29/12/2023
By Marshal Marshall Thomas
for immediate release:
MUSKOGEE MAN CHOSEN TO PLAY LEGENDARY LAWMAN BASS REEVES
Long time independent film producer, actor and re-enactor Oscar Ray has been chosen by the National Park Service to portray Old West Era U.S. Deputy Marshal Bass Reeves in a courtroom trial re-enactment. Based on the trial transcripts of Reeves arrest and trial for murder, the live re-enactment production will take place in the restored courtroom of Judge Isaac Parker where the original trial took place.
Reeves, who served as a U.S. Deputy Marshal for over thirty years was arrested for murder for the accidental shooting of his cook. Though the cook initially survived the accident and Bass did all he could to help the man survive the accident, months later he succumbed to an infection from his injuries. Reeves arrest almost two years after the incident was at the direction of a prosecutor whose Southern Confederate sympathies apparently influenced his decisions. After his acquittal Reeves continued his career as a Deputy U.S. Marshal and became the longest serving and most successful Deputy U.S. Marshals of his era.
Ray, who for the past decade has portrayed and made public appearances as Bass Reeves and other Western Era lawmen is also Chairperson of the annual Bass Reeves Western History Conference Planning Committee. The three day Conference, held at the Three Rivers Museum and Heritage Center takes place the third week of June in Muskogee Oklahoma where Reeves worked as a U.S. Deputy Marshal and Muskogee police officer and where he is believed to be buried.
The trial re-enactment will take place February 2nd and 3rd in Ft. Smith Arkansas at the Fort Smith National Historic Site. A City with layers of Wild West and Civil War Era history, Ft. Smith boasts a number of museums that offer an interesting stroll through the Old West Era. Home of the U.S. Marshal's museum, several impressive municipal museums and the National Historic site the City offers wild west history buffs hours to days of immersive learning.
Tickets can be purchased to witness the re-enactment and individuals who serve on the jury are chosen from members of the audience in attendance. For questions or to purchase tickets call 479-783-3961.
