Keith,
This is a great site for those folks who enjoyed the old TV Westerns.
Jim
Thanks for the great link, Keith - I don't know how I could have forgotten to mention The Virginian, which was another one of my favoites. If I recall, it was a fairly ambitious show with each episode running about 90 minutes. Was always a big fan of a fellow named Doug McClure (Trampas) back in those days.
Death Valley Days and Zane Grey Theater were another couple of great shows.
Amen, Mark. My personal favorite was "Maverick" but I also liked "Have Gun, Will Travel", "Cheyenne", "Gunsmoke", "Wanted, Dead or Alive", "Sugarfoot", "Bonanza" and later on "High Chaparral". There were a few others whose names I can't remember. (Damn old age
)
Hi Stumpy:
Boy, we're on the same page here as Maverick was one of my favorites as well. I used to laugh when I watched another one of my favorite Jim Garner shows - the Rockford Files - as his character reminded me of Maverick (just set in Los Angeles in the 1970's instead of the west in the 1870's). Always ready with some kind of a con or flim flim - always had an angle and a wise cracking tongue.
In addition to the shows you threw out, I really liked a show called the Guns of Will Sonnett with one of my favorite western stars - Walter Brennan. About a grandfather and grandson looking for the son/ dad - "no brag, just fact".
The Rifleman with Chuck Conners was another favorite of mine. Lucas McCain raising his young son, Mark, in Northfork, New Mexico. Chuck Conners later starred in another western years later - Branded - where he played a disgraced (for cowardice0 ex-army officer.
Bonanza was always a staple at 9:00 on a Sunday night - week in and week out, it gave us great stories.
I loved the character of Paladin - the "thinking man's" western hero.
Brings back alot of great memories of when I was a young boy / teenager and it was all in front of me...:teeth_smile:
Display MoreWAGON TRAIN
Information From IMDb
Plot summary
Stories of the journeys of a wagon train as it leaves post-Civil War Missouri on its way to California through the plains, deserts and Rocky Mountains. The first treks were led by gruff, but good-at-heart Major Seth Adams, backed up by his competent frontier scout, Flint McCullough. After Adams and McCullough, the wagon train was led by the avuncular Christopher Hale along with new scouts Duke Shannon and Cooper Smith. Many stories featured the trustworthy assistant wagonmaster Bill Hawks, grizzled old cook Charlie Wooster and a young orphan, Barnaby West. Written by Doug Sederberg
Series Cast
Frank McGrath ... Charlie Wooster (47 episodes, 1957-1965)
Terry Wilson ... Bill Hawks (42 episodes, 1957-1965)
John McIntire ... Christopher Hale / ... (40 episodes, 1959-1965)
Denny Miller ... Duke Shannon (29 episodes, 1961-1964)
Robert Fuller ... Cooper Smith / ... (28 episodes, 1959-1965)
Michael Burns ... Barnaby West / ... (28 episodes, 1960-1965)
Ward Bond ... Major Seth Adams (17 episodes, 1957-1961)
Robert Horton ... Flint McCullough (13 episodes, 1957-1962)
Morgan Woodward ... Barney / ... (12 episodes, 1958-1965)
Richard H. Cutting ... Adam Stryker / ... (10 episodes, 1958-1964)
Alot of familiar looking faces on your post - it sure brings back alot of good memories.
When you think back to the late 50's / early 60's, there were just so many westerns on television that you had to choose from. Wagon Train was a great series, but I even enjoyed the "lesser quality" westerns as well.
You would always seem to get a great human interest / drama story each week and they were always so well written and so well acted with great guest stars appearing each week.
When you look at television today with the never-ending number of 'reality" tv shows and compare it with the quality of tv so many years ago, you can only shake your ahead in amazement at how far we've fallen.
