Trivia

Notorious western outlaw who fought during the Civil War with a Confederate guerrilla band called Quantrill's Raiders, responsible for the infamous burning of Lawrence, Kansas, and the massacre of many of its residents. Quantrill's tactics were so vicious and ruthless, including the torture, mutilation and execution of prisoners, that the unit was eventually disowned by Confederate authorities. Its members were pursued relentlessly by Union troops, and most of them--including leader William Quantrill, a former schoolteacher--were hunted down and killed (one of them, a sadistic murderer named "Bloody Bill" Anderson, was so feared that after he was shot by pursuing Union cavalrymen, an officer whipped out his sword and beheaded him). Jesse and his brother Frank James were among the band's few survivors and later formed a gang that was also known for its ruthlessness and indiscriminate killings. A "dead or alive" reward was placed on the brothers. Jesse was eventually murdered by two members of his own gang for the reward, and Frank surrendered to the authorities and served a stretch in prison.

James' mother Zerelda Samuel wrote the following epitaph for him: "In Loving Memory of my Beloved Son, Murdered by a Traitor and Coward Whose Name is not Worthy to Appear Here".

Father of Jesse James Jr., who played him in two movies.

He killed 17 people and was involved in the deaths of another 180.

He and brother Frank James were extremely protective of their younger half brother Archie who was born mentally handicapped. The two would often react violently to any taunts regarding their brother.

Played by Fred Thomson, Roy Rogers, Clayton Moore, Tyrone Power, James Dean, Audie Murphy, Robert Duvall, Kris Kristofferson, Colin Farrell, Brad Pitt, among others.

When his assassin Robert Ford was murdered in 1892 by Edward O'Kelley, O'Kelley was pardoned due to a petition with over 7,000 signatures asking for his release.

Many historians have publicly refuted the idea of James as a noble or generous figure, noting that he was a ruthless and extremely violent thief.

Was shot twice in his lifetime and was missing the top of his left middle finger.

Moments before being shot, he removed his pistols and walked across the room to clean a picture with dust on it. This has led to the theory that James knew the Fords intended to kill him and chose not to fight.

His father Robert was a prosperous farmer and one of the founders of William Jewell College.

Lived under the alias "Tom Howard" and pretended to be a businessman.

The first crime his gang committed was the robbery of the Clay County Savings Association. They made off with $62,000, which was the largest score they ever got. It was also famous for being the first recorded daylight robbery in history.

At the time of his death, there was a $10,000 bounty on his head.

Years after his death, many people came forward claiming to be him. The most famous was 101-year-old J. Frank Dalton, who was proved to be an impostor by questions from James' ancestors.

Although the perception of him and his gang was of noble Robin Hood figures, there is no evidence of James using stolen money for anyone but himself.

Of all the many films made about his life, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) is considered to be the most accurate.

His father was from County Kerry, Ireland.

Was known to enjoy the publicity that came with his various exploits.