From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The True Life of Billy the Kid first appeared in print in August 1881
Hundreds of songs, books, motion pictures, radio and television programs, and plays have been inspired by the story of the outlaw
Billy the Kid .
[1] Depictions of him in popular culture have fluctuated between a cold-blooded murderer without a heart and a sentimental hero fighting for justice.
[2] The Texas historian,
J. Frank Dobie , wrote many years ago in A Vaquero of the Brush Country (1929): "...Billy the Kid will always be interesting, will always appeal to the popular imagination".
[3] While a plethora of writers and filmmakers have depicted Billy the Kid as the personification of either heroic youth or juvenile punk,
[4] a few have attempted to portray a more complex character.
[5] In any case, the dramatic aspects of his short life and violent death still appeal to popular taste,
[6] and he remains an icon of
teenage rebellion and
nonconformity .
[7] The mythologizing of his story continues with new works in various media.
[8]
[9]
Comics
Billy the Kid #9 (Nov. 1957).
Literature
El asesino desinteresado Bill Harrigan (1935), a short story by
Jorge Luis Borges , part of the series
A Universal History of Infamy
The Authentic Life of Billy, the Kid (1882), a biography and partly first-hand account written by
Pat Garrett , sheriff of Lincoln County, New Mexico
Billy The Kid (1958), a
serial poem by
Jack Spicer
[11]
Billy the Kid: A Short and Violent Life (1989), a modern, comprehensive biography by
Robert Utley
[12]
El bandido adolescente (1965), by
Ramón J. Sender .
[13]
The Collected Works of Billy the Kid: Left-Handed Poems , by
Michael Ondaatje , 1970 biography in the form of experimental poetry
[14]
The Illegal Rebirth of Billy the Kid (1991) is a science fiction novel by
Rebecca Ore
[15]
Anything for Billy (1988) is a fictionalized account of Billy's last year by
Larry McMurtry
[16]
The Kid (2016), a novel of Billy the Kid's life by
Ron Hansen
[17]
Whatever Happened to Billy the Kid , by Helen Airy, Sunstone Press; 1st Edition (2005),
ISBN
978-0865341852 . In it Billy the Kid escapes from Pat Garrett and lives out his life as John Miller
[18]
[19]
Film
Note that both 1911 films portrayed Billy as a girl impersonating a boy.
Billy the Kid , 1930
widescreen film directed by
King Vidor and starring
Johnny Mack Brown as Billy and
Wallace Beery as Pat Garrett
[22]
Billy the Kid Returns , 1938:
Roy Rogers plays a dual role, Billy the Kid and his dead-ringer lookalike who shows up after the Kid has been shot by Pat Garrett.
[23]
Billy the Kid , 1941 remake of the 1930 film, starring
Robert Taylor and
Brian Donlevy
[24]
Bob Steele and
Buster Crabbe portrayed Billy the Kid in a series of 42 western films from 1940 through 1947, released by
Poverty Row studio
Producers Distributing Corporation . Some of the titles include Blazing Frontier , The Renegade , Cattle Stampede , and Western Cyclone (1943).
[25] In a 1952 film,
Allan "Rocky" Lane goes after Billy the Kid's lost treasure.
[26]
The Outlaw ,
Howard Hughes ' 1943 motion picture starring
Jack Buetel as Billy and featuring
Jane Russell in her breakthrough role as the Kid's fictional love interest
[27]
[28]
I Shot Billy the Kid , a 1950 film directed by
William Berke and starring
Don "Red" Barry as Billy
[29]
The Kid from Texas (1950) starring
Audie Murphy as Billy the Kid
[30]
The Law vs. Billy the Kid (1954,
Columbia Pictures Corporation ) starring
Scott Brady as the Kid,
James Griffith as Pat Garrett,
Betta St. John as Nita Maxwell, and
Alan Hale, Jr. as
Bob Olinger
[31]
[32]
The Left Handed Gun ,
Arthur Penn 's 1958 motion picture based on a
Gore Vidal
teleplay , starring
Paul Newman as Billy and
John Dehner as Garrett
[33]
[34]
The Boy from Oklahoma (1954), with
Tyler MacDuff in the role of Billy the Kid
[35]
Billy the Kid Versus Dracula (1966), directed by
William Beaudine , has
Count Dracula , played by
John Carradine , traveling to the
Old West , where he takes a shine to Billy's fiancée and tries to turn her into a vampire. Chuck Courtney co-stars as Billy.
[36]
[37]
Chisum (1970), set during the Lincoln County War, was directed by Andrew V. McLaglen and stars Geoffrey Deuel as Billy and
Glenn Corbett as Pat Garrett.
[38]
Dirty Little Billy (1972), set during Billy's early years as a criminal, starred
Michael J. Pollard
[39]
Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid ,
Sam Peckinpah 's 1973 motion picture with
Kris Kristofferson as Billy,
James Coburn as Pat Garrett, and with a soundtrack by
Bob Dylan , who also appears in the movie
[40]
The New Morning of Billy the Kid (1986), a Japanese absurdist comedy directed by Naoto Yamakawa
Young Guns , Christopher Cain's 1988 motion picture starring
Emilio Estevez as Billy and
Patrick Wayne as Pat Garrett
[41]
Gore Vidal's Billy the Kid , Gore Vidal's 1989
television film starring
Val Kilmer as Billy and
Duncan Regehr as Pat Garrett
[42]
Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure , a 1989 film, which included several historical figures traveling through time, including Billy the Kid, who was portrayed by
Dan Shor .
Young Guns II ,
Geoff Murphy 's 1990 motion picture starring
Emilio Estevez as Billy and
William Petersen as Pat Garrett
[43]
Purgatory ,
Uli Edel 's 1999 made-for-TV movie starring
Donnie Wahlberg as Deputy Glen/Billy The Kid
[44]
Requiem for Billy the Kid , Anne Feinsilber's 2006 motion picture starring
Kris Kristofferson
[45]
Birth of a Legend , a 2011 film in two parts based on
Frederick Nolan 's book The Lincoln County War: A Documentary History directed by Andrew Wilkinson
[46]
The Kid , a 2019 film directed by
Vincent D'Onofrio and starring
Dane DeHaan as Billy the Kid.
[47]
Old Henry , a 2021 film directed by Potsy Ponciroli and starring
Tim Blake Nelson as Henry McCarty. The film posits Billy returned to his birth name after surviving the supposed assassination.
Music
"Billy the Kid" is a
western folk song in the public domain, which was published in
John A. Lomax and
Alan Lomax 's American Ballads and Folksongs album,
[48] and also their Cowboy Songs and Other Frontier Ballads album.
[49] Members of the
Western Writers of America chose it as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time.
[50] The song's lyrics perpetuate several myths about the Kid, such as his exaggerated kill count of "twenty-one men" and the suggestion that
Pat Garrett had known him as a friend.
There have been many recordings of this song, including versions by the
Sons of the Pioneers (1937),
Woody Guthrie (1940, recorded by Alan Lomax for the Library of Congress #3412 B2 ),
Tex Ritter (1945), and
Marty Robbins (1959, on his
Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs album).
[51]
Woody Guthrie later used the same melody for his song "So Long, it's Been Good to Know You". He also recorded it in 1944 for Moe Asch's Asch/Folkways label (MA67).
[52]
Bob Dylan 's album
Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid , soundtrack of the 1973 film by
Sam Peckinpah .
[40]
"
The Ballad of Billy the Kid ", song sung by
Billy Joel on the 1973
Piano Man album.
Charlie Daniels recorded the song "Billy the Kid" on his 1976 album
High Lonesome .
[53]
Chris LeDoux also covered the song on his album
Haywire .
[54]
Joe Ely recorded the song "Me and Billy the Kid" on his 1987 album Lord of the Highway .
[55]
Running Wild recorded the song "Billy the Kid" on their 1991 album Blazon Stone .
[56]
Tom Petty wrote the song "Billy the Kid", released on his 1999 album
Echo .
[57]
Dia Frampton's "Billy the Kid," on the 2011 album
Red .
[58]
Jon Bon Jovi 's album,
Blaze of Glory , was used as part of the soundtrack for Young Guns II .
[59]
Ry Cooder recorded the folk song "Billy the Kid", on the album Into The Purple Valley ,
[60] with his own melody and instrumental. It was also on Ry Cooder Classics Volume II .
[61]
The Heavy Horses recorded Billy the Kid's legend in their song "Anyone Can Tell" on their debut album, Murder Ballads & Other Love Songs .
"
Las Cruces Jail" , a 2005 song by
Two Gallants , is about Billy the Kid's imprisonment.
Dutch girl group
Luv’ recorded a song entitled “Billy The Kid”, on their 1981 album
Forever Yours .
Stage
Radio
The first episode of the
Gunsmoke radio series, broadcast on April 2, 1952 and titled "Billy the Kid", purports to tell of Billy's first murder as a runaway boy and credits
Matt Dillon with giving him the "Billy the Kid" moniker.
[66]
The
CBS radio series
Crime Classics told the story of Billy the Kid in its October 21, 1953 episode (#17) titled "Billy Bonney – Bloodletter". The episode featured
Sam Edwards as Billy the Kid and
William Conrad as
Pat Garrett .
[67]
Television
Video games
In the mobile game
Fate/Grand Order , Billy the Kid is an Archer-class Servant who debuted as an ally in the 5th chapter of the main story.
[74]
[75]
In
Call of Juarez: Gunslinger Billy the Kid is one of the allies of the main character Silas Greaves and is rescued by him.
[76]
[77]
In
Zenless Zone Zero , Billy Kid is a playable combat android and part of the Cunning Hares faction. He was named by his previous cowboy-centric boss.
[78]
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External links
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