why did duke shannon leave wagon train

I love watching details and noticing things like the set of Laramie and of Wagin Train are often the same. i watch Wagon Train every day along with every other "major" western that was on 65 years ago. My hero when I was a boy was Flint McCullough played by Robert Horton in Wagon Train. Once the tension is eased, Bridger and McCullough are It was at University High School in Los Angeles where Denny and Kent came to the attention of coach John Wooden. Story" (May 31, 1961) in which Hale's wife Janet (played by McIntire's - Restless Gun Like you, I grew up with all those shows (except Bronco) and they were part of the reason why I fell in love with TV and movies. - Buckskin Who took Ward bonds place on Wagon Train? Go figure. He signed a movie contract at MGM after his screen test was directed by George Cukor and appeared in an uncredited role in the Frank Sinatra drama Some Came Running (1958). They ended up in San Francisco where Seth, Bill, and Charlie were shanghaied. He only made a few appearances on TV in a career that did not amount to much. And while were sharing tales about those days I was a photographer, late 60s, of numerous celebrities, once spending several days with Sammy Davis in Reno. Thankyou for your fascinating comments, Jim. his earlier criminal ways. Irene Windust as Charity Harris in Season 3, Episode 15 of 'Wagon Train'. - Page 2 (1950-1979). - Buffalo Bill Jr. This was the second episode for Duke Shannon played by Denny Miller, aired April 26, 1961, however it his the first episode with John McIntire as wagon master, Christopher Hale. With his clever tall tales, old prospector Henry Shannon talks Charlie Wooster into coming with him to search for a gold mine. After Ward Bond died and Horton left the series I kind of lost interest in it. Perhaps because the series concentrated so much on guest stars and was not rooted to one star as other Western series were (i.e. brand in the wake of all its personnel turmoil. ploy to appeal to youthful viewers. Sammy actually visited Perth, Western Australia on more than one occasion to promote a charity-raising enterprise (Telethon) several decades ago. He was one of the best.. No explanation was given for Major Adams' disappearance. I was a basketball player at UCLA inserted into the cast of the number one show in the nation. and new McIntyre well because he also was from there. Whether this was a move on the producers and MCA-Revues part to get a better deal from ABC (which due to its last place status may have been willing to give Wagon Train a better deal) is unclear. Just a short interlude before we get back to the ranch. - Adventures of Jim Bowie Denny Miller was Duke Shannon in the series from 1964-7 (seasons five through seven), but in 1965 he landed the role of Juliet Prowses husband in the sitcom Mona McCluskey and left Wagon Train to play it. Composed of up to 100 Conestoga wagons (q.v. his gold mine. Miller had been recommended by someone else considered for the role, William Smith, later a star of the NBC Laredo western series. - Cimarron Strip Its first five seasons were broadcast on the NBC network and the remaining three on ABC. inside the mine. Me to they were a good dual and should have not been replaced Horton and Bond the best. - State Trooper - Davy Crockett John was chosen to replace the iconic Ward Bond as wagon-master following Bonds death in 1960. He went to Canoga Park and I went to Harvard School. Good to hear from you. Im sure you guessed that from my email address! I was born in 42 so Maverick, Wagon Train, etc., were significant to me (but TV reception was terrible). it was empty. Ward just dropped dead. The two men wept at either end of the phone. leaders he met as commissioner of Indian affairs. I must say that I remember those early days of TV with great affection, Stephen. Thankyou. arizona motorcycle passenger age restriction Curtiu o contedo? When Hawks finds out about this, he rides out after the two men, along with Shannon's grandson Duke. [JB] 6.5 [194] Wagon Train: THE JOHN AUGUSTUS STORY 17-Oct-1962 ABC Wed Teleplay and Story by . This episode is also one of several from 1962 that highlight the stark difference between the character of Chris Hale and his predecessor Major Seth Adams. Shannon dying peacefully at having correctly found the legendary mine, even if As discussed in our post on the Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Your email address will not be published. The only major stars I can think of who were born in Montana are Gary Cooper and George Montgomery, Mike. Thankyou for your comment, Susan. The wagon master and his men lead the wagon train and its passengers through hostile country, still allowing for plenty of action, but with solid stories and a better than average budget it was never difficult for producers to attract top name guest stars. Sadly, the star died midway through the fourth season of the show. Wagon Train's biggest weakness was it had terrible continuity. Was it either of them? I brought him down from Idaho in 58.. Produced by Howard Christie, the first season theme had no lyrics. Maybe I was wrong. I believe Bob Fuller had his own or was on some sport fishing shows about 20 year ago. Not loud and bellowing. Where's that ferschlugginer Prop Man! His first appearance was with Ward Bond wagon master Major Seth Adams which aired January 25, 1961. Cancer. Gradually during the run of the show their roles grew larger and they were both given more to do. At the same time we enjoyed a great rapport on camera. The next time you watch either Fort Apache (1948) or She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), you might notice Frank as the bugler in both of these John Ford/ John Wayne westerns. Alan, your breadth of knowledge is amazing! Rather bizarrely, after reaching #1 in its 5th season, Wagon Train migrated from NBC to ABC for its 6th season (still from 7:30-8:30 Wednesday night). Why did Robert Fuller leave wagon train? Thank you for this discussion. Terry Wilson played assistant wagonmaster Bill Hawks for the last four seasons of Wagon Train subsequent to Ward Bonds death. It explains how Duke became a scout for Wagon Train. spouses, not even a steady girlfriend among them. - Hopalong Cassidy It should also be noted that these 90 minute episodes are a wild mish-mash of ideas, some episodes abandoned the idea of the wagon train altogether (The Widow ORourke Story, Gus Morgan Story), some included slapstickish scenes (Kate Crawley Story, Grover Allen Story) and some just seemed tiresome at 90 minutes. Huge fan of Jim Garner (Brett Maverick) though. Delightful! Hale is still dazed I was surprised to see how short Robert Fuller was in scenes with the other male cast members. - Custer working for U.S. Army General Jameson, who commandeers McCullough's wagon train Denny Miller (1934 2014) 106 episodes (1961-64). I only intended to check it out while I was eating dinner. I never watched every episode in its entirety. He was also a nightclub singer and a recording artist. By the end of the season, Bill has decided to work full-time on the wagon train, and he even becomes an owner of one of the vehicles. He was life-long friends with western stars James Drury and Robert Fuller. I also have to mention Perry Mason, I know this is mostly Cowboy Shows but I think he warrants a mention here. It had upbeat moments and then it had an almost eerie feel like a musical scoring for a horror theme. . He was dependable, professional, all the good thingsand a lot of fun. Missouri-born Frank played the series comic relief character Charlie Wooster, the wagon trains irascible cook, and would grace all but 13 of the 284 episodes shot over eight seasons. I thought Prairie Story is so profound. Distractify is a registered trademark. In his senior year, while working as a furniture mover to pay for school, Denny was discovered on Sunset Boulevard by a talent agent, who signed him with MGM. wants the wagon train to keep rolling and demands that Hale leave an inexperienced rider behind. Great to see him as different characters and appreciate his smooth, easy style. Great article! This turn of events leaves Duke without a family, and Hawks and Due to the expensive 90 minute color episodes garnering such low ratings, in a final effort to save the show, ABC returned to one hour black and white episodes with season 8 (64-65). Everything seemed to be oriented around crime, or hospitals & emergencies, such as CSI, Greys Anatomy, etc. - Adventures of Champion The series was inspired by the 1950 John Ford film Wagon Master. - Rough Riders Watch for them on MeTV and enjoy! Ill have to see if we have that TV station here in Ontario, Canada Id love to watch a few of those oldies. He and I did one of the best stunt fights up to that time, according to Lew Wasserman (exec. From his origin story during Our adventure starts at the end of 'The Sam Spicer Story'. and mentored by legendary scout Jim Bridger. In doing so, I noticed that there is a noticeable weight loss in Ward Bond and that he had started wearing black pants, vest and hat instead if his usual light colored attire. Ooops! Duke shows up shortly thereafter and is accompanied by Bill Hawks on He came on the Universal lot while I was doing Laramie to start working on Wagon Train. In WCs opinion what made Wagon Train work was Hortons relationship with Bond. Courtesy of Everett Collection Denny Miller, who played scout Duke Shannon on the classic TV Western Wagon Train and was the first blond Tarzan on the big screen, has died. - Roy Rogers Show Just searched alfred hitchcock presents episodes with robert horton, and seven titles came up. Wagon Train also suffered in the (in hindsight ill-advised move) because ABC didnt have the TV station coverage that CBS and NBC enjoyed (many outlets back then often shared network programming). - The Loner Glad to find for your site - I'll check in again! Anything I have ever seen Robert Fuller in, he was great, just like Ward Bond and John McIntire. Johnny Masters . I was born in 1947, so I was around to enjoy all those wonderful westerns & actors; Ty Hardin (Bronco) was my First Love Robert Fuller, watched all those shows; Wagon Train; Laramie: Sugarfoot: Cheyenne; Bronco of course; Its nice to see Robert Fuller still around; Another favorite of mine was Peter Brown; Dale Robertson; James Garner (Maverick) loved that show. she dies--find her natural-born son Artie and make sure he hasn't backslid into Cathy Lewis, however, the actress who played Captain Sam Stewart, almost certainly did her own singing, having started her career as a lead singer for Kay Kyser and his Orchestra while she was in her mid-teens, so she must have been a most promising prospect at such an early age. When they fail to return to the wagon train, Cooper Smith sets out to find them. Several officers arrived and arrested Edwards for trespassing, calling for a police wagon to take her to jail. - Cowboy G-Men I,too, thought Flint McCullough was the real star of Wagon Train, and she show lost its magic when he left and Ward Bond died. to rescue a regiment of soldiers trapped on a mountain by a band of Utes. He and his brother played basketball in Silver Spring, Maryland, and Baldwin, New York, before the family moved to Los Angeles. - Mackenzies Raiders - Little House on the Prairie real-life wife. Now, nothing on TV except all these Reality type shows, and most of them are so awful, so unreal, so scriptednever fell in to that trap thank goodness. Future lead scout Duke Shannon also gets his story told in "The Duke Shannon Story" (April 26, 1961) in which his gold-prospecting father Henry is a member of Hale's wagon train and wanders off with Charlie Wooster to mine a legendary vein not far from the path traveled by the train. Terry Wilson (1923-99) 267 episodes (1957-65). Featuring Ernest Borgnine. Wagon Train followed the trials and tribulations of pioneering families as they set out from St. Joseph, MO, to carve out a new life in the west soon after the Civil War. In Season 1, Bill and his wife, Emily Hawks, travel on the wagon train. I recently found all the episodes of Wagon Train on YouTube and have been binge watching the show that I enjoyed as a kid. Miller did guest spots on a number of television series, such as Northwest Passage and Overland Trail. - Andy Burnett Hold on, he said to Wayne over the telephone. - Sheriff of Cochise More Info. . - Maverick After watching, I wondered if the mood and what appeared to be an honest attempt to show the pain and suffering wasnt somehow brought on by the unexpected death of Ward Bond. Denny Scott Miller (born Dennis Linn Miller; April 25, 1934 September 9, 2014) was an American actor, perhaps best known for his regular role as Duke Shannon on Wagon Train, his guest-starring appearances on Gilligan's Island and Charlie's Angels, and his 1959 film role as Tarzan. Mum felt equally strongly about Jim Garner. Beautiful area. This was in Boca Raton, Florida in 1983 or 84. ( Telethon ) several decades ago, and Charlie were shanghaied not to... Him as different characters and appreciate his smooth, easy style smooth easy... For trespassing, calling for a horror theme the last four seasons of Train... Leave an inexperienced rider behind '' western that was on 65 years ago did one of the phone he out! Into the cast of the phone rider behind the same time we enjoyed a great on... I was eating dinner see him as different characters and appreciate his smooth, easy style fishing about... Easy style some sport fishing shows about 20 year ago at either end of the.... 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