Original subtitles

¶

[ horse neighs in distance ]

Good afternoon, sir. How may I help you?

Well, I'm thinking about Making a withdrawal today.

Okay, I can help you with that.

I'd be awful careful If I were you, mister.

I heard this bank's About to be robbed.

Bell: butch cassidy Was that first step

Towards organized crime.

He took outlawery To a new level.

My lord!

How exactly Do you know that?

Because it's me Who's gonna rob it.

Put your hands up, And nobody'll get hurt.

This is a stickup!

Hutton: He's a laughing bandit,

And he's liked by everybody.

He's even liked By the lawmen that pursue him.

Cassidy: my name is...

Well, that sort of depends, Now, don't it?

Let's go. Move it!

I was born Robert leroy parker...

Come on, now. You can tell them To move faster. Let's go!

But one pinkerton agent thinks I'm a bartender named jim lowe.

And some folks are sure I died William phillips,

A successful businessman In spokane, washington,

29 years After I was supposedly killed

In that shootout in bolivia.

[ gunshot ]

We bid you good day, Ladies and gentlemen.

It was a pleasure Doing business with you.

Nobody say nothing For 10 minutes after we leave,

Or we're gonna have to come back And make you sorry you did.

Whoo!

¶

Forget all the other stories You've heard.

This is the real story.

The gang I put together with My pal, harry longabaugh.

He's as big as they get.

Cassidy: We was the best there ever was At robbing banks and trains.

We never got caught.

The wild exploits Of robert leroy parker

And harry alonzo longabaugh Would become legend.

But you know us as butch cassidy And the sundance kid.

-- captions by vitac -- www.Vitac.Com

Captions paid for by Discovery communications

¶

I'm not sure What to do with you, butch.

You've been A model prisoner, but...

Yes, sir. I sure have. You can look it up.

Cassidy: I only saw the inside of A prison cell once in my life,

Wouldn't you know it, For stealing three horses

I bought and paid for.

It was later found out That these horses

Were actually stolen by the man Who sold them to butch cassidy,

But butch was found guilty And was sentenced to prison.

I appreciate it.

Buck: some say butch cassidy Was railroaded,

But he did have a reputation,

A justifiable reputation, As a horse thief.

Boardman: After about 18 months

Of his two-year sentence For the horse theft,

He went before the governor Himself.

I tell you what.

If it really is Your intention

To quit rustling When you get out of here,

Maybe we can Have something arranged,

But only if you'll give me Your word

That you'll go straight.

[ clicks tongue ]

I guess I can't do that, Governor,

Because I wouldn't want To give you my word And then break it.

And if I promised you I'd go straight,

I'd have to break it.

I'm in too deep To quit the game now.

That's when I made him An offer he couldn't refuse.

I promise you one thing For sure, governor.

You give me this pardon,

I promise I'll keep My efforts out of wyoming

For the rest of my days.

Pardon me, and you'll be Protecting your state

And everybody in it.

I went into prison A small-time rustler,

But by the time I got out, I had bigger plans.

My days of being small-time Were over.

Bell: This is his master's degree

Because he's in prison

With people who know How to really do crime,

And he kind of Makes up his mind,

"Well, I've been doing This soft-shoe stuff,

And I need to graduate To the big leagues."

You know?

¶

Jameson: butch didn't have Much luck with the law.

He had bad experiences With wealth and power.

He grew up in a mormon family,

And they had a fine ranch In utah.

A portion of the ranch Was taken away from them

As a result of a ruling By the mormon church.

[ sighs ]

It ain't fair.

They got no right To do this.

Cassidy: my dad was honest And hardworking,

And look where it got him.

Hutton: very early on, He had a burr under his saddle

About these men of power,

And he wanted To take them down a peg.

What's the best way To take the rich down?

Take their money.

Ever since, I've always had it in

For rich bastards And big companies,

Folks with money and power Who push little guys around.

Still, I didn't want my mother

Reading about her son Being a thief.

So when I went away For stealing them horses,

I also stole myself a new name.

He used the cassidy surname.

Cassidy being his boyhood hero, Mike cassidy.

Buck: mike cassidy Was a petty criminal rustler

In southern utah.

Mike cassidy probably Taught butch cassidy

Quite a bit about rustling And horse theft

When butch was growing up.

After prison, He fell in with a bunch

Called The hole-in-the-wall gang.

These were kindred spirits. These were outlaws.

These were men with experience Being bad guys.

Ladies and gentlemen, This is stick-up!

[ chuckles ] I've always wanted to say that.

I've been practicing that little Phrase my whole life.

Roth: the first crime That can historically be linked

To butch cassidy And the wild bunch

Is the robbery Of the montpelier bank in idaho

In 1896.

And it was typical Butch cassidy.

It was done to perfection.

Cassidy: Up against the wall!

Nobody moves, And nobody gets hurt.

Let's go, old man. Up against That wall right there.

Let's go, boys, lunch break.

We're going to take lunch early Today, okay?

Let's go. A little quicker now.

A little quicker, Get out of there. There you go.

Move it, move it, move it.

That's all I need from you.

We'll get you on out of here.

Okay, Nice and quiet now.

Betenson: elzy lay Was probably his best friend.

They were really The main planners

That organized the robberies.

To a large extent, Elzy lay played the role

That a lot of people attribute To the sundance kid,

Who didn't come along Until sometime later.

Whoo! Hit the jackpot, boys!

Betenson: Butch went behind the cage

While another one held the gun On the officials.

[ coins clatter ]

Damn it, butch, That's coming out of your pay.

Cassidy: that's mighty Charitable of you.

Here you go, young lady.

A little something For your troubles.

They got the money,

And a third outlaw Was out holding the horses.

Hell, this is almost too easy.

Cassidy: That first wild bunch bank job Changed everything.

By the time I walked out of that Bank in montpelier, idaho,

I'd be on the run For the rest of my life.

Now you folks just pipe down for A few minutes after we leave,

And you'll live To tell the tale at supper.

See, we're not so bad Once you get to know us!

Whoo!

There's a little reward for you There on the floor.

Man: no. No, that's the bank's money.

Like taking candy from a baby.

Betenson: he's made the decision To become a full-fledged outlaw,

And there's no turning back At that point.

Cassidy: come on, boys.

I'm coming, I'm a-coming.

Farewell, montpelier!

But we were Just getting started.

The newspapers would call Our next job

One of the most daring ever.

I don't know about that.

It ain't your money.

I don't know, There was so much money,

Me and elzy Couldn't carry it all,

Just the two of us.

That's one mistake I never made again.

¶

¶

[ gunshot ]

All right!

[ all cheering ]

Best night we've ever had!

[ cheering continues ]

Cheers to butch cassidy!

Cassidy: I, butch cassidy, Was born to rob.

And I had the good fortune

To find a group Of smart and daring fellows

Who could support me In that endeavor.

This is just the beginning.

Newspapers took to calling us "The wild bunch."

They also said I had a gang Of 500 outlaws,

So you can't believe Everything you read.

[ all cheering ]

Betenson: they were a pretty Loose-knit group of individuals.

I think it changed From robbery to robbery

Who the individuals were,

And people came and went.

After a job, Most of us ended up

At fannie porter's place In fort worth.

It really was the best Little whorehouse in texas.

I'd like to propose a toast To my boys --

Good work, gentlemen.

And there's plenty more Where that came from.

So many banks, so many trains, So little time.

[ all cheering ]

Everybody had a role to play.

In the beginning, I never made A move without elzy lay.

He was smart, a fancy dresser, A ladies' man,

But a cold-blooded killer At heart.

Yeah, I do!

Harvey "Kid curry" logan Was a mad dog.

-I do! -people feared him.

[ indistinct chatter ]

Ben kilpatrick, the tall texan, Was fearless and deadly.

That's all I got!

And we called william carver "News"

Because he loved reading about Our exploits in the newspaper.

The papers all knew our names,

But nobody knew What we looked like.

We didn't sit for photographs,

And on the job, Our faces were always well-hid.

Pow!

¶

[ laughs ]

That's five in a row for me.

I thought this was Just for show.

It is. Showing them guys How many I can beat you.

-[ laughs ] -yeah, right, butch.

Butch cassidy and elzy lay's Second major robbery in 1897

Was a coal company In castle gate, utah.

Betenson: Castle gate was very daring.

It was a daylight robbery.

It's in a narrow canyon, Price canyon,

And there's really one way in, One out.

You know, there's not A lot of room for error,

So he really had To plan it well.

Buck: They were faced with a problem Because it's a mining town,

There are no cowboys around,

And they couldn't really ride in As strange cowboys

And hang around Without being noticed.

So they came up with this ruse

Of pretending They were racing horses,

And so they were able To hang around town for a while

And wait for the payroll To show up.

[ whistle blows ]

That whistle means It's payday.

And here comes carpenter, The payroll officer,

Just like clockwork.

Miners will start to show up, So we got to be quick.

I'll be waiting For carpenter

Before he can get inside With the money.

We've seen tougher nuts To crack, haven't we?

Oh, yeah.

Boardman: butch cassidy Was absolutely meticulous

In almost every one of his jobs.

He would spend Sometimes two or three weeks

Around the location Of the job

To get a sense of the place,

To get a sense of the people, To get timing down,

Just to look over everything.

[ whistle blows ]

Jameson: The clerk picked up the payroll

And was headed toward The offices of the coal company.

This was In the middle of the day,

The streets were filled With people,

And butch followed them.

[ gun cocks ] Damn, carpenter.

How come so many today?

I hadn't counted On this much.

You just got recruited, Old timer.

Come with me.

Cassidy: The newspapers would call it

The most daring of all The wild bunch robberies,

In broad daylight, With miners all around us.

You'll never get away alive!

The game ain't over yet, Carpenter,

And I don't intend To start losing today.

Betenson: elzy lay was there Holding his horse.

He pulled out his colt 45 And said, "I'll take those,"

And threw the bags of gold Up to elzy lay.

Here, el.

It ain't your money, yet, Anyway.

About this time, The train whistle blew

And spooked the horses.

[ train whistle blows ]

And so there was a mad dash

To catch up with elzy And with the horses.

Do you fellas Really want to go up

Against some very desperate Outlaws like us?

[ train whistle blows ]

This ain't company money.

Elzy was able to corner The horse and get him back.

¶

Cassidy: by the time They put their posse together,

We were long gone.

Trust me, gentlemen,

There's a lot more Where this came from.

Plenty for everybody.

You wouldn't begrudge us A payday too, would you?

Hyah!

Hyah!

Lay: hyah!

But we weren't through yet.

The next wild bunch job

Would make me the most famous Outlaw in america

And the most hunted.

Bell: The wilcox train robbery

Is the apex, really, Of train-robbing,

Because it's so dramatic And so incredible.

The fact that they did it right On the northern pacific line...

Stand back!

...It's just outlawery At its best.

They wind up blowing The whole thing sky-high.

¶

[ gunshot ]

¶

Cassidy: that train has got Our name on it, boys.

We ain't getting any younger. Let's mount up.

¶

June 2, 1899.

When we stopped That union pacific train

About a mile west Of wilcox, wyoming,

I had no idea I was about to become

The most famous outlaw In america.

This is a stickup!

Nobody move or say nothing For 10 minutes,

And I promise you will reach Your destination safely.

One of the things The wilcox robbery did is

It catapulted butch cassidy And the wild bunch

Into national headlines.

I don't want you worried About this thing.

I ain't never Killed a man yet,

And I don't intend To start today.

Nobody Has to get hurt here.

You just tell your passengers There will be a brief delay.

Ladies and gentlemen, Safe travels.

All right, fellas.

We didn't get all dressed up For nothing.

That's all we got?

Betenson: When they robbed trains,

They didn't go through And rob the passengers.

You know, they -- They were out for the big money

With the corporations.

Cassidy: I was looking For one thing on those trains --

The express car.

It's sort of like A small bank on wheels.

Inside was a messenger --

An express car messenger Named ernest charles woodcock,

Who refused to open the door.

Now, I ain't got all day.

You open this damn door.

I swear I'm going to open it With this here dynamite.

Woodcock: No, sir.

Well, at least he called me sir. [ laughs ]

Shows he's got proper respect.

Jameson: Woodcock was a loyal employee.

He was not about to let outlaws Take the money that was his --

In fact, his responsibility.

What's the matter with you? It ain't your money.

Is it worth dying for?

Because I got a whole lot Of dynamite here,

And I ain't never once yet been Accused of using too little,

Have I boys?

Jameson: he told him If he didn't open the door,

He was going to have To blow it open

And was afraid That woodcock would get hurt.

Woodcock still refused, And as a last resort,

The gang set A charge of dynamite.

I ain't lettin' you in.

Oh, woodcock, suit yourself.

But if I were you...

Stand back!

I love this part.

Whoo-hoo-hoo-hoo!

Jameson: We have to presume

That neither butch Nor any of the wild bunch

Had a great deal of experience With dynamite.

Cassidy: [ laughs ]

He used too much dynamite. They destroyed the express car.

[ coughs ]

[ gasps ]

In all my born days, It's a miracle!

Hey, buddy, are you okay?

You had me worried there For a second.

Yeah, I think so.

-you look like You're all in one piece. -I am, yes.

I'm relieved to hear it. Now open the damn safe.

No, sir. I won't do it.

I admire your conviction, Woodcock,

But it's your funeral.

Step aside.

Then, he wouldn't open the safe, So they blew up the safe.

[ explosion ]

Ross: they wind up blowing The whole thing sky-high,

And this is -- When they stand there,

And the money is floating down.

[ all cheering ]

-let's go, boys! -yeah!

¶

Cassidy: We robbed with confidence

Because we knew the posse Couldn't keep up with us.

In the beginning, at least,

Most of them were just Local farmers and shopkeepers

Who really wanted no part Of chasing outlaws.

Jameson: cassidy and his gang Put as much thought

Into fleeing from a robbery site

As they did in planning The robbery itself.

They stashed horses

At various locations Along their escape routes.

Because they access To fresh horses,

They were always able To out-distance

And eventually escape Their pursuers.

They also made certain

That the telegraph-telephone Lines were cut,

And did everything They possibly could

To hamper Law enforcement pursuit.

He would often stop off

At farms and ranches Of people that he knew.

The people were loyal To butch cassidy

Because he had done so much For them in the past.

They knew what he was doing, Many times,

But they liked this young man.

I tell you, these ought To suit you just fine, butch.

You just pay me whatever You think for boarding them.

Oh, now, I can't accept this. You know that's too much.

Oh, sure you can.

Looks to me Like you could use it.

My pleasure.

Fair pay For goods and services rendered.

You like that gray, Don't you son?

Yes, sir.

You keep taking Good care of him,

I'll make him yours One day.

Let's get some grub.

Hutton: Butch cassidy was famous

For his generous acts To the small ranchers,

To the homesteaders in the west.

But of course, It was a two-way street.

By winning their favor,

Much like jesse james Had won the favor

Of folks back in missouri,

He also provided himself

With assistance Whenever he needed to hide out,

And whenever he needed someone To point to a posse

And say, "They went that-a-way"

When actually They went that-a-way.

So there's some wisdom To what he's doing.

Thanks for the hot meal. It's much appreciated.

Oh, stop by any time, butch. It's always good to see you.

You can count on it.

Just remember, When the posse gets here,

We're the bad guys --

Desperate criminals, Vicious outlaws,

Scoundrels, villains, Worst kind of miscreants.

We stole from you At gunpoint,

Threatened to kill Your whole family.

"Oh, my, it was awful," You tell them.

Let them believe What they read in the papers.

Come on, elzy. Hyah!

Lay: hyah!

Jameson:when law enforcement Would show up,

They would often send The law enforcement people

In the opposite direction

From which butch and his gang Had fled.

Look again.

You really can't identify Any of them?

Buck: Wilcox was the real game-changer For butch and his colleagues

Because they were now Being hunted nationally.

The noose was tightening.

No, sir, I never saw their faces.

They kept them covered The whole time.

¶

Cassidy: The union pacific railroad Brought in the pinkertons,

And suddenly the best detectives In the country

Were on our trail.

Betenson: The pinkertons were really

Probably the equivalent To what the fbi is today,

And they had a reputation Of always getting their man.

Jameson: these men were very, Very well-trained.

They were marksmen, They were well-armed,

And they were, in fact, Ruthless.

Cassidy: once the pinkertons Were on our trail,

It was like being chased By a mad dog.

We knew they'd never give up, But neither would we.

And soon we had a new recruit Who only made us stronger.

His name was harry longabaugh,

But you folks Would know him better

As the sundance kid.

[ gunshot ]

¶

[ gunshot ]

Cassidy: After we blew up that union Pacific express car at wilcox,

The pinkertons were really Turning up the heat on us.

It wasn't long before elzy lay Got himself arrested.

And when he went to the can,

I needed a new, key man I could really rely on.

Enter harry longabaugh.

Betenson: harry longabaugh Was the the sundance kid.

He really was A small-time outlaw

Up until he met butch cassidy.

Don't believe me? Take a look for yourself.

$17.93. That's everything.

We're coming back From dropping off payroll,

Not picking it up.

Should've been here last night When we were pulling out.

The train was stacked With money.

You look at his track record Before he got with butch,

And he was somewhat Of an unsuccessful outlaw.

Amateurs.

I'm surrounded By a bunch of damn amateurs.

Jameson: harry longabaugh, Originally from pennsylvania,

Moved west as a young man,

Got into a bit of trouble,

And was sentenced to serve Certain amount of time

In a jail in sundance, wyoming.

It is from that that he acquired The nickname "The sundance kid."

The the sundance kid is --

Well, first of all, he's got The coolest name in west, okay,

So that...

Harry longabaugh

Is not really going to hang On the tongue very long.

And if it was harry longabaugh And butch cassidy,

That wouldn't be A very good movie marquee.

But sundance kid, Now that is a sexy name.

Now, what's interesting about, In the actual record, is

They were in different parts Of different gangs and stuff,

And they were in maybe in Two or three robberies together.

Thank you for dressing up On our account, there, sir.

Let's go.

Jameson: the two of them Are markedly different.

Butch was kind of a fun-loving Prankster-type of a bandit

Who liked to rob Banks and trains.

The sundance kid Was far more stoic.

These different men seemed to Gravitate towards one another.

Betenson: I think butch got from sundance

Somebody that was dependable, Quick with a gun,

And an enforcer, If he needed that.

So in a way, I think They complemented each other.

Cassidy: once the pinkertons Got after us,

Just cutting A few telegraph wires

And stashing some fresh horses

Wasn't enough To stay ahead of the law.

We had to up our game.

Jameson: law enforcement Was closing in on butch cassidy,

Closing in on the wild bunch,

And it was making it More and more difficult

For them to earn their living

As train robbers And as bank robbers.

Butch and sundance were staring The 20th century in the face.

You've got photography

And a means of reproducing Photographs on wanted posters.

Roth: They started, in fact, putting Machine guns, gatling guns,

On cars that were carrying Large amounts of money.

Betenson: The money that was taken From the trains,

The different banks had records Of those serial numbers,

So they were able To trace those.

Bell: And we now have the telephone.

The telephone is becoming A force.

And so all those advantages That the outlaws had --

It's amazing That butch and sundance

Lasted as long as they did,

Because we know you can't Escape technology, right boys?

[ laughs ]

It's gonna kill us all.

Cassidy: The game was getting too tough.

It just wasn't as much fun Anymore.

I needed to find a way To get out

Without having To look over my shoulder

For the rest of my life.

Amnesty would be a tall order, Butch.

I've got to be honest With you.

I ain't saying It's gonna be easy.

The way I see it,

I can give the governor Something he wants too.

They want me to stop robbing Their banks and trains, right?

Well, okay. This is their chance.

As butch cassidy felt the noose Tightening around him,

He approached a lawyer Named orlando powers

About the possibility Of amnesty.

Powers: And even if we could make That kind of a deal,

It wouldn't be enough.

Maybe it would mean You'd be safe in one state,

But I can think Of at least four other states

Where you'd still Be a wanted man.

I got to figure Something out.

I've been on the run Practically every day

Since the day I left prison.

I can't live like this The rest of my life.

You're not going to like this, Butch.

Just hear me out.

You need to make An amnesty deal

With an institution More powerful

Than any one governor Or any one state.

In my thinking,

There is only one institution That powerful.

You want me to make a deal With the union pacific railroad?

-think about it, butch. -[ scoffs ]

They just might want you To stop robbing them bad enough,

They'd force all the governors To go along with the deal.

You know, It just might work.

Tell them I'll do more than Just stop robbing their trains.

I'll stop other folks Robbing from them, too.

I'd be a whole lot better

At catching robbers Than anybody they got.

I'll contact the railroad And make the arrangements.

Okay, I'll sit down With those scoundrels,

But it's got to be... Some place I feel safe.

Can't be Any other people around,

So I can make sure they're not Planning on double-crossing me.

Leave that part to me.

You just make sure they know What they're in for

If they don't agree To this deal.

Because if I don't get The amnesty,

The union pacific railroad

Is gonna make me A very rich man.

¶

Cassidy: the day of my meeting With the railroad men came,

And I waited And then waited some more.

I waited all damn day, And the bastards never came.

Their train was delayed By storms or whatnot.

They couldn't get there.

Jameson: the longer he waited, And when it became clear

That the railroad people Were not going to show up,

He became infuriated.

He left a note,

Basically threatening The railroad people

With more of the same.

Cassidy: you double-crossed me.

You had your chance.

Now you can all go to hell.

After the incident At lost soldier pass,

I think butch was in For the remainder.

I mean, There was no turning back.

That was his last shot, I think, At going straight.

Buck: rewards were escalating As crimes accumulated.

Now you've got rewards That were jumping up

Into, in today's money, $250,000.

And some of his friends And former neighbors

Were becoming informants For the pinkertons.

So he had plenty to worry about.

Cassidy: You ever feel like we're holding A dead man's hand, harry?

They ain't never gonna stop Until we're dead or in jail,

And I ain't looking forward To either possibility.

I'm thinking it's time We call it quits.

And do what? Go where?

[ indistinct chatter, Piano playing ]

-south america. -what?

Now, hear me out, okay?

I read it in the national geographic magazine.

Oh, you read it in the national geographic magazine?

They got cattle and ranches And everything there,

Just like here, And they need cowboys.

We'll fit right in.

We don't look like them, And we don't sound like them.

We ain't going down there To be outlaws.

Okay?

We're going down there To be ranchers.

¶

Cassidy: patagonia sounded like An outlaw's dream --

Wide-open rangelands Just like home,

Without all those pesky Detectives sniffin' around.

But if it was time To cut and run,

I was gonna make sure We went out in style

And with enough bread For a nice, long retirement.

We hit another Union pacific train first

In tipton, wyoming,

Then a bank in nevada.

Those last few jobs Were some of our biggest ever.

Soon, sundance and me Had a nice little nest egg

To bring to south america.

So we threw ourselves A going-away party

At fannie porter's fine Establishment in fort worth.

Jameson: Here, they availed themselves

Of what fannie porter Had to offer.

They bought brand new clothes,

Fancy suits, bowler hats, Fine shoes,

Because one of them Was getting married.

Will carver Was marrying his sweetheart.

The woman will carver Was marrying

Was an employee Of fannie porter.

Cassidy: everybody was looking

So downright respectable In our new clothes,

I decided we needed something To commemorate the occasion.

Please, gentlemen, I'm going to have ask you

To settle down and be still.

You heard the man. Settle down.

I want everybody On their best behavior.

I didn't figure it this way At the time,

But I guess I was the only outlaw

Who ever made His own wanted poster.

Buck: for reasons That remain inscrutable,

Five of the major members Of the gang

Decided to have their pictures Taken in fort worth,

What is now known as

The fort worth five Photograph --

Butch cassidy, sundance kid, Ben kilpatrick,

Harvey logan, and will carver.

Boardman: They must have been drunk.

They're dressed in suits, They got bowler hats on.

It's just a wonderful photo.

Buck: Sitting down for a portrait In fort worth

Was probably not one of The smartest things

These five outlaws ever did.

Boardman: that was the start Of their undoing.

Cassidy: the photographer liked The damn picture so much,

He put it in his window Where a lawmen saw it

And sent a copy To the pinkertons.

Roth: then they started making The wanted posters.

Before this, there was no Photographs of butch cassidy,

Except for kind of an old image From when he was in prison.

Now everybody knew What butch cassidy looked like.

Ross: I laugh when I think about it,

Having no idea What a disaster that was.

That was his mistake.

If pickett's charge Is robert e. Lee's mistake,

The fort worth five, That was butch cassidy's.

Roth: This was a turning point

In the war Against the wild bunch.

¶

[ gunshot ]

Cassidy: after a raucous Send-off in fort worth,

The wild bunch split up And went our separate ways.

I met up with sundance And his girl, etta place,

In new york.

The pinkertons got awful mad

When they found out We'd been living it up

Right under their noses there.

But by the time they did,

We were on a boat To south america.

Bell: and then they do it. They leave the west.

You know, when they tried To make the movie,

The studio said, "Can you leave the west?

John wayne never -- You can't leave the west."

And that move was such a leap Of imagination,

But that's because butch had The leap of imagination.

"We're going to take this On the road."

He became the first International rock star outlaw.

Boardman: They went to patagonia. They set up a ranch.

They had cattle and horses, And etta place was with them.

And everything seemed idyllic. It was just perfect.

Buck: for a while, at least, No one knew where they were.

They were respectable members Of the community

And probably thought No one would ever find them.

But they did.

Roth: The pinkertons tracked them Down to argentina.

Hutton: the pinkertons had A reputation to protect.

And so even though the law had Given up on butch and sundance

And were happy to have them Out of the territory,

The pinkertons were determined To get them.

Betenson: they make Wanted posters in spanish.

They notify them and say, "If there's ever a robbery,

These two notorious outlaws Are likely responsible."

Buck: And a year or two later,

There was a bank robbery In southern argentina,

Committed By a couple of yankees.

And it probably Wasn't butch and sundance.

The result is The argentine police Issued an order

To bring butch and sundance in For questioning.

So they get wind That the authorities

Are coming to question them About this robbery,

And that's when they escape.

Buck: here's butch and sundance Now, they're on the run.

They're yankees In a spanish-speaking country.

They are genuinely Fish out of water.

Jameson: they returned

To robbing banks throughout Parts of south america,

Eventually making their way To bolivia.

Buck: there were posses, Mainly military posses,

Looking for two armed gringos.

And they end up going into A village high in the andes,

Named san vicente, Late in the afternoon.

The posse shows up, And there's a brief gunfight.

[ gunshot ]

Boardman: But they're pouring fire

In at butch cassidy And the sundance kid,

Who are trapped Inside of this room.

Eventually, They run out of ammunition.

We're not making it Out of this one, are we?

I don't think so.

I'm empty.

Yup, well, I've got two left.

¶

Are you sure?

Yeah, well, what the hell?

Truth is...

I ain't never killed No one before.

We've all Got to start sometime.

[ gunfire in distance ]

[ gunshot ]

Cassidy: most folks believe That was the end

Of butch cassidy And the sundance kid.

But they're just guessing.

Some days, I wake up,

And I think The guys didn't make it,

They're dead in san vicente In bolivia.

And other days, I go,

"There's something About that story

That doesn't make sense.

It just doesn't quite compute."

Roth: most of the information Is circumstantial

That we have About this particular case.

The only thing they really have

Is two north americans Were killed in a shoot-out.

It's kind of a split decision As to whether they died there.

Man: what we just uncovered Is a lower mandible.

Betenson: Years ago, they dug up

What they thought Were the two outlaws

And did dna testing.

They were 99 percent sure They had the right remains,

Because the story was

That they got down to the last Few rounds of ammunition,

They were injured and desperate,

And so butch shoots sundance

And then puts the gun To his temple and kills himself.

And the skeletal remains Of these two individuals

Match that story.

One had wounds in the forehead And one in the temple,

And there was lead tracing from Evidence of the bullet wound.

And once they did The dna testing,

It came out It wasn't butch or sundance.

And to me, That verifies that they escaped.

Jameson: there's evidence That he wandered

Around south america And, in fact, mexico

For a period of time

Before finally returning To the united states,

In the neighborhood Of about 1924, 1925,

When he began to frequent His old haunts

And look up old friends And old acquaintances.

¶

[ knock on door ]

Around 1925, supposedly,

According To his young sister lula,

He visited her And told her what happened.

Betenson: lula parker betenson Was my great-grandmother,

So that he is A great-great-uncle to me.

Lula, honey. Come here, please.

There's somebody I want you to meet.

Who's that, daddy?

Well actually, The two of you have met before,

But you were only A few days old at the time.

Is that right?

I'd like you to meet Your brother, robert.

¶

I tend to believe My great-grandmother's account

That he came back, you know?

I've researched his life For over 20 years of my life,

And I haven't found anything

That would Make me think otherwise.

¶

The family didn't talk about it For a lot of years.

It was something They kept private.

They didn't --

They just went along With the stories That he'd been killed

Because they wanted him To be left alone.

Jameson: this may have been Butch cassidy's ultimate prank.

The alias he used Was william t. Phillips.

William t. Phillips went on

To lead a relatively quiet And respectable life

And settled in the town Of spokane, washington,

Where he died in 1937.

It's wonderful how we never Want the outlaws to die.

Jesse james wasn't killed

Like he was supposed To be killed.

Billy the kid Wasn't killed by pat garrett.

And butch cassidy got away from That little shack in bolivia,

And went off and became A respected businessman

In spokane, washington.

Of all the theories Of wild west characters

Who don't die like the story Says they died,

Butch cassidy is the one

Where you might Really buy into the fact

That maybe butch did get away.

It's a stickup!

Let's go, move it!

Bell: well, butch cassidy Is so wonderful

Because he didn't kill Hardly anyone,

He was very successful At what he did,

And he was honest.

We bid you good day, Ladies and gentlemen.

It was a pleasure Doing business with you.

Boardman: Everybody who met him

Talked about the easy smile That came to his face,

The jokes That he told or played.

He was kind, he was gentle,

But he also was A two-bit outlaw.

¶

Ross: when you think About men and horses,

You're going back Thousands of years,

I mean pre-biblical.

I mean, the horse was the thing.

And here are these, The last guys,

The last outs of the last inning Of the last ballgame,

Are butch cassidy And the sundance kid.

When they disappear Into history,

That's the end Of the horse culture.

When they passed into history, Something truly was lost.

¶