American Comandante

When William Morgan was executed outside a Havana prison on March 11, 1961, his strange story seemed to vanish from the popular imagination as quickly as it had appeared; it was lost in the classified archives of the Cold War; and it was edited out of Cuban history by Fidel Castro’s retelling of the revolution. "American Comandante" premieres November 17 at 9/8c on PBS American Experience.

When William "Billy" Morgan was growing up, his father, Alexander Morgan filmed home movies of the family and their exploits. In this silent clip, a young Billy Morgan explores a circus and does some calisthenics.

When William "Billy" Morgan was a child, his father took home movies of the family throughout the 1930s and '40s. In this silent clip, Morgan plays in the snow at home in Ohio.

When William "Billy" Morgan was growing up, his father took home movies of the family throughout the 1930s and '40s. In this silent clip, a teen Billy spends time with the family dog in Ohio.

William Morgan always wanted to "be somebody." After deserting from the army, spending time in prison and working for the mob, Morgan was ready for a new start. He got his chance as a Comandante fighting in the Cuban Revolution of the 1950s and '60s. "American Comandante" premieres November 17 at 9/8c on PBS American Experience.

By 1960, Fidel Castro had deployed tens of thousands of men against the hundreds in the resistance. William Morgan was deeply worried for his family, but he was not prepared to walk away from what he had become in Cuba.