Sharing My Story

1957-1964
During this period westerns and detective/police shows
became very popular. I liked the adult western,
Have Gun Will Travel(1957). The hero Paladin,
was a ethical and moral “hired gun” played by
Richard Boone who had a very strong screen
presence. He was a tough guy who often encountered
difficult moral dilamenas. As the series theme song
say Paladin was “a knight without armor in a
savage land.” A year or so ago I purchased the
first season of HGWT (1957-58) and found it a
real delight. My memories of Paladin was of a
very gruff, stern, judgmental hero. He was that
but so much more. He smiled, laughed and was
chargrined at the foibles and shortcomings of
others. He also had a conscienous. In one episode
Paladin was confronted by the wife of a outlaw he
had killed was was geniunely grieved and disturbed
by his fatal though necessary actions. Paladin was a
highly educated Renaissance man fluent in a number
of languages (including native American dialects) and
knowledge of cultures and people.

One of the very best western was Warner Brother’s
Maverick(1957). Maverick was a lot different than
Cheyenne or Bronco. Maverick told the (mis)-adventures
of the brothers Bret (James Garner) and Bart Maverick,
two very smooth gamblers in the old west. This show
subtly poked fun and satirized the TV western genre
that so dominated the TV airwaves at the time. This
was probably of the most literate and humorous
western to come out of the 1950s TV western craze.
This certainly launched a later successful TV career
for James Gardner and a major motion picture
several years ago starring Mel Gibson. I remember
wanting to stay home on Sunday nights from evening
church service to watch Maverick.This was also the
weekly popcorn night ritual when Dad fired out our
ancient electric popper and popped delicious home
made pop corn.

Perhaps the other major show that arrived at the
end of the 1950s was Bonanza(1959). Bonanza was
about the weathly Cartwright family (Pa and his three
adult sons) set in the period before and during the
Civil War. During this time America was celebrating
the centennial of the Civil War and interest was high
about it. The oldest son Adam was for the Union and
Little Joe was for the South. However the major
important aspect of Bonanza was it was one of the f
irst if not the first prime time show shot and
broadcast in full color. At this time color television
was just starting to come into play. They were very
expensive in comparison to the black and white
models. Bonanza may have caused some people to
buy color sets but the transition was fairly gradual
—at least it was in our house. I don’t think we got
a color TV until the late sixties or early seventies.

The Rifleman(1958) with Chuck Connors(Lucas McCain)
and Johnny Crawford (Mark McCain, his son) left me
with mixed feelings. I watched the show faithfully
but I didn’t really like Mark(Johnny Crawford) too much.
He was too much of a crybaby! He made me feel
uncomfortable. But the action scenes were good and
it was dramatic. As I think about it years later it became
very melodramatic. It took itself a little too seriously.
Gunsmoke was a much better drama and Wyatt Earp
was a better role model. For me The Rifleman was a
little too emotionally sloppy and syrupy.

Another short-lived dramatic western was
Tombstone Territory”(1957) that portrayed
Tombstone, Arizona after the Earps. The marshall
was a Wyatt Earp type character, but the show was
more hard edged that the Hugh O’Brien vehicle.
The Zorro series (1957) with Guy Madison was
a Disney spin off from the episodes they showed
on the main Disney program. This was an enjoyable
show as were most Disney productions of the period.
Other westerns that I remember watching and liking
were Wanted Death or Alive(1958, Steve McQueen),
Yancy Derringer(1958, I liked all of his hidden guns),
the Warner Brothers westerns like Cheyenne (1956),
Sugarfoot(1957), and Bronco(1959). Some of the
westerns that I watched occasionally but didn’t
interest me that much were Wagon Train(1957,
with Ward Bond), and Rawhide(1958, with a young
Clint Eastwood), The Virginain (1962), and The Big
Valley (1965). They were several short-lived
westerns that had occasional interesting episodes
like Restless Gun (1957, John Payne), the Rough
Riders (1958), The Rebel (1959, Nick Adams), and
The Tall Man (1960, Barry Sullivan).

Most of these westerns were gone by the early
to mid sixties. Gunsmoke lasted and lasted and
made it to 1975. I probably watched it fairly
faithfully for ten or fifteen years. The TV western
had peaked and the decline of interest in the
genre was waning.