A Man Called Shenandoah

The man who would later become known as Shenandoah rides his horse along a street in a town called Grenville. He takes his horse to the livery stable. He is being watched by a man. He then checks into a hotel. He asks the clerk about a friend, then leaves a message for the friend. He asks where he can get a hot bath, and is directed across the street. He walks upstairs to the bathhouse, and is followed by the man and some other men. The man tells the others he has waited a long time to kill him, and will do it alone. In the room Shenandoah is preparing his bath water. It's very hot. He's carrying a pot of hot water when the man bursts in, gun drawn. Shenandoah pours the water on the man, stunning him, runs out shirtless, bumps into a passerby, and takes that man's gun. Outside he is met by the other men, and a gunfight ensues. He maneuvers from place to place to keep from getting hit, and to get a better shot. He shoots one of the men, jumps on a horse and rides away fast. The first man is back out on the street and fires several shots at Shenandoah, hitting him in the shoulder, but Shenandoah keeps riding.

Outside of town, he is walking half dazed with the horse. There is a fierce wind. The man who wants him dead is behind him, and shoots him with a rifle, hitting him in the head. The man leaves him for dead. (The opening credits).

Shenandoah is barely conscious, tries to crawl, then collapses. Two bounty hunters come along. One wants to leave him, but the other says there may be a bounty on him. They take him to the town of Lamont, New Mexico Territory. The sheriff looks at his face and says there's no bounty on him. He tells the bounty hunters to take him to The Palace, a saloon. They place him on a gambling table, over the objections of the man in charge of gambling activities, and of Kate, a saloon girl. Doctor Thomas Maghee is at the bar, and goes to help. Everyone else is more concerned about resuming their activities than helping him. When one of the bounty hunters refers to him as a critter, Doctor Maghee says critters have four legs. With everyone watching, and betting on Shenandoah's chances of survival, Doctor Maghee delicately removes the bullet, and orders him taken to Kate's room to recover. She objects, saying she isn't running a hospital, but Doc pays her.

Later, in the room, Doc is napping on a chair. Shenandoah awakes and asks for water, and Kate gives him some. He says it's dark. She removes the cloth from over his eyes, but it's still dark. She wakes Doc up. He says the blindness is temporary, uses sulphuric acid to restore his vision, and holds up three fingers. Shenandoah sees them. Doc tells him where they are, and asks if there's anyone he can notify. Shenandoah doesn't know anyone. Doc asks his name. Shenandoah struggles to remember, but can't. He has amnesia.

Later, with Doc out of the room, Shenandoah yells "Who am I?". Doc comes in, and says at least he's got a great pair of lungs. Doc motions to Kate to get Shenandoah's ring from a drawer, also containing his gun and some money. The ring doesn't mean anything to him. Doc gives him something to test his reading, Doc's Army papers. Shenandoah reads it, so he hasn't lost his reading ability. Doc gives him something to write. He tells him to write "Shenandoah". and says it's the name the Indians gave to one of the most beautiful spots on earth, meaning "land of silence". Henceforth, that would be the name the amnesiac man would be known as. Doc tells him how lucky he is that the bullet didn't take away his ability to speak, or kill him.
Shenandoah later gets up and gets dressed in some clothes Kate got for him. They talk, and have grown fond of each other. There's a hint of romance, but she regretfully walks out and goes downstairs.

The man who tried to kill Shenandoah walks into the saloon, and is being pushy and rowdy and out of control. He grabs Kate and gets rough and fresh with her. The man in charge of gambling tries to stop him, but is thwarted. Kate screams. Shenandoah hears it, grabs his gun from the drawer, and runs downstairs. He tells the man to leave her alone. The man looks at him in bewilderment. Kate tells Shenandoah not to risk his life for her, and the man says he's got lots of lives, and lost one the last time they saw each other. That provides a clue that the man knows him. Doc, addressing Shenandoah as such for the first time, tells him to stay out of it. The man hears the name, and says he didn't have to change his name, he won't live long enough to use it. The man draws, but Shenandoah is faster, and kills him. He knows that was the man who tried to kill him, but doesn't know why.

Later on, he's preparing to leave, and thanks Kate for the clothes and everything. She calls it a loan, and says maybe it will bring him back someday. He says maybe it will. As he starts to walk out, Kate asks him to stay, saying he may find the past better left a mystery. He says he can't build a future without a past. He thanks her once again, then rides away in search of clues to his past.

THE END.