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This is Fresh Air. I'm Tanya Mosley. Today marks Juneteenth, the day in

1865 when slavery ended in Texas, two and a half years after the Emancipation

proclamation went into effect.

One of the Lone Star State's folklore heroes of that time period is Bass Reeves,

a formerly enslaved man who went on to become one of the nation's first black deputy U.S. Marshals.

His story is the stuff of legend. They say Bass Reeves spoke five tribal languages and is credited

with bringing thousands of outlaws to justice.

It's a story actor David O'Yello was obsessed with from the moment he read it, but it would take

him eight years to finally get a series about Reeves made.

Lawmen, Vass Reeves, debuted on Paramount Plus last fall.

David both produced and starred in the series, which starts in a Civil War battle when an enslaved Reeves

is forced by his master to fight for the Confederacy. Reeves later flees to

Indian Territory where he meets a US marshal who notices

Reeves' fluency in native languages and marksmanship.

Reeves is later deputized and given the task of capturing criminals.

But an internal battle rages within Reeves as he grapples with his own sense of morality and justice.

In the season finale, Reeves goes off without official sanction to get revenge against a corrupt lawman, a Texas ranger.

While on the hunt in a distant Texas town,

a small boy utters to Bass Reeves, a meaningful message.

You're a lawman or an outlaw. Today a bit of both, I reckon.

...