That Dirty Little Coward That Shot Mr. Howard

Ford Jesse James“Now the people held their breath,
When they heard of Jesse’s death;
They wondered how he’d ever come to fall;
Robert Ford it was a fact,
He shot Jesse in the back,
While Jesse hung a picture on a wall.”

On April 3, 1882, Robert “Bob” Ford shot Jesse James in the back, thus ensuring both men would be immortalized in one of the great American folk songs. The song “Jesse James,” with the lyrics quoted above, referred to the outlaw Jesse Woodson James by his famous real name and by the alias he was using at the time of his death, Thomas Howard. The song has been covered by singers such as Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Bruce Springsteen, and Van Morrison.

Singer-songwriter Nick Cave performed a version of the song in the excellent 2007 movie, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, with Brad Pitt as Jesse James and Casey Affleck as Robert Ford. This scene from the movie shows how Ford laid poor Jesse in his grave. Note that these clips contain spoilers from the movie.

Here is Nick Cave’s appearance in the movie, singing “Jesse James” in a saloon to Robert Ford (Affleck).

As for the aftermath of Jesse’s death, Ford and his brother Charles Ford had been promised a large reward by Missouri Governor Thomas T. Crittenden, but they only received a small portion of what was promised. And they were surprised at the hostility they received for killing James.

Both brothers met tragic ends. In 1884, the terminally ill Charles killed himself. Robert Ford, like James, would later be assassinated. A little more than ten years after Jesse’s death, on June 8, 1892 Edward O’Kelley surprised Ford by calling his name in Ford’s Colorado tent saloon, shooting Ford dead as he turned. Robert Ford’s tragic end is captured in this beautiful ending sequence from The Assassination of Jesse James.

Robert Ford and Jesse James are forever linked, although Jesse’s family understandably did not appreciate the association. Ford’s tombstone reads, “The man who shot Jesse James.” By contrast, Jesse James’s tombstone would read: “Jesse W. James, Died April 3, 1882, Aged 34 years, 6 months, 28 days, Murdered by a traitor and a coward whose name is not worthy to appear here.”

Photo of Robert Ford via public domain.

What is your favorite story of an outlaw’s death? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Why Is There No Ballad of Frank James?

    Frank James 1898
    Frank James 1898

    On August 21 in 1883, Frank James went on trial in Gallatin, Missouri. In April 1882, Robert Ford had shot and killed Frank’s brother Jesse. Instead of waiting for someone to shoot him in the back, Frank James decided to turn himself in to authorities in October 1882.

    Despite the crimes committed by the Janes brothers, many Missourians thought highly of the two outlaws. Although the James-Younger Gang had killed many people during their robberies, many citizens saw them as heroes, taking money from the banks and railroads and giving it back to the poor.

    Post-Civil War sympathies also helped Frank James, who had fought for the South. So, the jury found him not guilty. Likewise, Alabama would fail to convict Frank James of armed robbery.

    After the Trial

    In late 1883, Missouri released James, and he went to live with his mother in Oklahoma for awhile. He lived within the law, doing a number of jobs including berry picker, shoe salesman, lecturer, Burlesque theater ticket taker and betting commissioner.

    Unlike his brother, Frank James died peacefully in Missouri on February 18, 1915 at the age of 72. He was cremated and his ashes were kept in a bank vault to avoid the risk of grave robbers. Eventually, his ashes were buried with his wife in Missouri.

    Popular Culture

    There is a very inaccurate Henry Fonda movie about Frank after Jesse’s death, called The Return of Frank James (1940). The film was a sequel to 1939’s Jesse James, starring Tyrone Power.

    Frank James is also portrayed as an older man, briefly, near the end of the 2010 version of True Grit. In the scene, where the James character remains sitting, Mattie Ross says, “Keep your seat, trash.”

    Perhaps, because Frank James died peacefully, he never became the subject of many songs like his brother did. The most famous song about Frank’s brother is the folk song “Jesse James,” which makes Jesse a hero and calls his killer a coward.

    “Jesse James” was first recorded in 1924, and it also appears in the excellent 2007 movie The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, where Sam Shepard played Frank James. Bruce Springsteen recorded a nice version as part of his Seeger Sessions.

    Below is a version of “Jesse James” by Van Morrison with Lonnie Donegan and Chris Barber from The Skiffle Sessions (2000).

    Although dying in a blaze of violence is more likely to be mythologized than a quiet death at old age, I suspect there is yet to be a great song written about Frank James.

    (Photo of Frank James via Library of Congress – Public Domain)

    What is your favorite version of “Jesse James”? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Ambiguous Morality With Casey Affleck (Missed Movies)

    This edition of “Movies You Might Have Missed” features two 2007 films starring Casey Affleck where his character makes a complicated moral choice near the end of the films. Did his characters make the correct choices?

    jesse james coward robert ford The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007): This unusual Western, like its title, is a bit long, but the epic meditation on the Western myth, outlaws, and heroes is worth your patience. Brad Pitt does an excellent job as Jesse James and Sam Rockwell is great as always, but it is Casey Affleck as Robert Ford that forms the heart of the film. With some wonderful documentary narration by Hugh Ross, the movie is also filmed beautifully by director Andrew Dominik. Affleck portrays Ford as a complicated character who worships the celebrity James and then has to make the ultimate decision about killing his idol. The short coda of the film, which covers the time period after James’s death, is one of the most beautiful endings of any Western in cinema.

    Gone Baby Gone Gone Baby Gone (2007): One one level, Gone Baby Gone is a crime mystery. Casey Affleck’s character and his girlfriend, played by Michelle Monaghan, are hired to find a missing little girl by her aunt. But it is not your run-of-the-mill crime drama, as one might guess after learning that the film is based on a book by by Dennis Lehane, the author of Mystic River and Shutter Island. Casey’s brother Ben Affleck stays behind the camera as director and expertly conveys the character of the Boston neighborhood while weaving a morality tale of sorts. The mystery of the little girl takes some twists and turns, but ultimately, as in The Assassination of Jesse James, it ends with Casey Affleck having to make a choice and then pay the consequences for that choice. Gone Baby Gone is one of those quiet gems that draws you in and sneaks up on you. I recently re-watched the movie and liked it even better the second time. If you have not seen it, watch it for your first time.

    The year 2007 was a big one for Casey Affleck with these two outstanding films, as well as appearing in Ocean’s Thirteen. He has not matched that year so far, and did not have another starring role until The Killer Inside Me in 2010. But he has several films in post-production and pre-production now, so we can look forward to some upcoming Casey Affleck movies, even if it will be difficult for him to match The Assassination of Jesse James and Gone Baby Gone.

    Other Reviews Because Why Should You Trust Me?: Rotten Tomatoes gives a 75% critics rating and a 73% audience rating to The Assassination of Jesse James. Meanwhile, the Tomatometer gives Gone Baby Gone a 94% critics rating and an 84% audience rating.

    {Missed Movies is our continuing series on good films you might have missed because they did not receive the recognition they deserved when released.}

    What do you think of these Casey Affleck films? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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