Tombstone: Fact or Fiction
Tombstone: Fact or Fiction?
Almost two decades ago, a film known as Tombstone was produced, featuring a star-studded cast. This action-packed western portrays the legendary feud between the Earp’s and the Clanton’s. For the most part I believe it to be a respectable movie containing a powerful storyline. This film portrays the life and times of the famous cowboy, Wyatt Earp, focusing on what led to the gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Tombstone provides a mixture of both fact and fiction, however I believe this film to be mainly accurate. After seeing this particular film, I have resulted in finding some of the accurate and incorrect scenes and facts. Just to name a couple of the films inaccuracies are the misleading facts about the night Morgan Earp was killed and the life of Johnny Ringo. Some of the films accuracies include the relationship between Wyatt Earp and Josephine Marcus, and how Curly Bill was killed. As a result of the number of accuracies and inaccuracies, this movie would be considered historically accurate.
In the film, Morgan Earp is shown at a pool hall late one night, where he is playing alone. All of a sudden, an unidentified individual from outside shoots him through the window. Wyatt along with along with a few others rushed to see him. They find Morgan lying on top of a pool table as a doctor tried to remove the bullet. However, there are many things wrong with this scene. To start, Morgan was never alone that night. Instead, his brother Wyatt accompanied him. They happened to be playing pool with the owner of the parlor, Bob Hatch, when Morgan was shot (Woog 61). The gunshot was fired through the glass door of the building, shooting Morgan in his right abdomen. The bullet passed through his spine and exited out of his left side. As it left his body, Geo. A.B. Berry was struck by the same bullet, which resulted in an agonizing flesh wound on his thigh. A second gunshot quickly followed, just barely missing the top of Wyatt
Almost two decades ago, a film known as Tombstone was produced, featuring a star-studded cast. This action-packed western portrays the legendary feud between the Earp’s and the Clanton’s. For the most part I believe it to be a respectable movie containing a powerful storyline. This film portrays the life and times of the famous cowboy, Wyatt Earp, focusing on what led to the gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Tombstone provides a mixture of both fact and fiction, however I believe this film to be mainly accurate. After seeing this particular film, I have resulted in finding some of the accurate and incorrect scenes and facts. Just to name a couple of the films inaccuracies are the misleading facts about the night Morgan Earp was killed and the life of Johnny Ringo. Some of the films accuracies include the relationship between Wyatt Earp and Josephine Marcus, and how Curly Bill was killed. As a result of the number of accuracies and inaccuracies, this movie would be considered historically accurate.
In the film, Morgan Earp is shown at a pool hall late one night, where he is playing alone. All of a sudden, an unidentified individual from outside shoots him through the window. Wyatt along with along with a few others rushed to see him. They find Morgan lying on top of a pool table as a doctor tried to remove the bullet. However, there are many things wrong with this scene. To start, Morgan was never alone that night. Instead, his brother Wyatt accompanied him. They happened to be playing pool with the owner of the parlor, Bob Hatch, when Morgan was shot (Woog 61). The gunshot was fired through the glass door of the building, shooting Morgan in his right abdomen. The bullet passed through his spine and exited out of his left side. As it left his body, Geo. A.B. Berry was struck by the same bullet, which resulted in an agonizing flesh wound on his thigh. A second gunshot quickly followed, just barely missing the top of Wyatt
Cited: Tucson, AZ: University of Arizona, 1976. Print. Eldridge, Shiloh. "Virgil Earp Is My Hero." Virgil Walter Earp. Tombstone Times, Jan. 2003. Web. 23 Mar. 2011. <http://www.virgil-earp.com/>. “Gunfighter John Ringo Found Dead.” The History Channel Website. 2011. Web. 23 Mar. 2011. Aug. 2010. Web. 20 Mar. 2011. <http://www.tombstonevigilantes.com/curly.html>. Marks, Paula Mitchell. And Die in the West: the Story of the O.K. Corral Gunfight. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma, 1996 Weiser, Kathy. "Old West Outlaws." Legends of America. May 2008. Web. 20 Mar. 2011. Woog, Adam. Wyatt Earp. New York: Chelsea House, 2010. Print.