For many, Clint Eastwood’s “Unforgiven” is unmatched.

LOS ANGELES – It won’t be only Disney executives who are watching the box office returns for “The Lone Ranger” this weekend. Lots of people are wondering whether Johnny Depp and Armie Hammer can ride to the rescue of a genre that was once a staple of American cinema but has since fallen on hard times: the Western.

“The Western has always been a definitively American art form,” said Jeffrey Richardson, Gamble curator of Western history, popular culture and firearms at the Autry National Center of the American West in Los Angeles. “It’s one that has grown and evolved over time, but unfortunately, it has been in decline over the past 50 years.” More here.

What is your favorite Western?

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