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]
Whatever Happened to Billy the Kid, by Helen Airy, Sunstone Press; 1st Edition (2005), ISBN978-0865341852. In it Billy the Kid escapes from Pat Garrett and lives out his life as John Miller[18][19]
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]
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]
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.
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]
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.
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]
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.
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]
Robert Blake starred as Billy the Kid in the 1966 Death Valley Days episode "The Kid from Hell's Kitchen".[70] Tom Heaton also starred as Billy the Kid in season 16, episode "Lost Sheep in Trinidad".
Jor-el Vaasborg starred as Billy the Kid in the 2015 National Geographic TV documentary Billy the Kid: New Evidence, narrated by Kevin Costner.
Derek Chariton starred as Billy the Kid in the 2016 AMC documentary The American West, narrated by Bert Thomas Morris.
Billy the Kid was among fifteen historical and mythological figures portrayed in the 2016 tokusatsu show Kamen Rider Ghost. He was voiced by Tomokazu Seki.
Billy the Kid starring Tom Blyth as the Kid, a television drama series based on the life of Billy the Kid, premiered on April 24, 2022 on Epix. The series is in season 1 and aired 8 episodes.[73]
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 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]
^"Billy The Kid". Metro Lyrics. Archived from the original on February 7, 2016. Retrieved February 6, 2016.((cite web)): CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^"Billy The Kid Lyrics". Metro Lyrics. Archived from the original on February 7, 2016. Retrieved February 6, 2016.((cite web)): CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)