This article contains a discussion of addiction and suicide.
Wyatt Earp’s (Kurt Russell) wife Mattie (Dana Wheeler-Nicholson) had an unceremonious exit Tombstonebut what happened to the real-life woman after leaving Arizona is even more tragic. Tombstone is based on a true story, and while it takes some creative liberties, the majority of the film is faithful to the true story of the Earp family and Doc Holliday’s time in the Arizona Territory. Some of the facts incorporated into the film include TombstoneThe Cowboys gang, which was a real group of outlaws, and different parts of Wyatt’s story. Although it was quite accurate, Tombstone I disregarded an important story: that of Mattie Earp.
Wyatt Earp’s wife, meaning they were considered married because they lived together but never had an official, legal marriage, was born Celia Blaylock (via Mattie: Wyatt Earp’s Secret Second Wife). She was born on a farm but ran away as a teenager and began using Mattie as a pseudonym. Mattie met Wyatt Earp while she was working as a prostitute in Dodge City, Kansas, in 1876, just three years before the Earps came to Tombstone. The two fell in love and ran away together, but the romance would not last and Mattie’s story would end in tragedy.
Wyatt Earp left Mattie for Josephine Marcus, his fourth and final wife
Wyatt and Josephine were married until Wyatt’s death in 1929
Like the end of Tombstone showed, Wyatt Earp wasn’t married to Mattie for long. Instead of, Wyatt married his fourth wife, Josephine Marcus (played by Dana Delany), after leaving Mattie on the train with the rest of the Earp family in April 1882.. According to some sources, Mattie was waiting for a telegram from Wyatt that was supposed to tell her where to find her husband, but it never arrived (via Legends of America). Afterwards, Mattie moved to Globe, Arizona, and became a prostitute again. Josephine and Wyatt would remain married for the next 47 years, until Wyatt’s death in 1929.
Mattie died tragically in 1888 and Tombstone foreshadowed how
Mattie died of opium poisoning, which was ruled a suicide
Unfortunately, Mattie’s life after Wyatt left her was filled with many more tragedies to come. In 1888, six years after Wyatt and Josephine’s wedding, Mattie died of opium poisoning in Pinal, Arizona. (through Arizona Department of Health Services). Thomas H. Kennaird ruled that Mattie’s death was a suicide, although some have speculated that it may have been an accidental overdose. Mattie has struggled with opium addiction since arriving in Tombstone and was prescribed laudanum, an opium solution that was used to treat headaches well into the 20th century. His affliction ultimately caused his death.
However Tombstone It didn’t actually show Mattie’s life after Wyatt left her or her death, the film foreshadowed the end of her story. All over TombstoneAs soon as she got off the train, Mattie was using and became addicted to laudanum, the same medicine that would eventually cause her death.. Mattie’s addiction actually caused problems between her and Wyatt in the film, like when Wyatt tried to convince her to take it easy after seeing her drinking laudanum in bed. Although it did not tell the entire story of Celia “Mattie” Baylock, Tombstone He handled his tragic end with great respect.
Sources: Mattie: Wyatt Earp’s Secret Second Wife, Legends of America, Arizona Department of Health Services