Cheyenne (TV series)
Cheyenne is an American Western television series of 108 black-and-white episodes broadcast on ABC from 1955 to 1962. The show was the first hour-long Western, and was the first hour-long dramatic series of any kind, with continuing characters, to last more than one season. It was also the first series to be made by a major Hollywood film studio which did not derive from its established film properties, and the first of a long chain of Warner Bros. original series produced by William T. Orr.
Plot
The show starred Clint Walker, a native of Illinois, as Cheyenne Bodie, a physically large cowboy with a gentle spirit in search of frontier justice who wanders the American West in the days after the American Civil War. The first episode, "Mountain Fortress", is about robbers pretending to be Good Samaritans. It features James Garner as a guest star, but with higher billing given to Ann Robinson as Garner's intended bride. The episode reveals that Bodie's parents were killed by Indians, tribe unknown. He was taken by Cheyenne Indians when he was 10 years old, who then raised him, and he left them by choice when he was 18 years old. In the series, the character Bodie maintains a positive and understanding attitude toward the Native Americans, despite the death of his parents.Cheyenne was aired from 1955 to 1963. In Season 5, Episode 1 "The Long Rope", which originally aired on September 26, 1960, Cheyenne returns to the town where he was raised by a family whose father/husband was lynched when he was a youth. This causes some confusion with the viewer as it was always said that Cheyenne was raised by a Cheyenne tribe after unknown Indians had killed his parents.
After returning to the town, he is elected sheriff. He seeks to arrest a murderer even though this brings back bad memories for everyone, including Cheyenne himself. Johnny Kent is wrongly accused of the murder.
Cast
Main cast
- Clint Walker as Cheyenne Bodie
- L.Q. Jones appeared as "Smitty" Smith in episodes 1, 2 and 4 but other than that there were no other continuing characters, although several actors were frequently used in guest or bit roles. Clyde Howdy appeared as a variety of characters in 49 episodes; Chuck Hicks can be seen playing assorted characters in 15 episodes; and Lane Chandler appears as different characters in 10 episodes.
Guest cast
- Claude Akins was cast as tough-minded Sheriff Bob Walters, with Gail Kobe as Della Carver, a crestfallen mother whose son has disappeared, in the episode "The Long Search".
- Chris Alcaide appeared as Deputy Hack in "Star in the Dust" and as Harry Thomas in "The Quick and the Deadly".
- Evelyn Ankers appeared as saloon owner Robbie James, who tries to keep her daughter from learning about her occupation, in the episode "Gambler".
- R. G. Armstrong was cast as Nathanael Grimm in "The Return of Mr. Grimm". In the story line, the wealthy Grimm seeks the hanging of Sheriff Cheyenne Bodie for the justifiable homicide of Grimm's wayward son, who was fleeing from a posse. Grimm closes the businesses he controls in town, and the threatened townsmen demand that Bodie stand trial, though no crime has been committed. Anita Sands plays Grimm's secret daughter-in-law, Grace Evans, who, unknown to him, is carrying his grandson.
- Barry Atwater played George Armstrong Custer, with Liam Sullivan as Marcus Reno, in the two-part episode, "Gold, Glory, and Custer - Prelude" and "Gold, Glory, and Custer - Requiem". In the story line, Cheyenne Bodie guides a party led by Custer into the Black Hills, an area protected by a treaty with the Sioux, in apparent search of gold.
- Joanna Barnes appeared as Adelaide Marshall in the episode titled "Dead to Rights".
- Walt Barnes appeared as Chris Barlow in "Top Hand".
- Trevor Bardette was cast in six episodes, beginning with the role of Amarillo Ames in "Lone Gun".
- Don "Red" Barry appeared as Shorty Jones in "Dead to Rights".
- Dan Barton played Jim Ellis, a schoolmaster with a questionable past who claims to have killed a bank robber, in the 1957 season premiere episode, "Incident at Indian Springs".
- Hal Baylor appeared as Jed Rayner in "The Spanish Grant".
- Whitney Blake, prior to Hazel, was cast as Beth Tobin in "Riot at Arroyo Seco", an episode which focuses on how a water shortage threatens to destroy a town.
- Dan Blocker, prior to Bonanza, appeared as Pete in "Land Beyond the Law" and as Deputy Sam in "Noose at Noon".
- Peter Breck, who played Nick Barkley on The Big Valley, appeared in three different roles, as James Abbot in "Legacy of the Lost", Sheriff Matt Kilgore in "Indian Gold", and Tony Chance in "Dark Decision".
- Diane Brewster played con woman Samantha Crawford in "The Dark Rider", and later in four episodes of Maverick. "Samantha Crawford" was the maiden name of series producer Roy Huggins' mother.
- Peter Brown, appeared as Clay Conover in "Top Hand". Prior to Lawman, appeared as Jed Wayne in "Renegades". In the story line, Wayne enlists in the United States Army after his father is killed in an attack by Comanche renegades. Olive Sturgess guest stars as Kathy Donovan, who takes an interest in young Wayne and is the daughter of the fort commander, Colonel Ralph Donovan, who distrusts the Indians. This episode also focuses on the spirit and endurance of Wayne's mortally lame horse and the wisdom of the Comanche chief Little Elk.
- Ellen Burstyn appeared as Emmy Mae in "Day's Pay".
- Edd Byrnes appeared as Clay Rafferty in "The Brand" and Benji Danton in "The Last Comanchero"
- Jean Byron was cast as newspaperwoman Fay Kirby, with Frank DeKova as Chief Sitting Bull in "The Broken Pledge", a story of betrayal of the Sioux. Also cast are Whit Bissell as George Armstrong Custer, William Fawcett, Gary Vinson, and John Dehner.
- Ahna Capri as Mary Randall in "Trouble Street"
- Philip Carey as Cole Younger in "One Way Ticket"
- John Carradine as Delos Gerrard in "Decision at Gunsight"
- Mary Castle as Alice Wilson in "Test of Courage"
- Peggie Castle appeared as the devious Southern belle Mary "Mississippi" Brown in the episode "Fury at Rio Hondo", set in Mexico, and as Amy Gordon in "The Spanish Grant".
- Joan Caulfield appeared as Darcy Clay, the owner of a herd of sheep, who clashes with cattlemen in the series finale, "Showdown at Oxbend".
- Billy Chapin, former child actor, appeared in the second episode of the series, "Julesburg" as Tommy Scott, whose older brother is crushed to death in a stampede as he tries to save Tommy.
- Robert Colbert in "Two Trails to Santa Fe" plays Army Corporal Howie Burch, who tries to steal gold from miners working a claim near the fort where he is stationed. Burch is also trying to win back the affection of his former wife, whose husband, is one of the miners. Then, the Army decides to abandon the fort, an action which places the miners in jeopardy from Indian attacks.
- Mike Conners appeared as Roy Simmons in "Dead to Rights"
- Jeanne Cooper appeared as Marie Conover in "Top Hand".
- Tim Considine was cast as Billy McQueen, with Connie Stevens as Clovis in "Reprieve".
- Russ Conway appeared as Marshal Stort in the 1958 episode "Ghost of Cimarron".
- Richard Crenna appeared as Curley Galway in "Hard Bargain".
- Walter Coy appeared in various roles in four different Cheyenne episodes, "The Bounty Killers," as Sheriff Sam Townley in "Town of Fear", "Apache Blood", and "Savage Breed" between 1956 and 1960.
- Ronnie Dapo, a child actor, appeared as 10-year-old Roy Barrington in the 1962 episode "One Way Ticket".
- Francis De Sales guest-starred twice in 1957, as Lieutenant Quentin in "Land Beyond the Law" and as a sheriff in "The Brand".
- Angie Dickinson appeared as Jeannie Trude in "War Party".
- James Drury was cast as Bill Magruder in "The Imposter".
- Andrew Duggan appeared as Major Ellwood in "Land Beyond the Law", played the outlaw Black Jack in "The Angry Sky" and the stern cattleman Ed Foster in the series finale, "Showdown at Oxbend".
- Saundra Edwards appeared as Vardis Coll in "Dead to Rights".
- Frank Ferguson appeared as Sheriff Allen in "The Spanish Grant".
- Dean Fredericks appeared three times, including as Yellow Knife in the episode "Quicksand" and as Little Chief in "The Broken Pledge".
- Terry Frost appeared as Dan Naylor in "Top Hand".
- James Garner, later to play Bret Maverick on "Maverick" and Jim Rockford on "The Rockford Files," appeared as Lt. Forsythe in "Mountain Fortress", the first episode of the series; as Lt. Rogers in "Decision", episode eight; and also as Rev. Bret Mailer in "The Last Train West", which was episode 15 of season one. He also appeared as Peake in "War Party" in the second season.
- Jock Gaynor portrayed Johnny McIntire, with Joan O'Brien as his intended, Selma Dawson, in "Incident at Dawson Flats".
- Anthony George appeared as Sancho Mendariz in "The Spanish Grant".
- Lorne Greene as Colonel Bell in "Gold" and "Glory"
- Tod Griffin as Sheriff Frank Day in "The Empty Gun" and as Rafe Donovan in "The Greater Glory"
- James Griffith appeared as Joe Epic in "Land Beyond the Law".
- Alan Hale, Jr., was folksy rancher Les Bridgeman in "Hired Gun". In the story line, Bridgeman hires Bodie, who has gone undercover for the local sheriff, to work on the Bridgeman Ranch, unknowing that Bridgeman's wife Lilli has hired a professional assassin to kill her husband so she can instead marry a competing rancher, Kiley Rand
- Creighton Hale, appeared in "The Conspirators" .
- Ron Hayes as the Durango Kid in "Town of Fear"
- Kelo Henderson made his screen debut as Doc Pardes in "The Brand".
- Dennis Hopper appeared as an arrogant young gunfighter, the Utah Kid, in the episode "Quicksand"; in the story line, he gave Cheyenne Bodie no choice but to kill him in a gunfight. He also appeared in an episode called "The Iron Trail" in season two as Abe Larson, the leader of a gang of youths planning to kidnap the President of the United States.
- Jennifer Howard appeared as Ellen Ellwood in "Land Beyond the Law".
- Ron Howard played "Timmy" in "Counterfeit Gun", season five, episode two.
- Brad Johnson appeared as Sheriff Dan Blaisdell in the 1960 episode "Home Is the Brave".
- I. Stanford Jolley appeared seven times, the last as Ezra in "The Quick and the Deadly".
- Sally Kellerman played the marriage-minded Lottie Durango in "The Durango Brothers", the seventh season opener in 1962.
- Douglas Kennedy portrayed Blake Holloway in "The Spanish Grant".
- George Kennedy portrayed Lee Nelson with Madlyn Rhue as Ellen Lassiter in "Prisoner of Moon Mesa".
- Robert Knapp appeared as Frank Thorne in "Massacre at Gunsight Pass" and as Deputy Rankin in "Wanted for the Murder of Cheyenne Bodie".
- Harry Lauter appeared three times, the last as Walt Taylor in "The Vanishing Breed".
- Robert Karnes as Matt Walsh in "Man Alone"
- Wright King appeared in three episodes from 1956 to 1958 and once each on the Cheyenne spin-off series, Sugarfoot and Bronco.
- Michael Landon in the episode "The White Warrior" appeared as White Hawk or Alan Horn, a young white man who, like Cheyenne Bodie, was raised by Indians after the massacre of his parents. White Hawk rises to the occasion to help Cheyenne as he heads a wagon train to California amid the threat of the Apaches. Randy Stuart appeared in this episode as Clara Bolton, a single woman on the wagon train who takes a liking to White Hawk. Peter Whitney played the brutal Eli Henderson, who tries to remove Cheyenne as the wagon master. Earlier, Landon played a trooper in "Decision".
- Ruta Lee, was Lenore Walton Hanford in "Wanted for the Murder of Cheyenne Bodie", the penultimate episode of the series. Bodie is mistaken for a notorious gunfighter and framed for his "own" murder. The episode also stars Dick Foran, Richard Webb, and Gregg Palmer.
- Forrest Lewis appeared as Charlie Miller in "Land Beyond the Law".
- Dayton Lummis portrayed as Frank Collins in "The Young Fugitives". Richard Evans played his son, Gilby Collins, a burgeoning outlaw. Anne Whitfield portrayed Nita, Gilby's new-found girlfriend, who convinces him to turn himself in to authorities.
- Rory Mallinson appeared as Tom Andrews in "Land Beyond the Law".
- Scott Marlowe played Mickey Free in "Apache Blood", the story of a young white man captured by Indians who tries to return to his own people.
- Donald May and Merry Anders appeared in dual roles in "The Long Rope"; May as Fred Baker/Randy Pierce, and Anders as Ruth Graham/Fay Pierce.
- Ann McCrea was cast as Faith Swain, whose herd Cheyenne is driving to market under the alias Ace Black, in the 1958 episode "Wagon-Tongue North". Unknown to Faith, Cheyenne had earlier killed her husband in self defense.
- Frank McGrath, cast a year later on Wagon Train, made a brief appearance in the same episode as a ranch foreman, John Pike, who is killed by the Comanches.
- Patrick McVey appeared three times as law enforcement officers between 1957 and 1961.
- Tyler McVey appeared as Henry Toland in the 1960 episode "Gold, Glory, and Custer".
- Joyce Meadows was Madaline De Vier in the episode "Cross Purpose".
- Don Megowan appeared as Gregg Dewey in "Dead to Rights".
- Roger Mobley was Billy in "Sweet Sam" and Gabe Morse in "The Idol".
- Christopher Olsen, as Chris Olsen, appeared as Kenny in the episode "Incident at Indian Springs".
- Gregg Palmer appeared as Dillard in the 1961 episode "The Frightened Town".
- John M. Pickard guest-starred as Ben Cask in "Dark Decision".
- Slim Pickens appeared as Gary Owen in "Big Ghost Basin".
- Ed Prentiss appeared as Ben Gentry in "Top Hand".
- Ainslie Pryor played King Forest in the episode "Devil's Canyon".
- Mike Ragan appeared in "The Last Train West", "Lone Gun", and "Hard Bargain".
- Gilman Rankin appeared as Ringo in "The Mutton Punchers" and as Price in "Trouble Street".
- Hayden Rorke appeared as Major George Early in "The Long Winter".
- John Russell appeared as Saylor Hornbook in the episode titled "Dead to Rights". He also portrayed Matt Reardon, a gunslinger befriended by Cheyenne Bodie in "The Empty Gun". In the story line, Reardon tries to make amends to Martha Fullerton, the widow of the first man whom he killed in a challenge. Standing between them is her vengeful son, Mike, who calls out Reardon for a final gunfight. Tod Griffin plays Sheriff Frank Day.
- James Seay appeared as Duke Tavener in "Gambler".
- Robert F. Simon appeared as Chad Wilcox in the episode "Born Bad" and as Hub Lassiter in the segment "Prisoner of Moon Mesa".
- James Stacy was cast as Luther James in the series finale, "Showdown at Oxbend", along with his later Lancer co-star Andrew Duggan.
- Harold J. Stone appeared as the brutal loudmouth Rafe Larkin, "The Last Comanchero", in the first episode of 1958. Edd Byrnes appeared again in the series in this episode as Benji Balton, whose parents in the New Mexico Territory were murdered by Larkin and whose girlfriend is being held hostage by Larkin's only surviving son.
- Randy Stuart, in addition to "Two Trails to Santa Fe", was cast in three other episodes - "The White Warrior", "The Long Search", and "Retaliation".
- Karl Swenson appeared as Bruce Coll in "Dead to Rights".
- Rod Taylor was Clancy and Edward Andrews was Duncan in "The Argonauts". Gold-dust miners are the best of friends until they strike it rich, only to have Indians attack and their valuable dust is cast to the wind because of the greed of Duncan.
- Vaughn Taylor starred as Doc Johnson, an unusual outlaw known as "The Ghost of the Cimarron". Cheyenne must ally temporarily with Johnson to clear his own name with the law, as officers think Cheyenne is part of the gang. Peter Brown appears in this episode as Billy Younger; Wright King was the Kiowa Kid.
- Phil Tead appeared as Yound in "Land Beyond the Law".
- Ray Teal, later the sheriff on Bonanza, appeared in "Julesburg" as a ruthless cattle baron. Cheyenne comes to the lawless town to aid honest settlers.
- Dawn Wells appeared as Sarah Claypool in "Lone Patrol" .
- Guinn Williams, appeared in "The Conspirators".
- Terry Wilson of Wagon Train appeared in an uncredited role as a robber in "Death Deals the Hand".
- Jeff York was cast as Nick Avalon in "Trial by Justice".
- Tony Young appeared twice, as the Indian Yellow Knife in "Two Trails to Santa Fe" and as the Indian Johnny Brassbuttons in "Johnny Brasbuttons". In between those episodes, he appeared in the short-lived CBS Western Gunslinger.
- Gerald Mohr appeared twice, first as gunslinger and criminal mastermind Pat Keogh in "Rendezvous at Red Rock", and later as Elmer Bostrum in "Incident at Dawson Flats".
- Lawrence Dobkin also appeared, portraying General Philip Sheridan from the American Civil War, a role to which he returned in an episode of The Rifleman''.
Production
Development
The series began as a part of Warner Bros. Presents, a "wheel program" that alternated three different series in rotation. In its first year, Cheyenne traded broadcast weeks with Casablanca and Kings Row. Thereafter, Cheyenne was overhauled by new producer Roy Huggins and left the umbrella of that wheel.Cheyenne ran from 1955 to 1963, except for a hiatus when Walker went on strike for better terms ; among other demands, the actor wanted increased residuals, a reduction of the 50% cut of personal appearance payments that had to be turned over to Warner Bros., and a release from the restriction of recording music only for the company's own label.
The interim had the introduction of a virtual Bodie-clone called Bronco Layne, played by Ty Hardin, born in New York City, but raised in Texas. Hardin was featured as the quasi main character during Bodie's absence. When Warner Bros. renegotiated Walker's contract and the actor returned to the show in 1959, Bronco was spun off as a show in its own right and became independently successful.
Even after returning to the program — having been prohibited from seeking other work during the long contract negotiation — Walker was unhappy to continue to play a role which he felt he had already exhausted. He told reporters that he felt like "a caged animal." Though Cheyenne aired for seven years, the series made only 108 episodes because it was in repeated alternation with other programs and was out of production during Clint Walker's contract dispute.
Episodes
Broadcast history
televised the show from 1955 to 1963: September 1955-September 1959 on Tuesday at 7:30-8:30 pm; September 1959-December 1962, Monday 7:30-8:30 pm; and April 1963-September 1963, Friday 7:30-8:30 pm. The series finished at number 13 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1957-1958 season, number 18 for 1958-1959, number 17 for 1959-1960, and number 28 for 1960-1961.In its last season, Cheyenne still drew good enough ratings to force the cancellation of the new comedy/drama It's a Man's World on NBC, co-starring Glenn Corbett, Michael Burns, Ted Bessell, and Randy Boone. In the spring of 1960, Cheyenne outdistanced singer Kate Smith's return to television on CBS's The Kate Smith Show, which was cancelled after some six months on the air.
As of September 2015, Cheyenne was being shown twice every weekday on STARZ!’s Encore Westerns channel. Cheyenne episodes with the Bronco character aired on Cozi TV.
As of December 2016, Cheyenne was being shown on the H&I: Heroes & Icons network.
Home media
released a "Best of..." single disc featuring three individual episodes on September 27, 2005, as part of their "Television Favorites" compilation series. The featured episodes were "The Storm Riders", "The Trap" and "The Young Fugitives".Warner Home Video has released the first season on DVD in Region 1. Seasons 2-7 have been released via their Warner Archive Collection. These are manufacture-on-demand releases on DVD-R discs. The seventh and final season was released on November 12, 2013.
| DVD Name | Ep # | Release Date |
| The Complete First Season | 15 | June 6, 2006 |
| The Complete Second Season | 20 | July 5, 2011 |
| The Complete Third Season | 20 | January 10, 2012 |
| The Complete Fourth Season | 13 | October 16, 2012 |
| The Complete Fifth Season | 13 | March 5, 2013 |
| The Complete Sixth Season | 14 | July 30, 2013 |
| The Complete Seventh Season | 13 | November 12, 2013 |
Awards
Cheyenne was a co-winner of the 1957 Golden Globe Award for Television Achievement.Spin-offs and crossovers
For most of their runs, Cheyenne, Bronco, and Sugarfoot, starring Will Hutchins, alternated in the same time slot. Cheyenne was the senior partner of the three. Only a snippet of the Bronco theme song was heard in the opening credits, as a kind of aural footnote to that of Cheyenne.Occasionally Cheyenne, Bronco, and Sugarfoot appeared together in the same episode of each other's series. In the Cheyenne episode "Duel at Judas Basin", Walker, Hardin, and Hutchins join forces to stop a trapper from selling guns to the Sioux Indians. The trapper had also framed Tom "Sugarfoot" Brewster for murder.
At the conclusion of the sixth season, a special episode was aired, "A Man Named Ragan", the pilot for a program called The Dakotas, starring Larry Ward, Chad Everett, Jack Elam, and Michael Greene, that was to have replaced Cheyenne in the middle of the next season. However, because Cheyenne Bodie never appeared in "Ragan", the two programs are only tenuously linked.
Walker reprised the Cheyenne Bodie character in 1991 for the TV movie ' and also played Cheyenne in an episode of ' called "Gunfighters" in 1995.