Leroy Ninker Saddles Up

As Leroy Ninker, the protagonist, works the concession stand of the Bijou Drive-In Theater, he dreams of being a real cowboy. When the theater shows Westerns, Leroy admires their hats, boots, lassos, and courage. Whispering his trademark, “Yippie-i-oh,” he declares that he is destined to be a cowboy (2). Beatrice Leapaleoni, the ticket seller who periodically helps at the concession stand, asks him what he needs to become a cowboy. Leroy responds that cowboys need hats, boots, and lassos. However, Beatrice emphasizes that a cowboy must also have a horse. Instantly, Leroy knows she’s right and wonders how he could ever be a real cowboy without a horse. Holding a newspaper advertisement, Beatrice suggests a solution—an old horse is for sale—and urges him to take control of his fate. Determined, Leroy puts the advertisement in his pocket, and Beatrice instructs him to check the teeth and hooves on the horse before purchasing it. Later that night, Leroy dreams of horses.

The next day, confident that he is about to “procure” a horse, Leroy begins walking, imagining he’s in the saddle. A boy in a passing car calls him a “tiny cowboy” and someone else throws a can at Leroy’s head (12).