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Outlaws | September 2026

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by Mark Lasswell • Published on
Cowboy in a wide-brimmed hat and Western clothing reaches for two holstered revolvers against a dark red background, beside the title “OUTLAW’S.”
Programming

Brave the backstories of these infamous outlaws, gunslingers, gangsters and rum runners.

Vintage-style “Wanted” poster featuring a young cowboy in a black hat and red neckerchief, with large text reading “WANTED BILLY THE KID.”

Billy the Kid: American Experience

Tuesday, 9/1/2026 @ 8:00 PM

On April 28, 1881, 21-year-old Henry McCarty, alias Billy the Kid, just days from being hanged for murder, outfoxed his jailors and electrified the nation with the latest in a long line of daring escapes. Just a few weeks later, the notorious young outlaw was gunned down by an ambitious sheriff. The Kid was soon mythologized by a never-ending stream of dime-store romances and later, big-screen dramas. But in all the narratives, Billy the Kid’s real story has been obscured. This program deconstructs the mythology surrounding the infamous desperado.

Black-and-white historical photograph of a woman holding a shotgun while reaching toward a man in a suit and wide-brimmed hat outdoors.

Bonnie & Clyde: American Experience

Tuesday, 9/8/2026 @ 8:00 PM

Discover the true story of the most famous outlaw couple in U.S. history. Though their exploits were romanticized, the Barrow gang was believed responsible for at least 13 murders, including two policemen, as well as robberies and kidnappings.

Sepia-toned historical portrait of five men in suits and bowler hats posed together, with three standing behind two seated men.

Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid: American Experience

Tuesday, 9/15/2026 @ 8:00 PM

Long before Paul Newman and Robert Redford immortalized them on screen, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid captivated Americans from coast to coast. In the 1890s, their exploits—robbing banks and trains in the West and then seemingly vanishing into thin air—became national news and the basis of rumors and myth. But who were Robert Leroy Parker and Harry Alonzo Longabaugh? How did they come together to form the Wild Bunch gang? And how did they manage to pull off the longest string of successful holdups in history while eluding the Pinkertons, the nation’s most feared detective force?

Black-and-white historical street scene with early automobiles and storefronts beneath a large sign reading “From Distilleries to Stills: Prohibition in Peoria.”

From Distilleries to Stills: Prohibition In Peoria

Available anytime on the PBS Video App.

Peoria was the whiskey capital of the world. Alcohol production was a business that meant a huge income for the distillery owners, who in turn made a huge contribution to the community in the form of culture, buildings and sculptures--some of which still stand today. It also provided jobs, not just in the alcohol industry but for a myriad of businesses that supported the distilleries. The production of whiskey and beer was a source of important taxes for both the federal and local governments. But times change, and in January of 1920, it all came to an end. WTVP presents From Distilleries to Stills: Prohibition in Peoria, a documentary looking at the causes of Prohibition, its effects on Peoria and the legacy left behind. It also shares a few stories of the more lawless and colorful activities that it inspired.