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re: They went thataway, so let's go thisaway: the TV Western thread
Posted on 4/22/25 at 6:10 pm to Kafka
Posted on 4/22/25 at 6:10 pm to Kafka
THR
This essentially leaves Clint & Robert Fuller as the only surviving stars of '50s westerns.
quote:
Will Hutchins, the eccentric actor who portrayed the wholesome sharpshooter and frontier lawyer Tom Brewster on the 1957-61 ABC Western Sugarfoot, has died. He was 94.
quote:Will, Ty Hardin, & Clint Walker on the set of Cheyenne
A contract player at Warner Bros., the easygoing Hutchins shot to sudden fame as Brewster, who starts out on his series as the naïve new sheriff of Bluerock. In the first episode, he’s derisively called a sugarfoot, “someone who’s trying to work his way up to tenderfoot.”
As the show moves along, Brewster takes correspondence-school courses to become an attorney, and the title song notes that his character carries “a rifle and a volume of the law.”
Hutchins also had fun playing Brewster’s evil cousin, The Canary Kid, on three episodes.
“I got the dual role, I got to be the sweet, sarsaparilla-chugging-with-a-dash-of-cherry Sugarfoot and the whiskey-of-out-the-bottle Canary Kid,” he told Word on Westerns host Rob Word in a 2021 interview. “And I got to wear Humphrey Bogart’s pants [out of the wardrobe department], that was a thrill!”
This essentially leaves Clint & Robert Fuller as the only surviving stars of '50s westerns.
2
Posted on 5/8/25 at 8:08 pm to Kafka
Tom Snyder, then a news anchorman in Georgia, future host of 'Tomorrow' & other talk shows, on The Rifleman (1961)
Posted on 6/7/25 at 5:18 pm to Kafka
Posted on 12/27/25 at 9:35 pm to Kafka
Law Of The Plainsman I(1959-60)
A Harvard-educated Apache becomes a US Marshal
In 1959 there were so many westerns on TV (25% of network primetime!) every new series had to have a gimmick. Thus, we present Tonto as the HIIC (Head Injun In Charge).
This is a spinoff of The Rifleman, where the character of Sam Buckhart appeared in 2 eps. As played by Syrian-born Michael Ansara, Buckhart has strength, dignity, wisdom, pride, and occasionally even outrage - note his reaction when the old marshal says nobody was in New Mexico before the Spanish.
Aside from the Indian Hero it's fairly standard stuff, so don't expect a lost classic like The Rebel or The Westerner. But it's entertaining, and in fact I prefer it to The Rifleman
30 ep YT playlist
If you watch, be sure to stay through the end credits, The closing theme is a classic.
A Harvard-educated Apache becomes a US Marshal
In 1959 there were so many westerns on TV (25% of network primetime!) every new series had to have a gimmick. Thus, we present Tonto as the HIIC (Head Injun In Charge).
This is a spinoff of The Rifleman, where the character of Sam Buckhart appeared in 2 eps. As played by Syrian-born Michael Ansara, Buckhart has strength, dignity, wisdom, pride, and occasionally even outrage - note his reaction when the old marshal says nobody was in New Mexico before the Spanish.
Aside from the Indian Hero it's fairly standard stuff, so don't expect a lost classic like The Rebel or The Westerner. But it's entertaining, and in fact I prefer it to The Rifleman
30 ep YT playlist
If you watch, be sure to stay through the end credits, The closing theme is a classic.
Posted on 12/27/25 at 10:03 pm to Kafka
I remember "Law of the Plainsman" episodes being a part of that bigger syndicated rerun package entitled "The Westerners." They got several short-lived series from Four-Star Productions, such as "Plainsman," "Black Saddle," "Johnny Ringo," and "The Westerner," and put them all together under that umbrella title, "The Westerners," and added Keenan Wynn as a host at the beginning. The bad thing was that by adding the bits with Wynn, they snipped out a few minutes of every episode, so one couldn't see them in complete form. I think "The Westerners" might have also included a few episodes of "Zane Grey Theater" into the mix, but I don't why, because that series was already in syndication by itself.
One western series that I've never seen is the anthology series "Frontier," from around 1956. Never ran across any episodes on the collecting circuit, years ago. I've also never managed to see "Buckskin," which featured youngster Tommy Nolan as its main character. There were also a few non-network series that were peddled across the country as syndicated fare which still seem pretty rare. Those single-season series like "Man Without a Gun" or "Union Pacific." Another is "Two Faces West," but that might have had a network run. Can't remember. Probably pretty minor stuff, but I always wished they could be re-mastered and turn up somewhere, just to offer a look-see.
One western series that I've never seen is the anthology series "Frontier," from around 1956. Never ran across any episodes on the collecting circuit, years ago. I've also never managed to see "Buckskin," which featured youngster Tommy Nolan as its main character. There were also a few non-network series that were peddled across the country as syndicated fare which still seem pretty rare. Those single-season series like "Man Without a Gun" or "Union Pacific." Another is "Two Faces West," but that might have had a network run. Can't remember. Probably pretty minor stuff, but I always wished they could be re-mastered and turn up somewhere, just to offer a look-see.
Posted on 12/27/25 at 10:22 pm to Aeolian Vocalion
quote:I've seen part of one ep, w/Chuck Connors as a psycho killer
One western series that I've never seen is the anthology series "Frontier," from around 1956. Never ran across any episodes on the collecting circuit, years ago
quote:a real curio - it's essentially a reworked, non-comic Leave It To Beaver (same studio, though Beaver's creators are not credited), I've seen one, w/odd supernatural undertones. I may have posted it earlier in the thread
Never ran across any episodes on the collecting circuit, years ago. I've also never managed to see "Buckskin," which featured youngster Tommy Nolan as its main character.
quote:Never seen these
Those single-season series like "Man Without a Gun" or "Union Pacific." Another is "Two Faces West,"
I've seen the pilot for Western Union, which is so obscure no one is even certain what year it was made (prolly '56). It might have sold w/a different lead, as it was a very, very rare hero role for gaunt, balding Richard Anderson
Posted on 12/28/25 at 10:03 am to Kafka
I used to purchase a lot of bootleg VHS tapes of western series back in the 1980s and 1990s, before the tv-dvd craze hit and the floodgates opened. Some series were really rare back then. I recall that "Whispering Smith" with Audie Murphy only had one or two episodes in the collecting realm, and the series was reportedly 'lost,' with rumors of the original elements completely junked and no longer in existence. Turned out to be false, as a batch of 16mm prints were extant, and the series was officially released on dvd.
Haven't followed all the rare oddities that might have resurfaced in recent years. Glad to know that at least 'part' of a "Frontier" episode is around. Never knew about a "Union Pacific' pilot with Richard Anderson. I talked to Anderson once at a show, but I think he was already starting to come down with Alzheimer's, so I didn't get too much info from him. Similar thing with Robert Loggia one time. But I always enjoyed chatting about old westerns with such folk and hearing of their experiences making them.
Haven't followed all the rare oddities that might have resurfaced in recent years. Glad to know that at least 'part' of a "Frontier" episode is around. Never knew about a "Union Pacific' pilot with Richard Anderson. I talked to Anderson once at a show, but I think he was already starting to come down with Alzheimer's, so I didn't get too much info from him. Similar thing with Robert Loggia one time. But I always enjoyed chatting about old westerns with such folk and hearing of their experiences making them.
Posted on 12/28/25 at 9:10 pm to Aeolian Vocalion
quote:the whole ep survives, I only watched part of it. It may still be on YT
Glad to know that at least 'part' of a "Frontier" episode is around.
quote:Western Union. Based on the 1941 Fritz Lang film.
Never knew about a "Union Pacific' pilot with Richard Anderson.
quote:I was never part of that scene. Now that almost all the stars are gone, I suppose the fan shows are gone too. But I do sometimes watch interviews conducted at these shows - it's a valuable resource
I talked to Anderson once at a show, but I think he was already starting to come down with Alzheimer's, so I didn't get too much info from him. Similar thing with Robert Loggia one time. But I always enjoyed chatting about old westerns with such folk and hearing of their experiences making them.
quote:I can't let WS get mentioned w/o recalling supporting actor Sam Buffington committed suicide before it aired, leading good ole Audie to quip, "He must have seen the rushes."
"Whispering Smith" with Audie Murphy
Posted on 1/1/26 at 1:38 pm to Kafka
Yes, there used to be a lot of shows, festivals, and conventions to go to. Charlotte, Memphis, Knoxville, and Williamsburg had long-running western themed shows. Very homey, laid-back affairs. Ray Courts had a convention for many years in North Hollywood, which started out as a memorabilia show and gradually veered more towards celeb (tv) guests. Dallas had its own modest "Big D Collectors Show" in the 1990s, which was mostly dealers and memorabilia, but also served up some guests. Of more recent vintage has been a 'nostalgia' show in Baltimore, which I attended a couple of times. I think it's still ongoing, last I heard. I was mostly a collector of pulp mags, comics, movie stills and such, and that's what initially drew me to such shows. Along with bootleg VHS tapes of rare films and tv-series, before the advent of DVD.
In regards to those western shows, yeah, I did get to see and meet a whole lot of the old western tv-stars... Dale Robertson, George Montgomery, Clint Walker, James Drury, Ty Hardin, Peter Brown, John Hart, Gail Davis, Will Hutchins, Johnny Crawford, Robert Fuller, Denny Miller, Hugh O'Brian, Clu Gulager. Plus, lots of others who worked regularly in tv-westerns, like Ben Cooper, L.Q. Jones, Andrew Prine, Ruta Lee, Gregg Palmer, Jacqueline Scott, James Best, Jan Merlin, Lisa Montell, Kasey Rogers, Don Collier, Angie Dickenson, Anne Helm, Donald May. And stuntmen, like Whitey Hughes, Robert Hoy, etc. So many more. Always fun hearing from such folks, talking about their experiences in the industry and whatnot. It saddens me that they're all pretty much gone at this point. Even most of the generational fanbase who used to go to these shows are, by and large, gone now. I was a relative youngster when I used to go to them.
In regards to those western shows, yeah, I did get to see and meet a whole lot of the old western tv-stars... Dale Robertson, George Montgomery, Clint Walker, James Drury, Ty Hardin, Peter Brown, John Hart, Gail Davis, Will Hutchins, Johnny Crawford, Robert Fuller, Denny Miller, Hugh O'Brian, Clu Gulager. Plus, lots of others who worked regularly in tv-westerns, like Ben Cooper, L.Q. Jones, Andrew Prine, Ruta Lee, Gregg Palmer, Jacqueline Scott, James Best, Jan Merlin, Lisa Montell, Kasey Rogers, Don Collier, Angie Dickenson, Anne Helm, Donald May. And stuntmen, like Whitey Hughes, Robert Hoy, etc. So many more. Always fun hearing from such folks, talking about their experiences in the industry and whatnot. It saddens me that they're all pretty much gone at this point. Even most of the generational fanbase who used to go to these shows are, by and large, gone now. I was a relative youngster when I used to go to them.
Posted on 1/1/26 at 10:01 pm to Aeolian Vocalion
quote:I can't believe someone else here has heard of these people
Ben Cooper... Gregg Palmer... Jan Merlin... Donald May
and even met them Was Ben Cooper as short in real life as he was on screen?
I hope you asked Jacqueline Scott about working on The Fugitive. Denny Miller wrote an amusing piece about doing a guest spot when Janssen showed up hungover after losing $60K over the weekend in Vegas.
quote:I was pretty much unaware of this community until the internet.
Always fun hearing from such folks, talking about their experiences in the industry and whatnot. It saddens me that they're all pretty much gone at this point. Even most of the generational fanbase who used to go to these shows are, by and large, gone now
I recall reading as a babe in arms during the early '80s that in the new VCR world, B movie cowboys of the '30s/'40s were the 2nd most popular genre among collectors (after porn), But that community passed on and was replaced by the TV western fans.
I sort of vicariously lived through the later days of this world. I specifically recall watching a YT video of the Virginian's 50th anniversary convention.
Have you noticed a major part of the fanbase for some shows (Rawhide, Alias Smith & Jones) is made up of... old women? They watched these shows as girls and the stars were their first crushes. It's not a shock that Duel has a cult following, but curiously the fan fave for Rawhide is Fleming, not Eastwood.
Oh well, sic transit gloria... But on the other hand, ars longa vita brevis. Silent films have maintained a fanbase, maybe westerns can as well. I'm trying to do my part here.
Posted on 1/2/26 at 12:33 pm to Kafka
Ben Cooper was indeed a bit on the smallish side, although not unduly so. He naturally gets dwarfed on screen, acting alongside giants like James Arness and Chuck Connors. I always liked that little b-film Cooper starred in, "A Strange Adventure" (1956), which goes way back with me. I was dumbfounded when this minor little movie was actually released on blu-ray. Jan Merlin did his usual psycho-villain duties in the film. Talked a good while with Merlin and his wife, and found him to be a super nice guy. Gregg Palmer was a really wacky character. Saw him at least three times at different shows. Very funny guy and a marvelous raconteur. Being a Universal contractee in the 1950s, he had lots of great stories. Speaking of which, everyone who knew David Janssen back in his pre-fame Universal days seemed to strongly express what a great guy he was. Very, very well-liked by virtually everyone I talked to. Unlike for example, Andy Griffith, who NOBODY has anything good to say about.
I first learned of the various western conventions and old-time film festivals around 1980, through advertisements in "The Big Reel" and "Movie Collectors World," which I subscribed to. Wasn't until a few years later that I started going to some of them, alongside other various antique shows and comic conventions. Hugely regret that I missed out on the earlier western shows. Good grief, they had guests like Yakima Canutt, George O'Brien, and such. I even spoke with an old gent who told me of attending a show in which Al Hoxie guested! Pretty mind-blowing. Even Dave Sharpe, the famed stuntman who'd earlier starred in Hal Roach's "Boy Friends" comedies in the early-1930s was at an early convention. Also, Victor Jory attended a show or two. I remember the advertisement when it was touting his upcoming appearance. Would have loved to have seen him. I did get to meet a fair number of the b-western actresses who worked back in the 1930s and 1940s, and they were almost always the most fun (and unassuming) to talk with.
I first learned of the various western conventions and old-time film festivals around 1980, through advertisements in "The Big Reel" and "Movie Collectors World," which I subscribed to. Wasn't until a few years later that I started going to some of them, alongside other various antique shows and comic conventions. Hugely regret that I missed out on the earlier western shows. Good grief, they had guests like Yakima Canutt, George O'Brien, and such. I even spoke with an old gent who told me of attending a show in which Al Hoxie guested! Pretty mind-blowing. Even Dave Sharpe, the famed stuntman who'd earlier starred in Hal Roach's "Boy Friends" comedies in the early-1930s was at an early convention. Also, Victor Jory attended a show or two. I remember the advertisement when it was touting his upcoming appearance. Would have loved to have seen him. I did get to meet a fair number of the b-western actresses who worked back in the 1930s and 1940s, and they were almost always the most fun (and unassuming) to talk with.
Posted on 1/2/26 at 8:57 pm to Aeolian Vocalion
Wow... Someone needs to write a book on the western conventions. There's been quite a bit on the SF cons (Bradbury and Asimov met as teenagers at the 1st one in 1939), but someone needs to gather and compile memories of the western fans while they're still around
Marjoe Gortner has written about making the camp classic Pray For The Wildcats in 1973. Even at that early date there were stories about Shatner being difficult on the set, and MG was not surprised by his behavior. But MG was shocked to learn how different AG was from from his public persona (and Marjoe is a guy who knows a little about deceiving the public). He'd heard/been told nothing about Griffith's onset demands and difficulty beforehand.
quote:never heard of it; will check it out
I always liked that little b-film Cooper starred in, "A Strange Adventure" (1956), which goes way back with me.
quote:did he mention Adrian Messenger? I read an article about him working on that. I think JM may even have written a memoir; I need to look for it
Jan Merlin did his usual psycho-villain duties in the film. Talked a good while with Merlin and his wife, and found him to be a super nice guy.
quote:Off camera Janssen was completely different from his glum screen persona. He was quite lighthearted and funny, But he was not permitted to show this as The Fugitive (same as the jocular Arness on Gunsmoke). However you can occasionally see glimpses of the real Janssen on Richard Diamond or Harry O. The latter supposedly was his favorite series. There is an HO outtake where an actor reads his line and DJ replies, "You adlib once more and I'll break your legs."
everyone who knew David Janssen back in his pre-fame Universal days seemed to strongly express what a great guy he was. Very, very well-liked by virtually everyone I talked to.
quote:if anyone in Hollywood history deserves a bonus, it's AG's PR guy. Even today the truth about him has barely trickled out.
Very, very well-liked by virtually everyone I talked to. Unlike for example, Andy Griffith, who NOBODY has anything good to say about.
Marjoe Gortner has written about making the camp classic Pray For The Wildcats in 1973. Even at that early date there were stories about Shatner being difficult on the set, and MG was not surprised by his behavior. But MG was shocked to learn how different AG was from from his public persona (and Marjoe is a guy who knows a little about deceiving the public). He'd heard/been told nothing about Griffith's onset demands and difficulty beforehand.
Posted on 1/4/26 at 9:29 pm to Kafka
I'm sure there must be quite a few interviews with Jan Merlin floating around. He passed away not too terribly long ago. But the only interview I recall offhand is in David Rothel's book on Richard Boone, which also covered "Have Gun, Will Travel." Merlin and Boone were friends or at least acquaintances in the post-war 1940s, both getting started in New York stage work. Rothel wrote several westerns-themed books. As for "Have Gun, Will Travel," I did have a nice conversation with its creator/producer Sam Rolfe back in the 1980s at a hotel lobby on Sunset boulevard. I recall talking to him about some frivolous lawsuit about the series, which had actually caused it to be briefly pulled from rerun syndication. Years later, at one of the western conventions, Lisa Lu, who played 'Hey girl' guested. I adored her. With her dainty, old-world Oriental reserve, just talking with her made you feel like you'd traveled back in time to some earlier era. She talked of when she left China and came to America for college, and she was here when the commies overran China. Eventually went to San Francisco, and finally fell into acting, appearing in numerous vintage tv-westerns.
Posted on 1/4/26 at 10:01 pm to Aeolian Vocalion
quote:I've seen a '50s clip of Merlin on some NYC kiddie space opera (Tom Corbett?); at the end he and the other actors turn and address the audience as themselves, telling the kids to be watch them next season.
Merlin and Boone were friends or at least acquaintances in the post-war 1940s, both getting started in New York stage work.
If you can ever find it there is a classic interview w/Robert Fuller, done for the Wagon Train 50th anniv. Like Janssen, he's much livelier off camera than his brooding onscreen persona. Bob is still w/us at 92, last I heard living north of Dallas.
You probably know this, but for those who don't: HGWT was pitched as a 1950s private eye in NYC, but didn't sell. When westerns took over TV it was reset in 1870s SF. It was 1st offered to Randolph Scott, who didn't want the heavier workload - same reason Joel McCrea turned down Rawhide and MacMurray Perry Mason (leading to his notorious 3 Sons shooting schedule)
Posted on 1/5/26 at 8:00 pm to Kafka
Hondo - "Hondo & The Judas"
Did Quantill really die in the civil war? His raiders reunite to find out - but is one of them a betrayer?
Directed by Lee Katzin
Written by Frank Chase
Nov 3, 1967
The high point of the short-lived Hondo series, with a script by the son of Red River writer Borden Chase.
Just look at this guest cast: John Carradine, Forest Tucker as Quantrill, Richard Bakalyan as Cole Younger, John Agar as Frank James, & Ricky Nelson as Jesse James! This ep is crying out for cult status!
Did Quantill really die in the civil war? His raiders reunite to find out - but is one of them a betrayer?
Directed by Lee Katzin
Written by Frank Chase
Nov 3, 1967
The high point of the short-lived Hondo series, with a script by the son of Red River writer Borden Chase.
Just look at this guest cast: John Carradine, Forest Tucker as Quantrill, Richard Bakalyan as Cole Younger, John Agar as Frank James, & Ricky Nelson as Jesse James! This ep is crying out for cult status!
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