Oh, Mr. beauregard.
An answer for you from New Orleans.
- What do they say? - Sundowner sails the 21st. Stop.
Destination: Europe. Stop.
Reservation: Confirmed.
Stop.
Request deposit $500. Stop.
Hey! What about the $500?
No hurry. The important thing is there's a ship.
Gee!
$10!
How'd he do it, pa? I only heard one shot.
It's a question of speed, son.
Ain't nobody faster on the draw than him?
Faster than him?
Nobody.
Red!
Too late, amigo.
Who did it?
You did.
When you first started looking for me.
Where's Nevada?
Holed up at akema.
He ain't about to move from there.
What were you doing here? Who shot you?
- Go... - Where?
Go screw yourself.
You alone are responsible to us form a king the gold legal.
Instead, Sullivan, you chase after your own personal affairs.
You're leaving a trail of dead bodies across the state.
A trail that leads straight here.
Jack beauregard.
Yeah!
We pay you 'cause you're respectable.
A gentleman with a worked-out mine who discovered anew vein.
Any suspicion that falls on you, falls on the gold.
What are you afraid of?
You've got everyone exactly where you want them.
I could shout the truth from the rooftops.
I could bring the sheriff in here and say, "look."
If we didn't add the stolen gold to the ore,
this mine would only produce rock.
I could even show them.
And nobody would believe me.
And they'd all be blind and deaf.
But not dumb.
There's talk going around.
Talk gets into places where there ain't no fear.
The ore that comes out of this mine has got to be refined legally.
You keep your hands clean, Sullivan.
If I don't kill
beauregard first,
he'll kill me.
That's right.
Two things go to a man's heart. Bullets and gold.
You telling me
to buy Jack beauregard?
Why not?
We bought you.
Buy him or kill him. But do it fast!
You hear me? Fast!
Hey! Load up 20 of them horseshoes.
- Is it going to take much longer? - Nearly done.
He's got nothing but junk here. Look at this.
Who's gonna buy this?
And this.
Even a broken shoe.
Hey, you!
Hey! Where'd he come from?
What are you doing in there?
- Sleeping. - This ain't no hotel.
- What are you looking for? - A horse.
Hey. Make him pay first.
Why?
You might not live long enough to get credit.
Where you going?
The secret of along life is to try not to shorten it.
Hey! Hold on there.
- I can get you a horse. - Honest?
Sure. But first you got to do me a little favor.
Come here.
Give me here.
There's a pal of mine over there in that saloon.
You take him this basket.
When you get back I'll find you a horse.
This pal of yours.
It's Jack beauregard, huh?
A bargain's a bargain.
- A horse, huh? - Sure, son.
The best.
- I smell beans and bacon. - For the three men out there.
They won't be hungry much longer.
Is the ship still there?
Sailing date 16 days. Stop.
Must have $500 to confirm reservation. Stop.
What should I tell New Orleans?
There are still 16 days.
16 days ain't very long. Even for you.
If you go away, who will be left?
- Nobody. - But a man's got to quit some time.
Some time.
Someone like you has to go out with style.
Come here just to tell me that?
Oh, no.
For me?
What do you think's in it?
I reckon it's a bomb.
I reckon you're right. Who sent it?
Three fellas out there. Only three.
- Only? - Yeah. Like that time in El Paso.
5th of march 1882.
Billy Mason, John Murray, Fred Carson.
-'82 was one of your best... - What did you bring this for?
A horse.
Like I was saying...
In April '82 in Albuquerque, four.
Jackson, Johnson...
Murdoch and champion.
- How many horses to take it back? - None. My pleasure.
It was in the fall that you really scored.
September, socorro.
Five! Milton, woolman, firestone, McDonald and valence.
How come you know so much about me?
Everyone knows about Jack beauregard. The west's hope for law and order.
Start admiring someone, pretty soon you're envious.
So you start showing off.
You take chances and before you know it
you're dead.
It ain't good for some folks to live too long.
How many did you get at heeler bend?
Six. No, seven!
One tried to gun you behind your back.
He says he don't want it.
But you never got 150 all at once.
You know, since I was a boy i always dreamed of you like that.
An immense, open plain.
150 pure-bred sons of bitches on horseback.
And you facing them. Alone.
- Why only 150? - The wild bunch.
- They are only 150. That's why. - Yeah.
150 who shoot and ride like there's thousands.
Who are you, anyway?
Who, me?
- Nobody. - Get to be somebody.
Then we'll surround them.
Yeah!
No. You got to face them alone. You on one side. Them on the other.
You don't need to wash it this time.
D'you want a hand? Hey, Jack!
Jack, l found a horse. Wait!
Turn around, you!
- We got to shoot it out? - You're his friend.
I wish I was.
You know what they say?
He can draw his gun three times before the other guy reaches.
Like this.
Well. If we got to shoot it out, I'm ready.
Well, just a...
Hey, he did deliver the basket.
- Yeah. - Su re.
- The son of a... - Beauregard didn't want it.
You earned yourself a horse.
Thanks, amigo. I'll take this one.
I'll be...!
Blessed is he who shares his neighbor's burden.
Seen a white man around here?
I'm looking for a white man. Seen him?
Where is he?
I won't hurt him. He's my brother.
What are you doing here?
Praying-
- good thing you are. - Why?
'Cause you're always following me and I don't like it.
I got a lot of friends here.
Chief broken branch died yesterday.
Priest arrived in time, medicine man didn't.
- What brings you among the injuns? -L'm looking for someone.
Sam peckinpah.
That's a beautiful name in navajo.
- Friend or enemy? - That's my business.
Listen to this one.
Eno poknomah.
What's his name?
That's his business.
Nevada kid.
- You know where he is? - Must be down below.
The best are always the first to go.
So you ain't going nowhere.
You're staying here with your lnjun friends for good.
What's the matter? You got to have a crowd watching?
You said you was nobody.
Here's your chance to make a name for yourself on one of them.
Turn around!
Draw!
Let's bring my personal history up to date.
Today. June 3rd, 1899.
Nobody.
You're the kind that needs an audience so you can show off.
Four shots. One hole.
Like the good old days.
There was never any good old days.
Tell me. What's your game?
As a kid I used to make believe i was Jack beauregard.
And now that you're all growed up?
I'm more cautious.
Sometimes running a little risk can bring big rewards.
If the risk is little,
the reward is little.
First Nevada,
then red.
- They tried to get me twice. - They'll try again.
What the hell are they up to?
Oh, you'll find out.
I see it clear as crystal.
Jack beauregard standing alone. Facing the wild bunch.
Just think of it. You'll be in all the history books.
You'll be down on earth reading them
while I'm up there playing on a harp.
You shine like the door of a whorehouse.
- A blind man could spot you miles off. - I like folks to see me.
Maybe folks don't share your pleasure.
Thanks.
But I prefer my own. The air sharpens the wits.
It's a matter of time before someone shoots holes in yours.
Out of the way, shorty!
Or I'll crush you underfoot like a flea.
You look so small from up here
I can hardly see you.
You got the message?
- See any better now? - I wish I'd never seen you.
Here's a dollar. Anybody else want to try?
I'll have a try.
Have another try.
Like a woman. Give her the glad eye, you get a black eye.
Offer her a steak, she makes mincemeat out of you.
Come on up!
Come on now, folks. Step right up.
Hit his head, you'll win an apple pie.
Score twelve, you can have the nigger for the night.
Give them all you've got.
Three hits, only 50 cents. Apple pie, $1.
And for the reduced price of $2, six cantaloupes.
Six ripe cantaloupes. When I say ripe, I mean ripe.
Let me try.
Come on! Move your arm there!
Come on, folks. Give them all you've got.
Come on! Move your arm there!
What's your name? Come on.
Give them all you've got. The fun of the game...
What did you say the fun of the game is?
Son of a bitch.
I can stay as long as I like. I've as much right as any to be here.
- Sleep there, grandpa. - You stinking, mangy polecats.
One day the worm will turn and nip you in the bud.
Tell your stinking boss Sullivan.
Who the hell are you?
I'll take 3:1 on squirrel.
Another $10 on squirrel.
Come on, folks.
3:1 on squirrel.
He's a great shot but he could miss. Try your luck.
Hi.
Beer.
- How'd you like to play with this? - Like that?
Hey, what's the game? Can I play?
Sure. Anyone can play.
If you can afford it.
If you can shoot.
And if you can drink.
Okay. I'll have a go.
Ten... twenty.
Know the rules? Hit the glass before it hits the floor.
Come on, folks. Who'll take me on?
Place your bets. 2:1 on the stranger.
3:1. This is real special. Any takers? Come on, folks.
Hey, Marshall. Here.
Can't I do it with milk?
I'll take five. Come on, folks. 5:1.
Who'll take me on?
Here's six for me, Marshall.
Lucky skunk!
That one got away.
Lucky bastard!
Come on. Now it's 7:1.
Lucky shit!
Hold it!
The game's over.
- Lucky... -...He didn't aim at you.
There you are. 200.
Whisky. These games make a man thirsty.
That evens the score for glasses.
Now let's try pistols.
Your upside-down pistols worry me.
Fell as that carry them like that are bad medicine.
Clown.
- Now, we can't miss. - Smart a leck.
You fell as don't seem to catch on. It's actually simple.
Pay attention.
How d'you do?
We play for higher stakes up here.
Scape's talking to you.
Why don't you join us?
It ain't nice to shoot a man in the back.
- This a game two can play? - If you know the rules.
For me every game has the same rule.
- Play to win. - The whole town has to see this game.
Big audience, big take.
Two thousand.
- Who's gonna lose this hand? He'll be here tomorrow.
The name's Jack beauregard.
That's a name to reckon with.
How much do you reckon?
Five hundred?
A thousand more, perhaps?
I reckon I may never spend it. Why Jack beauregard?
Will this do for an answer?
You paid for a front row seat. Don't miss the show.
Iwon't .
Only three shots. You still got one to go.
The next one might hit a couple of inches lower.
Your life's hanging by a thread, Mr. beauregard.
Looks like you got your audience so we can wind up this little story.
It's an old story for you.
January' 86. Madmen.
- The same situation, remember? - I faced three bastards that day.
Exactly.
Seems that hole was aching for another bullet.
When the spirit is willing the flesh has the strength of ten.
- Can I send a telegram? - Yes, sir. It costs 25 cents a word.
Maritime company, New Orleans.
Request confirmation of reservation.
Sundowner, sailing 12 days. Stop.
$500 deposit follows. Stop.
Signed Jack beauregard.
Look who's back.
What are you holding that for?
Idiots.
You go catch those two.
He's gone into the corner room.
Come on. Quiet.
Up there. I guess he's asleep.
I heard him set his alarm clock.
This will wake him quicker than any alarm.
He must be right up there.
I'll go.
- Get him? - No.
- He must be on the other side. -L'm here.
- Breaking mirrors is bad luck. - Give me a match.
Light it.
- Well, it only lasts one minute. - Light it.
Don't you think I ought to get down?
People waste days and weeks and years
till all of a sudden there's only 30 seconds to go.
It stopped.
Happens to everyone.
don John, where are you?
I'm here.
Me too.
Wham! Bam!
Thank you, ma'am.
- That's real funny. - Nothing funny about death.
Shut up!
There are eight of them. Look!
What a lot of nobodys, reflections one and all.
In truth there's only one. Which is that son of a gun?
The third one.
You really are slipping. Hold this.
Who? Me?
Yes. You.
- Well? - Well.
Nevada. And that other sneak thief red.
They bought me out.
For $200!
Fine partners I had.
My share of the mine for 200 measly, stinking dollars.
And now my bag's empty.
I got so mad it gave me asthma.
See how I live? Have to breathe this shit.
I don't want to talk about it. Ain't no use persisting.
If you want to persist, you'll have to persist harder.
The man himself told me.
"Joe, old pal," he said.
"That ain't no mine. It's just a hole in the ground.
Nobody ain't never gonna find no gold in there.
Now, that city slicker, that Sullivan,
he wants to buy it for $600.
And that ain't hay, Joe.
Why, you could live on your share of it for a year."
That's what they told me.
- Then what? - The ore ran out.
The money ran out and the liquor ran out.
This'll quench your thirst.
Come to the point. I got no more dough either.
Tarnation!
That mine began pouring out gold.
I say I deserve a share. At least enough to keep me in liquor.
But what did red and Nevada do?
They ran off somewhere. The dirty coyotes.
Red and Nevada are dead. You can drink to their memory.
Like I say, he who lives by the sword will get nipped in the bud.
No, no! I surrender!
Next time, knock before you come busting in.
You playing games?
A lot of guys try to kill me so they can brag about it.
You had your audience and target.
Opportunity don't knock twice.
Well, that depends on your point of view.
It's a dangerous game.
Yeah.
It ain't easy to make balls spin.
Even if you do,
they wind up in the hole.
It's gone in! It's gone in! It's
- missed by a hair. - Fact is, you saved my life today.
I'd rather it was my fault I got shot than yours I didn't.
That's horse manure, son.
It's better not to get shot for nobody's fault.
Why did you blow on these balls? It don't count.
- I wanted to let out some air. - While you do, tell me.
- Why were you sitting in the street? - I got tired of standing.
You keep turning your back to me. Seems like you trust me too much.
Maybe you trust yourself too much.
Hear the story about the birdie? My grandpa told me.
When I was a boy men didn't live to become grandpas.
It weren't easy, but it could be done.
There was this birdie who couldn't fly yet.
One freezing cold night
he tumbles out of his nest and lands on the ground.
Well, he starts going, "peep! Peep! Peep!"
Like crazy
'cause he's nearly freezing.
Lucky for him, along comes this cow.
She sees him and feels sorry for him.
So,
she lifts her tail.
And: Splat!
Drops a steaming hot cow pie right on him.
The birdie is warm but he ain't happy and keeps going "peep!
Peep! Peep! Peep!", louder than ever.
Mean old coyote hears someone, comes a-running.
He reaches out a paw,
pulls him out of the cow pie.
He brushes the dirt off, real nice.
And then...
Swallows him in one gulp.
Grandpa said there was amoral but I had to figure it out myself.
Bird?
Coyote? Cow pie?
It don't make no sense to me no how.
You still believe in fairy tales.
Yep.
For example.
This is the good guy who's got to avenge his brother.
This is the bad guy
who's gonna get killed because he shot the brother.
- And this... -Ls my blue-eyed guardian angel.
That's nobody.
That leaves you and me face to face.
Nope.
That leaves you alone.
Against 150.
You're sure trying hard to make a hero of me.
You're that already. You just need something to make your name a legend.
What I don't understand is what difference it makes to you.
If a man is a man, he needs someone to believe in.
I've met all kinds in my life.
Thieves and killers.
Pimps and prostitutes.
Con men and preachers.
Even a few fellas that told the truth.
The kind you're talking about, never.
Maybe you've never met them. Or hardly ever.
But they're the only ones who count.
Reckon this fella's name is Sullivan.
Reckon it is.
Hey!
He's taken Sullivan away!
But Sullivan's nothing. It's the wild bunch behind him.
We got to warn that young fella.
But if he kills Sullivan,
he'll have 150 bloodthirsty cutthroats on his tail.
- He'll make trouble for his self. - He'll make a name for himself.
The way he's galloping, he must be in a hurry to make it.
If you kill me, the wild bunch will know you're onto them.
They said, "kill him or buy him."
I wouldn't try unless it was my last chance.
You know how Nevada was.
Him, red and me had an agreement for an extra share.
You know even better than me how he hated sharing anything.
He deserved the bullet he got.
Red did it.
But I kept his share.
It's yours now. Take all you want. Live like a king for 100 years.
I don't intend to get that old.
I only need 500.
Is there a telegraph office in town?
- How do I get to New Orleans? - Go to kimball.
There's a train from there Fridays.
Disappointed?
Yep.
I counted on your brotherly feeling.
Beats me how kids like you think 'cause a man's older than you
he has old-fashioned notions like blood's thicker than water.
Sure, Nevada's my brother.
But he's a grade-a skunk who shot people in the back.
What's more, he stole $10,000 off me.
I ain't risking my life to avenge him.
How modern the old folks are becoming.
But a hero can't run away from his destiny.
My destiny is to get the hell out. On a ship that's sailing for Europe.
Sometimes you run into your destiny on the road you take to avoid it.
If you mean the wild bunch, forget it.
I ain't taking them on.
You will, Jack. You will.
Put it over there.
- Hold it! - Where's it going?
Use your eyes, man. It's shunting.
But... Who's driving it?
Who?
They've stolen the train!
There's only150 of them.
But they ride like they were thousands.
A man's got to quit some time.
Someone like you has to go out with style.
Just think of it.
150 pure-bred sons of bitches on horseback.
And you facing them.
Alone.
You'll be in all the history books.
You'll be down on earth reading them
while I'm under it, in my grave.
- Like the door of a whorehouse. - I like folks to see me.
You'll end in history.
You've ended in history!
Well.
Now you got me in the history books.
- How do I quit? - There's only one way.
How's that?
You got to die.
- Where? - Where there's lots of people.
They're gonna shoot each other!
I told you your life was hanging by a thread.
Dear nobody,
dying isn't the worse thing to happen.
I've been dead for three days now and I've finally found my peace.
You used to say my life was hanging by a thread.
Maybe so, but it's your life that's hanging by a thread now.
Well, that's one.
Let's get the other!
Quite a few people would like to cut that thread.
Yeah, I guess it's your way of feeling alive.
There's a difference between you and me.
I tried to steer away from trouble.
You seem to look for it all the time.
But I must admit, you've been able to solve your share.
You like others to take the credit so that you can remain a nobody.
You got it all nicely figured out.
But now there's too many people who know you're somebody after all.
You won't have much time left for playing your games.
They'll make your life hard
until you too meet somebody who wants to put you down in history.
You'll find out that the only way to become a nobody again is to die.
From now on you'll be walking in my boots.
Maybe you won't laugh so loud anymore.
But you can still do one thing.
You can preserve the illusion that made my generation tick.
You'll do it in your own funny way but we'll still be grateful.
'Cause looking back
it seems to me we were a bunch of romantic fools.
We believed a good pistol and a showdown could solve everything.
The west used to be open spaces with elbowroom.
You never ran into the same person twice.
By the time you came it was changed.
So small and crowded you bumped into people all the time.
You're able to run around the west, peacefully catching flies
because fellas like me were there first.
The same fellas you want to see in history books.
People need something to believe in, like you say.
You can't have it your own way much longer.
The country ain't the same.
And I'm already feeling a stranger myself.
But, what's worse,
violence has changed too.
It's grown and got organized.
A good pistol don't mean a damn thing anymore.
But I guess you must know all this.
'Cause it's your kind of times, not mine.
I figured out the moral to your grandpa's story.
The cow covered the bird with cow pie to keep it warm
and the coyote hauled it out and ate it.
It's the moral of these new times of yours.
Folks who throw dirt on you don't always want to hurt you.
Folks that pull you out of a jam don't always want to help you.
The main point is
when you're up to your nose in shit, keep your mouth shut.
This is why people like me got to go.
And why you faked that gunfight to get me out of the west clean.
L was getting to be one more oldtimer.
The years don't make wisdom, just old age.
One can be young in years and old in hours, like you.
L'm talking like a preacher, but it's your fault.
What can you expect of a national monument?
Keep your mind and heart open.
If you meet one of those men you almost never meet
you can keep each other company and you won't be lonely.
They say distance makes friendship stronger.
Maybe so, after three days without you dogging my tracks
I kind of miss you.
I really got to sign off now
so, even if you've been a nosy troublemaker,
thanks for everything.
P.S. One more piece of advice from an oldtimer.
If you get a shave, make sure the right man's wearing the jacket.