He was described as lean and wiery with sandy brown hair and clear blue eyes.

He was charismatic and enjoyed a joke.

He liked to gamble, but ignored tobacco and rarely drank whiskey.

He loved to sing and dance, and his abilities came from his mother.

He spoke fluent Spanish and charmed young ladies on the dance floor in two languages.

He could read and write, and he preferred moccasins to boots, and a sombrero to a cowboy

hat.

He never knew his father, and even his name has been debated.

The one thing that is known, in 1877, Henry McCarty, also called Henry Antrum, otherwise

known as the Kid, was around 17 years old.

That summer, he killed his first man.

It was a hot August evening in the town of Bonita.

The speck of a settlement sat outside Fort Grant, a small military outpost about 60 miles

from Tucson in southern Arizona territory.

On this night, the blacksmith from Fort Grant, an Irishman named Frank K. Hill, was playing

cards at George Atkins Cantina, and, as always, he was talking.

K. Hill learned the nickname windy because he told stories non-stop, stringing them together

one after another.

At his table, said Henry Antrum, whom everyone called Kid Antrum.

He was no more than 17 years old, and his baby face and slender frame made him look younger.

The Kid had endured torments from the loudmouth windy K. Hill on several occasions.

The blustery Irishman liked to knock the Kid around and tussle his hair and make fun

...