First Appearance: Wild West #1 (Spring 1948).
Appearances: Blaze Carson #1-5, Kid Colt #4, 6, Tex Taylor, The Fighting Cowboy #1-9, Wild West #1-2, Wild Western #3-7, 9, 11, Tex Morgan #2, 6, 7, 9, Two-Gun Kid #6.
Years Active: 1870s.

Tex, when he was a younger man, lived with his father ("the best cattleman in this state") on their ranch in Whisperin' Valley, near Wishbone, Texas. One day the head of the "Cattlemen's Protection League" attempted to extort protection money from Tex's father. His father, naturally, refused, and the head of the League rode off, uttering threats. Soon after that Tex joined the Army during the Civil War, although it is not revealed which side he fought for. While Tex is away at war he received a letter saying that his father was dead and that he had, before his death, sold the ranch to the League.

Tex returned to find that the head of the League had gotten himself elected Sheriff, forced Tex's father to sign the ranch over to him, and then had him killed. Tex investigated matters, shooting a few folks on the way, and then discovered that the town mayor was responsible for everything, having forced the sheriff of Wishbone to do all the bad things. The mayor was interested in the gold deposits on the ranch of Tex's father. Tex killed the mayor, and then had "reason enough to spend the rest of my life hunting down varmints like the Mayor--and DESTROYING THEM!"

Interestingly, some of Tex's adventures are on the fantastic (literally) side. In "Trapped in Time's Lost Land" he battles dinosaurs and sabre-toothed tigers. And in "The Mystery of Devil-Tree Plateau" he encountered dwarf horses, a miniature village, and a lost race of dwarf Incans.

Tex is of course good with his guns, knows judo, and has that heroic streak which will drive him to endanger himself just to help a little boy get his father back. He is, though, a good example of the Old West Slacker; in his own words, "me an' work aren't the best friends." (When he's not wandering the range or helping people he's "having a fling at his favorite sport....resting.") He is not notably bloodthirsty, however, and far more often takes prisoners or shoots men through the hands or shoulders rather than gun them down. His horse was named Fury. (On the photo to the right you can't see the yellow stars on his blue gloves, but trust me, they're there, and they make a nice addition to his outfit.)