On 6 March 1999, I attended my first meeting of The Alamo Society, in San Antonio, Texas. Bill Chemerka, president of the Society, introduced the various speakers, but really got my attention when he introduced Jim Bowie! J. R. Edmondson walked out of a back room, bigger than life, dressed in 1830s clothing, and wearing a huge knife in his belt. Mr. Edmondson, aka. Jim Bowie, entranced the entire audience, narrating, first hand, his adventures, including the famous Sandbar fight. When he was finished, there was no doubt in any mind that Jim Bowie was, indeed, "a hard man to kill" as he so ably put it.

J. R. Edmondson is an accomplished actor. James Bowie is his favorite character, and he has portrayed him in four television productions. In addition to being a fine actor, Edmondson is also a writer, with numerous credits in BLACKPOWDER ANNUAL, BLADE, and KNIFE WORLD. In fact, "Mr. Bowie with a Knife" first appeared as a four-part story in the October 1995 through January 1996 editions of KNIFE WORLD.

"Mr. Bowie with a Knife" is a slim volume, but it is packed with information that clarifies the complicated feud leading up to the fight. Mr. Edmondson provides a blow-by-blow description of the famous duel and brawl that made Mr. Bowie notorious, and his knife famous. William C. Davis, in his notes to "Three Roads to the Alamo," calls J. R. Edmondson's description "the best and most complete recent narrative account of the affair."

"Mr. Bowie with a Knife" may not be easy to find (I purchased my copy from Mr. Edmondson, personally) but it is well worth making an effort to acquire, if you have an interest in the early James Bowie.

Robert L. Durham