While the ability to draw a firearm quickly was a popular skill during the American frontier, modern fast draw is inspired more by gun duels in western films than historical gunfights. ... Duels, while also fought to uphold honor, were usually not formalized and sometimes were due to the heat of the moment.

Was dueling a real thing?

Duels were to challenge someone over a woman or to defend one's honor. ... Dueling in the US was not uncommon in the south and west, even after 1859, when 18 states outlawed it, but it became a thing of the past in the United States by the start of the 20th century.

Who was the most feared gunslinger in the Old West?

Wild Bill may hold the title of the deadliest gunslinger in the whole West. He carried his two Colt 1851 Navy revolvers with ivory grips and nickel plating, which can be seen on display at the Adams Museum in Deadwood, South Dakota.