When Jerred Metz first heard the story of the outlaw Earl Durand, whose last 11 days of life in Park County seared his name into the history books, it was in the form of a song.

Metz was a history teacher in Missouri at the time, and one of his students brought her autoharp to class and played him a folk tune titled “The Ballad of Earl Durand.” The song romanticizes the legendary manhunt in 1939 that began with the attempted arrest of a young Powell resident, 26-year-old Earl Durand, whose skills and philosophies took him outside the boundaries of law and order.

After poaching an elk west of Cody and killing two head of a local rancher’s cattle (eating part of one raw), Durand escaped custody, killing four law enforcement officers before being shot and then shooting himself in a shootout during an attempted bank robbery in Powell.

Even though Metz had no ties to Wyoming, his curiosity about the young adventurer nicknamed “Tarzan of the Tetons” was piqued, and in 1978 he and his wife made the first of a half dozen trips to Powell to interview people who were witnesses to Durand’s explosive end. 

Although his book, “The Last Eleven Days Of Earl Durand,” was published in 2005, Metz’ passion for the topic did not wane. A stage play based on the book was produced in 2011, with a graphic novel published in 2022. And in 2025, the author drew together contributors from various fields to produce a podcast, which is now available on all streaming platforms.

But the podcast doesn’t just tell the story of the notorious outlaw, nor does it replicate the format of the book, which was told in the first person by people who actually witnessed, or were themselves a part of, Durand’s spectacular exit from the world. Instead, Metz said, the 22-episode podcast features interviews with residents and experts who can bring a broader perspective to the events.

The Interviews

Metz said putting together the podcast was a two-year process, which began with a list of people who could bring a modern-day perspective to the last eleven days of Earl Durand.

“By the time I finished the list, I had essentially 14 names of people who would have things that were interesting to say about Earl Durand,” said Metz, “and they were not people who had a first hand involvement in any of this.”

In one episode, Metz interviewed firefighter Dean Johnson about his life in Wyoming’s rugged wilderness and that connection to Earl Durand, as well as the dramatic events that occurred at Deep Lake in the Beartooth Mountains in March of 1939, in which Durand escaped a standoff with Sheriff Frank Blackburn’s posse.

“In my mind I imagined the lake being an easy half hour stroll, easy to get to,” said Metz. “Then I found out it was a five hour walk in, five hours out. On the other side of this same mountain Earl made his stand against Sheriff Blackburn and his posse in March 1939.”

Metz also interviewed retired Cody educator Rick Stonehouse for one of the podcast episodes. Stonehouse’s grandfather, Mel, was a member of the posse tasked with apprehending Durand. Another episode features local realtor and community leader Dave Reetz, who talked with Metz about how local and national media shaped public perception of Durand’s story, reflecting on the impact of the events on the local community.

The Simpson family was also featured in Metz’ 2005 book, as patriarch Milward (who was an attorney practicing in Cody at the time, prior to becoming the state’s 23rd governor) became involved in the events that led to the standoff at First National Bank in Powell. Metz interviewed his namesake, grandson Milward, himself a figure in Wyoming’s state government.

“When I interviewed him, what we were talking about was essentially the family legacy,” said Metz. “Going back to Milward, to his two sons, to his nephews and nieces and their place in the life of Wyoming as important contributors for several generations.”

Producing the Podcast

Because Metz lives in South Carolina, he relied on acquaintances in Cody and Powell to connect him to people who could bring the podcast to life. 

“I wanted a producer, and I didn't really know anybody, so I wrote to some people I knew there,” he said. “I wrote to Nicholle Gerharter at the (Park County) Library, and Nicholle gave me a list of, I think about three producers, and one of them was Preston Randolph.”

Randolph’s Cactus Productions is an Emmy-award-winning film company based in Cody that specializes in documentary filmmaking and media campaigns. When Metz reached out, it didn’t take long for Randolph to agree to the project, and the two began production on “The Last Eleven Days of Earl Durand” in 2024.

“It was almost a two year project to get the whole thing done,” said Metz. “I had never done it before, and I don't know that I'll ever do it again, so I was just really nervous.”

Randolph suggested a musician with ties to Park County to provide the theme music for the podcast, guitarist Brian Mandella, a Cody High School graduate currently living in Oregon. 

The graphics for the podcast landing page and logo were also sourced locally. Metz contacted Cody artist Brian Timmer, who was commissioned in 2018 to paint a mural featuring Earl Durand near the Irma Hotel. Metz interviewed Timmer for one of the podcast episodes.

“I had Brian talk about the graphic novel to some extent, but also his mural,” said Metz.

Highlighting A Complex Character in Wyoming History

Metz said he is pleased with how the podcast project has turned out, as it has brought to life one of the more complex characters in the state’s history.

"We've listened to all of them, and obviously I'm in a position where my opinion isn't going to count for much, because I enjoy it immensely,” said Metz. “I'm moved by it, and as I'm talking to some of the people who I interviewed, they also are reporting that they're moved by what they said and moved by what other people say. (Earl) didn’t fit the general bad guy.”

The link to the podcast can be found here: “buzzsprout.com/2547351.”

Big Horn Cinema, Park County Archives to show ‘The Legend of Earl Durand’

Robyn Cutter of the Park County Archives has coordinated with Tony Beaverson of Big Horn Cinema to sponsor a free movie to the public, "The Legend of Earl Durand," on Thursday, Feb. 19 at 6:30 p.m. Cutter said that many people have spoken about this movie and want to see it on the big screen. The version that is being shown is the 1974 Western film production about a Depression-era Wyoming mountain man and raw-meat eating game poacher back in 1939.

Directed by John Patterson and staring Peter Haskell, Slim Pickens (who spent time over the years in Cody), Keenan Wynn and Martin Sheen, the movie dramatizes the real-life events of the 1930s fugitive, who went on a rampage that left six people dead, including himself, in and around Powell. 

"Although the movie bends the truth in an effort to make Durand a gentle hero, the film is enjoyable and the photography spectacular," Cutter said.

It was actually filmed near Pinedale and the Main Street of that town.

A March 22, 1939 issue of the Cody Enterprise called Durand “a spoiled child grown up.”  As a child, Durand was inclined to be sickly. When he was about 12 years old, he was accidently shot with a .22 rifle and at the same time suffered an attack of pneumonia. His eccentricities may have been caused by a head injury which he suffered as a small child when a horse kicked him.

Durand’s escapade started when he was charged with poaching an elk near Powell. He was jailed in Cody. The story continues but ends at the First National Bank in Powell when Durand tried to rob the bank. Durand took several hostages, one of whom was killed by a citizen trying to shoot and take down Durand as they left the bank. After being shot by Tip Cox, Durand crawled back into the bank, where he shot and killed himself.