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 Timothy Booher, Bristol, TN:
Synopsis: Back on the trail after a short vacation, Rowdy and Hey Soos reunite, only to be waylaid by a gentlemanly bandito. The outlaw, a man of honor, returns Rowdy's watch and possessions. Later the pair meet up with Favor and crew in Rio Salado, where the new drive is to begin. Ironically, the father of the aforementioned bandit, a poor but proud Spanish rancher, is the sponsor and financial backer of the new drive.
In Rio Salado Rowdy meets up with his father Dan Yates (first mentioned briefly in "Incident at Poco Tiempo," from the previous season, also written by the excellent John Dunkel). Dan Yates, a bigot who doesn't like Mexicans (he is a veteran of the Mexican War), seeks to embrace Rowdy, who has no use for him after the way he ran out on Rowdy and his mother. Thinking that having enough money to buy a large ranch is the answer to winning back his son's trust, Dan hatches a plot to earn reward money by brutally beating the Mexican bandit's father, who nearly dies.
Dan Yates frames Rowdy for the crime and waits for the bandit to come for his revenge. Rowdy knows the true perpetrator of the crime but won't tell, attempting to save his father. When the angry desperado comes to seek vengeance upon Rowdy, Dan Yates shoots him in the back. When this happens the local ranchers blame Favor for bringing trouble into their quiet village and refuse to deal with him.
Favor, however, comes up with an idea for a new drive: by picking up scrub cattle along the way, they can build their own herd and not have to answer to anyone in the aristocratic cattlemen's association. Meanwhile, Dan Yates gets his reward but doesn't have long to enjoy it. On the trail outside of town he is robbed and murdered by the irate henchmen of the man Yates just killed. Without their charismatic leader the band's revolutionary tendencies are gone, and they are becoming wanton, petty thieves. The episode ends with Rowdy finding the body of his father and reckoning that Dan did his awful deed in the hopes of making up to his son. In the end Rowdy finds forgiveness in his heart for the selfish old man.
Review: The first episode produced by Endre Bohem. In actuality, Bohem was no newcomer to the show, having served as executive script consultant on the series right from the first episode. He had a good knowledge of the show and what made it work. He does a good job of carrying on, though much of Charles Marquis Warren's penchant for narrative flow is gone and sorely missed. Ancient character actor Tom Tully does a great job as Rowdy's none too pleasant drunken sot father. Tully would return to the series several years later as a different one-shot character in the episode "Blood Harvest". In spite of its faults in construction and timing, this is nonetheless a key episode for fans of the series, or for Eastwood buffs who have all of his movies but have never seen a Rawhide episode. Eastwood gives perhaps his finest performance as Rowdy, conveying the pain of his adolescent scars well. A very fine episode, very emotional, but lacking the wallop of the finest episodes from the first three seasons. Still a must see.
Note: At the end of season two, Fleming and Eastwood began to get name credit on the show's opening credits. At the end of season three, both Eastwood and Fleming, along with Wooley and Brinegar, are now top-billed stars of the show, which now features prominent facial close-ups of all four stars over the Frankie Laine introductory theme. Bohem has removed the beloved "Incident" word from the title credits, but it would be reinstated during season five.
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Timothy Booher, Bristol, TN:
Synopsis: The crew is out looking for scrub cattle to supplement their newly formed herd when they come across the ruins of a wagon train that was burned out several years before--all the inhabitants with the exception of the cowardly wagon master had been killed. At the site of the massacre they meet up with a hermit-like man who lives there and takes care of the graves. As most of you have already guessed, the man is the sole survivor of the event, named Jed Handly, but conveniently living under an assumed name.
Handley is quite adept at the art of rounding up stray cattle near waterholes, and Favor takes him on as a scout and guide. When his work is finished he is about to leave with the money Favor has just paid him when an elderly woman, Mrs. Lefevre, and her guide show up at the herd. The lady is the mother of one of the passengers on Handley's wagon train, seeking the grave of her son. The guide is a man named Carse whose sole interest is finding the wagon of his former partner, who had secrety been transporting the pair's stolen gold to Mexico. Handley is forced to face up to his guilt and he finds forgiveness from the bereaved mother. Carse finds his gold, but is killed in a stampede. Favor and Handly decide to give the gold to Mrs. Lefevre to compensate for the loss of her son.
Review: The first truly great episode produced by Bohem stands up amongst the best episodes from the far superior first three seasons. Darren McGaven, a Hollywood luminary, shines as guilty wagon master who gets a second chance. He reads his part like a sea captain who wanted to go down with a sinking ship but lost courage at the last minute. Lillian Bronson is good as Mrs. Lefevre, and Claude Akins in his third Rawhide appearance does his usual outstanding job, though more or less rehashing his role from "Incident of the Druid Curse" in season two. The script by the prolific John Dunkel builds a haunting portrait of a lonely man, a victim of sad, sordid circumstances. The scenes in which a teary eyed McGavin embraces Mrs. Lefevre are a rare treat for a show that had little time for sentiment among the dust and heat of the long, dry drive. This is Rawhide at its best and most poignant.
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Corbin, USA:
The Sendoff is kind of a sad episode, but it is well played. The characters were all great, I especially liked the elderly lady's reaction to the wagon-master when he confessed. To be honest, that was really unexpected for me. I'm not sure if everyone would act that way. This was was a fun episode despite the sad undertone.
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Joel, of New York:
An episode in which Gil Favor shows a decidely unattractive side to his personality. I liked this episode a lot, even though it did not have any guest stars. Favor is constantly harping and criticizing his crew and acting distinctly like a royal pain in the butt. He hires three new drovers, who are good but inexperienced men, and Favor also pushes out Quince for getting slow, and the others (Rowdy, Pete and Scarlet) quit. Favor eventually learns that there is a value in experience. The inexperienced new drovers almost cost him his herd.
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Myron King, of Robinson, Texas:
Three days out of Laredo, Favor is bearing down on his crew. Concerned about his men and convinced that Jim is past his prime, Favor dismisses Quince, with Collins, Pete, Rowdy and Joe subsequently quitting. Favor, who has hired new men, discovers that the inexperienced new hires aren't able to control the herd, which stampedes. The five experienced crew members return to the herd.
In this one, Gil shows how surly he can be. It is well acted and written. Skip Homeier plays Jess Clayton as does an excellent job in his portrayal.
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Myron King, of Waco, Texas:
Jim leaves the drive to go to Hondo Seco, where his brother, Judge Matthew Quince, is none too happy that his daughter wants to get married to a man convicted of murder.
While not focusing on the drive, this episode nevertheless is an intense and intriguing story with fine performances by Steve Raines, Ralph Bellamy, and Anne Whitfield. Perry Lafferty's direction is topflight throughout, as is John Nickolaus' photography. |
Timothy Booher, Bristol, TN:
Synopsis:
Rowdy, Pete, Hey Soos, and Quince are trailing a band of supposedly renegade, reservation-jumping Indians who have just stolen some of Favor's cattle. The band is wanted by local authorities, who consider them a threat. In reality they are a peaceful tribe led by Little Hawk who happens to be Pete Nolan's father-in-law. After his wife died Pete had left the tribe. The Indians want only to go to Mexico, where they can live free in peace. Pete quarrels with his friends about whether or not to let the Indians have the stolen cattle, and he must go against their wishes, which leads him to disaffect temporarily from the herd in order to play guide and lead the Indians to the promised land.
Review: A good one for Pete fans. This one has a lot of background info. Strangely enough, most television western heroes of the late 50's seem to have been widowers, though often, as in the this case, the widow is only ever brought up once. Sheb Wooley gets his chance to give a good emotional performance as Pete torn between two different camps of friends, wanting as always to do the right thing. Unfortunately, the rest of the actors don't sit as well. Abraham Sofair as Little Hawk comes across about as well in his role as the Pillsbury Doughboy, with his stilted lines and wooden, expressionless acting. Shirley Temple would have been a better candidate to play an Indian chief. Sonya Wilde as White Deer spends most of the episode staring into space, speaking of her uncharted Mexican destination, as if she is about to wake up in Oz with a bunch of Munchkins at her feet. The name White Deer is a very good handle for this obviously Caucasian actress. Larry Chance as Two Eagles (another recycled, wooden Indian name) is apparently killed by Pete in one scene, only to reappear in the next alive, hale, and hearty. A very good try, but often offensive in its treatment of Native Americans. Also, a side note, Lone Ranger star John Hart makes a second appearance briefly as the sheriff tracking Little Hawk's band.
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Timothy Booher, Bristol, TN:
Synopsis:
While picking up a string of scrubs from a rancher named Craddock, Favor is saddled with Craddock's foreman, Clay Forester, a cocky, somewhat arrogant man who seems to take delight in his skills as a cowman. He moves up quickly in the ranks from dragman, hoping to eventually become ramrod. In actual fact, Forester is in with a gang of thieves led by Craddock himself, whose main goal is to relieve Favor of his herd. When Favor's men start disappearing one at a time, Clay reveals himself to be more than a trusted man when he turns on his boss to help Favor and crew.
Review: Good action-packed episode which is notable for its being the introduction of a new character named Clay Forester, who I presume was brought in to replace the soon to be out of the picture Sheb Wooley. Actor Charles Gray, however, like new producer Endre Bohem, was no newcomer to the series, having earlier played a character named Flagg who came and went from time to time, much like our friend Collins. Chris Alcaide, the suave, dashing, bad man whose face and name graced many a sagebrush yarn in them golden days makes his second appearance as Craddock, and Anne Helm--another familiar face--shows up here as well. Her character as cavalryman's wife roaming the prairie alone seems to be another one of those characters searching for an exit that our drovers were constantly running into. This one is very similar to "Incident at Dragoon Crossing" from season two, though sorely lacking the depth in character development and motivation from that earlier episode.
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Timothy Booher, Bristol, TN:
Synopsis:
When a stray sheep spooks the herd, Jim Quince is badly hurt in a fall from his horse. Rowdy and Favor go looking for the owner of the herd to warn him to keep himself and his flock at a distance. They find a super cool Tod Stone, who lets his herding dog do all of the work while he spends his days fishing. Rowdy and Stone have words, and when the meeting goes nowhere, Rowdy and Collins decide to sneak back later in the night and stampede Stone's flock, not realizing that sheep won't stampede. In retaliation, Stone stampedes Favor's herd. After rounding up the next morning, Gil, Rowdy, and Collins return to Stone's flock to apologize.
Best intentions take a turn for the worse when Rowdy and Stone get into a terrible fight and Stone falls on his fish scaling knife. Not dead but badly hurt and delirious, Stone is taken back to the herd and cared for by Wishbone. Favor blames Rowdy and forces him to either take Stone and his flock back home to his family or lose his job. The duo pass through country where sheep men are hated and persecuted by cattlemen, who think Rowdy is one of the sheep herders. Rowdy realizes exactly what its like to encounter prejudiced people such as himself, and Stone finds out what it's like to be a cattleman, seeing his grass eaten away by the despised woolies.
When Rowdy gets Stone home he returns to the herd to discover that the land where the sheepherders are pastured is laden with anthrax. The only recourse is for the herders to cross a river where the cattlemen have laid claim. Favor promises a war if they cross. With eight sheep herders versus twenty cattlemen, Rowdy must do the right thing--go against his boss and take the side of the sheep men.
Review: Talented Richard Basehart is wonderful as the colorful sheep man Tod Stone, whose nonchalant attitude hides his guilt for having been involved in the death of kinfolk. This is a wonderful episode in many ways, though it concerns the oft-repeated cattle-versus-sheep theme which was a factor in many other westerns. Nonetheless it has much to recommend. For starters, Gil and Rowdy ain't good guys here. In fact, not since "Incident of the Coyote Weed" in season one have they been portrayed in such a ruthless light. Rowdy begins the episode with a prejudiced heart and ends it still only half reformed. Favor is ice cold as he first takes Stone's side and makes Rowdy take the unpleasant journey, then later recants his open-mindedness by wanting to start a blindsided war with an adversary that cannot properly defend himself.
A good example of how the trail boss would rather make a fool of himself by doing it his way than listen to someone else's advice and triumph. He nearly shoots his ramrod and trusted confidant just because he gets in the way of a personal vendetta. All the actors are excellent and the script is well thought. The thinly veiled racial prejudice moral here was nothing new or ground breaking even in its time, when television was growing up with the world around it, and nearly every TV western was in a mad rush to be different and distinguish itself from routine horse opera status. Still, it's an important message and one that needs to be told no matter how many times it's repeated.
Tidbit: This was the episode which Italian director Sergio Leone viewed to first became aware of Clint Eastwood in his search for an American actor who could play a new kind of western hero, "The Man with No Name". Oddly enough, all three of the characters which Eastwood would play in his three historic spaghetti westerns had names. The rest is cinema history.
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Timothy Booher, Bristol, TN:
Synopsis:
Something or someone with a strange scent is spooking Gil Favor's lead steer, which refuses to move until this unseen threat is removed from the surrounding area. Upon examination, Favor finds a traveling circus and manages to talk the circus owner, a clown named Pascal, into moving on as soon as possible. One stipulation though. The circus folk know nothing of the area and are lost and need the help of a guide. Favor agrees to lend them one of his men, but after noticing Pascal's jealous streak toward anyone who gives his beautiful young wife more than a second glance, he decides not to send Pete but rather Wishbone, who is older and less likely to attract female attention. This proves to be a less than wise choice, as Wish's all too fatherly attitude comes into play when the young girl is hurt in an accident while trying to escape from her husband. Wishbone is eventually dragged into a scheme to help the young woman get away from her irate husband, and hefaces the wrath of the murderously jealous Pascal.
Review: Another well acted psycho-drama. Lawrence Dobkin gives a multi-layered performance as a man going through a mid-life crisis who turns his heartache into rage towards his jealous wife. Similar to "Incident of His Brothers Keeper" with Jack Lord. The circus theme gives this one a sort of claustrophobic feel, and we worry about our beloved Wishbone, who is put in harm's way when he is less than able to defend himself. Billy Barty, midget actor and staunch advocate for little people's rights, is cast here as well as Gloria Talbot, returning from season two's "Incident of the Broken Word." B-Western star Britt Lomond is Dario, the main target of Pascal's rage. A very good one. More fun than a herd of monkeys, lions and tigers.
Note: Actor Lawrence Dobkin passed away on October 28, 2002, after a career spanning six decades. Billy Barty also passed away December 23, 2000. In a sad world where nearly every actor today relies on looks and physique instead of acting skills, these two non-conformists will indeed be missed.
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Myron King, of Waco, TX:
Tom Gwynn is carrying a cannister of shad and wants Gil to help him. Favor, however, is riding his drovers hard because he has learned of a panic in the east and has been told not to tell any of the drovers. When Gwynn slows them down, Gil is even more furious.
I am not especially enamored of this episode because Charles Larson's script leaves much to be desired. The man telling Favor of the panic instructs Gil not to tell the others "for their own good". I disagree. He should have told them about the panic. Then, too, Larson has more than one plot going on (i.e.: Gwynn in his shad experiments, another man wanting to do harm to Gwynn, Favor being surly and causing an uproar.) Moreover, the resolution of the panic is never revealed. Instead, the story ends with Gil finding another cannister of shad--after Gwynn sacrifices nearly all of them, to save Gil's life. Burgess Meredith turns in a nice performance as does Phyllis Coates. Overall, however, The Little Fishes needed much improvement.
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Timothy Booher, Bristol, TN:
Synopsis:
While having a night camp discussion about their assorted involvements in the war, the drovers are confronted by a woman, the lone survivor of a stagecoach massacre. The woman, an actress living under an assumed name, is Pauline Cushman, former Union army spy with Southern origins. At first she pulls the wool over the eyes of the smitten drovers, but her identity is revealed by a drover who had once been romantically involved with Miss Cushman. She had betrayed him, cost him his rank, and sent him to prison.
The drovers, mostly ex confederates, despise Cushman and want her to be left in the desert to die, but Favor insist that she accompany them as far as the nearest town, 40 miles away. As the drive progresses, tension mounts and the drovers haze Miss Cushman, who shows her spunk and grit by never backing ashamedly away from what she has done in the past. The anger of the drovers comes to a boiling point and the crew breaks into two camps, those who support Favor's decision and those who want to undermine his authority and force him into abandoning the female spy in the wilderness. The latter camp leaves the herd, stealing all the water, but the thirsty drovers hold to their conviction. Pauline Cushman comes away as a hero when she faces her enemies in an effort to save Favor and his trusted confidants.
Review: This bare bones story written by award winning western movie writer Warren Douglas has the drovers in another insurmountable situation, torn between conscience and hatred. No good guys, no bad guys, just men fueled by hate and psychological scars they can never live down. An ensemble cast led by saucy veteran Phyllis Thaxter, who, as Pauline Cushman, adds just the right amount of spice, bravado, and guilt to the multifaceted character.
Lyle Bettger, as always excellent and understated, makes his second appearance as the exhausted, embittered Dan Maddox, a man who is still trapped by his love for a woman who betrayed him but who is unable to trust her or to show it. As Maddox, Bettger makes us feel his pain, alienation, and confusion, a rare talent from a gifted actor who was all too often placed in roles that were really beneath his talent and stature. Eric Fleming also comes across surprisingly good as Mr. Favor, for once willing to compromise and seek a peaceful ending over spilling the blood of his friends. He is much changed from his character in the episode "The Black Sheep," in which he avoids compromise and stubbornly insists upon doing the wrong thing just to prove that he can have his way.
Charles Aidman returns as the sole ex-Union voice of the drovers. By no small coincidence he happens to be the only person sympathetic to Pauline Cushman on the drive. Skillfully directed by Sobey Martin, who uses the lighting in night camp scenes--which were obviously filmed indoors--to create a feel similar to the one used by John Ford in his classic sound stage western "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance". The results here are absolutely heartfelt and will almost bring a tear to your eye. A very definite classic and every bit as good as anything ever done by Charles Marquis Warren. If only Endre Bohem could have kept cranking out episodes like this one.
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Timothy Booher, Bristol, TN:
Synopsis:
Lord Ashton, a British nobleman, comes west to hunt buffalo. He becomes embroiled in a feud with renegade buffalo hunter Bison Bob Driscoll, who eventually shoots him in the back. Gil Favor finds the dying lord just in time to impress him with his manners. Believing that Favor and crew are amongst the only true gentlemen in the west, the lord leaves his personal valet (servant), Woolsey, in Gil Favors care.
The valet sets about treating Favor like royalty, which threatens to diminish the respect of his men, who see the boss as being a hardworking equal trying to set a good example. Meanwhile, Driscoll and his band of outlaw hide hunters show up once again, threatening to burn all the nearby grass in an effort to smoke out buffalo. A shortage of grass means hungry beef. Without sufficient guns to fight the buffalo hunters, Favor and Pete follow their only recourse, going to the nearest town to try and get aid. Unfortunately, the town is very much anti-drover, and they value the buffalo hunters who bring commerce. The townsfolk change their mind, however, when they discover that Favor and company are associated with Lord Ashton, not knowing of his death. The drovers concoct a scheme in which Woolsey impersonates Lord Ashley.
Review: Hollywood was once big on a genre known as the 'Buddy Movie,' which explored the macho traditions of male bonding. I think this episode falls into this category. Favor and Woolsey, excellently drawn and portrayed by British actor Brian Aherne, at first stumble around one another, but over time develop a close relationship. While the human interest factor abounds in this one it doesn't slow down the action at all. Buffalo hunters are portrayed in a very hard but realistic light here. Of the additional guest cast, Jay Silverheels, everyone's favorite Indian sidekick, is Pawnee Joe, the Lord's guide. Richard Shannon is Driscoll. Hardcore Rawhide fans may take note that Shannon had appeared alongside fellow Rawhide alumni Paul Brinegar, Charles Grey, Rocky Shahan, and Steve Raines in the 1958 film "Cattle Drive," which was directed by Charles Marquis Warren.
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Timothy Booher, Bristol, TN:
Synopsis:
A conman named Bateman shows up at the herd in the middle of July with his family in tow. Claiming that his son is sick and may not live to see Christmas, he cons the drovers into having a midsummer night's Christmas party. Gil is away from the herd, so the gullible Rowdy is in charge. As is his past tendency, he allows himself to be taken in, going as far as to leave the herd in the middle of a thunderstorm to hunt a wild stallion that the boy has cast his eyes upon. An angry Favor returns to the herd to find his ramrod laid up in bad shape, and he unearths Bateman's plot. However, close examination from a doctor finds that a member of Bateman's family really doesn't have long enough to live to see Christmas, this being his weak-hearted wife. The drovers decide to go ahead and have the party.
Review: Rawhide's first and to my knowledge only Christmas episode. It is traditional for nearly every series to do one no matter how ill suited the series may be to the season. At least they had the good sense to stray away from the corny, all too often repeated Scrooge theme. In keeping with its dusty tradition, the party and 'Incident' take place in July. (Does it ever rain or snow on this drive even after four years on the trail?) I'll admit I was all prepared to hate this one when I came home from work, rewound my tape, and the first thing I saw was Mushy dressed as a reindeer playing in reverse. All in all it wasn't too bad, but a bit more dressing and cranberry sauce to go with the turkey they had for a script could have spiced things up very nicely. If only Rawhide had done a Thanksgiving episode instead!
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Myron King, of Waco, TX:
Gil, Quince, Collins, and Hey Soos go to Fort Tracy to get more supplies after the wagon turns over. They encounter Comancheros, who steal their pack horses. At the fort, they discover it nearly deserted and later discover that Nora Holloway, wife of the captain, issued orders to have every able soldier join him at Pertil Canyon She did it so he could get a transfer to Washington when he defeats the Comancheros. SHE wants to go to the nation's capitol Her scheme puts the lives of everyone else at the fort in grave danger.
Although it doesn't center around the drive, this is a fine episode with wonderful performances by all, especially Barbara Stanwyck It is well directed by Tay Garnett, and John Dunkel's script is top-notch.
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Mirna Cicioni, Melbourne, Australia:
Borscht-belt comedian Shelley Berman is delightful as Mendel Sorkin, a Dutch Jew who is crossing Texas on his way back to Europe. Favor and his crew take him under their wing after seeing his pathetic efforts to move on his herd of twelve scrawny cows, but soon their pity turns to admiration for his pleasant ways, resourcefulness, and sharp business sense. After getting the drovers out of two difficult spots and outwitting Favor once, Sorkin eventually gives up his plan to return to the Old Country and settles down with a spirited 'Indian' girl and her tribe.
While the 'Indian' tribe is represented somewhat condescendingly, Sorkin's Jewishness is a little stereotypical, but treated with warmth and empathy. Dimitri Tiomkin's score also contains many echoes of kletzmer tunes.
Best features: George Kennedy as a particularly nasty (and short-lived) villain, and Quince's line when Sorkin is trying to sell Favor his cows: "We wouldn't buy them if they were free."
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Myron King, Waco, Texas:
The drovers encounter Mendel Sorkin of Holland, who is driving a small herd of cattle. He joins the cattle drive and manages to get help Favor in his quest for money. Later, a young Indian woman joins the drive and she and Sorkin fall in love.
This is an excellent story with fine performances by the cast, headed by guest star Shelley Berman. Fred Steiner's musical score contributes much to this superb episode.
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Timothy Booher, Bristol, TN:
Synopsis: Favor and Yates get involved in the troubles of a wagon train load of women who are going west to get hitched to prospective grooms, or so they think. In reality they are being duped by a crooked businessman who is involved with a cattle rustling ring. They are really going to a 'Hole in the Wall' outlaw hideout to marry up with members of his gang in order to keep a sense of family amongst his hired henchmen and keep the gang together happily. When Gil and Rowdy discover the truth they are held hostage along with the women.
Review: Several notable appearances distinguish this episode, which is overall pretty bland. Marion Ross, later Mrs. Marion Cunningham of 'Happy Days' fame, is one of the women who meets her death relatively early in the show. Karen Steele, veteran actress and starlet who graced many fine films, is also on hand, as is future 'Gilligan's Island' skipper Alan Hale as the gruff wagon master. The story here is a bit contrived as the mail order bride theme was a familiar one in its day. The best performance here is by Robert Gist in his third Rawhide appearance as the diabolical Harleck, a classic 60's villain, one of those types who pop up more often in spy movies, intent on mass destruction and dictatorship. Here he brings a sense of purpose to a role that would have been a bit dry and uninspired in the wrong hands. He refers to his business as 'Moonlight Cattle,' and his performance nearly saves the episode. Unfortunately the damsels in distress here nearly bring the show to a stop, and Gil and Rowdy sometimes seem like the guys who always pop up in the nick of time to save the girls from being run over by a train after the snidely villain has tied them to a track. You get the picture. A bit too melodramatic and highly uninspired. Good entertainment for hardcore Rawhide buffs only.
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Myron King, Robinson, TX:
Review: Favor and Yates become involved with a wagon train of women who are supposedly going to Fort Worth to get married, but they are being forced to go to West Texas to get married to cow rustlers.
About the only thing that makes this one worth a look is the roster of future TV stars Marion Ross and Alan Hale. Other than that, this one stinks!
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Myron King, Waco, TX:
The drive is stopped, as part of the Chisolm trail is blocked by the ranch of Vance Caldwell. Which means the herd would have to go through the desert. Meanwhile, Caldwell, Eleanor Bradley, and Favor's daughters arrive in Masefield. Caldwell later wants to marry Eleanor and adopt Gillian and Maggie.
This is not an especially great story. For one, there are three stories going on at once: the herd being blocked, the daughters joining the drive, and Vance's desire to marry Eleanor and adopt the kids. Still, it has good performances. Sobey Martin keeps the story moving well. Watch for a mispelling during the credits, Maggie's name is mispelled "Maggi."
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Timothy Booher, Bristol, TN:
Synopsis: Gil and Pete are cashiered into the army after a major for whom Pete had once scouted plays upon their sympathy. The reluctant Favor is returned to his rank as a colonel, which he had held in the confederate army a decade earlier. Their assignment is to find a group of soldiers who have been lost while on patrol and to escort them out of a potentially dangerous situation in a hostile area and bring them back to safety at the fort. What they don't realize is that the patrol had really deserted to save their own skin and do not wish to return to the army. To make matters worse, some of the men had served under Favor's command during the war, and all of them hate him.
While Gil is busy rounding up the deserters, Pete is trying to help a peace loving Pawnee chief stop his own people from going on a rampage. Gil is captured by the deserters but regains his command and the respect of his men when they are attacked by the Pawnees. Meanwhile, the bloodthirsty hostile contingent of Pawnees kill their leader because they think he has betrayed them. Outnumbered and in a hopeless situation, the deserters patrol receives some unexpected help from Pete and the 'ghost' of the former Pawnee chieftain.
Review: Decent actioner, notable as the episode where Pete Nolan exits the series. (The character was commissioned by the army as a scout; in reality, Sheb Wooley left to continue his successful career as country music singer.) The first half of this one may seem like a typical, oft repeated cavalry/injuns story, and as a whole the plot ain't much, but this one has plenty of plot twists, wonderful scenes, and excellent characterizations--all the things that made even the worst Rawhide episodes enjoyable. Favor really shines in this one. We get to see the rugged trail boss fit and trim in a cavalry uniform, and the scene in which he is unwillingly talked into reassuming his command is a real gem: he expresses his reluctance and disgust through a series of exaggerated facial expressions unlike any he has made before. All of this adds to the aura and mystique of Mr. Favor and of Eric Fleming, the superb actor who was rarely given his chance to properly show off his skills. Of the guest cast the standouts are Jock Gaynor--as the Pawnee chief who arises from the grave with a bit of help from Pete Nolan--and Don Megowan--who plays Corporal Cochran, a man with a long-standing grudge against Favor, who once cost him his rank. While this episode probably never won any awards and will never go down as a landmark in television history, it's so much fun to watch that it warrants a special place in the Rawhide episode list.
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Timothy Booher, Bristol, TN:
Synopsis: Clay Forrester is approached with an offer he can't refuse. By returning to a small town where he had been stationed while in the army, he was involved in the murder trial of a rebellious young outlaw named Buddy Randolph. Now Mrs. Randolph, Buddy's mother, has returned to the town to see that her son's name is cleared. She is a very wealthy woman and will pay any exorbitant price to see that the tarnish is removed from her son's memory. Clay is willing to go along with the scheme and even perjures himself in court to get the money, not fully knowing the darker side of the widow Randolph's plot. She has an exceptional hatred of the hard-nosed but honest town sheriff, and part of her stipulation is that he be run out of town. When the noble lawman refuses to leave, the townsfolk turn their greed into rage, and they are willing to commit murder.
Review: This is the episode that really introduced Clay Forrester to the fans. While he had made several appearances earlier in the role, actor Charles Gray was predominately unknown to fans, and the series producers took a big gamble by basing an entire episode around him. From the start the character goes out of his way not to be a hero or a man worthy of idolization. He is greedy, self-centered, and egotistical, and even worse, he stands by as the town bullies anyone who doesn't go along with Mrs. Randolph's diabolical scheme. The script is top notch, a good way to break the new character in, and the morality play is heightened by yet another wonderful appearance by the legendary Mercedes McCambridge as Mrs. Randolph, as well as by J. Pat O'Malley, a legend in his own right.
One rather annoying aspect of this episode, though it certainly isn't a loose end, is that the name Buddy Randolph keeps coming up over and over again, although the character is already dead and we don't even get a glimpse or a flashback scene. Other appearances worth noting are Diane Milay, not far away from cult status for her role in "Dark Shadows", and last but certainly not least one of my all time favorite cinema cowboys, Jim Davis as sheriff Jason. As most of us all know, Davis went on to greater fame for his role on the long running 'Dallas' series, playing Jock Ewing (that's J. R.'s father). Jim Davis spent most of his life playing in low budget outdoor films, with an occasional small part here or there in a John Wayne movie. He finally found his big break a bit late in life with the Dallas role. While Dallas wasn't really a western, it's Texas setting and large ties to the "Urban Cowboy" country music movement of the day allowed Jim Davis to do what he always did best and with a natural grace, play a rugged individualist type and of course dress the part, as no one looked better in a Stetson than Jim Davis. Sadly, not unlike our beloved Eric Fleming, who was on the verge of major stardom when he was called away, Jim Davis didn't have much time to enjoy his new-found success. After only about two and a half seasons on Dallas, Jim Davis died of brain cancer at the age of 72. Dallas certainly was never the same again and neither was the western movie genre, which was built by such rugged he-men. RIP
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Myron King, of Waco, Texas:
A drover is killed along the trail. The drovers have a concert to help his widow. Rowdy sings "Beyond The Sun"--a special treat!
This is a nice episode in which Buddy Ebsen appears. Later in 1962 he would become Jed Clampett on the Beverly Hillbillies. All of the performances are excellent, as is Clint Eastwood's fine singing. A must for all Rawhide fans.
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Timothy Booher, of Bristol, TN:
Side note: Turkey Creek Jack Johnson, the character portrayed by the legendary Jack Elam, in his only Rawhide appearance, was actually a real life figure and noted gunman in the old west. While the real Turkey Creek Jack Johnson is a bit hard to research and not much is known about the man, his foray into western history came as part of his friendship with Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday and his involvement in Tombstone in the early 1880's. Creek Johnson accompanied Wyatt Earp's posse which sought revenge against the Clanton gang following their infamous gunfight at the O. K. Corral and the subsequent murder of Wyatt's brother Morgan and the crippling of Tombstone Marshal Virgil Earp by Clanton associates. Creek Johnson was portrayed onscreen by Buck Taylor (Newly of Gunsmoke fame) in the 1993 film 'Tombstone' with Kurt Russell and Val Kilmer.
Also of note, Jack Elam and Hugh Marlowe both appearing in this episode had been members of the psychotic outlaw gang in the 1951 psychological western 'Rawhide' with Tyrone Power and Susan Hayward.
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Myron King, of Waco, Texas:
The drovers befriend a young Indian boy named Arnee, who lives on the Silver River Canyon reservation. He and his tribe are starving for buffalo and desires to go to Fort Lacy, where his sister is, for help. Rowdy takes Arnee to the fort, which is commanded by Indian-hating Colonel Matthew Briscoe. Arnee's sister, Azuela, is disguised as a Spaniard and is married to the colonel. The couple have a baby boy and Azuela denies knowing Arnee.
Intense story focusing more on characterization. The episode features powerful performances by guest stars James Coburn and Debra Paget. The script was written by Bronson Howitzer and was directed by Harmon Jones. A bit talkative at times, but still a nice Rawhide episode.
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Timothy Booher, of Bristol, TN:
Synopsis: Clay, Quince, and Wishbone accidentally run across a portion of the herd which is anthrax-laden, and they are forced to stay with the cattle long enough to destroy them. While they are in the process of doing so, however, they are captured by a group of immigrants, German soldiers led by the exiled Count Ulrich, who was once a great German cavalry leader under Kaiser Wilhelm II (how's that for solid research?). After leading a bungled mission and getting most of his men killed, Ulrich had been sent to live in the American west with his expensive living bill being footed by the German government. Naturally, he thinks that everything within a hundred miles of his domain belongs to him, including drovers who wander beyond their boundaries. Not fully understanding American culture, and being used to having slaves and bond servants, the count holds the trio of drovers hostage and forces them to do backbreaking odd jobs on his farm.
Review: Quite well done character study of Ulrich by Dutch character actor John Van Dreelin. Out of the cast of 'Germans', he's actually the only actor here with any legitimate credentials to play the part, the rest of the cast being predominately Americans trying their best to get the dialect. This leads to quite a few bloopers as most of the cast members slip out of their accents at least once during the episode. Even Van Dreelin seems to be putting it on a little heavy and comes across at times as a Hollywood German rather than an authentic one. Still, Ulrich is well developed in the course of an hour, as an arrogant and cruel but noble character who has been deceived by his own government and punishes everyone around him because of it.
Tidbit: Wishbone mentions having ran across a settlement of German immigrants on the trail a few years back. Could he be referring to the starving families in "Incident of the Music Maker" from the second season?
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Timothy Booher, of Bristol, TN:
Synopsis: Mushy leaves the herd to find his niece, Posie Mushgrove, who is allegedly a famous and wealthy young actress. In reality, the 15-year-old girl is working in a saloon owned by a sleazy entrepreneur named 'Big Tim'. Mushy attempts to help her escape and is brutally beaten by one of Big Tim's henchmen. When the drovers discover this, they leave the herd against Favor's wishes to seek revenge against Tim and his hired goons. Favor shows up hoping to avert trouble. Instead, a fight breaks out, and Big Tim blames Favor for the trouble. The drovers win the brawl and Posie is forced to leave the saloon and accompany the drovers for her own good but against her wishes. She becomes very resentful of Favor and runs away from the herd back to her former employer, who talks her into returning in an attempt to get even with Favor, whom he blames for wrecking his saloon and stealing his prize female attraction. With a little help from the naive Posie, Big Tim traps Favor, who is temporarily blinded in an accident and can't see to fight back.
Review: A fine episode with wonderful performances by Jena Engstrom as Posie Mushgrove and Cesar Romero in the second of several eventual appearances as Big Tim. Talky in some parts but solid and well made. Mr. Favor and Posie work together very well and build a relationship, first founded upon scorn, but they gradually gain a better understanding of one another. Romero's virtual pimp Tim is one of Rawhide's most well drawn characters. He is one of the truly despicable series villains who has no justification for his evil ways and seems to be motivated only by greed and selfishness. A very realistic portrayal of how saloon owners in the west were often without conscience in their business with women. Sadly, much of this still goes on today, and shades of Posie Mushgrove can be seen in the childlike femininity brought to the big screen by Jodie Foster in Martin Scorsese's contemporary (1976) classic Taxi Driver. An episode which tried hard to mask its true intentions to please the moral watchdogs at CBS, but thankfully it conveyed itself well. A fine piece of television for any era or time period.
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Timothy Booher, of Bristol, TN:
Synopsis: When a drover is hurt internally and near death, Gil and Rowdy go to the nearest town to seek medical aid. They find a woman doctor, an outcast in her town because of her sex who is not very well liked by the drovers either for the same reason. Favor agrees to use her services, but Rowdy doesn't like the decision, which he feels could endanger the life of his friend. The two clash, but theirs a more serious problem. Another doctor, a charlatan, has framed the lady for a crime she didn't commit, and with one of his boys lying on the operating table, Favor and company are forced to break the law, which wants to take the doctor to jail before the operation can be finished. This episode concludes with Favor and Yates digging up a grave to prove the innocence of the lady doctor.
Review: One of two episodes written by Eric Fleming with writer Chris Miller, it strongly plays around the characters of the doc, played by Gail Kobe, and Gil Favor. In look, feel, story construction, and plotting, this episode is almost like a trip back in time three years to that first 1959 season. The episode has much to be admired, but it fails also in many areas. First, it seems like a remake of "Incident at Red River Station," and secondly, it seems to take the old idea that women are the weaker sex. While on the surface it looks as though our lady hero is portrayed in a noble manner, she is often forced to concede that gals just can't cut it in a man's world. In today's feminist environment this show would have stirred up a lot of controversy, but due to the social climate of its time, no one thought anything about it back then. A fine episode, with good performances by Kobe and Jacques Aubuchan as the rival doctor, but definitely not Dr. Quinn.
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Joel, of New York:
Reunion marks the brief return of Pete Nolan (Sheb Wooley) to the show. Walter Pidgeon plays an Army General who is intent on waging war on the Pawnees due to some hostile action of the peace-loving Chief's militant son. The General gets into trouble with Army scout Pete Nolan and his own son, played by Darryl Hickman. Nolan warns the Favor cattle drive crew about hositle Indians and is threatened with court martial by Pidgeon. While it was great to see Pete Nolan back, the episode was weak in many ways.
1. Historically, the Pawnees were not in Texas but in the Northern Plains, and they were our allies not enemies.
2. The final shoot-out scene was poorly filmed.
3. Pidgeon was so rigid and harsh that he almost was a cliche of the hard ass officer (his nickname in the episode actually was "Hard Pants.")
This show was in the 4th season (1961-62), and I am starting to notice that the episodes after the third season went into decline. The writng is not that good, and the guys are not really great actors unless they have strong guest stars. Clint Eastwood did not appear in this episode. The original producer Charles Marquis Warren is missed.
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Timothy W. Booher, of Bristol, TN:
Synopsis: Pete Nolan--in his first but not last return to the series--has just finished negotiating a deal with the Pawnee to deliver 3,000 head of cattle to the hungry tribe, when General Perry, a stern disciplinarian, shows up and cancels the deal. Facing a court martial, Pete sets out to stop a war by superceding Perry's authority and going to the Favor herd to ask for scrub cattle for the Indians. A sub-plot deals with the relationship between Perry and his son and the Indian chief and his son.
Review: The fourth season was a mixed bag in quality, ranging from excellent (The Sendoff, The Captain's Wife) to extremely poor (25 Santa Clauses, House of the Hunter). Then there were the so-so episodes of which this is one. It was obviously influenced by John Ford's trio of cavalry films (Fort Apache, Rio Grande, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon), all of which focused on the relationship between a stern army officer and his soft-hearted son or daughter, and it features a sometimes stiff, sometimes inspired performance by Walter Pidgeon as Perry. This is about the third or fourth time this season that the show has taken up the cavalry theme (earlier on the cavalry had been a sort of fixture in the landscape), and the show is beginning to look like F-Troop, the only difference being that F-Troop was intentionally funny. The climatic scene in this one, in which both General Perry and the Indian chief played by Anthony Caruso lose their sons to seal the peace, is intended to drive home a hard message, but the effect is ruined by wooden dialogue and overall bad direction and acting from actors who were experienced and should have been a bit more professional. Perhaps they were tired of playing the same stale roles over and over again.
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Myron King, of Robinson, TX:
Army scout Pete Nolan has just made a deal to deliver cattle to a Pawnee tribe. A tough party-pooper general cancels the deal. That action doesn't sit well with Nolan or the general's son.
Did I use the phrase "party-pooper"? I sure did. Despite the appearance of guest star Walter Pidgeon as well as some suspense, there is too much sub-plotting a là the current versions of the daytime soaps for my taste. I have to add that the shootout sequence toward the end was a disappointment. Party-pooper indeed! |
Timothy W. Booher, of Bristol, TN:
Rowdy Yates is lured to a remote house along with a handful of assorted characters, and he is trapped inside for no apparent reason. In truth, they are being held there by a madman because each of them had inadvertently and unknowingly been involved in the death of his son, a dangerous criminal.
Review: One of those seemingly obligatory bad episodes that every great series makes once in a while. Writer David Lang, the man responsible for such wonderful earlier episodes as "Incident of the Coyote Weed" and "Incident of the Widowed Dove," has apparently spent many long nights playing the board game 'CLUE' to come up with this lackluster suspense thriller. Actor Robert F. Simon returns to the series as the drunken madman, a total waste of his talent. The only decent scene in this one is where the deaf mute (we'll refer to him as Mr. Death) visits the drovers' night camp. Even then the oafish Mr. Death looks more dumb than frightening, and the scene looks like a thin rehash of the first scene from "Incident of the Blue Fire". The ending of this one still has me puzzled as to how they made the actress girl look like Robert F. Simon's son. (I'm sure this madman had a full make-up and wardrobe department in the basement along with all his mad scientist gear.) What's even more unbelievable is that a brilliant genius who could concoct such a scheme would be gullible enough to believe it and become a victim of his own trap. Had this been "The Wild Wild West" it would have made for a great show, but Rawhide was never meant to stretch the imagination this far in spite of some very brilliant scripts. For a better look at Robert F. Simon in his prime on Rawhide, treat yourself to the excellent "Incident at Red River Station" from season two and avoid this mess.
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Timothy W. Booher, of Bristol, TN:
Synopsis: Favor and crew run into another cattle drive being headed by an elderly but tough trail boss. He is murdered early on by one of the owners, who has discovered that the herd is infected with Texas Tick Fever and wants to go ahead with the drive without reporting it to the authorities. The owner and the wife of the deceased trail boss, who is in on the scam, appeal to Favor to take over their herd and push it into Abilene ahead of his own. This means that the first herd will get top dollar for its beef, and coming in second in the sweepstake will mean a pay cut for the crew. Naturally the drovers feel betrayed by Favor's decisiona, and after taking the other crew into Abilene, Favor returns to find his own men have deserted him. He is stuck out on the prairie alone with a huge herd and no drovers.
Review: Another back to basics episode which is reminiscent of earlier shows from the first three seasons. Above average for the fourth season, which is beginning to pull itself back together after a few dismal failures. Favor's decision to help a fellow trail boss in a bad predicament (or in this case to complete a mission after his death) is a good exploration of how men bound by profession will stick together when the chips are down.
Tidbit: Actor Ted De Corsia, in the episode's best performance as the short lived trail boss, had a few years earlier portrayed a true life Texas trail boss of the 1870's named Shanghi Pierce in the classic western film "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral."
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Timothy W. Booher, of Bristol, TN:
Synopsis: The drive reaches Abilene only to have one of its drovers come down with a serious case of smallpox. The local authorities quarantine all of the drovers in a hotel. which doesn't sit well with most of them, who want to go out and have some fun. Mr. Favor has a different reason for wanting out. He has a limited amount of time to put a down payment on his ranch before someone else buys it out from under him. Several escape attempts are made and the drovers' restlessness is complicated both by a troublemaking former drover, who shows up urging their rebellion, and another drover who is trying hard to save his money so he can quit the drive and settle down: he wants no part of card games and the crooked faro dealers who infest Abilene.
Review: For the second time the drive hits the railhead, this time in an uneven conclusion. Several loose ends and pretensions hurt this episode. First off, the trouble maker in this one is played by Bing Russell, father of actor Kurt Russell and best remembered as the deputy Clem on 'Bonanza'. When the character is first introduced we are told that he has a score to settle with Rowdy, who got him kicked off the drive. Later when they meet, however, the two appear to be best friends, and they end the episode more or less the same way. The idea of Favor paying promissory money for a farm that could be sold right out from under his nose is dumb, and in most cases the owners would have given him an extension had they gotten word that he had cash in hand. Highly improbable, though perhaps it's possible, but it still seems contrived to keep the episode moving. The ending of this one is abrupt when the doctor simply releases them with a good bill of health. A good dramatic subplot involves another drover, played by minor western player Ken Lynch, who wants to settle down and save his money. He attempts to quit the drive and unsuccessfully tries to alienate himself from the other drovers to stay out of trouble. A wonderful scene here, involving Toothless playing poker with his false teeth for collateral, was most likely inspired by a similar scene in the classic film Red River--a very liberal influence on Rawhide and one the writers seemed unafraid to view from time to time for inspiration. All in all a pretty good ending, but it could have been better. Look for the episode's classic blooper: when the cowboys hit town, stock footage from 'Incident of the Widowed Dove' is used. Not only do all the actors look much younger, but Pete Nolan is seen extensively in close up shots, even though his character has supposedly left the drive at this point.
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Rawhide: 1959-65 (CBS)
Eric Fleming as Gil Favor
Clint Eastwood as Rowdy Yates
Sheb Wooley as Pete Nolan
Paul Brinegar as Wishbone
James Murdock as Mushy
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Theme performed by Frankie Laine
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Eric Fleming movies
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 The Glass Bottom Boat
Doris Day mistaken as a spy! Sounds like a light-hearted 60's romp to me. In addition to our man Eric Fleming, the movie also features Arthur Godfrey (by the way, am I the only one who can sing about dotting the "i" for the inventors?), Paul Lynde, Dick Martin, and Dom DeLuise.
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 Curse of the Undead
Eric Fleming stars as Preacher Dan Young in this, yes, vampire western. How cool is that?
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 Queen of Outer Space
Eric stars with Zsa Zsa Gabor, dahling, in this hilarious sci-fi flick. A reviewer at the Internet Movie Database says the movie "reeks of cardboard sets, silly dialogue, and more phallic symbols, hot babes, and sexual innuendo than you can wave a stick (or laser gun) at."
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 Conquest of Space
Eric stars as Captain Barney Merritt in this story about the first manned expedition to Mars. A reviewer at amazon.com numbers among the movie's merits its inclusion of: "MST3K ready dialog! The obligitory accidental weightlessness scene! ... The first ever burial in space! The first ever snowfall on Mars!" In other words, you can't lose!
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The Rawhide theme
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 Rockin'/Hell Bent for Leather
Head 'em up, move 'em out! Frankie Laine performed the rousing song played over the opening credits of Rawhide. The Rawhide theme is among the 24 tracks on this CD.
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Sheb Wooley Sings
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 The Purple People Eater
31 tracks including the classic title song
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 Wild and Wooley, Big Unruly Me
29 tracks
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 Rawhide/How the West was Won
24 tracks including Sheb's version of the Rawhide theme (this is not the version performed in the opening credits of the show!)
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 That's My Pa
Four box set totaling 47 tracks
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