Boots and Saddles (1957-1958)

Information from IMDb

Plot Summary
The gritty loneliness, danger and drama of life on a frontier army post.
The cast-from Captain Shank Adams (West Point class of '73) through the gruff
(but decent) Sgt. Bullock and the comical Private Hatfield and his fellow private buddy
(whose name escapes me)- formed an army family not equaled
until the advent of "Mash" in the 1970s.

Series Cast
John Pickard ... Capt. Shank Adams (38 episodes, 1957-1958)
Patrick McVey ... Lt. Col. Wesley Hayes (38 episodes, 1957-1958)
Gardner McKay ... Lt. Dan Kelly (38 episodes, 1957-1958)
Dave Willock ... Lt. Binning (38 episodes, 1957-1959)
John Alderson ... Sgt. Bullock (38 episodes, 1957-1958)
Michael Hinn ... Luke Cummings, Scout (38 episodes, 1957-1958)
James Dobson ... Pvt. Hatfield (8 episodes, 1957-1958)
Boyd 'Red' Morgan (6 episodes, 1957-1958)
Earl Parker (6 episodes, 1957-1958)
Michael Emmet ... Cpl. Davis / ... (5 episodes, 1957-1958)
Al Wyatt Sr. (4 episodes, 1957-1958)
Fred Krone (4 episodes, 1957-1958)
Johnny Western ... Pvt. Ben Jordan (4 episodes, 1957)
Joel Ashley ... Pvt. Boone / ... (4 episodes, 1957-1958)
Robert Knapp ... Pvt. Hank Swanson (2 episodes, 1957-1958)
House Peters Jr. (2 episodes, 1957-1958)
Paul Picerni ... Pvt. Grimes / ... (2 episodes, 1957-1958)
Rebecca Welles ... Laurie (2 episodes, 1957)
Ross Sturlin ... Indian Scout (2 episodes, 1958)

Series Directed
William J. Hole Jr. (5 episodes, 1957-1958)
Bernard L. Kowalski (2 episodes, 1957-1958)

Series Produced
George Cahan .... producer (38 episodes, 1957-1958)
Robert Stillman .... producer (38 episodes, 1957-1958)

Series Writing Credits
Robert A. Cinader (38 episodes, 1957-1958)
John Hawkins (5 episodes, 1958)
Gene Roddenberry (4 episodes, 1957-1958)
Don Brinkley (2 episodes, 1957-1958)

Series Original Music
Fred Steiner (5 episodes, 1957-1958)

Series Cinematography
Lester White (6 episodes, 1957-1958)

Trivia
The western fort set used on the series was in Kanab, Utah, and was originally
built for the western Pony Express.
It was also seen in the opening credits of TV's Branded and was featured extensively in Duel at Diablo.

The unit depicted in the series, the 5th Cavalry, was an actual regiment in the US army.
It fought in the Mexican War and the US Civil War and afterwards served in the Indian campaigns
in Nebraska and Kansas.
Among its members were future Confederate General Robert E. Lee
(who was a lieutenant colonel at the time)
and William F. Cody, better known as "Buffalo Bill Cody", who served as a scout.

Filming Locations
California National Studios, Los Angeles, California, USA
(studio)
Kanab, Utah, USA

Watch this Trailer

[extendedmedia]

Boots and Saddles is an American Western television series created by
Robert A. Cinader, which aired in syndication from 1957 to 1958.

Set at the 19th century Fort Lowell, fictionalized in appearance,
in the former Arizona Territory, near Tucson, Arizona, the series stars
John M. Pickard, also known as Jack Pickard, as Captain Shank
Adams, Patrick McVey as Lieutenant Colonel Wesley Hayes,
and Gardner McKay as Lieutenant Dan Kelly.
Other roles were filled by David Willock as Lieutenant Binning,
John Alderson as Sergeant Bullock, and Mike Hinn as scout Luke Cummings.

McKay later starred in the ABC series, Adventures in Paradise.

User Review

Quote

From the opening notes of the theme song the show as magic.
13 January 2006 | by mhall-17 (United States)

From the opening lines of the theme song (a ghostly, echoing bugle version of "Boots and Saddles")
the show kept its implied promise by evoking the gritty loneliness, danger and drama of life on a frontier army post.
The cast-from Captain Shank Adams (West Point class of '73) through the gruff (but decent) Sgt. Bullock
and the comical Private Hatfield and his fellow private buddy (whose name escapes me)-
formed an army family not equaled until the advent of "Mash" in the 1970s.

My personal favorite among the episodes was the one in which Capt. Adams was wounded and a rancher
(who had once been an officer in the Prussian army) took over command. Another episode,
about a wounded trooper with a pathological jealousy about his wife, showed psychological depth.
Somehow the show was able to step deftly from comedy to pathos to epic adventure in a bare half hour.
It gave some of the satisfaction one could derive from John Ford's cavalry trilogy
(at a much more modest budget).
The theme music was always effective in matching the mood of the material.

Display More