American Experience

Paul Fees, Historian: Cody agreed to appear in a play that Buntline supposedly had written for him. Now, Buffalo Bill himself was probably inclined to do this. But he had a pal, Texas Jack Omohundro, who was almost clamoring to become part of this.

Bobby Bridger, Writer: When they got to Chicago they found that Buntline hadn’t written the play yet. When the word got out that the play had not been written the, the man who owned the theater backed out of the production. And so Buntline had to borrow the money from Texas Jack and Buffalo Bill to rent the theater. And I think that says a lot about Ned Buntline.

Louis Warren, Biographer: Buntline says don’t worry about it, don’t worry about it. Takes him to a hotel. Gets him into a hotel room and says he’ll be back in a little bit with the play. And four hours later he leapt up from his desk allegedly and shouted “Hurrah, hurrah for Scouts of the Plains. That’s the title of the play. It’s finished!”

Bobby Bridger, Writer: These two men that Buntline brought to the theater were totally inexperienced. They had a terrible time remembering their lines. And when they got out on stage they just were absolutely stone cold petrified. Buntline started coaching them on stage and trying to throw lines to them that they froze and wouldn’t respond to. So finally in desperation he asked Cody what have you been doing? And Cody saw a friend of his out in the audience and said I’ve been on a hunt with Mulligan up there.

Louis Warren, Biographer: And then he proceeds to tell stories about the hunt, and the crowd just loved it. They just roared. And in fact, Cody would recount that he did not utter one word of his lines that whole night. That he just made up stories.

Bobby Bridger, Writer: At that moment Buffalo Bill realized that people would come to see the star more than they would the show. And from that point forward he was the star.

Narrator: “Such incongruous drama, execrable acting, intolerable stanch, blood and thunder,” one critic wrote, “is not likely to be vouchsafed to a city a second time, even Chicago.” Incongruous, execrable and intolerable it might have been, but the company played to packed houses for the rest of the season.

Louis Warren, Biographer: But there are plenty of signs along the way that this was a partnership that wouldn’t work out for Cody. Buntline had a long history as not only a novelist and playwright but as a rabble rouser. He was a founding member of the Know Nothing Party, which was really a party of Nativists, that is they’re strongly anti immigrant.