Martha Jane Cannary better known as Calamity Jane was born around on May 1st, 1852 in Princeton, Missouri. She is a legendary figure of the Wild West and her biography has often been changed and enriched with (arricchita) adventures and events taken from the western mythology. Nevertheless (ciononostante) Jane really lived and her talent and generosity helped her to become a heroine. Orphaned at 12, Jane moved the family into Wyoming where she brought up (allevò) his siblings (fratelli e sorelle). She worked as a cook, a nurse (infemiera), a prostitute, a miner (minatrice) and an ox-team driver (una conduttrice di buoi) all the while (e nel frattempo) improving (migliorava) her shooting and horse-riding skills (le sue abilità come tiratrice e cavallerizza). In her 1896 autobiography she confesses , “I was at all times with the men when there was excitement and adventures to be had. By the time (quando) we reached Virginia City, I was considered a remarkable good shot (brava tiratrice) and a fearless rider (audace cavallerizza) for a girl of my age (della mia età).” These abilities granted her (le garantirono) the nickname of Calamity Jane. In 1876, Jane settled (si stabilì) in Deadwood, South Dakota, because of a new gold rush (corsa all’oro) and the newspaper Black Hills Pioneer announced in their headline (testata), “Calamity Jane has arrived!”. It was in this period that she met Wild Bill Hickok, the legendary gunfighter (tiratore) and stagecoach driver (conduttore di diligenze). Legends say that they got married and had a child, but these fact have not been proved. What is known is that she worked the land and danced in saloons to get her living (per guadagnarsi da vivere). She was famous for being coarse (volgare) and detestable, she cursed (bestemmiava) and drank more than men, but she also showed generosity, kindness and compassion, especially to the sick (malati) and needy (chi ne aveva bisogno). 1n 1885, Jane married Clinton Burke. The couple had a daughter – Jane – who was left at a convent when the marriage ended. By 1893, Calamity Jane appeared in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show as a shooter (tiratrice) and horse rider. Calamity died on August 1, 1903, in South Dakota, at the age of 51. In 1953 David Butler directed the film Calamity Jane – starring Doris Day – inspired to her life and her romance with Wild Bill Hickok (Italian title: Non sparare, baciami!).