Deadwood: Comparing The Lead Characters And Their Real World Counterparts
8. "Colorado" Charlie Utter
While the series seems to present Charlie Utter as being a companion to Wild Bill and Calamity Jane for many years, historical evidence suggests Utter met Hickok in the 1850s in Kansas with the pair keeping in touch whenever Hickok passed through Utter's home territory of Colorado.
In 1876 "Colorado" Charlie Utter picked up Bill and Jane when his wagon train stopped in Wyoming on its way to Deadwood. Once in Deadwood the real life Charlie Utter became fast friends with Wild Bill and just like the character, he started an express shipping service between Deadwood and Cheyenne, Wyoming.
Mr. Utter's real life habits and appearance seem to be quite different from the character actor Dayton Callie brings to the screen. Utter is described as a "dandy" who is meticulous about his grooming and hygiene and is reported to have bathed daily (extremely unusual in a rough and tumble mining camp), kept his long blond hair and mustache immaculately groomed, and dressed in custom tailored buckskin clothes.
The main thing that the series got right was Utter's unsuccessful effort to keep his friend Bill out of trouble.