Old Cowboy Movies...

[Guns Garrett]

This link was emailed to me, and I'd thought I'd share:

"If you think the years are catching up with you -- you're right.  One look at this film clip and you'll be young and old all over again.  BUT WAIT -- THERE'S MORE!!!!  Ever wonder just who all those minor characters were who populated western after western with few lines and a familiar face.  Well the clip has pictures and names -- so after 50 or so years -- say "Howdy" so some of those general store, saloon keeper, blacksmith mini-heroes from your youth.
 
Just click on 

http://oldfortyfives.com/thoseoldwesterns.htm

[Texas Lawdog]

Thanks for the Link, Guns.  Those pictures really brought back a lot of memories. I had the pleasure to meet a few of those Actors over the years. Two stand out for me,  Ben Johnson and Buck Taylor.

[Tjackstephens]

Brother Jim, You met two of the best. Tj

Guns, Thanks for sharing. Tj

[Steel Horse Bailey]

I sure am enjoying the "new" shows on the Western Channels, during & after New Year.  Gunsmoke, Maverick, Lawman, & Cheyenne have been standard fare for some time now, Wagon Train has been shown for several months, and they just finished showing all (or nearly all) of The Virginian shows.  The new shows include Laredo, Rawhide, & what they list as Mr. Dillon.   The Mr. Dillon shows are simply the half hour Gunsmoke shows that ran from 1955 until 1961.  I HOPE they show ALL of the 1/2 hr. shows which lasted 'thru 1961 or 2, if my memory has my info correct.

It is sure interesting to see how morality and other "values" changed as the '60s wore on and how each of these series changed.  Matt Dillon was definitely a different show when it began vs. how things were at the end.  The good Marshal was NOT the town's favourite citizen, Doc was more of a drinker, Chester was a BIG goof (comparatively), & Miss Kitty only worked at the Longbranch (and later was half-owner) and sometimes got very "pi$$ed" at the Marshal.  (And NOT just because he missed a dance or whatever.  She got riled at some of his methods and policies.)

Some are a bit (to ME) hard to swallow, so to speak.  The women and men tended to over-react at many things and were more stupid about their beliefs & decisions.  ANY time that something bad is seen by a woman, she has to screech and scream while clutching herself about her own ears.  Bugs the pi.. out of me!

But it's all in fun!  Life was simpler then, I guess!

 

[Tascosa Joe]

I like Gunsmoke as well.  Festus was one of my all time favorite characters.

[St. George]

If you think about the style of storytelling, you'll see that these westerns - and shows like 'Twilight Zone' and 'Combat' were largely 'Morality Plays'.

'Have Gun Will Travel' was notable in this respect - tackling civil rights before everyone was coming to grips with it.

The stories changed with the cynicism following the Vietnam War and Watergate, and the rise of the 'anti-hero' came into it's ascendancy.

TV and movies followed books, though highly modified from the author's intent - and anyone reading about the 'real' 'Hopalong Cassidy' would find it difficult to envision the caricature he was built into for the Silver Screen - complete with all-black clothing with silver studs - kinda like Judas Priest wearing a cowboy hat...

But I digress...

Prior to those sad chapters in American History - what was seen on the screen was how America was presented and how we viewed ourselves 'as uniquely 'American'.

Thanks to those shows, we truly did believe that Right 'would' win out in the end - and underdogs 'could' triumph with enough heart - and much of the world believed that as well.

The 'Rise of the Investigative Journalist' , and the public popularity of schadenfraude changed all that.

Vaya,

Scouts Out!

[Tjackstephens]

I read those Hopalong Cassidy books and liked them. but as a kid I really liked the tv Hoppy. Tj

[Steel Horse Bailey]

St. George has noticed the same thing as I have, as well as many others here, I'm sure.

Every story (or most) had a purpose.   I had forgotten to include Have Gun, Will Travel in my original post.

It was a simpler time.

[Cash Creek]

Tj:   
I still have a Hopalong Cassidy books ( I got it when I was 10) that has two 45 rpm record that follow the story in the book..when Topper make a horse sound you turn the page..Do you think I could get 4 or 5 bucks for the book... CC

[Texas Lawdog]

Bro. Cash, I still have my Hoppy watch and Hoppy club membership button.

[Tjackstephens]

Cash, I was writing about the paper back western about Hoppy. They are totally different than the tv Hoppy and products about him. The fact that I like those paperback westerns and also liked the tv Hoppy. As kids we liked Hoppy up there close to Roy and Dale (almost). Tj

[gabriel_chisholm]

Matt Dillon was definitely a different show when it began vs. how things were at the end.  The good Marshal was NOT the town's favourite citizen, Doc was more of a drinker, Chester was a BIG goof (comparatively), & Miss Kitty only worked at the Longbranch (and later was half-owner) and sometimes got very "pi$$ed" at the Marshal. 

Gunsmoke began as a radio drama, with a different cast. (William Conrad was the original Matt Dillon. He didn't get the role on television because he didn't fit in the chair.) Most of the early scripts were remakes of the radio shows, which were more in the "hard-boiled" tradition.

In the radio series, Doc was a borderline alcoholic and also a bit mercenary. A far cry from the "crusty but lovable" character he became on television. Doc Adams wasn't his real name, either -- he was on the lam from the law. Kitty was, in the words of the writers "someone Matt has to visit every once in a while... a prostitute, plain and simple, although we never say it." His assistant was "Chester Proudfoot" rather than "Chester Goode" -- without a limp, which no one could see on radio anyway.

If you think the early TV episodes were different, check out the publicity photos of the radio cast:

http://viewlinerltd.blogspot.com/2008/07/gunsmoke-radio-show-at-knotts-berry.html

Some are a bit (to ME) hard to swallow, so to speak.  The women and men tended to over-react at many things and were more stupid about their beliefs & decisions.  ANY time that something bad is seen by a woman, she has to screech and scream while clutching herself about her own ears. 

Part of that might be the radio legacy. In a radio script, you need to have audio cues, like a woman screaming to let the audience know something awful has happened. That's why the Lone Ranger always called out "Hi-Yo, Silver!" every time he started riding his horse. That carried over into television, even though it served no purpose.

By the way, most (if not all) episodes of Gunsmoke are available on YouTube.

[Tjackstephens]

I really liked those radio programs. Always listen to Gunsmoke and Roy Rogers. One of the best though was Gangbusters, the running feet, the sirens and then the machine gun fire. What a different time. Tj

[Cash Creek]

Tj...go to this link for the shows below..
http://radiolovers.com/pages/westerns.html

American Trail
•  Death Valley Days
•  Frontier Town
•  Gene Autry
•  Gunsmoke
•  Hopalong Cassidy
•  Roy Rogers
•  Tales of the Texas Rangers
•  The Town Crier

[Steel Horse Bailey]

This has been interesting to this Gunsmoke fan!  I have never heard any of the radio broadcasts ... James Arness IS Matt Dillon to me!  (I have his authorized bio; his real name is James Aurness.  It's a great read, and I highly recommend it!)

I had heard about Wm. Conrad and the chair incident.  It wasn't that he couldn't fit in the chair, it's that when (in the audition script) the stage ques called for him to "stand" quickly, Mr. Conrad stood up quickly ... and the chair remained stuck  to/with  his backside!

Yes, he was a gifted actor with a GREAT voice!

The only radio show I listened to with any real interest was in 1970, when I spent 8 days in London after working that summer in Oberammergau, Germany.  I took an 8 day "vacation stopover" on my way back home and my sophomore year at Ind. Central College.  (Remember good ol' ICC, Dave Scott & Greg Limbach ? !) One of the radio stations (radio provided in my hotel room) played an hour-long "book show" every night about a British Navy crew taking over a Nazi submarine during WWI or WWII.  (I don't recall much other than it was very interesting, and I would tune in to hear it every night before I went to sleep at around midnight!)

I DO still have my autographed picture of Duncan Renaldo as "The Cisco Kid" (with a "signature") and his horse, "Diablo."     I  met them during a publicity tour in 1959, if I recall.

[Rafe Covington]

Really enjoyed that, was always a big western fan, especially Gunsmoke and Wanted:Dead or Alive.

Again thanks
Rafe

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Hello,

Your post brought back memories ....

When I was an AF brat we were stationed in France (1959-1961). De Gaulle had a tight rein on news and didn't want AFRTS (Armed Forces Radio and Telievision; their acronym) as a competitive news force (at least that is what we were told). As a result, we had not television, just radio.

So in addition to the Stars and Stripes funny pages being read, we listened to all the old radio 'soaps' .... The Green Hornet, Gunsmoke, etc.

It was like going back twenty years and listening to what my parents had listened to ... a veritable time warp that allowed me a view into their world.

I am so thankful of this 'privilege' ... I missed out on what was happening on TV in the late '50s, but got to listen to a part of history that was dead :

[Tascosa Joe]

Some of the old Western Radio Shows are on Old Time Classic Radio on Sirus/XM.  I have heard a few episodes of Gunsmoke and Have Gun Will Travel.  The wife and I listen to OTCR some when we are on long trips.  They also have Johnny Dollar, the Shadow, and other.

T-Joe