Annabel Lee
It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of Annabel Lee;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.
I was a child and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea,
But we loved with a love that was more than love,
I and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the wingèd seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her highborn kinsmen came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
In this kingdom by the sea.
The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and me;
Yes, that was the reason (as all men know,
In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud by night,
Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.
But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than we,
Of many far wiser than we;
And neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee.
For the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling,—my darling,—my life and my bride,
In her sepulchre there by the sea,
In her tomb by the sounding sea.
E.A. Poe.
Billy the Kid – 1859-1881 – a.k.a. Henry McCarty, William H. Bonney, William Antrim, Henry Antrim and Kid Antrim
By most accounts, Billy the Kid was born Henry McCarty in New York City, NY November 23, 1859, his parents being Catherine and Patrick McCarty, although it is not known for sure. Another view is that he was born William H. Bonney to Catherine and William McCarty Bonney. Billy did sign letters as William H. Bonney, but this was after he fled the Arizona territory, wanted for murder, so many assume that William H. Bonney was just an alias to hide from the law and that’s why he used it signing letters. Another story has it as Billy being born as Henry McCarty to a Joseph McCarty of Cass County, IN. However, in the 1880 census of Lincoln County, NM, the Kid listed his name as William H. Bonney and his state of birth as New York.
One account of the family is that Billy’s mother, Catherine, moved west with her two boys Henry (Billy) and Joseph and William Antrim, settling in Wichita, KS. in 1870. There Catherine ran a laundry business and invested in real estate. After Wichita, the family moved to Coffeyville, KS. for a short time which is where Billy got into his first trouble with the law, arrested for stealing items from a local store. Catherine then decided to move to the southwest with William Antrim and her boys, supposedly because she had tuberculosis and needed the drier climate. She married William Antrim in Santa Fe, NM March 1, 1873, with her two boys present.
The family then moved to Silver City, NM where Antrim worked as a miner and Catherine ran a boarding house. Catherine had many health problems and on September 16, 1874 she died, leaving her two sons to live with their stepfather, William Antrim. At the time Billy was 15 and had gotten into trouble in Silver City with the law, nothing major, petty theft and whatnot, but he and his stepfather never got along, Antrim thinking Billy was a troublemaker. Billy did attend school and worked at odd jobs. Billy and a friend, George “Sombrero Jack” Shaffer, as a prank, stole some clothes from a local laundry and were arrested. Billy, not wanting to face his stern stepfather for this offense, left town and ventured to the Arizona territory and worked at odd jobs on ranches and in towns.
During this period, not much is “recorded” of the Kid, although this is the time when Billy killed his first man. This was 1877, when Billy was first called “Kid”. On August 17, 1877, a blacksmith, Frank P. Cahill, an Irishman, was in George Adkins’ Saloon in Camp Grant, AZ. Cahill was a huge man and had been drinking, he and Billy argued. He called Billy a pimp and slapped him upside the head, which through Billy to the floor. Billy, realizing that he was no match for Cahill, drew his gun and shot Cahill in the stomach, Cahill died the next day. Billy was thrown into the camp guardhouse, but escaped and that’s when he began running.
The Kid then drifted back to the New Mexico territory, to Lincoln County, taking on the name William H. Bonney, this was late 1877. He found work as a hired hand for L.G. Murphy and J.J. Dolan, who owned huge cattle ranches in Lincoln County and had a monopoly on the cattle and merchant trade. The Murphy-Dolan faction, also known as “The House”, had one main competitor, Alexander McSween, a Lincoln attorney, and John Tunstall, a wealthy Englishman who were backed by the days biggest cattle baron, John Chisum. This became known as the Lincoln County War. Murphy-Dolan didn’t particularly care for competition and were willing to do whatever they had to do to stop it. There were also investors in Murphy-Dolan from Santa Fe, called the Sante Fe ring, which included, among others, the attorney general.
The Kid spent most of his days rustling cattle for Murphy-Dolan from Chisum’s Jinglebob Ranch. Murphy-Dolan would then sell the cattle to Mexican and Indian buyers, who didn’t really care who’s brand was on them as long as the price was right. By chance, the Kid met John Tunstall, the Murphy-Dolan chief rival, and they immediately hit it off. Tunstall would become the father figure Billy never had, for a while anyway. The Kid idolized Tunstall and left the Murphy-Dolan ranch and went to work for him. The Kid emulated Tunstall in many ways, and Tunstall was quite impressed with Billy and was quoted as saying of the Kid “That’s the finest lad I ever met. He’s a revelation to me everyday and would do anything to please me. I’m going to make a man out of that boy yet”.
Tunstall’s plans for the Kid were never realized. On February 18, 1878, Tunstall was killed in cold blood by men deputized by Sheriff William Brady, who was appointed to his position by Murphy-Dolan. These men, including Frank Baker, Jesse Evans, Jim McDaniel and Billy Morton, among others, who were at one time friends of the Kid’s when he worked for Murphy-Dolan, stopped Tunstall on a road and informed him that they were taking part of his cattle herd, stating that the cattle belonged to Murphy-Dolan. Tunstall of course spoke out, saying that the cattle were his and to look at the brands to see he was telling the truth. The men drew their guns, ordering Tunstall to surrender. Tunstall climbed out of his buckboard and handed over his gun, stating “I don’t want any bloodshed”. As Tunstall was handing over his gun to Jesse Evans, Evans shot the unarmed man and he fell to the ground. Billy Morton then fired a second round, into Tunstall’s head, killing him instantly.
When the Kid got word of the killing of Tunstall, he said “He was the only man that ever treated me kindly, like I was free born and white”. Billy then said in a rage “I’ll get every son of a bitch who helped kill John if it’s the last thing I ever do”. Word got to the Murphy-Dolan boys of the Kid’s vendetta, which left them very apprehensive, given the fact that they knew Billy as a single minded man that would ride out of his way to confront his enemies. They also know Billy was quick at the draw and an expert marksman. The Kid wasn’t that impressive to look at, reports show his height between 5’8″ and 5’10”, he had a receding chin and large teeth, some said he was bucktooth, but he just had a pronounced overbite. His eyes were like blue ice and some said he could look right through you. Make no doubt about it, the Kid was clever and proved to be an unconventional adversary.
The Kid heard that Richard M. “Dick” Brewer was sworn in as a special constable to arrest the killers of Tunstall and quickly joined the group, known as “The Regulators”, and was sworn in as a deputy. On March 6, 1878, after several days of searching, Brewer’s posse came across a group of riders about 6 miles from the Rio Pecos. The group of riders rode off, breaking up into small groups and Brewer’s posse was in pursuit. The Kid went after Billy Morton and Frank Baker, firing at them with his pistol and rifle as he rode. Billy caught up with the pair after their horses went down and took them prisoner, but vowed he would kill them both. The posse took Morton and Baker to the Chisum ranch. On March 9, 1878, The Regulators, including the Kid, were moving the two prisoners to Lincoln, but stopped in Roswell first so Morton could mail a letter. M.A. Upson, the postmaster, said that Morton told him to let his family know if anything happened to him, when Upson asked Morton if he thought harm would come to him at the hands of the posse, Morton replied that the posse had given John Chisum their word that the prisoners would be delivered safely to Lincoln and he trusted their word. William McCloskey, a former hand with Murphy-Dolan, now a Regulator, overheard Upson and Morton talking and said “Billy, if harm comes to you two, they will have to kill me first”.
The posse, with prisoners in tow, rode off to Lincoln. The Kid and Charlie Bowdre leading, some distance from the posse, on the lookout for Murphy-Dolan men who might try to free Morton and Baker. Then there was Morton and Baker with William McCloskey and John Middleton behind them. Following them were Dick Brewer, Frank McNab, J.G. “Doc” Skurlock, Henry Brown, Fred Wayt, Jim French and Sam Smith. The party would never make it to Lincoln.
On March 11, 1878, McNab rode into Roswell and reported that Morton and Baker had tried to escape and killed McCloskey in the process, and in turn, were killed themselves by the posse. This was later proven to be a lie. The posse, not including McCloskey, had decided to kill the two prisoners before they reached Lincoln. It is not known if the Kid and Bowdre knew of their plans, since they were riding out front, and the posse decided this as they rode in the rear. After leaving Roswell, near Black Water Holes, also called Steel Springs, McNab put a six-gun to the head of McCloskey and said “You are the son of a bitch who’s got to die before harm can come to these fellows, are you?” McNab fired, blowing McCloskey’s brains out and McCloskey fell from his horse. Seeing this, Morton and Baker fled, knowing they would be next. The Kid turned, seeing them flee and took out after them, overtook them and fired two shots, killing them both. The posse left their bodies where they fell, including McCloskey, whom they believed to be in cahoots with the prisoners, they were buried by Mexican sheepherders.
The posse split up and McNab returned to the Chisum ranch, where he worked and the rest of the posse went off to other destinations. The Kid went to Lincoln to work for McSween. The Kid heard that Andrew L. “Buckshot” Roberts, who was working for Murphy-Dolan, was hunting him and the others for the killing of Morton and Baker. In April of 1878, Brewer and the Regulators, including the Kid, went after Roberts, tracking him down to Blazer’s Saw Mill, which was about 40 miles south of Lincoln. As the Regulators rode into the area, Roberts saw them and charged them on his horse and guns blazing. Roberts was one tough character, a veteran of the war (although, it has been reported that he may have been a deserter) and of many gunfights and he didn’t scare off easy. One of the bullets Roberts fired from his Winchester came close to the Kid’s head, Billy jumped from his horse and fired at Roberts, hitting him in the abdomen, but the rough old gunfighter climbed down from his horse, with guns in hand, took refuge in an outhouse. The Regulators sprayed the outhouse with dozens of shots and it appeared that they got their adversary. Brewer stood up and walked towards the outhouse, Roberts was laying in wait, he stuck his Winchester through a hole in the outhouse and blew the top of Brewer’s head off. Roberts’s Winchester fired again, this time seriously wounding Charley Bowdre in the side, but luckily for Bowdre, his cartridge belt deflected the shot and saved his life. The Regulators again fired on the outhouse in a flurry of shots, hitting Roberts several times. Roberts was dead, with his Winchester in hand.
With Dick Brewer dead, the Kid vowed to continue the pursuit of those responsible for John Tunstall’s death. Billy and the Regulators went after Sheriff William Brady and deputies J.B. Matthews and George Hindman. Billy and J.B. Matthews had had a run in before, on the streets of Lincoln, but to avoid a gunfight with the Kid, Matthews slipped away and hid in a building. On April 1, 1878, the Kid and 5 others quietly rode into Lincoln, unseen. They hid behind an adobe wall and made holes to put their guns through and waited. Sheriff Brady, Matthews and Hindman came walking down the street, guns in hand. As soon as they were in firing range, the Kid and his companions opened fire, Brady was shot several times and fell dead, next to him Hindman fell, mortally wounded, Matthews was able to get away and hid in a building. The Kid then went to the body of Sheriff Brady, to take his guns. When he picked up the rifle, it was shot out of his hands my Matthews, the Kid ran back to the wall and he and the group mounted their horses and rode out of town. The Kid lost support from some of the town because of the brutal ambush of Brady, saying it was a cowardly act, but some say Brady and Hindman got their just reward for the cold blooded killing of the helpless and unarmed John Tunstall.
Depending on whose count you listened to, some say the dead left in Billy’s wake after Brady and Hindman, was at 17, although some say 3 at that point.
After Brady’s murder, George “Dad” Peppin became the new Sheriff of Lincoln county, another Muphy-Dolan man. Peppin put a large force together to bring the Kid in, and the Kid being the Kid, made it easy for him. Billy, and 14 of his companions, visited Alexander McSween at his mansion in Lincoln and barricaded themselves inside, the mansion was immediately surrounded by Peppin’s posse, about 40 strong of the roughest gunfighters in the territory. A Roswell merchant, by the name of Marion Turner, who was once on the side of McSween-Tunstall, was now with the Murphy-Dolan faction and had control of the Peppin posse and ordered them to open fire on the McSween mansion, this was on July 15, 1878. The battle raged for 5 days solid before a truce was finally called.
Marion Turner called out to the Kid and told him he had warrants for him and his men for the murders of Brady and Hindman. It was silent for a moment, then the Kid shouted back, saying “We too, have warrants for you and all your gang which we will serve on you hot from the muzzle of our guns!” The firing again commenced. The posse outside was aided by a company of U.S. Infantry troops commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Nathan Augustus Monroe Dudley. The mansion was a shambles, riddled with bullets, but the men inside kept up their fire, wounding many a men outside, many were wounded inside too. Colonel Dudley threatened the men in the house that if they didn’t surrender, he would open fire with his two cannons, reducing the house to rubble and them along with it.
One of the men inside the McSween house, who worked for McSween, had had enough of this battle. He called out to the posse outside and said that they had enough, they will surrender. Hearing this, the Kid ran to this man, knocking him out with his gun. Outside, this call was heard. Robert Beckwith and John Jones approached the house, the back of the house at the kitchen door. Beckwith stood in the doorway and called out to McSween, the Kid immediately put a bullet into Beckwith’s head, killing him and wounding Jones. The Kid then yelled “come on” to the others, with guns blazing, the Kid and his men jumped over Beckwith’s body in a mass escape from the bullet riddled mansion. Somehow, through the hundreds of bullets being fired, the Kid made it to the river behind the house, crossed it and disappeared in the high reeds on the other side. His men followed, many being wounded. McSween refused to run from his own house. He stepped out in the yard, unarmed, and was quickly shot to death, being hit 9 times.
The Lincoln County War had gained national attention and was an embarrassment for President Rutherford B. Hayes. Hayes replaced the New Mexico Territorial Governor Axtell with Lew Wallace. Wallace was bound and determined to put an end to the war, whatever it would take to do it. He figured the best way to go about this was to offer an amnesty to all involved in the war if they lay down their guns, unless they were charged with murder, as Billy was. Billy heard of the offering, but also knew there was a warrant for his arrest for the murder of Sheriff Brady and Deputy Hindman. The Kid witnessed the murder of Huston Chapman, who had been an attorney of McSween. Chapman was murdered in cold blood by William Campbell, James Dolan and William Matthews, the Kid saw them kill Chapman, but didn’t pull his gun. His idea was to testify against the killers in exchange for a full pardon.
A meeting was set between the Kid and Gov. Wallace and took place on March 17, 1879 in the home of a John Wilson. Billy showed up with his Winchester and six shooter and asked if Wallace was there. Wallace immediately stood up and was surprised that Billy was the Billy that everyone feared, given the Kid’s appearance. Wallace proposed to Billy that if he surrendered and testified against the killers of the attorney Chapman, he would grant him a full pardon. Although, Billy had a problem with the word “surrender”, he thought it would make him sound weak. So Wallace proposed that Billy be “captured” instead, and the Kid agreed.
Part of the deal with Wallace was that the Kid would stand trial for the murder of Brady and Hindman, but Wallace promised Billy that he would do no time. As Billy was waiting for the court date, he grew impatient and decided to escape from his loosely guarded cell in the back of a store and took off for Fort Sumner. There the Kid ran into a Texan by the name of Joe Grant. Grant was boasting how he would be famous by being the man who shot down Billy the Kid, the Kid had heard about this before. Billy asked Grant to see his fine six gun, and Grant handed it to him. While the Kid had it and out of Grant’s view, he pulled out 3 bullets and set the hammer on an empty chamber. The Kid handed Grant back his pistol. Billy informed Grant as to who he was and they squared off, both pulling their weapons, but of course Grant’s didn’t fire and Billy killed him on the spot.
Some time later, a posse was on the trail of the Kid and his gang and had them surrounded in a ranch house close to Fort Sumner. The Kid asked for a truce, a man by the name of Jimmy Carlyle stepped out to talk, but the Kid shot him where he stood and killed him. The rest of the posse fled.
In 1880, Pat Garrett was made sheriff of Lincoln County. Some say that Pat and the Kid were close friends, working together on the Maxwell ranch and drinking together. Others say they barely knew each other. Anyway, with Gov. Wallace putting a $500 reward on Billy’s head, for breaking his promise to him for not standing trial on murder charges, Garrett wasted no time in forming a posse. On December 18, 1880, Garrett got a tip that the Kid and his gang would be riding into Fort Sumner. Garrett waited with a posse of 12 men. Garrett and his men saw Tom O’Folliard riding towards him, O’Folliard was riding point for the gang. Garrett’s posse opened fire, striking O’Folliard in the chest. O’Folliard then rode towards Garrett and said “don’t shoot again, I’m killed”. Garrett ordered him off of his horse, but O’Folliard said he couldn’t get down on his own. O’Folliard died a short time later and the Kid and his gang fled.
The Kid and his gang were on the run again and Garrett pursued them like there was no tomorrow. On December 21, 1880, Garrett had the gang cornered in an abandoned house near Stinking Springs. Inside the house were the Kid, Charlie Bowdre, Tom Pickett, Billy Wilson and Dave Rudabaugh, Billy’s closest friends. Garrett called for the gang to surrender, but was answered with only gunfire from the gang, which was answered back by Garrett and his 20 men. I’ve seen several accounts as to how Charlie Bowdre was shot. One is that he was outside tending the horses when the posse rode up, saw him and shot him in the chest. The other is, when the initial shots were exchanged after Garrett ordered the gang’s surrender, Bowdre was shot while crossing in front of a window. I’ve also seen an account that the one room building they were in had no windows, but one way or the other, Bowdre was shot in the chest. I believe he was shot while in the room, because the story goes that after he was shot, he said to Billy: “I’m killed Billy, they killed me”. Then Billy stood Bowdre up and pushed him to the door, telling him: “They have murdered you Charlie, but you can get revenge. Go out there and kill some of them sonsabitches before you go”. Billy shoved Bowdre out of the door, but Bowdre didn’t even have the strength to hold up his six gun and was shot several more times and fell face down. His body lay rotting for the two days the standoff lasted. With no food or water and out of ammo, the Kid and his gang finally surrendered. Garrett and his posse took them to Santa Fe. This is where the Kid wrote a letter to Gov. Wallace, reminding him of his promised pardon. Wallace refused to answer the Kid, saying he reneged on his promise to stand trial and that there would be no pardon.
There are a couple, if not more, of versions as to what happened next, this is the one I think happened. The Kid was taken to Mesilla, NM to stand trial for the murder of Andrew “Buckshot” Roberts. He was found guilty and Judge Bristol sentenced Billy to death, telling the Kid that he would hang “until you are dead, dead, dead!” They say the Kid laughingly said back to the stern judge that “you can go to hell, hell, hell!” While waiting for his execution date, Billy gave interviews to eager newsman, telling them “I expect to be lynched. It’s wrong that I should be the only one to suffer the extreme penalties of law”. The story goes that he also told the reporters that he was being singled out for punishment even though there were many many other more deserving of the hangman’s noose. He was moved to Lincoln County to await execution by two of Garrett’s deputies, Bob Ollinger and J.W. Bell. Ollinger, was at one time a gun for the Murphy-Dolan faction and hated the Kid with a passion. Once the Kid was locked up in the jail, Ollinger harass the kid, poking him with the butt of his shotgun, daring the kid to escape so he could shoot him in the back “just like you did Brady”. Billy did nothing and kept his temper in check, for now. On many occasions, Bell urged Ollinger to stop tormenting the Kid, as Bell was known to be a kind man.
On April 28, 1881, Ollinger left the jail to have a bite to eat, leaving Bell to guard the Kid. There are more than a couple versions as to what happened next. One is that Billy told Bell he needed to use the outhouse and at the top of the stairs, Billy used his shoulder to know Bell down the stairs, then ran into Garrett’s gun room and grabbed a pistol and shot Bell dead, who was at the bottom of the stairs. Another version is that after asking Bell to take him to the latrine, that someone had left a pistol there for Billy, and after returning to the courthouse, shot Bell, either way, Bell was dead. After shooting Bell, Billy went upstairs and waited by the window, with the same shotgun that Ollinger was poking him with, the Kid knew that Ollinger would come running after hearing the shot. As Ollinger was running across the street, the Kid said “Hello, Bob”, and fired both barrels, nearly blowing Ollinger’s head off. Billy ran outside, supposedly to a blacksmith and had the leg irons removed. He grabbed a couple of pistols and Winchester’s from the jail and someone’s horse and rode down the street, stopping at Ollinger’s lifeless body. Some say he then took off his hat, waving it and said “Adios, Amigos”, and rode off.
During all of this, Garrett was in White Oaks on business. When he heard about the escape and the deaths of his deputies, he vowed to get Billy and spent the next three months chasing him around New Mexico. On the night of July 14, 1881, Garrett rode to the Maxwell ranch, where he and the Kid supposedly worked together before. It’s a little unclear as to why Garrett went there, some say Maxwell set Billy up, others say is was by pure chance. The Kid was there, visiting a young Mexican woman who he spent much time with, Deluvina Maxwell, who worked for Maxwell. Garrett went inside, as his posse waited outside. Garrett was waiting in Maxwell’s bedroom. Now either Billy was staying in the main house or he went there to get some fresh beef to take back to the house he was staying in, but Billy was outside walking towards the main house. When he got to the doorway, he heard the sound of horse hooves and called out several times in spanish “Quien es? Quien es?” (Who is it?) Not getting an answer, Billy stepped inside the open door of the house and went to Maxwell’s bedroom to ask Maxwell who was there. In the dark, two shots were fired, Garrett shot Billy where he stood, in stocking feet, killing him instantly, according to some, a shot right through the heart, the second shot going wild. Billy supposedly had his six gun in his right hand and a knife in his left. In Garrett’s report, he stated that “He came there armed with a pistol and a knife expressly to kill me if he could. I had no alternative but to kill him or suffer death at his hands”.
The posse waiting outside didn’t know what to think, until Garrett ran out of the house, yelling “I killed the Kid, I killed the Kid!”. He stayed outside for some time, trembling and saying nothing. He then went back into the house, where he saw Deluvina Maxwell cradling the Kid’s head in her arms, crying. She accused Garrett of shooting Billy in the back, adding “You didn’t have the nerve to kill him face to face”. Like most everything else about the Kid, his death was also a controversy. Did Garrett shoot the Kid in the back? Did Garrett shoot the Kid at all? For the most part, Garrett was praised for his act, but murder charges were also filed, although an inquest proved it was justifiable homicide.
The local Mexican’s, after hearing what happened, ran to the Maxwell house, Billy was their friend. They demanded they be allowed to prepare his body for burial. They then moved his body to a carpenter’s shed and lay him on a bench, where they set candles all around him and cleaned him, dressing him in clean clothes. The next day he was buried on the Maxwell property. Deluvina Maxwell put a white cross on his grave that said “Duerme bien, Querido” (Sleep well, beloved).
Souvenir hunters began arriving, despoiling his grave at the Maxwell ranch. Eventually Billy’s body was moved to Fort Sumner and he was buried with two of his best friends, Charlie Bowdre and Tom O’Folliard. The inscription at the top of the tombstone says “Pals”, which the boys always told each other, pals to the end, and that they were.
Garrett wanted, but did not receive, the notoriety that Billy had, although he did receive some fame. He even wrote a book about Billy, although some say it was only Garrett’s name on the book, which was actually written by Ash Upton. On February 28, 1908, Garrett was killed by an angry tenant rancher that accused Garrett of cheating him out of his wages.
CLINT BLACK – A GOOD RUN OF BAD LUCK
A high roller even when the chips are down
To win her over, I’d seen the tables turn around
She’s ten the hard way, I can feel it in my bones
She’ll be makin’ my day and not another night alone
‘Til it’s time for a windfall and not a single minute too soon I’ve been too long overdue, now I’m gonna shoot the moon
I’d bet it all on a good run of bad luck
Seven come eleven and she could be mine
Luck be a lady, and I’m gonna find love comin’ on the bottom line
I’ve been to the table, and I’ve lost it all before
I’m willin’ and able, always comin’ back for more
Squeezin’ out a thin dime ’til there’s no one hanging on my arm
I’ve gambled on a third time, a fool will tell you it’s a charm If I’m bettin’ on a loser, I’m gonna have a devil to pay
But it’s the only game I know to play, it doesn’t matter anyway
I’d bet it all on a good run of bad luck
Seven come eleven and she could be mine
Luck be a lady, and I’m gonna find love comin’ on the bottom line I’d bet it all on a good run of bad luck
Seven come eleven and she could be mine
(Theme from “Maverick”)
The Shooting of Dan McGrew
A bunch of the boys were whooping it up in the Malamute saloon;
The kid that handles the music-box was hitting a jag-time tune;
Back of the bar, in a solo game, sat Dangerous Dan McGrew,
And watching his luck was his light-o’-love, the lady that’s known as Lou.
When out of the night, which was fifty below, and into the din and the glare,
There stumbled a miner fresh from the creeks, dog-dirty, and loaded for bear.
He looked like a man with a foot in the grave and scarcely the strength of a louse,
Yet he tilted a poke of dust on the bar, and he called for drinks for the house.
There was none could place the stranger’s face, though we searched ourselves for a clue;
But we drank his health, and the last to drink was Dangerous Dan McGrew.
There’s men that somehow just grip your eyes, and hold them hard like a spell;
And such was he, and he looked to me like a man who had lived in hell;
With a face most hair, and the dreary stare of a dog whose day is done,
As he watered the green stuff in his glass, and the drops fell one by one.
Then I got to figgering who he was, and wondering what he’d do,
And I turned my head — and there watching him was the lady that’s known as Lou.
His eyes went rubbering round the room, and he seemed in a kind of daze,
Till at last that old piano fell in the way of his wandering gaze.
The rag-time kid was having a drink; there was no one else on the stool,
So the stranger stumbles across the room, and flops down there like a fool.
In a buckskin shirt that was glazed with dirt he sat, and I saw him sway;
Then he clutched the keys with his talon hands — my God! but that man could play.
Were you ever out in the Great Alone, when the moon was awful clear,
And the icy mountains hemmed you in with a silence you most could HEAR;
With only the howl of a timber wolf, and you camped there in the cold,
A half-dead thing in a stark, dead world, clean mad for the muck called gold;
While high overhead, green, yellow and red, the North Lights swept in bars? —
Then you’ve a haunch what the music meant . . . hunger and night and the stars.
And hunger not of the belly kind, that’s banished with bacon and beans,
But the gnawing hunger of lonely men for a home and all that it means;
For a fireside far from the cares that are, four walls and a roof above;
But oh! so cramful of cosy joy, and crowned with a woman’s love —
A woman dearer than all the world, and true as Heaven is true —
(God! how ghastly she looks through her rouge, — the lady that’s known as Lou.)
Then on a sudden the music changed, so soft that you scarce could hear;
But you felt that your life had been looted clean of all that it once held dear;
That someone had stolen the woman you loved; that her love was a devil’s lie;
That your guts were gone, and the best for you was to crawl away and die.
‘Twas the crowning cry of a heart’s despair, and it thrilled you through and through —
“I guess I’ll make it a spread misere,” said Dangerous Dan McGrew.
The music almost died away . . . then it burst like a pent-up flood;
And it seemed to say, “Repay, repay,” and my eyes were blind with blood.
The thought came back of an ancient wrong, and it stung like a frozen lash,
And the lust awoke to kill, to kill . . . then the music stopped with a crash,
And the stranger turned, and his eyes they burned in a most peculiar way;
In a buckskin shirt that was glazed with dirt he sat, and I saw him sway;
Then his lips went in in a kind of grin, and he spoke, and his voice was calm,
And “Boys,” says he, “you don’t know me, and none of you care a damn;
But I want to state, and my words are straight, and I’ll bet my poke they’re true,
That one of you is a hound of hell . . . and that one is Dan McGrew.”
Then I ducked my head, and the lights went out, and two guns blazed in the dark,
And a woman screamed, and the lights went up, and two men lay stiff and stark.
Pitched on his head, and pumped full of lead, was Dangerous Dan McGrew,
While the man from the creeks lay clutched to the breast of the lady that’s known as Lou.
These are the simple facts of the case, and I guess I ought to know.
They say that the stranger was crazed with “hooch”, and I’m not denying it’s so.
I’m not so wise as the lawyer guys, but strictly between us two —
The woman that kissed him and — pinched his poke — was the lady that’s known as Lou.
The illustration above is by Marilen Van Nimwegen- Courtesy of Hancock House Publishers
WALLSTREET (1987)
Cast
Charlie Sheen
… Bud Fox
Tamara Tunie
… Carolyn
Franklin Cover
… Dan
Chuck Pfeiffer
… Chuckie (as Chuck Pfeifer)
John C. McGinley
… Marvin
Hal Holbrook
… Lou Mannheim
James Karen
… Lynch
Leslie Lyles
… Natalie
Michael Douglas
… Gordon Gekko
Faith Geer
… Natalie’s Assistant
Frank Adonis
… Charlie
John Capodice
… Dominick
Martin Sheen
… Carl Fox
Suzen Murakoshi
… Girl in Bed
Dani Klein
… Receptionist
Storyline
Bud Fox is a Wall Street stockbroker in early 1980’s New York with a strong desire to get to the top. Working for his firm during the day, he spends his spare time working an on angle with the high-powered, extremely successful (but ruthless and greedy) broker Gordon Gekko. Fox finally meets with Gekko, who takes the youth under his wing and explains his philosophy that “Greed is Good”. Taking the advice and working closely with Gekko, Fox soon finds himself swept into a world of “yuppies”, shady business deals, the “good life”, fast money, and fast women; something which is at odds with his family including his estranged father and the blue-collared way Fox was brought up. Written by Murray Chapman
Details
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Release Date:
11 December 1987 (USA) See more »
Also Known As:
Oliver Stone’s Wall Street See more »
Filming Locations:
21 Club – 21 West 52nd Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA See more »
________________________________________
Box Office
Budget:
$15,000,000 (estimated)
Opening Weekend:
$4,104,611 (USA) (13 December 1987) (730 Screens)
Gross:
$43,848,100 (USA)
________________________________________
Company Credits
Production Co:
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, American Entertainment Partners L.P., Amercent Films See more »
________________________________________
Technical Specs
Runtime:
126 min
Sound Mix:
Dolby
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1
YOUNG GUNS (1988)
Rating: R • Genre: Western • Run time: 1 hrs 47 min
Charlie Sheen Emilio Estevez Kiefer Sutherland
1878 in New Mexico: John Tunstall picks up young gun men from the road to have them work on his ranch, but also to teach them reading and to civilize them. However he’s a thorn in the side of the rich rancher Murphy, as he’s a competitor in selling cattle. One day he’s shot by Murphy’s men. Judge Wilson can’t do anything, since Sheriff Brady is one of Murphy’s men. But attorney Alex persuades him to constitute Tunstall’s young friends to Deputies and give them warrants of arrest for the murderers. Instead of arresting them, William Bonney just shoots them down. Soon the 5 guys become famous and William gets the name “Billie the Kid” – but they’re also chased by dozens of Murphy’s men and the army. The people however honor him as fighter for justice.
Details
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Release Date:
12 August 1988 (USA)
Also Known As:
Jovenes Pistoleros
Filming Locations:
Bonanza Creek Ranch – 15 Bonanza Creek Lane, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA See more »
________________________________________
Box Office
Budget:
$13,000,000 (estimated)
Opening Weekend:
$7,011,393 (USA) (14 August 1988)
Gross:
$44,726,644 (USA)
The most dangerous men to have operated on Texas soil.
Name Lived Historical Information
Bass, Sam
1851-1878 cowboy, horse racer, outlaw
Billy The Kid (Henry McCarty)
1859-1881 deputy, rustler, outlaw
Fisher, King
1854-1884 rancher, lawman, outlaw
Goldsby, Crawford (Cherokee Bill)
1876-1896 ranch hand, outlaw
Hardin, John Wesley
1853-1895 attorney, outlaw
James, Jesse
1847-1882 farmer, outlaw
Ringo, John (Johnny) Peters
1850-1882 cattleman, feudist, outlaw
Selman, John Henry
1839-1896 lawman, outlaw
Myra Maybelle Shirley (Belle) Starr
1848-1889 supporter of outlaws
Thompson, Ben
1842-1884 gambler, lawman, gunfighter
PLATOON (1986)
R,1hr 53min
Genres: War,Drama
Released: December 19, 1986
Distributor: Orion Pictures
Starring: Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, Charlie Sheen … More
Synopsis
Oliver Stone’s breakthrough as a director, Platoon is a brutally realistic look at a young soldier’s tour of duty in Vietnam. Chris Taylor (Charlie Sheen) is a college student who quits school to volunteer for the Army in the late ’60s. He’s shipped off to Vietnam, where he serves with a culturally diverse group of fellow soldiers under two men who lead the platoon: Sgt. Barnes (Tom Berenger), whose facial scars are a mirror of the violence and corruption of his soul, and Sgt. Elias (Willem Dafoe), who maintains a Zen-like calm in the jungle and fights with both personal and moral courage even though he no longer believes in the war. After a few weeks “in country,” Taylor begins to see the naïveté of his views of the war, especially after a quick search for enemy troops devolves into a round of murder and rape. Unlike Hollywood’s first wave of Vietnam movies (including The Deer Hunter, Apocalypse Now, and Coming Home), Platoon is a grunt’s-eye view of the war, touching on moral issues but focusing on the men who fought the battles and suffered the wounds. In this sense, it resembles older war movies more than its Vietnam peers, as it mixes familiar elements of onscreen battle with small realistic details: bugs, jungle rot, exhaustion, C-rations, marijuana, and counting the days before you go home. This mix of traditional war movie elements with a contemporary sensibility won Platoon four Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director, and a reputation as one of the definitive modern war films. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
cast
Tom Berenger Sgt. Barnes
Willem Dafoe Sgt. Elias, Sgt. Elias Grodin , Sgt. Grodin
Charlie Sheen Chris Taylor
Forest Whitaker Big Harold
Francesco Quinn Rhah
John C. McGinley Sgt. O’Neill
Kevin Dillon Bunny
Richard Edson Sal
Reggie Johnson Junior
Keith David King
Johnny Depp Lerner
David Neidorf Tex
Nick Nicholson Mechanized Soldier
Clarisa Ortacio Old Woman
Bob Orwig Gardner
Chris Pederson Crawford
James Terry McIlvain Ace
Warren McLean Mechanized Soldier #2
Mark Moses Lt. Wolfe
Kevin Eshelman Morehouse
Corey Glover Francis
Ivan Kane Tony
Bernardo Manalili Village Chief
Than Rogers Village Chief’s Wife
Paul Sanchez Doc
Romy Sevilla One-Legged Man
Li Mai Thao Rape Victim
Tony Todd Warren
Li Thi Van Village Chief’s Daughter
Matthew Westfall Terrified Soldier
Dale Dye Capt. Harris
Oliver Stone Officer in Bunker
Basile Achara Flash
Ron Barracks Medic
Steve Barredo Fu Sheng
Chris Castillejo Rodriguez
Adam J. Glover Sanderson
Peter Hicks Parker
Corkey Ford Manny
Nick Nicholson Mechanized Soldier
Andrew B. Clark Tubbs
Maverick (1994)
“Well, now, I bring all sorts of pluses to the table. I hardly ever bluff and I never ever cheat”
Mel Gibson (Bret Maverick), Jodie Foster (Annabelle Bransford) and James Garner (Marshal Zane Cooper) head the fine cast. Other players include Graham Greene (Joseph), Alfred Molina (Angel), James Coburn (Commodore Duvall), Dub Taylor (Room Clerk), Geoffrey Lewis (Matthew Wicker/Eugene), Paul L. Smith (Russian Archduke), Dan Hedaya (Twitchy), Dennis Fimple (Stuttering), Denver Pyle (Old Riverboat Gambler), Clint Black (Sweet-Faced Gambler), Max Perlich (John Wesley Hardin) and Leo V. Gordon (Poker Player).
In a charming tribute to the heyday of the TV western of the 1950s and ’60s, Maverick also features cameo appearances by such video cowboy regulars as Robert Fuller of Wagon Train and Laramie, Doug McClure and James Drury of The Virginian, William Smith of Laredo, Paul Brinegar of Rawhide and Henry Darrow of The High Chaparral.
William Goldman wrote the hilarious screenplay for Donner/Shuler-Donner Productions and Icon Entertainment International. Richard Donner (The Omen, Lethal Weapon, Conspiracy Theory) co-produced and directed. Randy Newman created the original music score and Vilmos Zsigmond served as cinematographer.
There are plenty of laughs, one-liners, inside jokes and even a brief appearance by Mel Gibson’s Lethal Weapon co-star Danny Glover as a bank robber to satisfy the most die-hard Maverick fans. Add to that cameo appearances by such country music stars as Vince Gill, Waylon Jennings, Carlene Carter, Reba McEntire, Kathy Mattea and Hal Ketchum, and Maverck hits the critical full house and then some.
Maverick Box Office, Oscar Nominations, Notes, DVD
• Maverick grossed $101.631 million, earning the #12 spot on the list of the top moneymaking films of 1994.
• One Academy Award nomination: Best Costume Design (April Ferry).
• Clint Black plays a card-cheating gambler who is tossed off the riverboat the Lauren Belle.
• Maverick movie cast members who also appeared in the original 1957-62 Maverick series: James Garner, Bert Remsen, Leo V. Gordon, Denver Pyle, Doug McClure.
• Final poker hands at the big tournament: Commodore Duvall (four eights), Angel (straight flush), Bret Maverick (royal flush).
• On DVD: Maverick Keepcase (Warner, 2009).
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