Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 9. Reader discretion is advised.
Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2 premiere was highly anticipated as it addressed the fate of the Dutton patriarch, John Dutton, played by Kevin Costner.
The actor had been in a long feud with creator Taylor Sheridan about dates and 'creative differences', which was finally put to rest in the season 5 part 2 premiere.
The part 2 premiere not only bid goodbye to the fictional protagonist of the show but also paid tribute to one real-life legend and artist, Billy Klapper.
While fans were wondering how season 5 part 2 would address Costner's exit from the show, Kayce and Beth discover his lifeless body in the episode. John Dutton is dead in Yellowstone, and with this, a new generation of cowboys will take over in the neo-western drama.
Who was Billy Klapper? What does the dedication at the end of Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 9 mean?
Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 9 concluded with a dedication that stated,
"In loving memory of Billy Klapper."
For fans wondering what this dedication means, this was to honor the legacy of Billy Klapper, a real-life artist and spur maker. He was one of the remaining craftsmen who used traditional artistry in his spur-making.
The episode honors his legacy in its final moments when Rip visits Billy Klapper’s workshop in Pampa, Texas. The legendary spurmaker also gifts a pair of spurs to Rip.
While talking to another cowboy from ranch 6666, he tells Rip,
“When he’s gone, we’re all out of legends...“with nobody trying to be the next one.”
Since the show is bound to have a tonal shift and a new patriarch after John Dutton's death, Rip's interaction with a legend like Billy Klapper made sense at the end of season 5 part 2 premiere.
The series will also have a change in the generation of cowboys with a new leader to the ranch. Considering Rip's interaction with Klapper, he might be the leader of this new generation of cowboys.
Who played the legend Billy Klapper in Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 9?
Billy Klapper died only a few months before Sheridan's tribute to his art, on September 24, 2024. Klapper played himself on the show, which he shot before his death.
Klapper made his first pair of spurs in 1966 and he died after keeping this art alive for almost six decades. As voiced by another cowboy Rip communicates with at the end, Klapper's art is finite and priceless as he has no apprentice to pass his methods down to.
According to Carmichael Whatley Funeral Directors and Crematory, Billy Klapper's obituary reads as follows-
''Billy will be remembered as a good man, a friend to all, and a most of all a true cowboy. He is going to be deeply missed by his family and friends. Billy put the “western” in western heritage for years and now he is a part of the heritage.''
In addition, Klapper was a man of high regard within the ranch and cowboy communities back in the day. Sheridan's tribute to him on a show which is based on cowboys and ranches is only befitting.
His tribute also honors his legacy of the dying art form of spur-making and the role it played within the cowboy community.
Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 10 will be released on November 17, 2024.
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