Debuting on April 12, 2015, "The Legends and Lies" series gets off to a formidable start with this entry about legendary outlaw Jesse James. Produced by Fox Cable News veteran Bill O'Reilly, the series intends to take a look at many of the myths surrounding infamous characters of the Old West and bring to modern day viewers an unvarnished look at the true story behind the legends. It's the exact opposite approach applied to that iconic line from the movie "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" - "When legend becomes fact, print the legend".
In no uncertain terms, Jesse Woodson James is portrayed here as the ruthless, vicious outlaw he was in real life. Oddly enough, the inspiration for his love of the Confederacy and hatred of the North during the Civil War can be traced to his upbringing by his mother Zerelda. The term used in this episode was 'violent conditioning' to describe the way Zerelda James inspired her sons Frank and Jesse to fight for slavery and the Southern cause.
Upon reaching his teenage years, Jesse and his older brother Frank rode with the Confederate Missouri Bushwhackers led by the notorious Bloody Bill Anderson. Anderson proved to be a father figure for Jesse, and when he died in battle against Union forces, Jesse vowed revenge for the fallen Confederate renegade.
Hooking up with the Younger Brothers following the end of the Civil War, the James Brothers took up a life of crime robbing banks and trains. Initially the gang targeted Union interests of businessmen, bankers and politicians and became somewhat popular in the South with their brand of social banditry. However following a raid on their former homestead by the Pinkertons in which their stepbrother was killed and mother severely wounded, the gang became even more vicious and public perception began to turn against them.
This episode takes the viewer right up to the gang's infamous and disastrous raid on the Northfield, Minnesota Bank in September of 1876 during which the citizens of that town rose to the occasion to beat back the gang, sending them on their way soundly defeated. Deciding to split up, the Youngers were eventually captured and stood trial, while Frank and Jesse made it back home. Unable to shake his outlaw lifestyle, Jesse recruited Charlie and Robert Ford to join him as Frank took leave of the territory. Jesse was eventually killed by Bob Ford, motivated by a ten thousand dollar reward offered by Missouri Governor Thomas Crittendon; the coward Ford never collected his bounty.
In general, I thought the episode did an excellent job of presenting many unknown facts about the life of Jesse James, contrary to the way movies through the decades managed to romanticize the life and legend of the James and Younger Gang. One downside however is the modern look of the sets constructed to depict towns of the Old West, and that brand new looking locomotive gleaming brilliant red and black is a bit of a jolt when it first rolls into view.
Finally, in the interest of full disclosure, one of the actors in this episode is one of my best friends since childhood. John Dever portrays Dr. Reuben Samuel, who married Zerelda James following the death of her first husband, the father of Jesse and Frank James. As I mentioned to John after watching the story, he plays an unconscious guy better than anyone else I've ever seen.
In no uncertain terms, Jesse Woodson James is portrayed here as the ruthless, vicious outlaw he was in real life. Oddly enough, the inspiration for his love of the Confederacy and hatred of the North during the Civil War can be traced to his upbringing by his mother Zerelda. The term used in this episode was 'violent conditioning' to describe the way Zerelda James inspired her sons Frank and Jesse to fight for slavery and the Southern cause.
Upon reaching his teenage years, Jesse and his older brother Frank rode with the Confederate Missouri Bushwhackers led by the notorious Bloody Bill Anderson. Anderson proved to be a father figure for Jesse, and when he died in battle against Union forces, Jesse vowed revenge for the fallen Confederate renegade.
Hooking up with the Younger Brothers following the end of the Civil War, the James Brothers took up a life of crime robbing banks and trains. Initially the gang targeted Union interests of businessmen, bankers and politicians and became somewhat popular in the South with their brand of social banditry. However following a raid on their former homestead by the Pinkertons in which their stepbrother was killed and mother severely wounded, the gang became even more vicious and public perception began to turn against them.
This episode takes the viewer right up to the gang's infamous and disastrous raid on the Northfield, Minnesota Bank in September of 1876 during which the citizens of that town rose to the occasion to beat back the gang, sending them on their way soundly defeated. Deciding to split up, the Youngers were eventually captured and stood trial, while Frank and Jesse made it back home. Unable to shake his outlaw lifestyle, Jesse recruited Charlie and Robert Ford to join him as Frank took leave of the territory. Jesse was eventually killed by Bob Ford, motivated by a ten thousand dollar reward offered by Missouri Governor Thomas Crittendon; the coward Ford never collected his bounty.
In general, I thought the episode did an excellent job of presenting many unknown facts about the life of Jesse James, contrary to the way movies through the decades managed to romanticize the life and legend of the James and Younger Gang. One downside however is the modern look of the sets constructed to depict towns of the Old West, and that brand new looking locomotive gleaming brilliant red and black is a bit of a jolt when it first rolls into view.
Finally, in the interest of full disclosure, one of the actors in this episode is one of my best friends since childhood. John Dever portrays Dr. Reuben Samuel, who married Zerelda James following the death of her first husband, the father of Jesse and Frank James. As I mentioned to John after watching the story, he plays an unconscious guy better than anyone else I've ever seen.
