Wednesday, August 25, 2010

AS SEEN ON TV: THE DALTOONS

THE DALTON BOYS
(Bob, Emmett, and Gratton)


AS SEEN IN:
'The World of Commander McBragg'

AS PLAYED BY:
Not applicable
(characters never spoke)

From Wikipedia:
Perhaps hoping to avenge their brother's death (lawman Frank Dalton), the three younger Dalton boys—Great, Bob, and Emmett, —became lawmen. But in 1890, the boys moved to the other side of the law, after not being paid for their duties as lawmen.

Bob was always the wildest one. He killed a man for the first time when he was just 19. He was a Deputy U.S. Marshal at the time and claimed the killing was in the line of duty. Some suspected, however, that the victim had tried to take away Bob's girlfriend. In March 1890, Bob was charged with introducing liquor into the Indian Territory, but he jumped bail and did not appear for his trial. In September 1890, Great was arrested for stealing horses— a capital offense—but either the charges were dropped or he was released. Discredited as lawmen, the Daltons soon formed their first gang.

The gang could have kept themselves busy with train robberies, but Bob Dalton wanted to make sure his name would long be remembered. He would, he claimed, "beat anything Jesse James ever did—rob two banks at once, in broad daylight." On October 5, 1892, the Dalton gang attempted this feat when they set out to rob the C.M. Condon & Company's Bank and the First National Bank in Coffeyville, Kansas. Since the locals were aware of what they looked like, they wore fake beards. But they were still identified by one of the townspeople.

While the gang was busy trying to hold up the banks, the people armed themselves and prepared for a gun battle. When the gang exited the banks, a shootout began. There were three townspeople shot, and Town Marshal Charles Connelly was killed when he ran into the street after hearing gunfire, returning fire before he died killing one member of the gang. Great Dalton, Bob Dalton, Dick Broadwell and Bill Power were killed. Emmett Dalton received 23 gunshot wounds and survived. He was given a life sentence in the Kansas penitentiary in Lansing, Kansas, of which he served 14 years before being pardoned. He moved to California and became a real estate agent, author and actor, and died in 1937 at age 66.

Eventually, the same fate would befall their Tooniverse counterparts....

BCnU!

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