The Executioner’s Song

Gary Gilmore is released from prison in Indiana after serving 12 years for robbery. He is allowed to fly to Utah to live with Brenda Nicol, a distant cousin who agrees to sponsor him. The transition back to freedom is rough, as the long imprisonment leaves him unsteady and unaccustomed to normal life.

Gilmore travels to Utah to live with Brenda Nicol, who tries to sponsor and guide him toward a stable life. She makes efforts to help him reintegrate and find a constructive path. The process is challenging and far from easy.

He moves to live with his Uncle Vern and Vern's wife, taking a job in a shoe repair shop. The arrangement offers a sense of routine and responsibility, but old habits and restlessness begin to creep back. The environment provides some stability, yet tension slowly builds.

Gilmore later switches to work at an insulation factory. He performs well at first, showing competence and reliability. Over time, his hours become erratic and he develops contentious relationships with coworkers.

He meets Nicole Baker, a 19-year-old mother of two, and they begin a romantic relationship. Their bond represents a chance at personal reform, yet his temperament remains volatile. The relationship quickly becomes central to his life.

Despite attempts to reform, Gilmore resumes fighting, stealing from stores, and abusing alcohol and drugs. Friends and family become distressed as the patterns re-emerge. The instability marks a downward slide toward violence.

Nicole breaks up with Gilmore after he hits her, and she goes into hiding with her children. The separation isolates him and worsens his volatile behavior. Those around him fear the consequences.

Gilmore commits murder in two separate robberies over a span of two days, marking a decisive escalation in his crimes. Brenda Nicol suspects his involvement and informs the police. He is quickly taken into custody following these events.

He is convicted of one of the murders and sentenced to death under a state law designed to fit the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on capital punishment. His lawyers and the ACLU, along with his family, urge him to pursue further appeals, but Gilmore argues for carrying out the sentence. The case becomes a national media focus.

Publishers and reporters vie to buy his story and film rights as the appeal process unfolds. The public debate highlights tensions between punishment and evolving capital punishment standards. Gilmore's stance and the media attention transform him into a national symbol.

On the night before his death, family, friends, and lawyers join Gilmore for a party on death row. The gathering reveals the personal connections amid a harsh legal process. The atmosphere contrasts with the impending execution.

Gilmore is executed by firing squad on January 17, 1977, choosing the method himself. His body is cremated after parts are donated in accordance with his wishes. He is noted as the first judicial execution in the United States since 1967.