Porter (and possibly Anderson) drew on various sources when planning the scenario for "The Great Train Robbery". Western themes were already popular in films and other entertainment, reflecting the wide public interest in stories about the past and present of the American West. Many American films before 1900 can be classified as Westerns, such as actuality views of cowboy life, staged Western anecdotes like "A Bluff from a Tenderfoot" and "Cripple Creek Bar-Room Scene" (both 1899), and shots of Annie Oakley and of Oglala and Brulé dancers from Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show (both 1894).