Paul Colt's Blog, page 42

Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp

Some of you may know we lost Hugh O’Brien, September 6, 2016. You’ll find a wonderful memorial tribute to him in the December 2016 issue of True West Magazine. Thanks Bob Boze Bell.

The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp premiered September 6, 1955. O’Brien passed away on the 61st anniversary of the show’s premier. It ran for six seasons and two hundred thirty nine episodes. Hugh O’Brien starred as the legendary lawman, gambler and gunfighter, though for purposes of the series he was consistently portrayed as a lawman. O’Brien was cast in the part for a rugged physical resemblance to Wyatt, if one over looked the Hollywood handsome good looks. O’Brien designed his signature costume, pancake hat and all.

The series was loosely based on Stuart N. Lake’s biography, Wyatt Earp: Frontier Marshal, which was loosely based on the life of Wyatt Earp. A Desilou production, Lake acted as a consultant to the show for a couple of seasons before he passed away. Lake’s claim to fame was that he knew Wyatt Earp and interviewed him before turning the story over to his fertile imagination. Lake is the source of the ‘Wyatt Earp carried a Buntline Special myth’, the long barreled Colt Obrien packed in the series. While history suggests Earp may have been given one as a gift, there is no evidence he ever carried it or used it. Who needed a gun that required a five-foot long arm to draw for purposes of shooting someone in the next county? Psst- don’t tell the toy makers.

The series followed a fictionalized version of Wyatt Earp’s career, beginning in Ellsworth Kansas. The series moves on from there to Dodge City where Wyatt served as assistant city marshal for three seasons. In 1959 the series moved to Tombstone Arizona for the remainder of its run. Over the course of the series an amazing number of famous Earp contemporaries appear. Doc Holiday and Big Nose Kate of course, along with Bat Masterson, “Dog” Kelley, Dora Hand, Spike Kenedy, the Clanton’s, Curly Bill Brocius, Johnny Ringo, Cochise County Sheriff Johnny Behan, Clay Allison, Ben Thompson and Wyatt’s brothers Virgil and Morgan.

Remember the theme song, The Legend of Wyatt Earp; and the ending: “Wyatt Earp, brave courageous and bold long live his fame and long live his glory and long may his story be told.”

Next Week: Cheyenne ‘55-‘63
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Paul 

My Friend Flicka

My Friend Flicka was a groundbreaking show in the introduction of color TV. Why then only two seasons in production and so few episodes? The show was a technical triumph in costumes, sets and quality name talent. It was also chronically over budget which most sources suggest was the reason for its short run. One source mentioned a ratings mismatch with ABC’s Adventures of Rin Tin Tin.

Based on a 1941 novel by Mary O’Hara of the same name, the show is set on the McLaughlin family’s Goose Bar Ranch in southern Wyoming. The show starred young Ken McLaughlin, played by Johnny Washbrook and his parents Rob and Nell played by Gene Evans and Anita Louise. The stories follow the family struggles to carve out a living rounding up and training wild horses for market.

Early on Ken’s father allows him pick and train a horse of his own. Out of a herd of wild mustangs, young Ken chooses a pure bred Arab mare he gives the Swedish name ‘Little Girl’ a.k.a. Flicka. Ken patiently gentles the horse until, in a page out of Fury, she won’t let anyone ride her except Ken. Subsequent episodes involve the family in some trouble with a neighbor, an interesting stranger, forces of nature and of course the ubiquitous bad guys.

There is more to learn at a wonderful website I used as one of my sources for this post. You can find it at http://myfriendflicka.com. In a fun spin on nostalgia the site points out that when My Friend Flicka premiered, Eisenhower was president, average annual income was $4,450.00, gas cost twenty-two cents a gallon, a car would set you back around $2,000.00 and a house as much as $11,700.00. Rock and Roll was a new craze, the Supreme Court ruled segregation illegal and polio vaccine first came into use. There’s more of course, but you get the idea. A lot has happened since we first met that cute little sorrel with the white dish face.

Next Week: Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp- ‘55-‘61
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Paul

Fury

Like so many of our cowboy heroes Fury came to us with positive life lessons in good behavior. Troubled orphan Joey (Bobby Diamond) is adopted by widower ranch owner Jim Newton (Peter Graves). There on the Broken Wheel Ranch, Joey meets the wild horse they call Fury. A bond is formed between boy and horse that will lend itself to one hundred sixteen episodes over five seasons.

In each episode a guest star falls into some form of trouble from which Fury will rescue him or her. The episodes often featured youth organizations like The Boy Scouts, 4-H, Junior Achievement, Little League and the like.

Fury was played by American Standard Bred, Highland Dale. Standard Breds tend to be taller with an elegant line. Fury had the lines; but photos of him in company with other mounts in the series, show him to be on the shorter side. Broken Wheel Ranch foreman, Pete (William Fawcett) named the wild stallion for his fiery demeanor. Who can forget that magnificent gleaming black horse galloping toward your living room, snorting, prancing and rearing to thrash the air with his hooves at the start of each episode? One unique aspect of the relationship between Joey and Fury is that Fury would only allow Joey to ride him, except on rare occasions when for some reason, Joey permitted someone else to ride him.

When the show ended, Highland Dale disappeared for a time before showing up sick at a California animal park. The horse, then known as King was nursed back to health. Attendants were surprised to discover the range of tricks the horse was trained to perform. The mystery was solve when an actor visited the park and recognized Highland Dale as Fury.

Jim Graves went on to television fame in the lead role on Mission Impossible, possibly one of the best action adventure thrillers ever to hit the small screen. We’ll get to Jim’s brother, James Arness of Gunsmoke fame later in this series.

Bobby Diamond followed Fury with guest appearances on The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, before entering law school. He graduated and pursued his law career in Los Angeles California.

Next Week: My Friend Flicka ‘55-‘60
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Paul

Sergeant Preston of the Yukon

It’s true, Sergeant Preston got his start in 1938 on WXYZ radio in Detroit, the same station that gave us the Lone Ranger and Green Hornet. Sergeant Preston was created by writer Tom Dougall for WXYZ station owner George Trendle, who wanted an adventure show featuring a dog. King was played on the radio by actors who impersonated animals. (What do you do on the radio dad? I’m a dog.) Sergeant Preston didn’t get a lead dog until he made it to television.

The program, Challenge of the Yukon ran as a fifteen minute serial until 1947 when sponsor Quaker Oats took the show to a thirty minute feature on ABC. In 1951 the program name changed to Sergeant Preston of the Yukon and took to the little screen in 1955 where it ran for three seasons and seventy eight weekly episodes.

The TV show became a popular dogsled version of the horse opera westerns that dominated TV schedules of the day. The show starred Richard Simmons, a handsome square-jawed athletic actor- no relationship other than name to a more contemporary less square-jawed Richard Simmons. Sergeant Preston skied, show-shoed, drove a dog sled, rode a horse, climbed mountains, paddled canoes and fought all manner of bad guys without using a double.

Yukon King rated star billing right along with his master. Big, strong and cleaver, King had a knack for finding bad guys and battling predators. Together he and the sergeant tracked down murderers, robbers, claim jumpers and folks caught in natural perils found in the wilds. When the weather was cold and the chase was on we heard “On King! Mush you huskies!” In warm weather, King trotted along beside the Mounty’s favorite horse Rex (Latin for King- the sergeant may have had a complex.)

In one of the more interesting promotions ever run, in 1955 Quaker Oats gave away land in the Klondike. Genuine deeds to one square inch of land were inserted in boxes of Quaker puffed wheat and puffed rice. Does it get any better than that? “Well King, this case is closed.”

Next Week: Fury, ‘55-‘60
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Paul

The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin

The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin aired for five seasons from 1954-1959. The show starred child actor Lee Aaker as Rusty. James Brown played Lieutenant Rip Masters with Rand Brooks best known for his supporting role as Charles Hamilton in Gone with the Wind, played Corporal Randy Boone.

The K-9 star of the show, Rin Tin Tin was played by five different German shepherds, two sired by the original “Rinty”. Concept for the show and the original Rin Tin Tin dated to a 1922 film.

Over one hundred sixty low budget episodes were produced in black and white. Location shooting took place in the Los Angeles area around Simi Valley and Iverson Ranch. The show employed a small cast, often necessitating cast members play more than one part in a single episode or even a single scene.

Young Rusty and his talented dog weighed in on western adventures against hostile Indians, outlaws and a variety high risk and rescue situations. Lee Aaker started his acting career at age eight. He is best known for his role as Rusty.

James Brown (Lt. Rip Masters) began his acting career in film, appearing in Bing Crosby’s classic Going My Way and John Wayne’s Sands of Iwo Jima. In addition to the Adventures of Rin Tin Tin, Brown appeared in episodes of The Lone Ranger, The Virginian, Daniel Boone and Gunsmoke.

Next Week: Sergeant Preston of the Yukon, ‘55-‘58
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Paul

Annie Oakley

Gail Davis (Betty Jeanne Grayson) was born in McGehee, Arkansas, October 5, 1925. She grew up riding horses and behaving like a tomboy despite beauty queen good looks. What better recipe for a western TV star?

She met and married aspiring actor Robert Davis while attending the University of Texas. The couple moved to L. A. where Gail obtained an agent, got a screen test and changed her name. Betty Davis ruled out for obvious reasons. She appeared in western films, fourteen of them with Gene Autry. She also made television guest appearances on The Lone Ranger, Cisco Kid, Death Valley Days and the Gene Autry Show. Gene saw the potential for the heroine he thought TV westerns needed.

At five feet two and ninety five pounds, an accomplished horsewoman and trick shot, Gail Davis was tailor made for the role of Annie Oakley. The show cast her with younger brother Tagg (Jimmy Hawkins) and love interest Deputy Sheriff Lofty Craig (Brad Johnson). Together the trio defended their little town of Diablo against all manner of bad guys with Annie generally outsmarting them and when called for, shooting the guns out of their hands. If you were a trick shot, why not? The show ran eighty one episodes.

She was so perfect for the Annie Oakley part, like others in that golden-age of television, she became type-cast, ultimately putting a cap on her acting career. She toured with Gene Autry’s traveling rodeo, doing riding and shooting exhibitions not unlike the original Annie’s role in Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Shows.
Gail Davis passed away March 15, 1997. She is buried in Hollywood’s Forrest Lawn cemetery. You can find her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the 6300 block of Hollywood Boulevard.

Next Week: The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin, ’54-’59
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Paul

Death Valley Days

Death Valley Days began on the Radio in 1930. It hit our TV screens in 1952 and ran continuously until 1976. Four hundred fifty one episodes, according to TV Guide, though they qualify their count as including only those they could verify. Owing to three separate syndications of the stories under different titles, the total number of episodes could be as high as five-hundred fifty-eight. So with all that longevity, why do we know so little about the series?

I’ll venture to say it’s because it wasn’t a series in a conventional sense. It was an anthology, a collection of thirty minute short stories. Each week those stories revolved around a shopkeeper, a farmer, a rancher, a settler, a cowboy, a gunfighter or any ordinary westerner with a story to tell. The characters were all different, as were the actors and actresses who played them. The only common denominators were soap and the hosts.

The soap was Twenty Mule Team Borax, the show’s continuous sponsor dating back to its radio roots. All the shows were set in Death Valley California where the sponsor mined ingredients for its product. The image of a twenty mule team pulling freight wagons became the iconic image of the show. Now there’s a recipe for the longest running TV western if I ever heard one.

Week in and week out the hosts, six in all over the years, introduced the stories and tied them up at the end, in few cases starring in them. It started with The Old Ranger, Stanley Andrews (’52-’65) and ended with the legendary country singer Merle Haggard (’75). Andrews was a recognizable character actor who appeared in western films and TV shows, including The Lone Ranger, Annie Oakley, Sky King and the Gene Autry Show. The latter three were all produced by Gene Autry productions as was Death Valley Days.

Perhaps the best known host was Ronald Reagan. He hosted the show for two seasons, ’65-’66 before leaving to become governor of California. He also appeared in a few episodes, marking the end of his acting career. He would eventually go on to become the 40th president of the United States. Not bad for a retired actor. Reagan was followed by Robert Taylor (’66-’68) and Dale Robertson (’68-’72). The show syndicated as Trails West (Ray Milland), Western Star Theater (Rory Calhoun) and The Pioneers (Will Rogers Jr.)

Next Week: Annie Oakley ’54-’57
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Paul

Sky King

Sky King departed the old west into the new with stories that captured our love of the west and fascination with aviation. At least that’s how this one grabbed me in the days when, if I couldn’t sit on a horse, I’d rather be building a model airplane. Sky King gave us a taste of both.

Former WWII pilot turned Arizona Rancher, Schuyler “Sky” King flew missions of mercy and law enforcement across the western skies in his signature Cessna “Songbird”. Played by Kirby Grant, Sky was accompanied in his adventures by niece Penny, played by Gloria Winters and nephew Clipper, played by Ron Hagerty, Sky King took western adventure to contemporary air when the rest of our western heroes rode horseback.

Each weekly episode, seventy two in all, spun out of Sky’s Flying Crown Ranch near the fictional town of Grover Arizona. Episodes ranged from tracking outlaws or spies, to searches for lost hikers and harrowing rescues. More than a few of the latter found poor Penny victim of some nefarious plot.

Kirby Grant made a believable Sky King. A qualified pilot, the plane used in the first few seasons belonged to him. That changed when Cessna saw a promotional opportunity and loaned Grant one of their newest models. Besides his acting ability, Grant was a classically trained musician in violin and voice, who dabbled at sculpture.

His co-star, Gloria Winters broke in as a child star cast as William Bendix’ daughter Babs on the early TV comedy The Life of Riley. She and Kirby became life-long friends and icons of the aviation community. They made countless appearances at air shows, state and county fairs and the like. She retired from show business with the end of the show.

Grant and his wife moved to Florida in the 70’s where they founded the non-profit Sky King Youth Ranches for under-privileged children. Kirby Grant died in an automobile accident in Titusville, Florida October 30, 1985. He was on his way to observe the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger, where he was to be honored for his service to aviation.

Next Week: Death Valley Days ’52-’76.
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Paul 

Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok

The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok launched the second wave of 50’s and 60’s TV westerns. By that time TV westerns included the iconic heroes we covered in a previous series, Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Hopalong Cassidy, The Lone Ranger, The Cisco Kid and more.

The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok starred Guy Madison as Wild Bill with Andy Devine as loveable, laughable Jingles Jones. Fitting the mold of these early classics their horses played supporting actor roles. Wild Bill aboard Buckshot, while Jingles’ horse was type-cast as Joker.

The show premiered in 1951 and ran until 1959, screening one hundred thirteen half-hour episodes. The first four seasons appeared in black and white. The show transitioned to color for the last four seasons. A radio show also ran from 1951-1954.

Guy Madison cut a handsome figure in his role as Wild Bill, though a far cry from the self-styled ladies’ man gunny we know from the history books. That Wild Bill gambled, drank, chased skirts and shot more than a few men. Guy Madison’s Wild Bill was more in keeping with the high-tone standards of conduct portrayed by those who preceded him on the small screen. He had a personal code he espoused much like those of Gene, Roy, Hoppy and the Lone Ranger.

The show, for much of its run was sponsored by Kellogg’s Sugar Pops. How many of us ate that stuff and lived to tell about it? Probably as many as drank from the garden hose and rode without a bicycle safety helmet. Of course that was before we knew that sugared cereals would lead to all manner of socially unacceptable bad behaviors, childhood obesity and addiction to sugar. Well maybe not.

The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok has a warm spot in a good many of our memories. It’s fun to remember. Who can forget, when the plot came down to that final thrill packed chase . . . “Hey Wild Bill, wait for me.”

Next Week: Sky King, 1951-1962
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Paul

Classic TV Westerns

Our Cowboy Heroes series covered western heroes who took their characters from the big screen to TV. Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, Hopalong Cassidy, The Lone Ranger and Cisco Kid all had TV shows we covered in that series. Here are the shows we loved that never quite made ‘icon’.

I started compiling a list of shows to research. I came up with more than thirty and I probably didn’t get them all. I plan to do them in sequence from the year in which they first appeared to the year in which the series ended. The oldster on the list, The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok, first aired in 1951 and entertained us until 1958. The youngster on the list is The Big Valley which ran from 1965- 1969.

The list includes all our favorites, Gun Smoke, Have Gun Will Travel, Bonanza, Wagon Train, Maverick, Death Valley Days, Bat Masterson, Rawhide and The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp. And who can forget, Wanted Dead or Alive, Sugarfoot, The Rifleman, or The Rebel? Do you remember Tombstone Territory, Bronco, Lawman or Yancey Derringer? Then you have the dog and pony shows, Rin Tin Tin, Fury and My Friend Flicka. There are more of course; but these should give you a flavor for the trail we’ll travel.

Back in the day, the earliest of these shows started after the test pattern (remember those?) when TV was small screen, black and white and part-time. In some ways TV and the western evolved together from those small screen black and white beginnings to larger screens and full color! The stories evolved from the stuff of Saturday morning B westerns to shows dealing with a wider range of human experiences. The shows of classic heroes like Gene and Roy along with the dog and pony shows and early shows like Sky King and Annie Oakley tended toward ‘the good guys wear white hats’ norms of traditional B western films. Those stories were a far cry from later more sophisticated plots on shows like Gun Smoke, Bonanza and the Virginian.

We’ve rounded them up. As many as we could find to drive through these pages in coming weeks. Did we get them all? Certainly not. If you think of a stray we missed, point it out and we’ll see if we can get a loop on it.

Next Week: Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok, 1951-1959.
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Paul