The Virginian: Where Nobody Knows Your Name

June 23, 2025June 1, 2025 / thewritelife61 / 2 Comments

As we get ready to “Go West Young Man,” today our blog series is getting to know the The Virginian (which is sometimes confusing because it was renamed The Men from Shiloh later for part of the series). This series debuted on NBC in 1962. It produced 249 episodes, running until 1971, making it the third longest-running western (Gunsmoke and Bonanza were the top two).

Lew Wasserman was involved with Universal, and they produced Wagon Train which was on NBC. Universal sold the series to ABC in 1962 after it had been on the air for three years, and NBC was not happy, but Wasserman told them that he had a new show for them, The Virginian.

It was also the first 90-minute western. Like Stagecoach West, it was set in the Wyoming Territory. While the pilot was black and white, the rest of the series was filmed in color.

The series was based on an Owen Wister novel, The Virginian: Horseman of the Plains which was published in 1902.

The series featured a foreman at the Shiloh Ranch near Medicine Bow played by James Drury. The foreman was never referred to by his name. Drury once said, “Nobody knows the name of my character, not even me.” His sidekick was Trampas (Doug McClure). Sheriff Abbott (Ross Elliott) also shows up on and off throughout the nine seasons. For the first four seasons, the ranch owner, Judge Henry Garth (Lee J. Cobb) and his daughter Betsy (Roberta Shore) also live there. The cast changed fairly often throughout the series, but Drury and McClure were along for the entire ride.

The plots of the show often revolve around themes of prejudice, injustice, being a responsible and hard worker, and standing up for the right thing.

During the final season, the show changed its title, and the series changed quite a bit. There was a new theme song, and it took on more of the character of the popular spaghetti westerns. Stewart Granger and Lee Majors joined the cast. While the ratings increased, the network was intent on cancelling the show, along with the rural purge that happened at that time.

Later when the show was no longer on the air, Drury discussed two of his castmates, one he admired and considered a friend and one he did not! About Grainger who joined the show for the last year, Drury said, “He was a disaster, and I couldn’t stand him. He wanted everything changed to make him the star of the show. . . . He also fired the whole camera crew and hired a new crew for his episodes.” However, on reflecting about his co-star Doug McClure, Drury recalled “off-screen Doug was quite like his character, and you couldn’t help but smile when he walked into a room because he was full of good humor and good spirits all the time. He could cheer anybody up. He became my best friend, and I still miss him terribly—you couldn’t ask for a better co-star.”

As you can imagine, being on the air for nine years meant a lot of guest stars showed up on the series, including Eddie Albert, Charles Bronson, Robert Culp, Joan Crawford, Bette Davis, Patty Duke, Robert Duvall, Harrison Ford, Jack Lord, Lee Marvin, Vera Miles, Leonard Nimoy, Ryan O’Neal, Robert Redford, George C. Scott, William Shatner and Franchot Tone.

The Virginian was on Wednesday nights for its entire run. When it began, it was up against Wagon Train on ABC while CBS ran CBS Reports and The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis. Both The Virginian and Wagon Train managed to hit the top thirty that year. The next year, its biggest competition was The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet followed by The Patty Duke Show. The Nelsons hit the top thirty and The Virginian and The Patty Duke Show were in the top twenty. The show continued to be in the top twenty or top thirty for the rest of its run, hitting the top ten in 1966, despite being on at the same time as many popular sitcoms during those years, including Batman, The Beverly Hillbillies, The Courtship of Eddie’s Father, Gomer Pyle USMC, Lost in Space, Mister Ed, and My Living Doll. It was still in the top twenty when it was canceled.

This show is fondly remembered by viewers who tuned it at the time. It’s been in syndication for decades, racking up new generations of fans. In one of his later interviews, Drury talked about the appeal of the show. He said, “People now tell me about their grandkids who discover the show on cable and start watching it. It’s a wonderful feeling to know the show is still viable after all these years.” That alone is reason to be proud of working on this show.

Book ’em Danno: Hawaii Five-O or 0

August 12, 2024May 18, 2024 / thewritelife61 / 2 Comments

This month we are looking at some recent reboots of popular shows from the the past. We are ending our series with what I think was the best of the reboots in recent history: Hawaii Five-O.

Originally, one source said the show was developed with a house detective for a chain of Hawaiian hotels. Someone on the production team thought it would limit the plots too much, so it was expanded to crime throughout Hawaii.

From 1968 to 1980, Hawaii Five-O was on CBS. Created by Leonard Freeman and set in Hawaii, it starred Jack Lord as Captain Steve McGarrett, former Korean War veteran. McGarrett heads a special task force appointed by the governor. His team includes Danny Williams (James MacArthur), Chin Ho Kelly (Kam Fong), Kono Kalakaua (Zulu). Police officer Duke Luekla (Herman Wedemeyer) lent a hand often. The task force is run out of offices at the Iolani Palace.

Richard Boone was offered the part of McGarrett, but he turned it down. Gregory Peck was also in consideration for the role. Eventually, Jack Lord auditioned on a Wednesday, received the part, and was in Hawaii filming on Monday. Lord was the only actor to appear in all 281 episodes of the series. A couple members of the cast came on board with little-to-no acting experience. Zulu, who played Kono, was a beach boy and local DJ. Fong, who played Kelley, had been a police officer in Honolulu for sixteen years before retiring to work in real estate.

McGarrett and his team investigated crimes by international secret agents, organized crime syndicates, and ordinary criminals. Some of the villains were played by celebrities including Gavin MacLeod, Ross Martin, and Ricardo Montalban.

McGarrett’s ongoing battle throughout much of the series is with Wo Fat (Ihigh Dhiegh), a rogue intelligence officer from China. In the finale, “Woe to Wo Fat,” McGarrett is finally able to land him in jail. However, the series ends with Wo Fat retrieving a file from his boot, making us wonder if we might be able to escape. The name “Wo Fat” came from a restaurant in downtown Honolulu.

In the original show, little time was given to the personal lives of the team; the plots all centered around solving the crime of the week.

The show was filmed in Hawaii: the first location was in Pearl City in a hut where the roof leaked and rats gnawed at cables; then it moved to Fort Ruger and for the final four seasons, a set was built at Diamond Head. Hawaii had only been a state for nine years when the series started, so most Americans were not familiar with the islands.

Fans often talked about the beauty of the scenery for the show. They also appreciated the intelligent writing and believable plots.

Many locals were used in the show, partly because the television and movie industry was not well represented in Hawaii, so everyone learned along the way. This made the cast much more diverse than most shows in the sixties.

The show was known for its theme song written by Morton Stevens. The Ventures recorded the theme, and it reached No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It was popular with high school and college bands across the country; when I was a majorette in the mid-seventies, it was one of the songs our band performed.

One of the most popular catchphrases from the seventies was “Book ‘em Danno,” a phrase used sparingly in the reboot.

The original Five-O was the longest-running crime show until Law & Order surpassed it in 2002. In began on Thursdays but moved to Wednesdays later in the year. From 1971-1974 it aired on Tuesdays. In 1975 it started out on Friday nights, moving to Thursdays where it stayed till 1979. That December it moved to Tuesdays for two months before switching to Saturdays for the rest of its run. This doesn’t seem like a great strategy for keeping fans.

While the show was popular with viewers, its only two Emmy wins were for music composition. It received ten nominations, but the only person to be nominated for acting was a special guest appearance by Helen Hayes in 1976. There were no nominations for acting, writing, or best series.

A one-hour pilot for a reboot was made in 1996 but never aired on television. Written by Stephen J. Cannell, it starred Gary Busey and Russell Wong as the Five-O team along with MacArthur who returned as Danny Williams, now governor of Hawaii.

The reboot we are discussing today began in 2010, also on CBS. To distinguish it from the original show, it was Hawaii Five-0 (using a zero in place of a capital letter O). Most of the characters are similar to the original. They are still a special task force appointed by the governor who is now a woman, Pat Jameson (Jean Smart). Steve McGarrett (Alex O’Louglin), a former Navy SEAL and son of Jack Lord’s character, partners with Danny Williams (Scott Caan) in this version. Other teammates included Chin Ho Kelly (Daniel Dae Kim) and Kono Kalakaua (Grace Park). Kono’s gender switched from the a male to bring a female perspective to the team.

For the eighth season Tani Rey (Meaghan Rath) and Junior Reigns (Beulah Koale) came on board. Several other regulars during the years included Lou Grover (Chi McBride), medical examiner Max Bergman (Masi Oka), Jerry Ortega (Jorge Garcia), Chin’s classmate and a local conspiracy theorist whose vast knowledge often comes in handy, and Sgt Duke Lukela (Dennis Chun) is still around from the original show.

A season or two into the show, Steve’s girlfriend, Lt. Catherine Rollins (Michelle Borth) works with the team and Adam Noshimuri (Ian Anthony Dale) joins the group. When Dr. Bergman heads overseas, he is replaced by Noelani Cunha (Kimee Balmilero). Another member of the surrogate family is Kamekona (Taylor Wily) who owns a food stand. He often helps the team because he knows almost everyone and has great intel for Steve and Danny. In this version, Steve’s father was a cop and Steve is still hunting down Wo Fat to avenge his father’s death. Chin and Kono are cousins and eventually Kono and Adam marry.

O’Loughlin was born in Canberra, Austrialia on August 24, 1976, and Caan was born in Los Angeles on August 23, 1976, but since Australia is twenty-four hours ahead of the US time, they were essentially born on the same day. Perhaps that’s why they had such great chemistry. Their witty bantering is fun to listen to. They remind me of an older couple who have been married a long time. They know each other so well, and can afford to be critical, because you know they have each other’s backs and would die for each other if they needed to.

This new version continued to show the beauty of the Hawaiian Islands. Viewers learned more about the culture of the state.

In the reboot we also got to know the characters much better; half the show concentrated on their personal lives and how those lives sometimes had an effect on what they did as detectives, right or wrong.

Peter M. Lenkov, who was one of the creators of this reboot, was also part of the team that debuted MacGyver and Magnum PI reboots, all of which are set in Hawaii.

The show was popular with viewers when it returned to the schedule. The Honolulu Advertiser wrote that “a smart script, slick production values and maybe a splash of nostalgia got the remake of Hawaii Five-0 placed on the CBS prime-time lineup this fall.”

One fun carryover from the original series was the character of August March. Played by Ed Asner in the original show in season two, March was a jeweler who was arrested by Lord’s character. In season three of the reboot, August March is back played by Asner again.

📷inner toob.com Asner on the original . . . and

The series debuted on Monday nights. Season four found it on Fridays where it stayed for the final seven seasons.

Viewers had strong reactions to the theme song. For the early shows, the original theme song was used but updated which fans did not appreciate, so the original theme was used for most of this series as well.

The new show had a positive impact on Hawaii’s economy. Businesses that were featured on the show saw an increase in visitors. When McGarrett mentioned Kona Brewing Company beers were his choice of beverage, sales shot up 60%.

One fun fact for those car collectors is that Jack Lord drove a Mercury Marquis in several seasons of the first show. On this edition, Steve works on his father’s car. The owner, stuntman John Nordlum, allowed the show to use the car, which still has its old license plate of F6-3958.

Comparing these shows is a little tough because television culture and shows changed so much during the 42 years that the show was off the air. The original series had 281 episodes while the reboot comes in with 240. I remember watching the original as a kid, and it was just another police drama to me. Personally, I like the reboot. Continuing to portray the culture as another character adds a lot of charm to the show. I would rather see the personal lives of the characters especially because they spend a lot of time out of work together and that adds to their team chemistry. I also like the banter between Steve and Danny.

There have been many reboots of classic shows, especially on other streaming services, and most of them do not live up to the original standards at best and can be plain awful at worst. This is one of the few that did it right and succeeded for all the right reasons. If you never saw the original, check out a season or two and compare the shows for yourself.

Magnum PI:

August 5, 2024July 18, 2024 / thewritelife61 / 2 Comments

This is Reboot Month, and we are comparing and contrasting several shows that got rebooted after 2000. For the next three weeks we are traveling to Hawaii. Today we get to stop at the home of Magnum, P.I.

Tom Selleck starred as Thomas Magnum, a private investigator living in Oahu. The show first aired on CBS in December of 1980 and went off the schedule in May of 1988.

The role of Magnum was offered to Kevin Dobson who turned it down. Tom Selleck had been the star of six different pilots that were unsuccessful in becoming shows, but he was offered this role after Dobson declined. After Selleck was given the role of Magnum, he was offered the role of Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark. He had to decline due to his show, so the part was given to Harrison Ford. However, an AFTRA/SAG strike in 1980 delayed the production of the television show, so if he had a crystal ball, Selleck would realize that he could have finished filming Raiders before the television show began filming.

Magnum lives in a guest house on an estate, Robin’s Nest, owned by Robin Masters, a famous author. We understand that Magnum helped Masters out and now Masters allows him to live on the estate for no charge. Masters has also provided Magnum with his car to drive, a Ferrari 308 GTS. The only person he really reports to is “Higgy.” Higgy is ex-British Army sergeant major, Johnthan Quayle Higgins III (John Hillerman).

In the first show, Magnum is not a fan of Higgins but as the series continued, a respect and fondness was built between the two men. Other cast members include T.C. Calvin (Roger E. Mosley), a friend who owns a helicopter charter service and Rick Wright (Larry Manetti) who owns a local bar. Mosley was a licensed helicopter pilot, but he was banned from doing his own stunts. Both men help Magnum out on cases quite often. They are former Marines whom Magnum served with in Vietnam. The Vietnam connection was an important part of the show. Previously most shows about Vets portrayed them as dealing with post-traumatic syndrome, but this show featured three competent, close comrades from the war, and it changed the way the Vietnam War and the veterans were regarded by popular culture and American viewers.

Rounding out the cast were Lt. Yoshi Tanaka (Kwan Hi Lim), a police lieutenant in the homicide division and Agatha Chumley (Gillian Dobb), Higgins’ friend who obviously has a crush on him.

Higgins lives in the main house on the estate with two Dobermans named Zeus and Apollo. Higgins also bargains with Magnum for favors to get use of the tennis courts, wine cellar, and other amenities of the main house. Higgins considers Magnum an inconvenience; he was living at the estate to write his military memoirs.

In reality, the Masters estate was known to Hawaiians as the Anderson Estate, Pahonu, owned by a local politician. The grounds were used by the royal family to raise green sea turtles, and the pond is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It had an 11,000-square-foot house; a boat house, which served as the guest house on the show; a gatehouse; and private tennis courts.

In January 2014, the then owner Barbara Cox Anthony sold it and in April of 2018, the estate was demolished.

For the first nine episodes, the theme music was a jazzy piece written by Ian Freebaim-Smith. However, it was replaced by a more up-tempo theme by Mike Post and Pete Carpenter, and it hit the Billboard Hot 100, ranking 25^th in 1982.

The show was very popular with viewers. Men wanted to be Magnum and women wanted to date Magnum. The show received 17 Emmy nominations, picking up a win for Selleck in 1984 for Best Actor in a Drama and for Hillerman in 1989 for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama. It ranked in the top 20 for its first five seasons.

📷onlyinyourstate.com lagoon used on Magnum PI

One of the reasons the show was set in Hawaii is because CBS had its Hawaii production offices running for Hawaii Five-O. Since that show ended in 1980, it made sense to film Magnum there and continue the production division.

Thirty years later Magnum was back in Hawaii. This time it was Jay Hernandez as Thomas Magnum, former Navy seal. While he still lived at Robin’s Nest, he worked with Juliet Higgins (Perdita Weeks), an ex-MI6 Agent who runs the estate. Kumu Tuileta (Amy Hill) also lives onsite as the estate’s cultural curator. Magnum allows Robin Masters to write about his life as a Navy seal in exchange for living on the estate, but he has no income, so he becomes a private investigator with the help of “Higgie” who becomes his partner in season two.

In this version, Magnum also has use of Robin’s Ferrari. The shows were filmed in Hawaii. Robin’s Nest was Kualoa Ranch, a set where Jurassic World was also filmed. Several beaches throughout the island were also used, and the show received a traditional Hawaiian blessing before it began.

Like the original show, Rick Wright (Zachary Knighton) and T.C. Calvin (Stephen Hill) are friends and former Marines. Rick owns a bar the friends frequently visit and T.C. does island helicopter tours. They both pitch in to help Magnum when their skills are needed on a case. Another ally is Gordon Katsumoto (Tim Kang), a Honolulu police detective.

Magnum and Higgins have a definite sexual attraction and they become close friends working together, but for the first few seasons one of them is always involved with someone else. Eventually they realize they both have feelings for each other and start a relationship.

The series was on CBS for four years. When CBS and the producers couldn’t reach an agreement for a fifth season, the show was canceled. The cancellation was bad for the cast and crew, but it also affected many of the locals. Hawaii’s film industry planned on firing 350-400 employees.

I’m not sure why they could not come to an agreement. While the show never achieved the ratings of the earlier show, it had a decent following.

NBC picked it up with a two-season, twenty-episode contract. NBC ended up going with ten episodes per season. They showed the ten episodes of season five by April 2023 and then fans realized that the sixth season would not be shown until some time in 2024. The entertainment industry was facing a writers’ strike as well. It’s interesting that writers’ strikes affected both of the Magnum series.

The network had three options: renew the show for a sixth season, extend the cast’s options, or release the actors and cancel the series. NBC decided to cancel the show. Unfortunately, after the months-long break between the fourth and fifth season, the network change and schedule change, the show never did very well. You also have to consider that the “should we, shouldn’t we” relationship between the two stars had lost some of its magic when they got together and had to discuss more practical matters. The show was canceled again in June of 2023.

I’m not sure why the reboot of Hawaii Five-0 did so well (which we will talk about next week), but the reboot of Magnum did not. The original Hawaii Five-0 was definitely about the investigations while the reboot included the officers’ personal lives as well. I think people liked Jack Lord, but the show was about solving crimes. Magnum P.I. says it in the name, the show was about Magnum and, more specifically, it was about Tom Selleck as Magnum. It was hard for Hernandez to follow in those footsteps no matter how good of an actor he was. I’m guessing a lot of the fans who turned on the show the first time for nostalgic reasons did not bond with the show in the same way they did the original.

I will admit I watched some Hawaii Five-0 and Magnum episodes from the originals, but I was busy during those years, and I didn’t see many and they weren’t shows on my “must-watch” list, although I liked the episodes I did see.

I thought the rebooted Magnum was a decent show on its own. It probably would not be one I would have continued to watch, however, while Hawaii Five-0 definitely made me a fan of the new series.

Dr. Kildare: The “Perfect” Doctor

July 10, 2023July 1, 2023 / thewritelife61 / 2 Comments

This month we are checking out a few favorites in a blog series: “Examining Our Favorite Medical Shows.” Last week we learned a bit about Ben Casey. Today we are looking at a similar show to Ben Casey, although in many ways it was very different: Dr. Kildare. Dr. Kildare was also on the air from 1961-66. MGM produced this show created by Max Brand in the 1930s. The show had previously been a movie and a radio series. Unlike Ben Casey who seemed to argue with everyone, Dr. Kildare (Richard Chamberlain) was a respectful intern at Blair General Hospital. He wants to help his patients and listens to his mentor, Dr. Leonard Gillespie (Raymond Massey). In season three, Kildare became a resident, and the episodes focused more on the stories about the patients.

In 1960 a pilot was filmed with Joseph Cronin in the Kildare role and Lew Ayres as Gillespie which did not sell. The role of Kildare was offered to William Shatner and James Franciscus who both turned it down. In 1961, a new pilot was produced with Chamberlin and Massey. One of the reasons Massey accepted the role is because he was certain the show would only last one season, and he wanted to continue with his movie career. The popularity of the show put his film career on hold for five years.

Other cast members who appeared on the show included Dr. John Kapish (Ken Berry), Nurse Fain (Jean Inness), Dr. Agurski (Eddie Ryder), Dr. Gerson (Jud Taylor), Dr. Lowry (Steve Bell) Nurse Conant (Jo Helton), and Nurse Lawton (Lee Kurty).

The guest stars on this show were amazing. I feel like this should be read in auctioneer mode but here goes: Eddie Albert, Jack Albertson, Fred Astaire, Ed Asner, Lauren Bacall, Ed Begley, Joan Blondell, Tom Bosley, Beau Bridges, Charles Bronson, James Caan, Robert Culp, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Angie Dickinson, Olympia Dukakis, Barbara Eden, Linda Evans, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Peter Falk, Beverly Garland, Ron Howard, Kim Hunter, Celeste Holm, Carolyn Jones, James Earl Jones, Brian Keith, Ted Knight, Harvey Korman, Cloris Leachman, Jack Lord, Walter Matthau, Gavin McLeod, Ricardo Montalban, Harry Morgan, Jack Nicholson, Leonard Nimoy, Carroll O’Connor, Suzanne Pleshette, Basil Rathbone, Robert Redford, Robert Reed, Cesar Romero, Gena Rowlands, William Shatner, Jean Stapleton, Gloria Swanson, Rip Torn, Sam Waterston, Dennis Weaver, and Robert Young. For a show that was only on five years, it was an impressive guest cast.

To add more realism to the show, writer E. Jack Neuman spent several months working with interns in a large hospital. Technical advice was provided by the American Medical Association.

The show was realistic in portraying all the drama that is truly found in a city hospital. The plots involved a lot of medical and social issues including smallpox, physician competency, drug addiction, malpractice, and euthanasia. Neuman definitely captured what life in a large, city hospital was like. Kildare makes about $60 a month, or $500 in today’s terms, works long hours, rotates through the various medical departments and has senior physicians overrule his diagnoses.

Just like Ben Casey, the first seasons produced stand-alone episodes and after the success of Peyton Place, storylines carried over from one show to another to entice the audience to tune in again the next week.

The theme music for the series was composed by Jerry Goldsmith. A CD set was released in 2009 which included the theme, the original music from the 1960 pilot, Richard Chamberlain’s recording of “Three Stars Will Shine Tonight,” and musical scores from the five seasons by Hurr Sukman, Richard Markowitz, Morton Stevens, Lalo Schifrin, John Green, and Burt Bacharach.

Airing on Thursday nights, the show was in the top ten during season one and the top twenty for seasons two and three. The show received about 12000 fan letters weekly, and, in addition, Chamberlain received letters personally asking for medical advice.

The network moved the show to Tuesday nights against Red Skelton and McHale’s Navy for season five and the viewers did not follow. The ratings declined, and the show was canceled.

This show really changed Chamberlain’s career. He had always been a small-role guy before this show, but he suddenly became a teen idol. He received more than 35,000 fan letters a month. Onscreen the idealistic Kildare and the wise, sometimes cantankerous, Gillespie don’t always agree but they had great chemistry on the set and apparently off the set as well. Unlike Ben Casey, the cast on this show did get along and Chamberlain mentioned that he always enjoyed working with Massey.

Richard said he grew up in a family where they all pretended to be perfect. So, he went through life trying to be perfect too. He said that philosophy did not work well for his life, but it did work well for Dr. Kildare.

Following the show he would take a turn on Broadway, in big-screen movies, and back on television where he specialized in mini-series like Shogun and The Thorn Birds, both in the 1980s.

One fact I found interesting was that the DVD release of the show included a never-aired pilot from a different medical show, The Eleventh Hour in 1962. The episode originally was written for Dr. Kildare. Drs. Kildare and Gillespie assist Dr. Bassett (Wendell Corey), a psychiatrist diagnosing one of his patients Ann (Vera Miles). Instead of airing on Dr. Kildare, Chamberlain and Massey were cut out of the film and it was submitted as a pilot for the show, with the title “Ann Costigan: a Duel on a Field of White.”

Even Mad Magazine got on the Kildare bandwagon. The 1962, #74 issue, featured “Dr. Killjoy,” a parody of the show.

Everyone seemed to like this show. Then again, what is not to like? You have a handsome doctor, exhilarating drama, a fun guest star every week, and realistic stories. The show would go on to inspire the talents behind a variety of medical series including Marcus Welby MD, ER, House, and Grey’s Anatomy.

Gunsmoke Took 20 Years to Get Outta Dodge

June 7, 2021 / thewritelife61 / 4 Comments

From 1952-1961, you could tune into Gunsmoke on your local radio to hear the adventures of the folks in Dodge City, Kansas created by Norman Macdonnell and John Meston. The primary characters were Marshal Matt Dillon (William Conrad), Doc Charles Adams (Howard McNear), Miss Kitty Russell (Georgia Ellis) and Chester Wesley Proudfoot (Parley Baer). Three years after its debut, the series shifted to television as well, running on CBS from 1955-1975, producing an incredible 635 episodes. For television, Macdonnell took over the reins as producer with Meston the head writer.

Amazon.com: Gatsbe Exchange Framed Print Gunsmoke Cast Marshal Dillon Kitty Fester and Doc: Posters & Prints

James Arness was offered the role of Dillon on television. The network wanted John Wayne who turned it down. He did, however, introduce the first episode. Both Raymond Burr and Denver Pyle were also considered for the role. Matt Dillon spent his youth in foster care, knew the Bible well, and at some point was mentored by a caring lawman. He also talks about his time in the Army in some episodes.

Gunsmoke Cast Matt Dillon 8x10 Photograph – Vintage Poster Plaza — Photo: allposters.com

The role of Chester, with a new last name of Goode now, was played by Dennis Weaver. Chester was not only a loyal employee to Marshal Dillon, but he brewed a mean pot of coffee. He had a noticeable limp which apparently resulted from an injury in the Civil War. Weaver later said if he realized how hard it would be to film that long with a fake limp, he would have not used it. Other sidekicks to the Marshal included Ken Curtis as Festus Haggen, Burt Reynolds as Quint Asper (1962-65), Roger Ewing as Thad Greenwood (1966-68), and Buck Taylor as Newly O’Brien (1967-75).

Chester Good....Dennis Weaver Gunsmoke I've always loved that hat | Movie stars, Actors, Tv westerns — Photo: pinterest.com

Doc was now Galen Adams and played by Milburn Stone. Doc was an interesting guy. He apparently was educated in Philadelphia and spent some time as a ship doctor on gambling boats on the Mississippi River where he met Mark Twain. His young wife died from typhus two months after their marriage. He finally settled in Dodge City after wandering a bit.

Gunsmoke photo 197 Milburn Stone — Photo: ebay.com

Miss Kitty was portrayed by Amanda Blake. Perhaps the closest bond she had with Dillon was that she also grew up in foster care in New Orleans. She was in more than 500 of the television episodes. In addition to her role as “entertaining men” in Dodge City, she is half owner of the Long Branch Saloon. Kitty and Matt obviously are attracted to each other and are very close. Kitty was a successful business owner and had a cold demeanor about professional matters but had a soft heart in other matters. Blake was ready to leave the show in 1974, and her storyline was that she finally returned to New Orleans.

Amanda Blake - Wikipedia — Photo: wikipedia.com

During its twenty-year stint, the show had some notable guest stars. Just a few celebrities who graced the set include Jack Albertson, Ed Asner, James Backus, Beau Bridges, Charles Bronson, Bette Davis, Angie Dickinson, Richard Dreyfuss, Buddy Ebsen, Barbara Eden, Jodie Foster, Mariette Hartley, Ron Howard, June Lockhart, Jack Lord, Rose Marie, Howard McNear, Harry Morgan, Leonard Nimoy, Carroll O’Connor, Denver Pyle, Wayne Rogers, William Shatner, Cicely Tyson, and Adam West.

While the show portrayed the hard life in the West, it was also a warm and humorous celebration of a group of people making a new life together.

The opening of the show is a gunfight between Matt and a “bad guy.” It was shot on the same Main Street set used in High Noon, the Grace Kelly/Gary Cooper classic. The scene was dropped in the 1970s when a nonviolence emphasis was placed on television shows and the opening was Matt riding his horse.

Gunsmoke, The Great American Western — Photo: marksmannet.com

The show began its life on Saturday nights at 10 pm ET. In 1961 when the radio show left the air, the television show switched from half an hour to an hour. For season 13, it moved to Monday nights at 7:30 for four years, and then at 8 pm for four years. By season two it was a top ten hit, rising to number one where it remained until 1971.

The first seven seasons were sponsored by L&M cigarettes and Remington shavers.

The well-known theme from the show and radio was “Old Trails” composed by Rex Koury. Lyrics were later recorded by Tex Ritter in 1955 but not used in either radio or tv. Although I could not confirm it, I read several mentions that Koury was so busy, he actually penned the song while using the bathroom. William Lava composed original theme music for television; other composers who contributed music during the twenty years were Elmer Bernstein, Jerry Goldsmith, Bernard Herrmann, Jerome Moross, and Franz Waxman.

Surprisingly, the show was only nominated for fifteen Emmys during its reign. Of those, there were only three wins: one for best dramatic show in 1957, one for Dennis Weaver as supporting actor in 1958, and one for Milburn Stone in 1967.

After surviving the rural purge Paley conducted, the cast thought they were not in jeopardy and were all stunned by the cancellation in 1975. CBS had not prepared them that they were debating ending the show. They assumed the show was continuing till it had 700 episodes and many of the stars read about the cancellation in the trade magazines.

The show has appeared in syndication in three different versions. One package is half-hour episodes from 1955-1961, one package contains hour-long black and white episodes from 1961-1966, and the final package contains one-hour color episodes from 1966-1975. Me TV currently airs the one-hour color shows.

Arness would appear in five made-for-television movies after the show went off the air. In 1987, Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge featured Blake as Miss Kitty and Taylor as O’Brien. Stone had passed away in 1980, so his role was not part of the new film. Gunsmoke: The Last Apache premiered in 1990 without Blake who had died in 1989. In 1992-1994, Gunsmoke: To the Last Man, Gunsmoke: The Long Ride, and Gunsmoke: One Man’s Justice would appear before the series rode off into the sunset for good.

After being on television so long, it’s not surprising that there were a lot of merchandising opportunities for the show. In addition to typical items like lunch boxes, there was Gunsmoke cottage cheese. A Matt Dillon figurine was available with his Horse Buck.

There were also board games, puzzles and a variety of books including numerous paperbacks and comic books from Dell and Gold Key.

1950s Gunsmoke lunch box with thermos. Vintage Gunsmoke Matt Dillon U.S. Marshall metal lunchbox with thermos. Lunchbox depicts James Arness as Matt Dillon draw…

Fans had an affinity for the show. During its time on the air more than thirty westerns came and went, but Gunsmoke continued, in the top ten for most of its two decades. Few series have their own museum, but you can visit Boot Hill Museum in Dodge City to learn all about the show. Furniture from the series is included, as well as signed photos from the cast and other memorabilia including one of Miss Kitty’s dresses.

When you hear someone say “Get outta Dodge,” you can fondly remember Gunsmoke which is where this phrase began. Perhaps being cancelled was a blessing in disguise. After two decades, maybe it was time to get outta Dodge, maintaining the high standards and high ratings that made the show such a long-running success.

The Man From UNCLE: What Happens When James Bond Comes Out of the Cold and Into TV

October 21, 2019 / thewritelife61 / 3 Comments

We are in the midst of our Murder, Mystery, and Mayhem series this month. In the mid-1960s, westerns were still the most popular show on television with rural sitcoms coming on the scene. Crime shows still had their fair share of air time, but spy shows were non-existent. With the end of the Cold War, Bond movies, and books like The Spy Who Came in From the Cold, these types of thrillers were bound to hit the small screen. From 1964-1968, The Man from UNCLE took us behind the scenes to observe the dangerous life of special agents.

Beginning on Tuesday nights on NBC, the show was produced by Metro Goldwyn Mayer. The creator, Norman Felton, asked Ian Fleming to act as a consultant. (Some sources list Felton as the sole creator; some credit Sam Rolfe as a co-creator.) The book The James Bond Films mentions that Fleming suggested two characters: Napoleon Solo and April Dancer. Napoleon Solo became one of the main characters on The Man from UNCLE, and we will learn more about April Dancer later. Solo was also a villain in the movie Goldfinger. Originally titled “Solo,image of ” the popularity of the film led to a title change in the television show to The Man from Uncle.

Solo (Robert Vaughn), being an American, was set up in a partnership with a Russian, Illya Kuryakin (David McCallum). The duo would take on multinational secret intelligence work under UNCLE, The United Network Command for Law and Enforcement. They sometimes worked with Alexander Waverly (Leo G. Carroll) who headed up an English organization. They frequently went up against THRUSH. We never learned who was part of THRUSH or what their goals were, apart from taking over the world of, course.

Solo was supposed to be the typical ladies’ man, with Kuryakin being the intelligent, funny, and loyal partner, but McCallum turned into an instant celebrity. Hysterical fans attended promotional appearances and magazines gave he and his wife Jill Ireland little peace and quiet. One article I read discussed an incident in Baton Rouge, LA when McCallum was locked in a bathroom so the police could clear out the screaming women. When he was supposed to do a spot in a Macy’s store in New York, police had to disperse 15,000 screaming women who made it too dangerous for him to appear and did “a colossal amount of damage” to the store.

Solo and Kuryakin accessed their secret headquarters through a tailor’s shop, Del Floria’s.

In an interesting twist, the creators decided to feature an “innocent character,”–a Joe Doe or Jane Smith who the viewers could identify with—in every episode.

The theme music was created by Jerry Goldsmith, changing slightly each season as new composers came on board, eight in all.

With the exception of one show, the episodes were titled “The ______ Affair.” Every year at least one two-part show was aired. The pair of shows became theatrical films released in Europe. Additional footage was added to the movies. Some of these films were later seen on American television and include To Trap a Spy (1964), The Spy with My Face (1965), One Spy Too Many (1966), The Spy in the Green Hat (1967), and How to Steal the World (1968), among others.

Although stuntmen were hired for the two leads, they also did their own stunts. Typically, the actor and stuntman did each stunt, and the final version combined the best of them. However, McCallum tried to avoid heights, and Vaughn disliked water scenes.

Like Get Smart, the recurring characters were a small group, and guest stars were necessary for each episode. Both high-profile and up-and-coming actors were eager to appear on the show. William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy can be seen together in “The Project Strigas Affair” two years before they starred on Star Trek. Other actors who appeared include Judy Carne, Joan Collins, Yvonne Craig, Broderick Crawford, Robert Culp, Chad Everett, Barbara Feldon, Anne Francis, Werner Klemperer, Janet Leigh, June Lockhart, Jack Lord, Ricardo Montalban, Leslie Nielsen, Carroll O’Connor, Vincent Price, Cesar Romero, Kurt Russell, Sonny and Cher, and Telly Savalas.

Of course, spies need technological gadgets to get a leg up on the competition. Some of their communication devices included a security badge and a business card. They could also communicate with a portable satellite disguised as a cigarette case or fountain pen.

Like all good crime fighters, the duo needed a car, and theirs was a Piranha Coupe, based on the Chevrolet Corvair.

Weapons were also a necessity in their line of work. The UNCLE Special was a semi-automatic weapon which was useful except at night when THRUSH had access to a “sniperscope” which allowed the villains to shoot in total darkness.

The gadgets, props, and clothing for the show were so popular that they are exhibited in the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. The CIA also exhibits some of the show’s items.

Season 1 was a great success even though partway through the season, the show moved from Tuesdays to Mondays. With season 2 came more “tongue-in-cheek” dialogue, and the series switched from black and white to full color. Athough the show was moved to Friday nights, its popularity continued.

Season 3 added a campy element, a la the Batman and The Monkees craze, against the stars’ wishes. The ratings decreased and the show never attained the same quality and ratings again. It was renewed for a fourth season but cancelled partway through when there was no increase in viewership.

Although the show was only extremely popular for two years, it garnered eight Emmy nominations and five Golden Globe nominations, including a win for David McCallum as best star in 1966.

Of course, like all popular shows from the 1960s, a tv movie was made a few years later and a big-screen remake came decades later.

The Return of the Man from UNCLE: The Fifteen Years Later Affair was seen on CBS, not NBC, in 1983 with both Vaughn and McCallum reprising their roles. At the beginning of the movie, we learn that although THRUSH was obliterated with the arrest of its leader, he has now escaped from prison. Rather than stick with the chemistry of the two leads, the tv movie pairs each lead with a younger agent.

In 2015, Guy Ritchie’s big-screen The Man from UNCLE was set in the 1960s featuring Solo (Henry Cavill), Kuryakin (Armie Hammer), and Gaby Teller (Alicia Vikander). The trio must work together in a joint mission to stop an evil organization from using Gaby’s father’s expertise in science to build a nuclear bomb. All the while, they don’t totally trust each other, and secretly put their own country’s agendas first. As far as reboots go, the film was actually a good rendition of the original show.

Of course, there was no limit to the merchandising in connection with the show. Several comic books based on the series were published, as well as two dozen novels. In addition to membership cards, viewers could show their love

for the show with board games, action figures, model kits, lunch boxes, and toy guns.

I did promise to get back to April Dancer. Halfway through The Man from UNCLE series, the network released a spin-off, The Girl from UNCLE starring Stefanie Powers as April Dancer. Not as popular as the original, it was cancelled after one season.

Dancer works with British agent Mark Slate (Noel Harrison). Leo G. Carroll appeared as Mr. Waverly in this series also. Luckily Powers was fluent in several languages, because Dancer often went undercover with a foreign accent.

Unfortunately, Dancer reeled in the bad guys, but Slate was the one who got to kill them. However, April did get some cool gadgets such as a perfume atomizer that sprayed gas and exploding jewelry.

This show also used Goldsmith’s theme music in an arrangement by Dave Grusin.

Both The Girl from UNCLE and The Man from UNCLE are available on DVD.

Although The Man from UNCLE was only hugely popular for two years and The Girl from UNCLE never attained a fan base, the shows ’ concept spawned a huge pop culture obsession. At one point, more than 10,000 letters a week were delivered to the network. The show sparked an interest in spy shows that would pave the way for future shows such as Mission Impossible; The Wild, Wild West; I Spy; and Get Smart. Like The Man from UNCLE, each of these shows would result in reboot big-screen movies in later decades, as well as a large output of memorabilia.

It’s interesting that this show feels dated now with the current technology, yet Get Smart continues to be a hit. I think the humor and campiness of Get Smart keeps it relevant which is ironic, because that is what basically brought about the end of The Man from UNCLE. Despite its current non-relevancy, it was an important part of pop culture and deserves to be celebrated for its cult status in the mid-sixties and the realistic portrayal of spies to generations of viewers.