James Bowie was a 19th-century American pioneer, slave smuggler and trader, and soldier who played a prominent role in the Texas Revolution. He was among the Americans who died at the Battle of the Alamo. Stories of him as a fighter and frontiersman, both real and fictitious, have made him a legendary figure in Texas history and a folk hero of American culture.
The Battle of the Alamo was a pivotal event and military engagement in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna reclaimed the Alamo Mission near San Antonio de Béxar, killing most of the occupants. Santa Anna's refusal to take prisoners during the battle inspired many Texians and Tejanos to join the Texian Army. Motivated by a desire for revenge, as well as their written desire to preserve a border open to immigration and the importation and practice of slavery, the Texians defeated the Mexican Army at the Battle of San Jacinto, on April 21, 1836, ending the conquering of the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas by the newly formed Republic of Texas.
The Alamo is a 2004 American war historical drama about the Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution. The film was directed by John Lee Hancock, produced by Ron Howard, Brian Grazer, and Mark Johnson, distributed by Buena Vista Pictures, and starring Dennis Quaid as Sam Houston, Billy Bob Thornton as Davy Crockett, Jason Patric as Jim Bowie, and Patrick Wilson as William B. Travis. The screenplay is credited to Hancock, Stephen Gaghan, and Leslie Bohem.
The Alamo is a 1960 American epic historical war film about the 1836 Siege and Battle of the Alamo produced and directed by John Wayne and starring Wayne as Davy Crockett. The film also co-stars Richard Widmark as Jim Bowie and Laurence Harvey as William B. Travis, and features Frankie Avalon, Patrick Wayne, Linda Cristal, Joan O'Brien, Chill Wills, Joseph Calleia, Ken Curtis, Ruben Padilla as Santa Anna, and Richard Boone as Sam Houston. Shot in 70 mm Todd-AO by William H. Clothier, it was released by United Artists.
The Alamo: Shrine of Texas Liberty is a 1938 American black-and-white Western war film directed by Stuart Paton and produced by H. W. Kier and Norman Sheldon. The film was a two-reel short produced in a couple of weeks in San Antonio, Texas. The film was done in pantomime and audio was done by narration and organ music.
Davy Crockett: King of the Wild Frontier is a 1955 American Western film produced by Walt Disney Productions. It is an edited and recut compilation of the first three episodes of the Davy Crockett television miniseries. The episodes used were Davy Crockett Indian Fighter, Davy Crockett Goes to Congress, and Davy Crockett at the Alamo. The film stars Fess Parker as Davy Crockett.
Susanna Wilkerson Dickinson and her infant daughter, Angelina, were among the few American survivors of the 1836 Battle of the Alamo during the Texas Revolution. Her husband, Almaron Dickinson, and 185 other Texian defenders were killed by the Mexican Army.
The Last Command is a 1955 American Western film directed by Frank Lloyd starring Sterling Hayden, Anna Maria Alberghetti, Richard Carlson, Arthur Hunnicutt, Ernest Borgnine and J. Carrol Naish based on the life of Jim Bowie and the Battle of the Alamo.
The Immortal 32 was a relief force of thirty-two Texian Militia from the Gonzales Ranger Company who reinforced the Texians under siege at the Alamo. They are "immortalized" as the only unit to answer the To the People of Texas & All Americans in the World letter. Along with the other Alamo defenders, they were all killed and burned after the Battle of the Alamo.
Francisco Antonio Ruiz was the alcalde of San Antonio during the Texas Revolution and was responsible for identifying the bodies of those killed at the Battle of the Alamo.
Almaron Dickinson was a Texian soldier and defender during the Battle of the Alamo, fought during the Texas Revolution. Dickinson is best known as the artillery officer of the small garrison, and the husband of one of the few non-Mexican survivors to live through the battle, Susanna Dickinson, as well as the father to their infant daughter Angelina, whose life was also spared. He is a member of the Immortal 32 and Old Eighteen.
The siege of the Alamo was the first thirteen days of the Battle of the Alamo. On February 23, Mexican troops under General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna entered San Antonio de Bexar, Texas, and surrounded the Alamo Mission. The Alamo was defended by a small force of Texians and Tejanos, led by William Barrett Travis and James Bowie, and included Davy Crockett. Before beginning his assault on the Alamo, Santa Anna offered them one last chance to surrender. Travis replied by opening fire on the Mexican forces and, in doing so, effectively sealed their fate. The siege ended when the Mexican Army launched an early-morning assault on March 6. Almost all of the defenders were killed, although several civilians survived.
Martyrs of the Alamo is a 1915 American historical war drama film written and directed by Christy Cabanne. The film is based on the historical novel of the same name by Theodosia Harris, and features an ensemble cast including Sam De Grasse, Douglas Fairbanks, Walter Long and Alfred Paget. Fairbanks role was uncredited, and was his first role in film, although his first starring role, in The Lamb, was released prior to this picture. The film features the siege of Béxar, the Battle of the Alamo, and the Battle of San Jacinto.
Heroes of the Alamo (1937) is a low-budget retelling of the events of the Texas Revolution and the Battle of the Alamo. It was produced by Anthony J. Xydias and reuses the battle scenes of his 1926 silent film Davy Crockett at the Fall of the Alamo. About 35 minutes of the latter film is available on the DVD of Heroes of the Alamo, all that remains of the silent film.
James A. Michener's Texas is a 1994 ABC television miniseries directed by Richard Lang. It was adapted from the 1985 historical fiction novel Texas by James A. Michener, but includes only the section of the book related to Texas Independence and the Battle of San Jacinto. The novel is more wide-ranging, starting with Spanish explorer Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca and ending in the modern day.
The First Texan is a 1956 American CinemaScope and Technicolor western film directed by Byron Haskin and starring Joel McCrea, Felicia Farr and Jeff Morrow. Produced by Walter Mirisch, it was shot in CinemaScope and distributed by Allied Artists. It is set during the Texas Revolution of the 1830s.
Alamo: The Price of Freedom is a 1988 American IMAX film depicting the Battle of the Alamo directed and written by Kieth Merrill and starring Merrill Connally, Casey Biggs, Enrique Sandino, Steve Sandor, Don Swayze, and Derek Caballero. It was distributed by Macgillivray Freeman Films. It is based on the George A. McAlister book of the same name. It is shown at San Antonio's IMAX Theater in Rivercenter.
Gone to Texas is a 1986 American made-for-television biographical film originally titled Houston: The Legend of Texas. It stars Sam Elliott in the title role, and is a biopic of Sam Houston's years as Governor of Tennessee through his involvement in the Texas Revolution.
With Davy Crockett at the Fall of the Alamo is a 1926 American silent Western film directed by Robert N. Bradbury and starring Cullen Landis, Kathryn McGuire, and Edward Hearn. The battle scenes of the silent film would be reused for the 1937 movie Heroes of the Alamo.
Joe Travis was an enslaved man who was one of the only survivors of the Battle of the Alamo. Joe was sold four times in his life, with his most well known owner being William B. Travis, a 19th century lawyer and soldier, who would later serve as one of the commanding officers at The Battle of the Alamo.
