January 2010 High Noon Monthly eMagazine

This month, Smoke Signals talks with Danny and his life partner Dina, individuals with energy and passion for what they do.

Dina and Danny Neill

Danny and Dina Neill

In doing an interview for Smoke Signals, there's a certain format we writers try to adhere to in gleaning the pertinent information we need to create a story. Just 30 seconds into the phone interview with Danny, it was clear those guidelines were going to be tossed out the proverbial window. Rarely in life, does one get the opportunity to feel the energy and passion an individual has for what they do, literally electrifying the phone line. That's Danny and his wife and life partner Dina.

Danny's been a centrifugal force in the last 20 years of High Noon. Dealer yes, but so much more than that. Many know Danny for his world-class collection of Mexican Charros, but it's his passion behind what he sells that sets him apart.

To Danny, it's not the specific pieces or stuff, it's what they represent. Danny's real goal in life is to educate people about and preserve the rich Mexican history, which is the foundation for the American Cowboy and its legacy. Few people really know that it was the Mexican Vaqueros who were the original cowboys. They brought horses from Europe, they brought in the cattle and they created the foundation of the craftsmanship used to create the saddles, the bits and the spurs. It's this history and the preservation of this heritage that is center most to Danny's heart.

For the past 40 years, he has been collecting, buying and selling, visiting Mexico 5 to 6 times each year. "These aren't trips where you run down, buy stuff and come back and sell them. It's a process of relationship-building with the people: staying in their homes, getting to know them and their story." It's the stories that hold the key to the value of the stuff - otherwise, it's just stuff.

Danny has had many enriching and also frightening travel experiences which he felt best not to share, other than one time when he had to change his shorts. We can only imagine. He did mention one trip, hours and hours long on a bus through rural Mexico, where he shared his seat with a goat and had to hold a woman's chickens...

His experiences, his knowledge and his commitment to furthering a deeper understanding of Mexican heritage is what has finally brought him national recognition. In the fall, he was invited to be a guest lecturer at the National Cowboy Museum in Oklahoma City and he was a smashing success! Museums across America and Mexico have been in touch with him since to participate in their educational programs, and he recently got a call from the Smithsonian who is interested in working with him on a special exhibit of Mexican Charros - congratulations Danny!

And then there's his fabulous wife Dina. Vintage clothing diva, and dealer, who draws buyers from around the world for her spectacular collections of cowboy and couture vintage fashions. You can catch her each month at the Rose Bowl where the "Hollywood" types race to buy her latest offerings.

It was her Cowboy clothing that led to Danny and Dina meeting. Over 20 years ago, Danny would buy from Dina and, lo and behold, that was kismet. Four years later they married. Not your typical wedding either. They married in Cody, WY during Brian Lebel's Cody Old West Show. A whole entourage assembled at the Cody Court House to share this event and Brian Lebel was Danny's witness. When vows were said and the marriage license was signed, the judge looked at Brian and told him he signed where the groom should. So, the question remains, is Dina married to Danny or Brian?

Danny and Dina Neill, an unstoppable team, of the highest integrity, passion, and, oh yes, spectacular stuff.