I am undertaking an exercise fraught with danger here. Anytime one composes such a list he is virtually guaranteed to offend as many folks as he entertains. My choices are purely subjective and I freely admit the list that follows is simply one man's opinion.

Having made my disclaimer, I will proceed. Just because as many people will disagree with my choices as agree is no reason not to go forward and have some fun. I will explain my reasoning for each choice and let the reader decide whether or not I've made an effective argument justifying my choices.

All of the characters I selected share some common attributes. All are tough, decisive men of action with a strong code of right and wrong, typical of heroes in Westerns. I am going to look a little deeper into each character and the unique qualities each actor playing them brought to these heroes of fiction.

I am not ranking my five choices as #1 best and #5 least best. Honestly, I'm not sure I could do that. It was hard enough narrowing my picks down to these five.

• Cole Thornton (portrayed by John Wayne in El Dorado) is a hired gun but not a mercenary. Unlike the stereotypical cold blooded gunslinger Thornton shows real humanity under his rawhide tough exterior. He turns down a huge payday to help a friend in trouble, takes a greenhorn under his wing to protect him and shows real anguish when he is responsible for a young boy's death. Thornton comes across as very real. Of course, that is what John Wayne did best and here he delivers just what we expect. It has been said John Wayne was not a good actor because he was always being John Wayne in his films. Whether true or not, it always worked for the Duke on the big screen. Cole Thornton is truly a memorable character.

• Gus McCrae (portrayed by Robert Duvall in Lonesome Dove) is a character in every sense of the word. There has never been a western hero with more sheer personality than Gus McCrae. He is the furthest from the dour, stone faced frontiersman ever to be found on screen. Irreverent, incorrigible, often unserious and always seeking to embrace the lighter side of a situation, he is a character larger than life. Considering the gritty and often grim events of the main story line, which is a cattle drive from Texas to Montana, Gus McCrae provides a lighthearted and upbeat balance to the rough and tumble life and death world unfolding before us. Make no mistake, Gus McCrae is no clown. He is a serious hero able to deal with all manner of crises from Indian attacks to rescuing a woman from renegades while outnumbered ten to one. It is his zest for life that makes Gus McCrae so special. He embraces life and grabs for the gusto whether he's sitting on the porch sipping whiskey or ducking bullets. Robert Duvall said that of all the characters he's played Gus McCrae is his favorite. It's not hard to see why.

• Josey Wales (portrayed by Clint Eastwood in The Outlaw Josey Wales) is a noteworthy hero because he considers himself anything but. He is as simple and straightforward as can be. His family was murdered and he's out for revenge. He is the most dangerous type of warrior - the man that just doesn't give a damn because everything he cared about has been ripped away from him and he has nothing left to live for hence nothing to lose. We find out this premise is not completely true. As events unfold we see that Wales, though seemingly unaware of it, has not completely lost his humanity. He is able to think of others before himself and help some pilgrims that would surely die without his assistance. This character only works because Clint Eastwood does such a superb job of making Josey Wales subtly recover his humanity in small doses over time. It is very gratifying to see Wales have his revenge at the end of the film. Though somewhat grisly, it seems fitting and just, striking a sense of balance that evens things up.

• Wyatt Earp (portrayed by Kurt Russell in Tombstone) is an effective hero because he is trying hard not to be one. He faces the classic hero dilemma, becoming caught up in events beyond his control and reacting to them to the best of his abilities. Retired from his career as a lawman, he relocates to the town of Tombstone to become an entrepreneur with two of his brothers. Upon his arrival he is immediately offered a position as a lawman, which he promptly refuses. Earp wants nothing more than to make money and spend time with his family. Of course, this was not to be. Events conspire to prevent his peaceful retirement and lead to the Earp brothers standing against a local group of criminals which culminates in the famous shootout at the O.K. Corral. What makes this version of Wyatt Earp noteworthy is the smooth and seemingly effortless way he deals with obstacles, from slapping around and disarming a would be desperado that everyone else seems to quakes in fear of, to leading a vengeful crusade to eradicate the aforementioned criminal gang from the face of the earth. Russell does a masterful job of making Wyatt Earp both confident and humble and he comes across as very natural, as if it is all routine stuff for him. This is an especially difficult achievement, considering he was portraying a real life icon of American history. Wyatt Earp has been portrayed many times, but never with the calm intensity that Russell brought to the role. The key to admiring this Wyatt Earp is that he may not have been the way Kurt Russell played him in real life, but we like to think that maybe he was.

• Matthew Quigley (portrayed by Tom Selleck in Quigley Down Under) is a man that always knows exactly where he stands. Moral equivocation is something alien to his nature. He does this with a quiet strength and resolve that is louder than any shot from his Sharps rifle. What makes Quigley so appealing is that he is the antithesis of the modern sensitive hero Hollywood seems so fond of these days. He wastes no time with angst over how to accomplish his goals without offending anyone. Quigley is just what we expect in a western hero. Though the least verbose of the heroes on my list he is no less effective. We get a telling glimpse into the character of Matthew Quigley when he first meets Marston, a wealthy land owner in Australia that has hired Quigley to eliminate pests due to his long range shooting prowess. Marston placed an ad seeking the best long range rifleman. Marston produces his ad that Quigley sent him with several bullet holes in it and a notation of M. Quigley 900 yards. Quigley didn't tell him he was good. He showed him. When Quigley finds out the pests Marston wants him to eliminate are Aborigines they have a falling out and Quigley becomes a marked man. Outnumbered and outgunned in a foreign land, his only allies a mentally unstable expatriate American woman and his trusty Sharps rifle, Quigley coolly and deliberately wages a seemingly unwinnable war against Marston. Quigley perfectly illustrates the old adage, "There's no stopping a man who knows he's right and keeps on coming." I won't give away the ending for anyone that hasn't seen the movie so I'll just say it is one of the most satisfying endings ever. It is easy to identify with Matthew Quigley and hard not to admire him.

Well, there you have my top 5 picks. I don't expect everyone to agree with me. This is such a subjective exercise that would be an unrealistic and foolish goal. I assure you it is not my intent in this article to convince anyone my choices are the correct ones. What I hope I have done is introduced a fun topic and some food for thought. Maybe some of you will be inspired to come up with your own list.