Rawhide (1962)

We've touched on Rawhide's serpentine search for identity in our previous posts, and that trend continued as the series moved into 1962. In a feature story on emerging star Clint Eastwood in the December 1, 1962 edition of TV Guide, author Dwight Whitney makes the point that the young heart-throb was just as unsettled about who he was. But while Whitney correctly predicted that despite his uncertainty about himself, Eastwood was clearly destined for success, the same could not be said for the TV show he starred in. As we've noted before, after peaking at #6 in the ratings in 1960-61, the series slipped to 13th for 1961-62 and then 22nd in 1962-63, a period during which creator Charles Marquis Warren left the series. But more personnel changes came along early in 1962 when Sheb Wooley, playing scout Pete Nolan, decided to leave the series and was replaced by recently introduced character Clay Forrester, played by Charles H. Gray. Unlike most series of the time, which would jettison actors and their characters without explanation or some lame offhand remark after the character was already gone, Rawhide should be given credit for devoting an episode to depicting Nolan's recruitment and decision to accept an offer to be a scout for the U.S. Army in its dealings with Native Americans, as his character had special insight and sympathy for them having once been married to a Cheyenne woman. This story plays out in "The Deserters' Patrol" (February 9, 1962), which also throws in the novelty of Gil Favor disguised as an army officer to make Fort Brace appear to be at full strength when it is actually short-handed, and has him run across and suffer the vengeance of soldiers he once had to discipline during the Civil War. Wooley returns briefly in his role as Nolan, now an Army scout, in "Reunion" (April 6, 1962), but his loss to the show is significant because he was probably the most natural actor in the cast, unlike the bombastic style of other stars such as Eric Fleming and Paul Brinegar, whose constant ill temper is supposed to come off as humor. The show's producers would eventually see the error of their ways in letting Wooley walk when they brought him back for Season 7, but by then it was too late to save the series.

Faced with declining ratings, the producers tried repeatedly to bring back plots and devices from previous seasons (such as restoring the Warren affectation for starting episode titles with the word "Incident" in Season 5) to recapture the magic of their early success. Having introduced Gil Favor's two daughters and the sister-in-law who cares for them in Philadelphia in the 1961 episode "Incident of the Fish Out of Water," all three characters make a poorly explained and unexpected decision to drop in on Favor in the middle of the cattle drive in the Season 4 episode "The Boss's Daughters" (February 2, 1962). Tension is manufactured when grieving wealthy ranch owner Vance Caldwell, whose property Favor needs to cross with his herd, makes a play for the sister-in-law which would include marriage and adoption of Favor's daughters. It takes an armed conflict with the children in the middle for Caldwell to realize his proposal was only an attempt to replace his late wife and daughter.

Speaking of recycled characters from Season 3, the aforementioned Sheb Wooley farewell episode "The Deserters' Patrol" also brings back Jock Gaynor as Pawnee chief Ogala, originally introduced in "Incident of the Fish Out of Water," in the oft-used story of a peace-minded Native American chief trying to quell the more belligerent renegade braves below him and prevent an all-out war with the white man, a plot used in just about every western series at the time. However, the producers apparently realized they could only go to that well so many times, as Ogala is eventually killed by his own people, though Pete Nolan makes them think he has come back from the dead by mounting his dead body on his horse with a wood frame, propping him up from behind to frighten off the renegades and put an end to their aggression, kind of a Weekend at Bernie's for the old west. It's also clear the producers intended to use the devious Clay Forrester as an occasionally returning character, having introduced him early in Season 4 in the 1961 episode "The Inside Man" and then bringing him back a couple of months later in "The Long Count" (January 5, 1962) before being forced to make him a regular cast member to replace Wooley as the new scout. Once Forrester becomes a member of Favor's team, his amoral machinations are toned way down, though we get to see his avarice tested and initially come up short in "The Greedy Town" (February 16, 1962) when he is willing to change his testimony about a guilty deceased bank robber whose wealthy mother hopes to whitewash his past. Thereafter Forrester largely serves the role of advising Favor to take the path of least resistance and maximum profit rather than the path of greatest empathy.

Clay Forrester isn't the only character easily led astray by avarice, as irrational thirst for gold is a theme used twice in 1962--in the Season 4 episode "Gold Fever" (May 4, 1962) and the Season 5 episode "Incident at Quivira" (December 14, 1962). In the former episode, an old prospector shows up in the cattle drive camp and buys a shovel from Wishbone with enough gold dust to convince Forrester and several of the drovers that their time would be better spent prospecting nearby than in driving cattle. When Favor sends Rowdy to either round them up or hire replacements in the nearest town, Rowdy gets sucked into the fever, aided by an attraction for one of the prospector's pretty daughters. The latter Season 5 episode has another old prospector show up in camp delirious, claiming to have found Coronado's mythical city of gems and the fountain of youth. His stories don't sway anyone but the simple-minded Mushy, who is more curious about seeing these wonders rather than getting rich, and Rowdy is again sent to bring him back, only to discover that the prospector's supposed city of gold is actually a crude settlement founded by a group of army deserters who are just trying to avoid being found and prosecuted.

Speaking of Mushy, he is also the catalyst for the Season 4 episode "The Child-Woman" (March 23, 1962) when he goes to visit a cousin who is supposedly a world-famous entertainer, only her reports back home about her success turn out to be fictitious and she is now seriously ill. But she wants her 15-year-old sister to avoid a similar fate to hers, so she gets Mushy to promise to take the younger sister away from saloon owner Big Tim Sloan and back to live with Mushy's mother. However, the younger woman, Posie, is perfectly happy where she is and does not want to go. After Mushy gets drubbed by Sloan's goons when he tries to take Posie away, Rowdy and the other drovers head to town to settle the score and wind up taking Posie with them at her sister's urging. While this may appear to be a Mushy backstory episode, a theme the series began employing in 1961 to generate more interest for secondary characters, Mushy's inept and ignorant character has no real depth behind it, and his difficulties only serve as an excuse to get other characters, like Rowdy, involved. But the producers try the same tactic for Hey Soos in the Season 5 opener, "Incident of El Toro" (September 21, 1962), by having the Mexican horse wrangler reveal that his older brother was a famous bull fighter in Mexico who was killed in the ring, but he never had the courage to take up the profession himself and has felt a secret shame about it ever since. When an arrogant and irresponsible new drover is assigned by Favor to go take care of a wild bull that has been upsetting the herd, Hey Soos volunteers to go with him in order to face his fear. When first confronted by the bull, Hey Soos runs away and the arrogant drover stands his ground and is killed for his bravery, but Hey Soos eventually is able to face the bull with Favor's assistance and help lasso him and tie him down long enough to let the herd get through his territory, with Favor and Hey Soos deciding that they don't really need to kill the bull, only incapacitate him for a while.

The 1962 episodes also continued the trend of having Rowdy star in several episodes with Favor out of the picture, as the producers tried to exploit the heart-throb appeal of Clint Eastwood. Rowdy goes it alone when he gets suckered into aiding an elderly lady who is really a thief in "Grandma's Money" (February 23, 1962), follows and tries to help a young Tonkawa brave when the latter insists on looking for his sister at a fort commanded by a notorious Indian butcher in "Hostage Child" (March 9, 1962), appears to get married to the girlfriend of a vengeful saloon owner in "The Reluctant Bridegroom" (November 30, 1962), and has to teach a crippled young man he has no future as a drover in "Incident of Decision" (December 28, 1962). Then there is the previously cited episode in which he is sucked into a misguided quest for gold in "Gold Fever," and one of the least successful episodes of 1962, "The House of the Hunter" (April 20, 1962) in which Rowdy is lured into a house in the middle of nowhere where he is then kept hostage with a group of likewise clueless prisoners who have no idea about why they were summoned or why they can't leave. As one imdb.com reviewer for this episode observed, this is an old west adaptation of Agatha Christie's Ten Little Indians in which an attempt is made to kill off each of the prisoners one by one until we discover that one of the prisoners is actually the antagonist who has set up the whole affair to exact vengeance for the death of his son, whose death all of the prisoners had some connection with. As with most attempts at mixing genres, in this case, murder mystery and western, the results are awkward and ham-fisted.

Another horribly conceived episode that does not include Rowdy is "The Immigrants" (March 16, 1962) in which Forrester, Jim Quince, and Wishbone are taken prisoner by an isolated former German nobleman who was banished to America for his arrogant disregard of military orders leading to the massacre of the regiment he was commanding. Besides the one-note performance of John van Dreelen as Ulrich, the episode turns on the idea of former Confederate soldiers like Quince teaching German peasants about the concept of emancipation from slavery. Granted, Germans were still the global bogeymen at this time in the wake of World War II, but the thought that former Confederates have the moral high ground on the subject of human slavery is preposterous. American television in the 1960s, particularly westerns, had a none too subtle agenda of minimizing and whitewashing one of the country's worst offenses--slavery--all in the interest of the avarice they pretended to denounce, because alienating the southern descendants of those who fought to preserve slavery would have cost the networks too much money.

It wouldn't be fair to leave with the impression that Rawhide was always highly derivative and mediocre at best, though that was usually the case. But two 1962 episodes stand out above the rest. "A Woman's Place" (March 30, 1962), co-written by Eric Fleming, it should be noted, appears at first glance to be another in the series of such stories about a professional woman, in this case a doctor, not being accepted because of her sex and having to go to extraordinary lengths to prove herself. There are still some cringe-worthy lines in this episode, such as when Fleming's Gil Favor tries to tell female physician Louise Amadon that a large part of the reason why she isn't accepted is because of her ill temper, in other words, because she is a bitch (which is rich because the Gil Favor character is likewise almost always grouchy and we are supposed to find it funny). But the episode also deserves credit because the writers do not force some sort of romantic angle onto the Amadon character, nor do they suggest that while she may be just as capable as a male doctor, she will only find true fulfillment as a wife and mother, which is how these episodes usually play out in the 1960s. Rather, Amadon is allowed to be a true professional, skilled in her craft without her sex entering into it, other than the prejudice of others against her.

Another episode worthy of mention is "Incident of the Portrait" (October 5, 1962) for its understated conclusion to an otherwise melodramatic plot. The story begins when drifter Frank Trask breaks into a homesteader's house in the middle of the night looking for food, winds up being confronted by the owner, and accidentally kills him by hitting him forcefully while trying to escape. He inexplicably grabs a portrait of the dead man's daughter off the mantle before leaving (though he later offers a somewhat lame rationale), not realizing that the young woman is blind. Trask seeks to hide out by signing on as a drover in Favor's crew, but with the young woman now destitute with her father dead, she is brought by the local sheriff to Favor so that she can travel with him to Denver where she has other relatives. At first Trask is afraid of being identified by her, until he learns she is blind. He feels remorse for having killed her father and strikes up a friendship with her, even sharing his dream of one day owning his own land in the Pacific northwest, but is eventually discovered by Favor and Hey Soos when the stolen portrait is found in his saddle bags. Rather than a grandiose confession, Trask quietly admits to Favor and later the sheriff that he is guilty of killing the woman's father, but he does not want her to know it, pleading that she not be called as a witness at his trial, because he believes that if she learned the man she befriended was actually her father's killer, it would crush her. So he is allowed to leave and even say goodbye to her without her ever being told who Trask really is, but in the poignant farewell between her and Trask, we get the suspicion that perhaps she knew all along who he is. Rather than having her admit this to Favor or another character, she says nothing about it, and the story is better because she doesn't. This kind of nuance and subtlety is rare in the American western, which often takes the role of a morality play. Too bad the producers didn't attempt the subtle approach more often.

The Actors

For the biographies of Eric Fleming, Clint Eastwood, Sheb Wooley, Paul Brinegar, James Murdock, Steve Raines, Rocky Shahan, John Erwin, and Robert Cabal, see the 1960 post for Rawhide. For the biography of Don C. Harvey, see the 1961 post for Rawhide.

Charles H. Gray

Born November 27, 1921 in either St. Louis, Missouri (according to Wikipedia and imdb.com) or Omaha, Nebraska (according to findagrave.com), little is known about Gray prior to his acting career. According to findagrave.com, Gray was the son of Charles Henry Gray, at one time a saloon keeper but by 1940 was working as a clerk, and his second wife Celia Josephine Gray, who appears to have been the sister of his first wife, Frances, who died in 1919. Charles, Sr. and Celia married the following year in 1920 in Iowa. Frances and Charles, Sr. had three daughters and a son who died at age 4. Celia and Charles, Sr. had three sons, with Charles H. Gray, Jr. being the oldest. Oddly, findagrave.com says both that Charles, Jr. never married yet also lists that he married Gretchen Adeline Stieler, who would have been 9 years his senior, when both were in the U.S. Army on July 14, 1945 in Birmingham, Alabama. The couple later divorced, though no year is given. Charles, Jr. began his acting career in stock companies until he was "discovered" by actors Charles Laughton and his wife Elsa Lanchester at a War Bond rally in Los Angeles. Though this meeting led to an uncredited appearance in Tales of Manhattan in 1942, Gray would not appear in another feature film until 1955, another uncredited part in One Desire. From there, his film career can be pieced together from his filmography. His first TV appearance also came in 1955 in an uncredited role on Gunsmoke. In 1956 he appeared 5 times as Officer Edwards on Highway Patrol while also getting his first credited role in the feature film The Black Whip. He continued alternating between feature films and TV guest spots throughout the remainder of the 1950s but first came to the notice of director and Rawhide creator Charles Marquis Warren when he was cast in Warren's 1958 feature Cattle Empire, which served as the inspiration for Rawhide. Gray then appeared as a character named Flagg in two 1959 episodes of Rawhide while continuing to appear in other western series such as Have Gun--Will Travel, The Texan, and Riverboat. When Warren left Rawhide to found another TV western, Gunslinger, he tabbed Gray for the recurring character Pico McGuire, who appeared in 11 of the short-lived series' 12 episodes between February and May 1961. After Gunslinger was canceled, Gray returned to Rawhide as the occasionally seen con man of dubious morals Clay Forrester beginning with "The Inside Man" in November 1961. After two more appearances as Forrester in late 1961 and early 1962 episodes, Gray's character Forrester was chosen to replace Pete Nolan as scout for the Favor cattle drive team when Sheb Wooley left the series in February 1962. But Gray would stay with the series only  through the end of Season 5 in May 1963, appearing as Forrester a total of 45 times.

After leaving Rawhide, Gray's guest star opportunities dwindled to only a few per year on series such as Gunsmoke, Perry Mason, The Road West, and The High Chaparral. After appearing in a supporting role in the Elvis Presley western Charro! in 1969, Gray began to receive more feature film roles in the early 1970s, most notably in Wild Rovers, Bless the Beasts and Children, Junior Bonner, and The New Centurions. He continued getting occasional TV guest spots as well until he was cast as Bill Foster on the daytime soap opera The Young and the Restless in 1975. He retired from acting in 1979 after appearing in the feature film Prophecy that same year. Outside of acting, Gray at some point worked as a model for the Forbes Agency, was a member of the Screen Actors Guild and the Hollywood Democratic Commitee, was chairman of his local chapters of the American Red Cross and the Audubon Society, was an instructor at the Pasadena Playhouse, and was a founding member of the Canyon Theatre Guild. After his retirement, he regularly attended autograph conventions as well as working on behalf of various libraries and wildlife reserves. He died on August 2, 2008 in Joshua Tree, California at the age of 86.

Notable Guest Stars

Season 4, Episode 13, "The Long Count": Bethel Leslie (shown on the left, appeared in 15 episodes of The Richard Boone Show and played Dr. Maggie Powers on The Doctors, Claudia Conner on All My Children, and Ethel Crawford on One Life to Live) plays ranch owner Martha Hastings. Kevin Hagen (John Colton on Yancy Derringer, Inspector Dobbs Kobick on Land of the Giants, and Dr. Hiram Baker on Little House on the Prairie) plays her foreman Jess Cain. Charles Maxwell (Special Agent Joe Carey on I Led 3 Lives and was the voice of the radio announcer on Gilligan's Island) plays wanted outlaw Duke Staley. Robert Cornthwaite (Professor Windish on Get Smart and Howard Buss on Picket Fences) plays census taker Martin Gedwell. Cheerio Meredith (Emma Brand on The Andy Griffith Show and Lovey Hackett on One Happy Family) plays census interviewee Mrs. Blake. Milton Frome (starred in Pardners, The Delicate Delinquent, and The Swinger and played Lawrence Chapman on The Beverly Hillbillies) plays livery owner Mr. Frazer. Vito Scotti (Jose on The Deputy, Capt. Gaspar Fomento on The Flying Nun, Gino on To Rome With Love, and Mr. Velasquez on Barefoot in the Park) plays Mexican visitor Manuel Lopez.

Season 4, Episode 14, "The Captain's Wife": Robert Lowery (starred in Criminal Investigator, Revenge of the Zombies, The Navy Way, The Mummy's Ghost, and They Made Me a Killer and played Big Tim Champion on Circus Boy and Buss Courtney on Pistols 'n' Petticoats) plays army fort commander Capt. Bert Holloway. Barbara Stanwyck (shown on the right, see the biography section for the 1960 post on The Barbara Stanwyck Show) plays his wife Nora. John Howard (Dr. Wayne Hudson on Dr. Hudson's Secret Journal, Commander John "Pliny" Hawk on Adventures of the Sea Hawk, Dave Welch on My Three Sons, and Cliff Patterson on Days of Our Lives) plays fort sutler James Carr. Eugene Mazzola (Joey Drum on Jefferson Drum) plays Mexican orphan Tonio. Dennis Cross (see the biography section for the 1960 post on The Blue Angels) plays fort scout Tonkin. Nestor Paiva (Theo Gonzales on Zorro) plays fort blacksmith Hagerty. Bill Walker (appeared in The Harlem Globetrotters, The Outcast, and Porgy and Bess and played Obadiah on Yancy Derringer) plays fort stableman Sandy. Ross Ford (appeared in Blondie's Reward, Jungle Patrol, Project Moon Base, and Reform School Girl and played Johnny Boone, Jr. on Meet Millie) plays Holloway's commanding lieutenant. John O'Neill (singer of the theme song used in Season 2 of Wagon Train) plays Holloway's aide.

Season 4, Episode 15, "The Peddler": Shelley Berman (shown on the left, legendary Grammy-winning comedian, appeared in The Best Man, Divorce American Style, Teen Witch, and Meet The Fockers and played Ben Flicker on L.A. Law, Judge Robert Sanders on Boston Legal, and Nat David on Curb Your Enthusiasm) plays Jewish peddler Mendel Sorkin. George Kennedy (starred in Charade, The Sons of Katie Elder, The Dirty Dozen, Cool Hand Luke, and The Naked Gun and played MP Sgt. Kennedy on The Phil Silvers Show, Father Samuel Cavanaugh on Sarge, Bumper Morgan on The Blue Knight, and Carter McKay on Dallas) plays store owner George Wales. William Tannen (Deputy Hal Norton on The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp) plays a sheriff.

Season 4, Episode 16, "The Woman Trap": Robert Gist (directed multiple episodes of Peter Gunn, Naked City, and The Richard Boone Show and was Agnes Moorehead's second husband) plays marriage-arranging con man Harleck. Alan Hale, Jr. (Biff Baker on Biff Baker U.S.A., Casey Jones on Casey Jones, and The Skipper on Gilligan's Island) plays his wagonmaster J.T. Lucas. Rayford Barnes (see the biography section for the 1960 post on The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp) plays one of his guards Grieve. Karen Steele (starred in Marty, Westbound, and The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond) plays prospective bride Dolly LeMoyne. Maria Palmer (Mady Stevens on The Young Marrieds) plays prospective bride Emilie Bollar. Marion Ross (shown on the right, played Nora on Life With Father, Susan Green on The Gertrude Berg Show, Mary Morgan on Paradise Bay, Marion Cunningham on Happy Days and Joanie Loves Chachi, Emily Heywod/Hayward on The Love Boat, Sophie Berger on Brooklyn Bridge, Beulah Carey on The Drew Carey Show, and the voice of Mrs. Lopart on Handy Manny) plays prospective bride Flora. Carol Byron (Kitty Mathews on Oh! Those Bells), plays prospective bride Maggie. Ray Montgomery (Prof. Howard Ogden on Ramar of the Jungle) plays army commander Lt. Keown.

Season 4, Episode 17, "The Boss's Daughters": Paul Richards (shown on the left, appeared in Playgirl and Beneath the Planet of the Apes and played Louis Kassoff on The Lawless Years and Dr. McKinley Thompson on Breaking Point) plays wealthy ranch owner Vance Caldwell. Dorothy Green (appeared in The Big Heat, Face of a Fugitive, It Happened at the World's Fair, and Tammy and the Millionaire and played Lavinia Tate on Tammy and Jennifer Brooks on The Young and the Restless) plays Favor's sister-in-law Eleanor Bradley. Candy Moore (see the biography section for the 1962 post on The Donna Reed Show) plays Favor's daughter Gillian. Byron Morrow (Capt. Keith Gregory on The New Breed and Pearce Newberry on Executive Suite) plays Macefield Sheriff Crowell. Joe Brooks (Trooper Vanderbilt on F Troop) plays a Macefield store clerk.

Season 4, Episode 18, "The Deserters' Patrol": Russ Conway (Fenton Hardy on The Hardy Boys: The Mystery of the Applegate Treasure, Gen. Devon on Men Into Space, and Lt. Pete Kile on Richard Diamond, Private Detective) plays Fort Brace commander Col. Frank Hiller. Jock Gaynor (shown on the right, played Deputy Marshal Heck Martin on Outlaws and Dr. William Scott on The Doctors) plays Pawnee chief Ogalla. Eugene Mazzola (see "The Captain's Wife" above) plays his son Acoma. Don Megowan (Captain Huckabee on The Beachcomber)  plays Pawnee prisoner Cpl. Cochran. Russell Arms (vocalist who regularly appeared on Your Hit Parade) plays army private Marshall. Conlan Carter (C.E. Caruthers on The Law and Mr. Jones and Doc on Combat!) plays army private Baines. Harry Carey, Jr. (starred in Red River, She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, Mister Roberts, and The Searchers and played Bill Burnett on The Adventures of Spin and Marty) plays army private Ross. Hal Needham (Hollywood's highest-paid stuntman who invented numerous stunt devices, was a double for Richard Boone and Burt Reynolds, and directed Smokey and the Bandit, Hooper, and Cannonball Run) plays army Cpl. Williams.

Season 4, Episode 19, "The Greedy Town": Mercedes McCambridge (starred in All the King's Men, Johnny Guitar, Giant, and A Farewell to Arms and played Kate Wells on Wire Service) plays vengeful mother Ada Randolph. Roy Glenn (appeared in Carmen Jones, Written on the Wind, Porgy and Bess, and A Raisin in the Sun and played Roy on The Jack Benny Program) plays her servant Joshua. Diana Millay (shown on the left, played Laura Collins on Dark Shadows and Kitty Styles on The Secret Storm) plays waitress Honey Lassiter. Jim Davis (Matt Clark on Stories of the Century, Wes Cameron on Rescue 8, Marshal Bill Winter on The Cowboys, and Jock Ewing on Dallas) plays Dry Rock Sheriff Sam Jason. J. Pat O'Malley (see the biography section for the 1961 post on Frontier Circus) plays Dry Rock Mayor George Emory. Addison Richards (starred in Boys Town, They Made Her a Spy, Flying Tigers, and The Deerslayer and played Doc Calhoun on Trackdown and Doc Landy on The Deputy) plays town Judge Wainright. Ross Elliott (see the biography section for the 1962 post on The Virginian) plays barber Bix Thompson. Kathleen Freeman (Katie on Topper, Marilly on Mayor of the Town, Bertha Krause on The Bob Cummings Show, Flo Shafer on The Beverly Hillbillies, Kate Harwell on Funny Face, Iris Belmont on Lotsa Luc, and Sister Mary Dorothy on General Hospital) plays gossip Ida Beamish. William Phipps (see the biography section for the 1960 post on The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp) plays bank teller Floyd Peters. Dean Fredericks (Kaseem on Jungle Jim, Komawi on The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin, and Lt. Col. Steve Canyon on Steve Canyon) plays town bully Jed Harvey.

Season 4, Episode 20, "Grandma's Money": Josephine Hutchinson (shown on the right, appeared in The Story of Louis Pasteur, Son of Frankenstein, Tom Brown's Schooldays, and North by Northwest) plays elderly thief Abigail Briggs. Frank Wilcox (see the biography section for the 1961 post on The Untouchables) plays cattle rancher Col. Horatio Agee. James Gavin (Sheriff Frank Madden on The Big Valley) plays his foreman Hank Higgins. Dan White (appeared in Arizona Whirlwind, Taza, Son of Cochise, Attack of the Giant Leeches, and The Sergeant Was a Lady and played Dan Fraser on From These Roots) plays the Elkville sheriff. Norman Leavitt (Ralph on Trackdown) plays his deputy. Olan Soule (Aristotle "Tut" Jones on Captain Midnight, Ray Pinker on Dragnet (1952-59), Cal on Stagecoach West, the Hotel Carlton desk clerk on Have Gun--Will Travel, and Fred Springer on Arnie and voiced Batman on The All-New Super Friends Hour, Challenge of the Superfriends, The World's Greatest SuperFriends, and Super Friends) plays an Indian Springs hotel clerk. Jonathan Hole (Orville Monroe on The Andy Griffith Show) plays harness salesman Otis Eames. Mason Curry (Deke Tuttle on The Ghost and Mrs. Muir) plays a livery stable owner. Frank Maxwell (Duncan MacRoberts on Our Man Higgins, Henry Coleman on The Young Marrieds, Col. Garraway on The Second Hundred Years, Capt. Nye on Felony Squad, and Dan Rooney on General Hospital) plays the Indian Springs sheriff. Harry Ellerbe (appeared in So Red the Rose, The Magnetic Monster, Desk Set, and House of Usher) plays bank president Asa Simms. Roy Wright (Shipwreck Callahan on The Islanders) plays the casino bartender. Thomas Browne Henry (Dr. Reno on Rocky Jones, Space Ranger, Mr. Channing on The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show, J. Homer Radcliffe on Tombstone Territory, and Prof. Hubacher on The Gertrude Berg Show) plays the Indian Springs doctor.

Season 4, Episode 21, "The Pitchwagon": Buddy Ebsen (see the biography section for the 1962 post on The Beverly Hillbillies) plays elixir salesman George Stimson. Joan O'Brien (shown on the left, starred in Operation Petticoat, The Alamo, It Happened at the World's Fair,  and It'$ Only Money) plays his estranged wife Melinda. Hugh Marlowe (starred in Twelve O'Clock High, All About Eve, The Day the Earth Stood Still, and Earth vs. the Flying Saucers and played Ellery Queen on Mystery Is My Business and Jim Matthews on Another World) plays her suitor Sam Garner. Jack Elam (Deputy J.D. Smith on The Dakotas and George Taggart on Temple Houston) plays saloon owner Turkey Creek Jack Johnson. Ralph Reed (see the biography section for the 1960 post on The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp) plays drover Frank Miller. Joe Brooks (see "The Boss's Daughters" above) plays a heckler. Gail Bonney (Goodwife Martin on Space Patrol and Madeline Schweitzer on December Bride) plays an audience member.

Season 4, Episode 22, "Hostage Child": James Coburn (shown on the right, starred in The Magnificent Seven, Charade, Our Man Flint, and In Like Flint and played Jeff Durain on Klondike and Gregg Miles on Acapulco) plays Fort Lacey commander Col. Briscoe. Debra Paget (starred in Broken Arrow, Les Miserables, Prince Valiant, The Ten Commandments, Love Me Tender, and Journey to the Lost City) plays his wife Azuela. Jimmy Baird (appeared in The Seven Little Foys, The Return of Dracula, The Black Orchid, and King of the Roaring 20's and played Pee Wee Jenkins on Fury) plays her brother Arnee. Ed Kemmer (Commander Buzz Corry on Space Patrol, Roy Selby on The Clear Horizon, Paul Britton on The Secret Storm, Dick Martin on As the World Turns, and Ben Grant on Somerset) plays Briscoe's next-in-command Maj. Harper. Alan Reynolds (Comrade Jack Blake on I Led 3 Lives) plays army Sgt. Gary. Naomi Stevens (Juanita on The Doris Day Show, Mama Rossini on My Three Sons, Rose Montefusco on The Montefuscos, and Sgt. Bella Archer on Vega$)) plays Azuela's maid Maria. Joe Brooks (see "The Boss's Daughters" above) plays the Fort Lacey sentry.

Season 4, Episode 23, "The Immigrants": John Van Dreelen (shown on the left, starred in The Leech Woman, 13 Ghosts, and Topaz and played Gen. von Lindendorf on Blue Light and Dr. Berger on Days of Our Lives) plays banished German nobleman Ulrich. Maria Palmer (see "The Woman Trap" above) plays his secretary Elsa.

Season 4, Episode 24, "The Child-Woman": Cesar Romero (shown on the right, starred in The Thin Man, Diamond Jim, Orchestra Wives, Ocean's Eleven, Donovan's Reef, Batman, The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes, and 6 Cisco Kid features and played Steve McQuinn on Passport to Danger, The Joker on Batman, Bernard Henderson on Julia, and Peter Stavros on Falcon Crest) plays saloon owner Big Tim Sloan. Dorothy Morris (appeared in Seven Sweethearts, The Human Comedy, Our Vines Have Tender Grapes, and Seconds) plays Mushy's cousin Laverne Mushgrove. Jena Engstrom (daughter of actress Jean Engstrom) plays her 15-year-old sister Posie.

Season 4, Episode 25, "A Woman's Place": Gail Kobe (shown on the left, played Penny Adams on Trackdown, Doris Schuster on Peyton Place, and Dean Ann Boyd Jones on Bright Promise and produced over 200 episodes of The Bold and the Beautiful) plays small-town physician Dr. Louise Amadon. Jacques Aubuchon (starred in The Silver Chalice, The Big Boodle, and The Love God? and played Chief Urulu on McHale's Navy) plays quack Prof. Daniel Pearson. Eduard Franz (starred in The Thing From Another World, Lady Godiva of Coventry, The Jazz Singer (1952), Sins of Jezebel, and The Indian Fighter and played Gregorio Verdugo on Zorro and Dr. Edward Raymer on Breaking Point) plays town mayor Arnold Opel. Mala Powers (starred in Cyrano de Bergerac, Rose of Cimarron, and Tammy and the Bachelor and played Rebecca Boone on Walt Disney's Daniel Boone and Mona on Hazel) plays his wife Loretta. Charles Maxwell (see "The Long Count" above) plays lawman Sheriff Barker. John Close (Lt. John Jameson on Big Town) plays one of Pearson's thugs. Robert B. Williams (see the biography section for the 1962 post on Hazel) plays Pearson patient Robert James.

Season 4, Episode 26, "Reunion": Walter Pidgeon (shown on the right, two-time Oscar nominee for Best Actor, starred in How Green Was My Valley, Mrs. Miniver, Madame Curie, Forbidden Planet, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, and Funny Girl) plays rigid army commander Gen. Augustus Perry. Darryl Hickman (Dwayne Hickman's older brother, appeared in The Grapes of Wrath, The Way of All Flesh, The Human Comedy, Captain Eddie, Rhapsody in Blue, and The Tingler and played Cpl. Ben Canfield on The Americans) plays his son Matthew. Judson Pratt (Billy Kinkaid on Union Pacific) plays Perry's long-time attendant Sgt. Morgan. William Wellman, Jr. (son of director William A. Wellman, appeared in Darby's Rangers, A Swingin' Affair, A Swingin' Summer, Winter A-Go-Go, and The Happiest Millionaire and played Dr. Denason on Days of Our Lives) plays army messenger Sgt. Bennett.

Season 4, Episode 27, "House of the Hunter": Robert F. Simon (shown on the left, played Dave Tabak on Saints and Sinners, Gen. Alfred Terry on Custer, Frank Stephens on Bewitched, Uncle Everett McPherson on Nancy, Capt. Rudy Olsen on The Streets of San Francisco, and J. Jonah Jameson on The Amazing Spiderman) plays drunkard Mackie. Rosemary DeCamp (starred in Yankee Doodle Dandy, Rhapsody in Blue, and The Life of Riley and played Peg Riley on The Life of Riley, Margaret MacDonald on The Bob Cummings Show, Aunt Helen on Petticoat Junction, Helen Marie on That Girl, and Grandma Amanda Renfrew on The Partridge Family) plays nurse Mrs. Armstrong. Lester Matthews (Sir Dennis Nayland Smith on The Adventures of Dr. Fu Manchu and Fleming Pendleton on The Beverly Hillbillies) plays Judge George Larkins. Peter Adams (Capt. Arturo Toledano on Zorro) plays traveling comedian Burt Wells. Paula Raymond (appeared in Inside Straight, The Sellout, The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms, and The Human Jungle) plays his wife and fellow performer Franny.

Season 4, Episode 28, "Gold Fever": Victor Jory (starred in Madame Du Barry, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Gone With the Wind, and The Miracle Worker and played Lt. Howard Finucane on Manhunt) plays old prospector Hosea Brewer. Marion Ross (shown on the far right, see "The Woman Trap" above) plays his eldest daughter Priscilla. Karen Sharpe (shown on the near right, starred in Bomba and the Jungle Girl, The High and the Mighty, and The Disorderly Orderly and played Laura Thomas on Johnny Ringo) plays his middle daughter Jessica. Davey Davison (Virginia Lewis on Days of Our Lives and Nurse Esther on General Hospital) plays his youngest daughter Meg. Adam Williams (appeared in Flying Leathernecks, The Big Heat, Fear Strikes Out, and North by Northwest) plays drover Hank Kale. Quintin Sondergaard (see the biography section for the 1960 post on Tombstone Territory) plays drover Morse. Glen Gordon (Dr. Fu Manchu on The Adventures of Dr. Fu Manchu) plays a man Favor almost hires to replace Rowdy as ramrod.

Season 4, Episode 29, "The Devil and the Deep Blue": Ted de Corsia (Police Chief Hagedorn on Steve Canyon) plays rival trail boss Ben Wade. Coleen Gray (shown on the left, starred in Kiss of Death, Nightmare Alley, The Killing, The Vampire, The Leech Woman, and The Phantom Planet and played Diane Hunter on Days of Our Lives, Dean Ann Boyd Jones on Bright Promise, and Muriel Clifford on McCloud) plays his wife Helen. Tod Andrews (Zack James on First Love and Maj. John Singleton Mosby on The Gray Ghost) plays cattle rancher agent Charles Holt. Harry Lauter (Ranger Clay Morgan on Tales of the Texas Rangers, Atlasande on Rocky Jones, Space Ranger, and Jim Herrick on Waterfront) plays Wade's ramrod Reagan. John Pickard (Capt. Shank Adams on Boots and Saddles and Sgt. Maj. Murdock on Gunslinger) plays local lawman Sheriff Blake.

Season 5, Episode 1, "Incident of El Toro": James Best (shown on the right, played Sheriff Roscoe P. Coltrane on The Dukes of Hazzard and The Dukes) plays new drover Art Fuller. Hal Baylor (Mercury on Batman) plays drover Jenkins. Brad Morrow (Louie on The Adventures of Spin and Marty) plays 19-year-old drover Jack Jones.

Season 5, Episode 2, "Incident of the Hunter": Mark Stevens (shown on the left, starred in The Dark Corner, The Street With No Name, The Snake Pit, Little Egypt, and Torpedo Alley and played Martin Kane on Martin Kane and Steve Wilson on Big Town) plays former Confederate army captain John Shepard. Gregory Walcott (see the biography section for the 1961 post on 87th Precinct) plays new drover Girard.

Season 5, Episode 3, "Incident of the Portrait": John Ireland (shown on the right, starred in Red River, All the King's Men, I Shot Jesse James, and Spartacus and played John Hunter on The Cheaters, Jed Colby later on Rawhide, and Lyman Shackleford on Cassie & Co.) plays drifter Frank Trask. Emile Meyer (starred in Shane, Drums Across the River, Blackboard Jungle, Sweet Smell of Success, and Paths of Glory and played Gen. Zachary Moran on Bat Masterson) plays homesteader Raymond Curtis. Nina Shipman (grand-daughter of silent filmmaker Nell Shipman, appeared in Say One for Me, Blue Denim, The Oregon Trail, and High Time) plays Curtis' blind daughter Marion. Ted de Corsia (see "The Devil and the Deep Blue" above) plays Salt Springs Sheriff Kieler.

Season 5, Episode 4, "Incident at Cactus Wells": Keenan Wynn (shown on the left, starred in Annie Get Your Gun, Royal Wedding, Angels in the Outfield, The Absent-Minded Professor, Son of Flubber, Dr. Strangelove, The Great Race, and Point Blank and played Kodiak on Troubleshooters, Williard "Digger" Barnes on Dallas, Carl Sarnac on Call to Glory, and Butch on The Last Precinct) plays widower Simon Royce. Ron Hagerthy (Clipper King on Sky King) plays lackadaisical drover Danny Clayton. Don Haggerty (Jeffrey Jones on The Files of Jeffrey Jones, Eddie Drake on The Cases of Eddie Drake, Sheriff Dan Elder on State Trooper, and Marsh Murdock on The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp) plays Cactus Wells Sheriff Brinkley. Henry Wills (Pernell Roberts' stunt double on Bonanza and the stunt coordinator on The High Chaparral) plays drover Kilroy.

Season 5, Episode 5, "Incident of the Prodigal Son": Gene Evans (shown on the right, starred in The Steel Helmet, Thunderbirds, Donovan's Brain, and Operation Petticoat and played Rob McLaughlin on My Friend Flicka and Spencer Parrish on Spencer's Pilots) plays grouchy drover Sam Hargis. Carl Reindel (appeared in Bullitt, The Cheyenne Social Club, and The Andromeda Strain) plays runaway rich son Charles Whitney IV. Frank Wilcox (see "Grandma's Money" above) plays his father, railroad mogul Benjamin Whitney III.

Season 5, Episode 6, "Incident of the Four Horsemen": Robert J. Wilke (appeared in Best of the Badmen, High Noon, The Far Country, Night Passage, and Stripes and played Capt. Mendoza on Zorro) plays wealthy rancher Tom Galt. Jena Engstrom (see "The Child-Woman" above) plays his daughter Amy. Ron Hayes (see the biography section for the 1960 post on Bat Masterson) plays Amy's newly married husband and her father's rival Frank Louden. John Dehner (shown on the left, played Duke Williams on The Roaring '20's, Commodore Cecil Wyntoon on The Baileys of Balboa, Morgan Starr on The Virginian, Cyril Bennett on The Doris Day Show, Dr. Charles Cleveland Claver on The New Temperatures Rising Show, Barrett Fears on Big Hawaii, Marshal Edge Troy on Young Maverick, Lt. Joseph Broggi on Enos, Hadden Marshall on Bare Essence, and Billy Joe Erskine on The Colbys) plays Galt gunman Ben Kerran. Claude Akins (Sonny Pruett on Movin' On and Sheriff Elroy P. Lobo on B.J and the Bear and on Lobo) plays mercenary Gus Marsdon. James Griffith (Aaron Adams on Trackdown and Deputy Tom Ferguson on U.S. Marshal) plays mercenary Miller White. Roberto Contreras (Pedro on The High Chapparal) plays his partner Hombre. Myron Healey (Doc Holliday on The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp) plays Galt foreman Willie. Norman Leavitt (see "Grandma's Money" above) plays a loafer in Malberg.

Season 5, Episode 7, "Incident of the Lost Woman": Fay Spain (starred in Dragstrip Girl, Al Capone, and The Gentle Rain) plays runaway widow Lissa Hobson. R.G. Armstrong (shown on the right, played Police Capt. McAllister on T.H.E. Cat and Lewis Vendredi on Friday the 13th) plays her father-in-law Gantry Hobson. Harry Dean Stanton (appeared in Kelly's Heroes, Dillinger, Cool Hand Luke, Repo Man, Pretty in Pink, Alien, Paris, Texas and played Jake Walters on Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, Roman Grant on Big Love, and Carl Rodd on Twin Peaks) plays his son Jess. Hampton Fancher (Deputy Lon Gillis on Black Saddle and co-wrote the screenplay and was executive producer on Blade Runner) plays his son Billy. Roy Engel (Doc Martin on Bonanza, the police chief on My Favorite Martian, and President Ulysses S. Grant on The Wild, Wild West) plays wagon train member Whit Stokes.

Season 5, Episode 8, "Incident of the Dogfaces": James Whitmore (shown on the left, Oscar nominee and Emmy winner, starred in The Asphalt Jungle, Them!, Oklahoma!, Planet of the Apes, Tora! Tora! Tora!, Give 'Em Hell, Harry, The Shawshank Redemption, and The Majestic and played Abraham Lincoln Jones on The Law and Mr. Jones, Prof. John Woodruff on My Friend Tony, and Dr. Vincent Campanelli on The New Temperatures Rising Show) plays stranded army Sgt. Duclos. Steve Brodie (see the biography section for the 1960 post on The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp) plays wounded soldier Cpl. Dan Healy. John Doucette (see the biography section for the 1960 post on Lock Up) plays Russian immigrant Pvt. Vasily Kandinsky. Ford Rainey (see the biography section for the 1961 post on Window on Main Street) plays Comanche chief Broken Bow. Robert Stevenson (bartender Big Ed on Richard Drum and Marshal Hugh Strickland on Stagecoach West) plays homesteader Beard. William Wellman, Jr. (see "Reunion" above) plays drover Harry Dobkins. James Beck (appeared in The Bonnie Parker Story, Paratroop Command, Hound-Dog Man, and The Outsider and played Sgt. Highton on Hondo) plays drover Marker.

Season 5, Episode 9, "Incident of the Wolvers": Dan Duryea (starred in The Little Foxes, The Pride of the Yankees, Scarlet Street, and Winchester '73 and played China Smith in China Smith and The New Adventures of China Smith and Eddie Jacks on Peyton Place) plays wolf-killer patriarch Abner Cannon. Patty McCormack (shown on the right, played Cousin Ingeborg on Mama, Torey Peck on Peck's Bad Girl, Linda Warren on The Best of Everything, Anne Brookes on The Ropers, Liz La Cerva on The Sopranos, Connie Campolotarro on Have You Met Miss Jones?, and Dr. Monica Quartermaine on General Hospital) plays his daughter Julie. Paul Carr (Bill Horton on Days of Our Lives, Casey Clark on Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, Dr. Paul Summers on The Doctors, Ted Prince on Dallas, and Martin Gentry on The Young and the Restless) plays his son Luther. Jack Grinnage (appeared in Rebel Without a Cause, King Creole, and Wolf Larsen and played Ron Updyke on Kolchak: The Night Stalker) plays his son Matt.

Season 5, Episode 10, "Incident at Sugar Creek": John Larch (starred in The Wrecking Crew, Play Misty for Me, and Dirty Harry and played Deputy District Attorney Jerry Miller on Arrest and Trial, Gerald Wilson on Dynasty, and Arlen & Atticus Ward on Dallas) plays cattle owner Sam Garrett. Charles Herbert (appeared in The Colossus of New York, The Fly, Houseboat, and Please Don't Eat the Daisies and played David Barker on The Donna Reed Show, Peter McCauley on Men Into Space, and Rickey Selby on The Clear Horizon) plays his son Jody. Beverly Garland (shown on the left, played Casey Jones on Decoy, Ellis Collins on The Bing Crosby Show, Barbara Harper Douglas on My Three Sons, Dorothy "Dotty" West on Scarecrow and Mrs. King, Ellen Lane on Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, and Ginger on 7th Heaven) plays saloon owner Marcie. John Litel (starred in Back in Circulation, On Trial, Murder in the Blue Room, four Nancy Drew films, and eight Henry Aldrich films and played the Governor on Zorro and Dan Murchison on Stagecoach West) plays Jody's grandfather James Whitcomb. James Westerfield (appeared in The Shaggy Dog, The Absent-Minded Professor, and The Love God? and played John Murrel on The Travels of Jamie McPheeters) plays storekeeper Mort Henry. Everett Sloane (see the biography section for the 1961 post on The Dick Tracy Show) plays Sugar Creek physician Dr. Walter Harper. Arthur Franz (starred in Flight to Mars, The Member of the Wedding, and The Caine Mutiny and played Bill Winters on World of Giants and Hugh McLeod on The Nurses) plays Sugar Creek Sheriff Art Harris.

Season 5, Episode 11, "Incident of the Reluctant Bridegroom": Arch Johnson (starred in Somebody Up There Likes Me, G.I. Blues, and The Cheyenne Social Club and played Gus Honochek on The Asphalt Jungle, Cmdr. Wivenhoe on Camp Runamuck, and Jim Earle on The Edge of Night) plays saloon owner John Landy. Ruta Lee (shown on the right, appeared in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Funny Face, and Witness for the Prosecution and played Rona on 1st and Ten: The Championship and Pauline Spencer on Coming of Age) plays his girlfriend Sheila Delancey. Ed Nelson (Michael Rossi on Peyton Place, Ward Fuller on The Silent Force, and Sen. Mark Denning on Capitol) plays wanted outlaw Sam Weber. Eddie Foster (Mason on Commando Cody: Sky Marshal of the Universe) plays a waiter in Landy's saloon.

Season 5, Episode 12, "Incident of the Querencias": Edward Andrews (shown on the left, appeared in The Harder They Fall, Elmer Gantry, The Absent-Minded Professor, Son of Flubber, Advise and Consent, and The Glass Bottom Boat and played Cmdr. Rogers Adrian on Broadside and Col. Fairburn on The Doris Day Show) plays Favor's first boss Lije Crowning.

Season 5, Episode 13, "Incident at Quivira": Royal Dano (shown on the right, appeared in The Far Country, Moby Dick, and The Outlaw Josey Wales) plays prospector Monty Fox. Claude Akins (see "Incident of the Four Horsemen" above) plays army deserter Sgt. Samuel K. Parker.

Season 5, Episode 14, "Incident of Decision": Hugh Sanders (appeared in That's My Boy, The Pride of St. Louis, The Winning Team, and The Wild One) plays cattle rancher Harvey Calvin. Douglas Lambert (shown on the left, played Eddie Weeks on General Hospital and Walter Schiff on Inside Story) plays his crippled son Johnny. Sheila Bromley (Janet Tobin on I Married Joan, Ethel Weiss on Hank, and Mrs. Riley on Days of Our Lives) plays Johnny's mother Elva. Carlos Romero (Rico Rodriguez on Wichita Town, Romero Serrano on Zorro, and Carlo Agretti on Falcon Crest) plays bandito Antonio Chavez. Mike de Anda (Ciego on The Big Valley) plays fellow bandito Pedro.