Hollywood producers and directors actively created such a cowboy image in the Wild West for almost the entire first half of the 20th century, despite the fact that more often than not it had nothing to do with reality! But why was it necessary to do this?
Why were cowboys turned from simple shepherds into action heroes? 
Still from the movie "For a Few Dollars More"
If you are familiar with the adventure cinematic genre of Westerns, then you probably immediately imagine in your head the image of Clint Eastwood on horseback and with a revolver in his hand.
The image of the rugged cowboy finding order in chaos is one of the most enduring myths of American history. Cowboys are usually portrayed in movies as rugged men, steely-eyed, strong but sensitive, like John Wayne or Gary Cooper. They spend most of their time in local bars, sipping another shot of whiskey, and in their free time they save the ranch of young widows from the Comanches or participate in shootouts with bandits.
Who are the cowboys? 
Usually in Hollywood movies none of the cowboys ever even go near the cows or cattle. Of course, in reality everything was exactly the opposite, since cowboys were shepherds and spent most of their time on the ranch working with cattle.
During their heyday, cowboys were migrant farm workers who were poorly paid and little respected, spending all their free time in local pubs and blowing what little wages they had on equipment, clothing, booze, poker games and women. Most of the cowboys of that time were young men between the ages of 20 and 30, who grew up on farms and ranches from their youth.
During the era of mass cattle drives, from 1865 to 1895, the life of a cowboy was quite complex, dangerous and difficult. The average cowboy worked 12–14 hours a day on the ranch for just $30 a month as a laborer. His duties included building and repairing fences, shoeing and breaking horses, cleaning corrals, herding, and on rare occasions driving cattle long distances (in the company of several other cowboys), for which he could be paid up to $100. But driving cattle was a rare profitable job. The cowboy was also known for sleeping without tents in all weathers in the wild for weeks while driving cattle, eating a diet of legumes and fried bacon.
The main myth about armed cowboys 
One of the biggest myths of the Hollywood Wild West is that in the movies, almost all the cowboys on screen own guns and use them constantly.
In reality, only a small part of the cowboys actually had weapons with them, and they used them in very rare cases. More often during hunting, less often, to simply fight off possible attacks from Indians during long-distance cattle drives or from attacks by bandits/raiders.
An ordinary average cowboy might never even see a shootout in his life, much less take part in one.
Then why in the movies are cowboys usually portrayed not as shepherds, but as action heroes and gunfighters (professional shooters) constantly participating in shootouts? 
Still from the film “Pale Rider”
The symbiosis of cinema and Westerns actually began not in Hollywood, but in New Jersey and New York, where Edwin S. Porter's 1903 film The Great Train Robbery was filmed. This 10-minute film, with several silent scenes and a climactic shootout, set the standard for both Westerns and film storytelling, and redefined the role of cowboy identity in American cinema. Such a short film created a huge sensation and the producers very quickly realized what the American audience needed. They found a gold mine and the image of the cowboy began to evolve.
The desire to shoot Westerns in the American West and outdoors were key reasons for the film industry's migration from New York to Hollywood after 1910 (influenced by the fact that most films were shot outdoors due to older film stock and cameras). It became profitable and (relatively) cheap to make films about cowboys.
Americans at the beginning of the 20th century, after a series of successful films in the Western genre, were incredibly fascinated by the personality of the cowboys living in the Wild West. 
For most Americans, the Wild West was something unknown and dangerous. In their minds, cowboys were real men who lived in these wild lands, coped with all the hardships, and also stood up to the Indians and lawlessness. Cowboys were admired by both children and men, but more so by women (living in large cities).
The Hollywood cowboy combined two images: a shepherd and a gunfighter.
A gunfighter differed from a simple shooter in that he was a professional shooter, who necessarily took part in at least several shootouts; he was also often a bounty hunter, and sometimes became a sheriff, like Wild Bill Hickok. These people had nothing in common with ordinary cowboys, but Hollywood producers chose to combine the images of a gunfighter and a shepherd in films to create spectacular westerns with a huge number of shootouts. Therefore, the actors who played the iconic roles of cowboys in those days instantly turned into stars of the first magnitude.
Cowboy movies made every American man's dreams come true. The cowboy was brave and courageous, and also embodied the typical American male ideal: he destroyed villains, defeated all his enemies, had tireless strength, reaction speed, accuracy, physical abilities and always found love with a beautiful woman in trouble.
The superficiality and simplicity of the cowboy image became the secret of his attractiveness and popularity.
Americans idealized the Western hero because he did everything that most middle-class men in big cities dreamed of doing but had no real chance of achieving. Cowboys always had the courage to stand up to their corrupt rich bosses or officials and seek justice or change. But this is what many ordinary men dreamed of, but they could only see and try on this image in the movies.
In the late 19th century, cowboys were widely portrayed as poor and unpleasant characters, but then filmmakers began to portray them as courageous, self-sufficient heroes.
And where Hollywood leads, Madison Avenue will surely follow.
In the first half of the 20th century, it was not profitable for anyone in Hollywood to portray a cowboy as a simple farmer and shepherd. This image simply did not sell, unlike the image of a male hero and a fighter against scoundrels. 
Marlbro ad using a cardboard cutout of a cowboy
That is why all of America at that time was inundated with a huge number of advertisements featuring cowboy salesmen.
Marketers used cowboys to increase sales of cigarettes, shoes, hats, boots, jeans, beer and whiskey. And wealthy cowboy-looking ranchers have appeared in advertisements for clothing designers such as Ralph Lauren, Levi's, Wrangler, Lee, and many other brands. We were talking about billions of dollars in revenue from such advertising. By the way, alcohol and tobacco products seriously harm your health, do not fall for this advertising in the movies. 
Levi's jeans commercial (starring a cowboy who points out the brand he wears to an interested girl)
Ironically, the cowboy has become a symbol of the slow lifestyle, a symbol of the American man who is not afraid to get his hands dirty, protect his property and go against everyone to achieve justice. Well, and most importantly, the cowboy became the one who was able to sell the largest number of goods “for real men” to ordinary onlookers and inspired men.
And it was then that the Hollywood cowboy, in the minds of many people in America and around the world, lost his most important tool for making a living - his work on a cattle ranch. Why would Hollywood show a cowboy without a revolver, with which he defeats villains and smokes another pack of Marlboros? Why show a man who works all day on a ranch for meager wages and cannot sell anything with his image, including the film itself?
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