| Type | Saloon |
| Location | Abode Bend |
| Owner(s) | Slash Caldwell |
| Featured in | The Hawk (1951) |
The Longhorn Cafe was a western bar featured in the 1951 comic book series The Hawk, having appeared in the comic's first issue in the story "The Law of the Colt".
Overview[]
_proprietor,_Slash_Caldwell.png){kind=link}
The crooked proprietor of the Longhorn Cafe, Slash Caldwell
The Longhorn Cafe was a saloon in the evil-infested town of Abode Bend where outlaws and killers ran free due to the town being under the control of the notorious crimelord, Slash Caldwell, who pretty much owned every property in town, including large swathes of farmland for most of his prized cattle, as well as the Longhorn Cafe which served as his main headquarters and the epicenter of his crooked enterprise.
The Longhorn Cafe was a typical saloon overrun with all manner of criminal types from both sides of the border and it was here where many card games were often held by Slash and his gang as they enjoyed drinking and smoking to their hearts' content. True to the cafe's name, the horns of a longhorn hung inside the cafe overlooking the entrance.
History[]
_-_Slash_frames_Bud_Beadle.png){kind=link}
Slash frames Bud Beadle
While Slash's influence was almost unquestioned, one holdout kept him from achieving complete control, that holdout being Gopher Beadle and his son Bud, the owners of Lazy B Range, who had access to the biggest stream in the area, something Caldwell greatly desired due to his territories not having enough water to keep his heard hydrated. Caldwell's brutality knew no limit, having orchestrated the murder of Bud Beadle by framing him for the theft of a prized horse, and when he attempted to "arrest" Bud for the the crime he did not commit, Bud resisted and was mercilessly shot down by Caldwell after he saw the boy going for his gun, thus making Slash believe that taking over the Lazy B Range would be a cinch without Bud around to defend his father and sister.
_-_Death_of_Moreno.png){kind=link}
Slash witnesses Moreno's death at the hands of the Hawk, thus ruining his plans
What Slash didn't count on though was the unexpected arrival of Gopher Beadle's old friend, the legendary ranger known as "The Hawk". The minute the Hawk stepped into town, Slash's men already feared that their goose was cooked as no gang had ever faced the Hawk without being arrested or found dead. To avoid a similar fate, Slash hired the deadly mercenary and bandido, Lobo Moreno, to kill the Hawk by any means necessary, even if it meant threatening and killing the Beadle family to do it.
_-_The_death_of_Slash.png){kind=link}
After a fierce fight, Slash falls to his death
Moreno then headed onto the Lazy B Range, tied up the Beadle family and sent their cattle into a stampeding frenzy so as to make theirs and the Hawk's death look like an accident. Fortunately, the Hawk was able to save the Beadles and calm down the herd, with the Hawk eventually making his way to the Longhorn Cafe where he was almost shot by Moreno just outside the saloon, unfortunately for Moreno, he was killed instantly by the Hawk's superior trigger finger.
Once inside, the Hawk confronted Slash and his men, gunning them all down in an instant, but Slash managed to to evade his gunfire, leading to a chase into the desert where the Hawk and Slash duke it out one-on-one, exchanging blow after blow, but in the end the Hawk was able to deal the finishing punch that knocked Slash over a cliffside, killing him instantly and putting an end to his corrupt financial hold over the city.
Notes[]
- The saloon may have been based on the real Longhorn Saloon in the city of Fort Worth, Texas which was established in 1910.