Starting the outlaw life on the early side of 17, Ben Thompson killed a man over a hand of cards. Thompson became well-known as a deadly gunfighter after a shootout with two men on Christmas Eve in the late 1800s. Wanting to change his ways and his reputation, Thompson became the City Marshall of Austin, TX. However, it was a short lived career since he was forced into resignation after shooting a local business owner during an argument. In 1884, Thompson (and King Fisher) were shot down in a theater while enjoying the opera.