In all the years I have been performing, Jesse James has been without a doubt my most popular program.  Why is that? What is it about him that fascinates people?  Is it the “Robin Hood” mythology that surrounds him?  Is it the fact he had a fifteen year career where he was never caught?  Maybe it’s the stories of his bold robberies and cavalier ways. Or is it  the nature of his death, shot in the back by a dirty little coward?  I couldn’t say but I do know that more movies have been made about him than any other outlaw, (there’s even one where he meets Frankenstein!) spanning the silent era to most recently.  “The Ballad of Jesse James”, sung by the likes of Johnny Cash, Pete Seeger, and Bruce Springsteen is one of the most popular folk songs in American history. And consider this.  The two American names that are most widely known throughout the world are Mickey Mouse and Jesse James! That’s astounding!

There’s no question that he has a grip on people’s imagination. However, if you were to ask people what they actually knew about Jesse James they couldn’t tell you much. It is ironic that the most well known outlaw in American history is actually unknown.  And what is known about him is mostly myth and legend.  I guess that’s were I come in.  By portraying Jesse I try to teach the audience the real story about him. After all I do have an obligation to be as historically accurate as possible.  However try as I might it's an impossible task really.  There is so much myth and legend surrounding him that its very difficult to separate the fact from the fancy. That’s not to say that I don’t value the legends.  Oh no, far from it! There are so many great ones that to ignore them would rob us of a national treasure.  And what would the Jesse James story be without its myths and legends?  I think the following quote from the 1955 film “Richard III” best sums up the way I feel. 

“...The history of the world, like letters without poetry, like flowers without perfume and thought without imagination, would be a dry matter indeed without its legends, and many of those, though scorned by proof a hundred times, seem worth preserving for their own sake.”   Indeed! 

In my program, I portray Jesse on the eve of his fateful assassination.  He is planning on retiring from the “horse and revolver work” and settling down for a peaceful retirement. As he contemplates his future and new life he wonders how he will be remembered.  Will people think of him as a hero and southern patriot or just a bandit and villain? To help people make up their minds he decides to tell his life story. Sit back and listen to Jesse tell stories about his family, the Civil War, bank robberies and close calls.  His tales will amuse and astound you as you get a glimpse of the man behind the legend, and the legend behind the man!