't really qualify as a spoiler IMO. Still, proceed at your own risk!
Introducing our heroes
Charlie (Karl), also known as Old Shatterhand for his amazing ability to strike his enemies unconscious with a single blow of the fist. Called "Scharlie" by Winnetou (usually in a soft tone of voice never otherwise heard).
Winnetou ("Burning Water"), great Chief of the Mescalero Apaches, beloved blood brother of Charlie.
Winnetou and Iltschi, his noble steed.
Old Shatterhand and his noble steed, Hatatitla. Hatatitla was Winnetou's first present to his blood brother and is Iltschi's twin brother.
Winnetou and his fabled weapon, the "Silberbuechse" ("Silver Rifle", adorned with numerous decorative silver nails). Old Shatterhand can recognize the unique sound of Winnetou's rifle from many miles away.
Old Shatterhand and his fabled weapon. Or rather, one of them, because he has four: his fists, the "Henrystutzen" ("Henry-Rifle", which fires 25 shots without reloading and is the only weapon of its kind), and the "Baerentoeter" ("Bear Killer", a heavy single-shot rifle). Of course Winnetou recognizes the sounds made by (or bruises left by) all of these weapons.
And, as a special bonus: Winnetou behind a rather fake-looking boulder.
Winnetou and Old Shatterhand
They belong together, of course.
Not long after their tempestuous first meeting, characterized by near-fatal misunderstandings - as well as immediate and deep mutual admiration - our two heroes become blood brothers.
Winnetou's father and sister, Chief Intschu-tschuna and Nscho-tschi, look on approvingly.
From then on, the two are inseparable.
They even share the same vices. ;-)
Our heroes with other people
Occasionally, other people intrude.
Old Surehand and Winnetou.
Old Shatterhand and Sam Hawkens. It's not what it looks like. Honest.
Winnetou and a hopelessly star-struck fan.
Tragedy strikes...
From "Winnetou III" - the one Karl May book that I usually only re-read halfway, because I just couldn't bear to read on.
Assorted images
Back to happier times... because sometimes, even heroes are dorks.
Some heroes have Bad Hair Days, too. *g*
An artist's version of the "blood brothers" scene. Winnetou's hair is far more true to the books here than in the movies, probably because this hair-style is, in fact, impossible to wear in real life - or even in movies.
Movie posters for "Winnetou I + II" and "Der Schatz im Silbersee" ("The Treasure in Silver Lake").
The author
This is Karl May himself. Yes, he is dressed as Old Shatterhand. That's because Old Shatterhand is a big ol' Mary Sue.
The fact that May's hero Old Shatterhand's given name is Karl, or Charlie, is no coincidence: Karl May actually claimed to be identical with his narrator and to have lived through all of the recounted adventures.
I dare say no-one really believed this, though. Or would you believe this man could fell his enemies with one blow of a fist?
Der Schuh des Manitu
This relatively recent movie - released in 2001 - is a parody of the older Karl May movies, and was a huge success in Germany. The film was released in the US under the name "Manitou's Shoe", but I doubt anyone understood what the point was, let alone what was supposed to be funny about it - most of the humor requires knowledge of Karl May and the older movie versions, or is based on untranslatable puns and regional dialects.
Note the typical pose of Our Heroes at the Marterpfahl (stake? torture pole? totem pole? is there truly no word for this thing in English?), where they have just been bickering like an old couple over just whose fault it is they always end up tied to stakes. (Winnetou and Old Shatterhand managed to get into such fixes with astonishing regularity, though of course there was no bickering. Just manly endurance, pride and confidence in each other's strength and abilities, and dramatic escapes in the nick of time.)
The parody even includes a slash fangirl. *g*