Billy the Kid: The Movies
The film industry has immortalized the infamous Billy the Kid. Over fifty times has he graced the silver screen. Allow me to take you on a trip down memory lane, with brief descriptions of just a few of these classics. And would you believe it, most of them are even available to view for free in the links provided!
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The film The Last Escape of Billy the Kid was filmed on location at Lincoln New Mexico! The full feature and its introduction can be seen below this article! To skip intro, skip ahead to 6:15
This is an extremely rare and unique Billy the Kid film. It is low budget, gritty and downright dirty. The film jumps back and forth between history and present day (1971) Lincoln, where Billy’s story is being told to a troubled young stranger in town. After the first 5 minutes are over, it’s mostly cinematic, showing real historical sites and scenes from in and around Lincoln, NM.!!
Starring Jack Elam as Pat Garrett and story teller. Steve Railsback as Billy the Kid and drifter.
Directed by: Denys McCoy.
The film is a presentation of The Lincoln County Heritage Trust and has a very accurate storyline portraying many historic events during and after the LCW with but 2 exceptions and won’t disappoint ANY of you history buffs! Also look for historic photos hanging in random places throughout the film as well as in the opening credits!
Although his name isn’t in the credits, I’m sure I seen Peter Hurd make an appearance in the film. He would have been 67 years old. Also look for Wilbur Coe (Franks son) in the end credits.
Chisum was released on July 29th 1970.
The film honored the Lincoln County War as its storyline, thus bringing back to life some of our favorite characters such as; Billy the Kid, Pat Garrett, L.G. Murphy, Mr. & Mrs. Mcsween, Sheriff Brady, John (Henry) Tunstall, Jesse Evans, Sally Chisum, Justice Wilson, Jimmy Dolan, Colonel Dudley, Governor Axtell and Tom O’Folliard. The movie was filmed on location at the Fox studio ranch in California as well as locations at Santa Fe, NM, Arizona and Mexico.
Chisum screenwriter Andrew Fenady, studied the Lincoln County War intensely and was on set to help bring it back to life. However, the production company had other ideas and many factual events were altered and re-written to suit John Wayne’s acting style.
Batjac productions was hired to manage the production. The production company was actually co-owned by John Wayne, who also had the lead role as John S. Chisum. Batjac Productions was also managed by John Wayne’s son, Michael. It remained in Michael’s control until his death in 2003. Another son, Patrick Wayne, later portrayed Pat Garrett for the 1988 film, Young Guns.
Chisum screenwriter Andrew Fenady, studied the Lincoln County War intensely and was on set to help bring it back to life. However, the production company had other ideas and many factual events were altered and re-written to suit John Wayne’s acting style.
Cast as Billy the Kid ws Geoffrey Deuel and John Wayne as John Chisum. Some of our favorite characters of The Lincoln County War were also portrayed in the film; Pat Garrett, LG Murphy, Mr. & Mrs. Mcsween, Sheriff Brady, John (Henry) Tunstall, Jessie Evans, Sally Chisum, Justice Wilson, Jimmy Dolan, Colonel Dudley, Governor Axtell and Tom O’Folliard.
The film focuses on a fictional version of The Lincoln County War.
Dirty Little Billy
For the film Dirty Little Billy, director Stan Dragoti focused on Billy the Kid’s childhood in a fictitious manner.
The film premiered at the San Francisco film festival on October 20th 1972, just five days before the official release date. The movie casts Michael J Pollard as Billy the Kid, Dran Hamilton as Catherine McCarty, Gary Busey as Mr. Crabtree, and Nick Nolte in his career debut, as gang leader.
(Michael J. Pollard as Billy the Kid)
After his family moves to Kansas City, teenager Billy Bonney finds he has no interest in farming and runs away. Billy joins up with local outlaw Goldie, and a prostitute named Berle. The trio begins menacing the locals until the town collectively decides to run the troublemakers out. Billy Bonney escapes and begins his life of crime.
The Outlaw
The Outlaw, director Howard Hughes chose Billy the Kid to be his next great achievement in film. In 1939, Hughes signed a contract with Pat Garrett’s surviving children; Oscar, Jarvis, Pauline and Elizabeth for the rights of their father’s story and filming began in Arizona in the early 1940s.
Howard Hughes became the first to ignore production code of the Hays office. The Hays office dictated what could or could not be shown on the big screen. After several complications the film was finished and copyrighted in February of 1941.
As the film was being reviewed for its debut, many state sensor boards under the Production Code Authority were offended by the amount of skin shown in the area of Miss James Russell’s rather large bust.
Hughes was not about to cut one of the most prominent features of the movie and put the film on the shelf for a legal battle.
(Jane Russell on the set of The Outlaw)
The film debuted 2 years after its completion on February 5th 1943 in theaters in San Francisco, where it caused a lot of excitement The film was set to debut in New York next. The movie’s billboards and posters began stirring up a commotion in New York, writer and actor George Kaufman commented about the movie posters “They ought to call it a sale of two titties.”
The uproar in New York caused Hughes to shelf the film yet again.
On April 23rd 1946 the film debuted again in San Francisco, and a movie theater owner was arrested for showing offensive indecent content.
The motion picture association agency accused Hughes of switching to an unapproved version. In return Hughes filed a $1 million lawsuit demanding they pay for his losses. Unfortunately Mr. Hughes lost the suit and all of its appeals. Despite the legal battles and bans, United Artists took the film on a roadshow in 1946 and 1947 and set high attendance records everywhere it was shown.
The ban imposed on the film and Miss Russell features was lifted on September 11th 1947 and was finally shown in New York.
When Pat Garrett’s children saw how their father was portrayed in the film, they attempted but failed to sue Howard Hughes for $200,000.
The Outlaw starred Jack Buetel as Billy the Kid.
Thomas Mitchell as Pat Garrett
Water Husten as Doc Holliday.
Jane Russell as Rio.
In this 1943 classic fictional tale of Billy the Kid, he and Doc Holliday compete for a ladies affection while playing a psychological chess game with Pat Garrett.
The Kid From Texas
For the film The Kid From Texas, the star role of Billy the Kid was portrayed by a war hero. His name was Audie Murphy.
Audie Murphy was awarded 33 U.S. military medals, including three Purple Hearts and one Medal of Honor. He was the most decorated soldier from WW2.
After proving himself in battle during an invasion at Sicily he was promoted to Corporal. While in another battle in France, his closest friend was killed. Murphy charged and killed the Germans that had just killed his friend. He then commandeered a German machine gun and grenades and attacked several more nearby positions, killing all of the Nazis in the area. Murphy was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions. He was only 21 years old at the end of the war, he had killed 240 Nazi soldiers and had been wounded three times.
(The Kid From Texas. 78 minutes Directed by: Kurt Neumann Written by: Robert Andrews and Karl Kamb)
Murphy returned to the USA in summer of 1945. He was a hero and was greeted with parades and many fancy banquet dinners. LIFE magazine honored the brave, smooth faced soldier by putting him on the cover of its July 16, 1945 issue. The photo prompted actor James Cagney to call Murphy and invite him to Hollywood to start his career in showbiz. Leading to his role as Billy the Kid.
Universal Studios began Filming in 1948 on locations at the Jack Garner Ranch in The San Bernardino National Forest, Idyllwild and Universal Studios at Universal City, California.
The film stars Audie Murphy as Billy the Kid, Frank Wilcox as Pat Garrett, Robert Barrett as Governor Lew Wallace, Albert Decker as Kain(Mcsween), Sheppeard Strudwick as Jameson(Tunstall) and Paul Ford as Sheriff Copeland.
The Kid From Texas is loaded with shoot-em-up action based on real historical events. Like all Billy movies the facts are fictionalized with a few twists from the movie makers, but stick to the basics. The battle in Lincoln and the escape from the burning Mcsween home, offer another view on how Mcsween dies…
FBI founder and director J. Edgar Hoover was a big fan of Murphy and offered to narrate the film, but Parley Baer was selected instead. (good choice)
The Left Handed Gun
The Left Handed Gun originated from a 1955 television episode of the Philco Playhouse series, called The Death of Billy the Kid, a production written by Gore Vidal. 
A screenplay of that episode was re-written by Leslie Stevens and director Arthur Penn. A cast was assembled and filming began at a film studio-ranch set in California.. The open country scenes were filmed in New Mexico just outside Santa Fe.
James Dean was originally selected for the role of Billy the Kid, but after a bad accident took his life, Paul Newman, who also played Billy in Gore Vidal’s 1955 television episode was selected. Other characters portrayed in the film were Pat Garrett, Celsa and Saval Gutierrez, Charlie Bowdre, Tom O’ Follaird, Tunstall, Mr. Mcsween, Bob Olinger, Pete Maxwell, Tom Hill and Joe Grant.
The cast includes 2 cast members of the later TV Show, The Dukes of Hazzard. James Best (Tom Folliard) played Roscoe & Denver Pyle (Bob Ollinger) played Uncle Jesse.
At the time of filming it was believed that Billy was left handed due to a reversed tintype image of Billy the Kid. The film’s name was released as “The Left Handed Gun”. Paul Newman was 33 at the time of filming. Newman was going through depression at the time of filming, and was seeing a counselor. His acting during the film seems to be a little over the edge at times.
For some unknown reason, Warner Bros. interfered with the production and would not allow the director to film the ending that he wanted. The director was also cut out of the editing process, it’s unclear why he was removed from his own movie.
When Gore Vidal viewed the film, he was not pleased. The movie, stemming from his television play the death of Billy the Kid, disappointed him. Much later in 1989, Gore Vidal remade the film, to his satisfaction, Billy The Kid was the title, starring Val Kilmer.
The movie, The Left Handed Gun was released and was not very successful in the USA. It was, however, very popular in Europe. The film won an award called the Grand Prix, an annual award given by the Belgium film critics.
In July 1958 the film The Left Handed Gun was featured in Dell Comics, Four Color Comics issue # 913.
Billy the Kid: The Movies
(King Vidor 1930 Movie Poster)
directed by King Vidor, based off of the book The Saga of Billy the Kid by Walter Noble Burns. It was distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The entire film was shot using a process called “real life,” which is a 70-mm wide-screen format. It was also recorded concurrently with a 35-mm standard. This was the first talking Billy the Kid film, and the movie was shot on locations at Zion National Park in Utah, the Grand Canyon, the Kit Carson cave in Gallup, New Mexico, and at the Porter Ranch at the San Fernando Valley.
The director released two endings to the film. One ending was released in the United States and had Billy riding off while Garrett watched, smiling in satisfaction. However, in the version released in Europe, Billy met his demise at the end of Pat Garrett’s gun barrel.
The film starred Johnny Mack Brown as Billy the Kid and Wallace Beery as Pat Garrett. Also cast in the film were some of our favorite characters in the Kid’s life. However, several of the names were changed due to some relatives that were still alive during filming. One of the funnier ones was Bellinger, a combined character made up of Bob Olinger and J.W. Bell.
The story line went something like this: after killing the leader of the opposing faction, Billy the Kid was hunted down and brought in by Sheriff Pat Garrett. Subsequently, the Kid escaped (killing Bellinger) and was heading to Mexico when he was again apprehended by Garrett. Here, Pat was faced with a decision: kill Billy or let him go.
This classic Billy the Kid movie is a must-see!
For the film I Shot Billy the Kid, actor Don “Red” Barry starred as Billy the Kid. Don was 38 years old and used a dark hair piece, a toupee, to play the part.
The film was released in 1950 and is only 57 minutes long. It was low budget and made the “B” ratings.
The film does portray some of our favorite characters such as Billy the Kid, Sheriff Pat Garrett, Charlie Bowdre, Mrs. Mcsween, Governor Lew Wallace, Bob Olinger, Deputy John Poe, and Sheriff Brady.
Full Feature!
Actress Edith Storey was the first to cast as Billy the Kid on film.
The actress played as “Billy” for two 1911 silent films titled; “Billy the Kid” and a short silent film, “Billy and his Pal”.
Both films portray Billy as a cowboy…with a secret. Certain events unfold in each film and reveal Billy’s true identity.
Billy and his Pal. (February 1911). Directed by William Haddock.
Billy the Kid. (August 1911). Directed by Lawrence Trimble.
Both films have no historical value to the real Billy the Kid and are both starring Edith Storey. 
Click below to view for free, one of the two films that is still in existence…
https://www.filmpreservation.org/preserved-films/screening-room/billy-and-his-pal-1911?fbclid=IwAR3eWSKntU6C8bZIbHik9lV4YGP1eAiG_Vsv1W4yyk6nTYQQo83K0KfOvfw#
The American Archive of Public Broadcasting
At the site provided below are a collection of public broadcastings speaking of Billy the Kid including a couple documenaries. Enjoy!
https://americanarchive.org/catalog?q=billy+the+kid&utf8=%E2%9C%93&f[access_types][]=online
