Thursday, May 17, 2012

Arizonauts Profile: Sonny Gunold, a.k.a. The Sun City Gunslinger

Sonny Gunold was a simple man.  When he settled in the desert that would become Arizona in the 1880's with his wife, he was content to live his twilight years as a rancher.  Alas, his wife soon died of fever, and Sonny became an empty man -- so empty, a demon saw fit to possess his body and cause ruin on America's pioneering Wild West.  Fortunately, Sonny was also a righteous man, so he fought off the possession, but not before the demon could leave behind a piece of itself, namely, its immortality.  Forever destined never to die and join his wife, Sonny watched an industrial civilization come of age and quickly render him obsolete.  So, he never moved, and when Sun City was built around him, he remained its foremost curmudgeon.  Legend of the Cowboy That Couldn't Die spread, and eventually Speed Cameron asked Sonny to join the Arizonauts.  At first, Sonny said no, but when he saw Dust Devil on the news, Sonny knew he has to get close to that li'l bugger.  Something about those horns looked familiar . . .

Preserved "Wanted" poster found in southeastern Arizona ghost town;
evidence of Sonny Gunold's supernatural exploits at the turn of the century.

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