Laudanum is frequently referenced in the classic Western Tombstone, usually by Mattie Earp (Dana Wheeler-Nicholson), but the film doesn’t actually explain what the drug is. Tombstone‘s true story of Doc Holliday (Val Kilmer) and Wyatt Earp (Kurt Russell) is obviously the main draw of the movie, and one of the reasons it’s considered among the best Westerns ever made. While most viewers probably knew that Wyatt Earp was a real historical figure, they may not realize just how accurate Tombstone is to historical fact. The film was so detailed that it even touched on laudanum and Mattie Earp’s addiction to it.

Mattie Earp (née Blaylock) was Wyatt Earp’s third wife, and she accompanied him on his trip to Tombstone, Arizona both in real life and in the film. Mattie’s main function in Tombstone was to provide some dramatic tension for the budding romance between Wyatt and Josephine Marcus (Dana Delany). Tombstone also included a small side story about Mattie’s addiction to a drug called laudanum, and many viewers may not know it by name, especially over a century after the events of the movie. Unfortunately, laudanum was a very important part of Mattie Blaylock’s story after Tombstone.

Laudanum Was An Opiate Common In The 19th Century

Laudanum Was Prescribed To Treat Pain, Headaches, Sleeplessness, & More For Centuries

After arriving in Tombstone, it was immediately clear that Mattie needed laudanum for more than just headaches, and she barely hid the fact that she was addicted to the drug. The reason Mattie was addicted to laudanum in Tombstone is because laudanum is a highly addictive tincture of opium, meaning it was a combination of ethanol and the same base ingredient used in heroin and prescription-strength painkillers like morphine. In the 19th century, however, opium wasn’t viewed as the highly addictive narcotic that it is, and laudanum was actually prescribed for everything from sleeplessness to “excessive secretions” (via Henriette’s Herbal).

Since it was so often prescribed and for such a wide variety of symptoms, laudanum was quite cheap in the 19th century, which only made the drug more addictive. By the 1970s, the United States government recognized the risk of misuse of laudanum and classified it as a schedule II drug, meaning it has a “high potential for abuse, with use potentially leading to severe psychological or physical dependence“ (via DEA). Today, laudanum is normally only prescribed in rare cases to treat diarrhea.

Laudanum wasn’t just included in Tombstone as a sign of the times, however. The real Mattie Blaylock that Dana Wheeler-Nicholson’s Tombstone character was based on was actually addicted to laudanum. It’s unclear exactly when her struggle with addiction began, but it had certainly started by the time she arrived in Tombstone, in 1879. Unfortunately, the change in the United States government’s stance on laudanum came almost a century too late to help Mattie.

What Happened To Mattie Blaylock After Tombstone

Blaylock Sadly Died Of An Overdose Of Laudanum & Alcohol In 1888

Unfortunately, Mattie struggled with substance misuse throughout her life, and long after the ending of Tombstone. After Wyatt eloped with and married Josephine Marcus (Dana Delany), Mattie was left to her own devices. As an unmarried woman in the 19th century, she returned to her previous line of work before meeting Wyatt: prosтιтution. Mattie eventually moved to Globe, Arizona in the early 1880s, and her struggle with laudanum misuse continued for several years. Unfortunately, since laudanum was so cheap and readily available, Mattie never had trouble securing more of it.

In 1888, Mattie Blaylock’s struggle with addiction came to an end. Mattie was found ᴅᴇᴀᴅ in Pinal, Arizona, and the medical examiner determined she had died from an overdose of alcohol and opium, also known as laudanum (via Arizona Department of Health Services). Officially, Mattie died by suicide, but there has been some speculation that she may have accidentally overdosed after years of misuse. Mattie Blaylock’s story was a tragic one both in Tombstone and after it.