The Adventures of Jim Bowie | |
---|---|
Genre |
|
Starring | Scott Forbes |
Theme music composer | Ken Darby |
Opening theme | "Jim Bowie" by The King's Men |
Country of origin | United States |
No. of seasons | 2 |
No. of episodes | 76 |
Production | |
Executive producer | Louis F. Edelman |
Producers |
|
Editor | John Woodcock |
Running time | 25 minutes |
Production companies |
|
Original release | |
Network | ABC |
Release | September 7, 1956 – August 29, 1958 |
The Adventures of Jim Bowie is an American Western television series that aired on ABC from 1956 to 1958. Its setting was the 1830s-era Louisiana Territory. [1] The series was an adaptation of the book Tempered Blade, by Monte Barrett. [2]
The series stars Scott Forbes as the real-life adventurer Jim Bowie. The series initially portrayed Jim Bowie as something of an outdoors-man, riding his horse through the wilderness near his home in Opelousas, where he would stumble across someone needing his assistance. He was aided by the Bowie Knife, his ever-present weapon. He designed it in the first episode, The Birth of the Blade. Although Bowie used the blade quite a bit in early episodes, its prominence was downplayed as the show went on.
Gradually the series shifted from the country to the city, having Bowie instead spend the majority of his time in New Orleans. He was frequently shown looking to invest his money in real estate, or coming to the aid of someone who had been swindled.
Storylines focused on the exploits of Bowie before he moved to Texas (then part of Mexico), and his death at the Alamo in 1836. During the series's two season run, Bowie encountered many historical figures of the era, such as President Andrew Jackson, Jefferson Davis, John James Audubon, Sam Houston, and Davy Crockett.
Among the actors and actresses who guest-starred more than once on the series were William Schallert, Denver Pyle, Michael Landon, Chuck Connors, Walter Coy, June Carter Cash, and Lurene Tuttle. Jimmy Noel made walk-on appearances in six episodes. Those making single guest appearances included Yvonne Lime Fedderson, Douglas Kennedy, and Carole Mathews.
Jim Bowie did not appear in the last episode of the series. Instead, he was said to be away on an important assignment, and the attention was placed on criminal Jess Miller. Miller was given the task to retrieve a great sum of money, and the episode focused on whether Miller would complete his assignment or take the money for himself. At the end there is an indication that Miller would join up with Bowie on further adventures, but no further episodes were produced.[ citation needed ]
Douglas Brode wrote in his book, Shooting Stars of the Small Screen: Encyclopedia of TV Western Actors, 1946–Present, that Scott Forbes, who had the title role, "stormed off the set" when he learned that the series was being canceled after two seasons, when he had understood that it would run for five seasons. [3] He added, "In desperation, the writers fashioned the final script" without the star. [3]
The program was sponsored by Chesebrough-Ponds. [4]
Use of the knife in the initial episode led a reviewer for The New York Times to write, "[I]t would seem like a wise idea for parents to keep young viewers away from the television set when the show is on." [5] The show was one of the first TV programs criticized for on-screen violence. [6]
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | "The Birth of the Blade" | Unknown | Unknown | September 7, 1956 |
2 | 2 | "The Squatter" | Unknown | Unknown | September 14, 1956 |
3 | 3 | "An Adventure with Audubon" | Unknown | Unknown | September 21, 1956 |
4 | 4 | "Deputy Sheriff" | Unknown | Unknown | September 28, 1956 |
5 | 5 | "Trapline" | Unknown | Unknown | October 5, 1956 |
6 | 6 | "Broomstick Wedding" | Unknown | Unknown | October 12, 1956 |
7 | 7 | "Natchez Trace" | Unknown | Unknown | October 19, 1956 |
8 | 8 | "Jim Bowie Comes Home" | Unknown | Unknown | October 26, 1956 |
9 | 9 | "The Ghost of Jean Battoo" | Unknown | Unknown | November 2, 1956 |
10 | 10 | "The Secessionist" | Unknown | Unknown | November 9, 1956 |
11 | 11 | "Land Jumpers" | Unknown | Unknown | November 16, 1956 |
12 | 12 | "The Select Females" | Unknown | Unknown | November 23, 1956 |
13 | 13 | "Bowie and His Slave" | Unknown | Unknown | November 30, 1956 |
14 | 14 | "Outlaw Kingdom" | Unknown | Unknown | December 7, 1956 |
15 | 15 | "The Swordsman" | Unknown | Unknown | December 14, 1956 |
16 | 16 | "The Return of the Alcibiade" | Unknown | Unknown | December 21, 1956 |
17 | 17 | "Monsieur Francois" | Unknown | Unknown | December 28, 1956 |
18 | 18 | "A Horse for Old Hickory" | Unknown | Unknown | January 4, 1957 |
19 | 19 | "The Beggar of New Orleans" | Unknown | Unknown | January 11, 1957 |
20 | 20 | "Osceola" | Unknown | Unknown | January 18, 1957 |
21 | 21 | "Master of Arms" | Unknown | Unknown | January 25, 1957 |
22 | 22 | "Convoy Gold" | Unknown | Unknown | February 1, 1957 |
23 | 23 | "Spanish Intrigue" | Unknown | Unknown | February 8, 1957 |
24 | 24 | "Bayou Tontine" | Unknown | Unknown | February 15, 1957 |
25 | 25 | "German George" | Unknown | Unknown | February 22, 1957 |
26 | 26 | "An Eye for an Eye" | Unknown | Unknown | March 1, 1957 |
27 | 27 | "The Captain's Chimp" | Unknown | Unknown | March 8, 1957 |
28 | 28 | "Jackson Assassination" | Unknown | Unknown | March 15, 1957 |
29 | 29 | "Rezin Bowie, Gambler" | Unknown | Unknown | March 22, 1957 |
30 | 30 | "Thieves' Market" | Unknown | Unknown | March 29, 1957 |
31 | 31 | "The Pearl and the Crown" | Unknown | Unknown | April 5, 1957 |
32 | 32 | "The General's Disgrace" | Unknown | Unknown | April 12, 1957 |
33 | 33 | "The Lottery" | Unknown | Unknown | April 19, 1957 |
34 | 34 | "The Intruder" | Unknown | Unknown | April 26, 1957 |
35 | 35 | "Country Cousin" | Unknown | Unknown | May 3, 1957 |
36 | 36 | "The Bound Girl" | Unknown | Unknown | May 10, 1957 |
37 | 37 | "Bounty Hunter" | Unknown | Unknown | May 17, 1957 |
38 | 38 | "Gone to Texas" | Unknown | Unknown | May 24, 1957 |
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
39 | 1 | "Epitaph for an Indian" | Unknown | Unknown | September 6, 1957 |
40 | 2 | "Flowers for McDonough" | Unknown | Unknown | September 13, 1957 |
41 | 3 | "The Irishman" | Unknown | Unknown | September 20, 1957 |
42 | 4 | "Counterfeit Dixie" | Unknown | Unknown | September 27, 1957 |
43 | 5 | "Bullet Metal" | Unknown | Unknown | October 4, 1957 |
44 | 6 | "Quarantine" | Unknown | Unknown | October 11, 1957 |
45 | 7 | "A Fortune for Madame" | Unknown | Unknown | October 18, 1957 |
46 | 8 | "House Divided" | Unknown | Unknown | October 25, 1957 |
47 | 9 | "The Whip" | Unknown | Unknown | November 1, 1957 |
48 | 10 | "Pearls of Talimeco" | Unknown | Unknown | November 8, 1957 |
49 | 11 | "Charivari" | Unknown | Unknown | November 15, 1957 |
50 | 12 | "Hare and Tortoise" | Unknown | Unknown | November 22, 1957 |
51 | 13 | "The Bridegroom" | Unknown | Unknown | November 29, 1957 |
52 | 14 | "The Alligator" | Unknown | Unknown | December 6, 1957 |
53 | 15 | "Country Girl" | Unknown | Unknown | December 13, 1957 |
54 | 16 | "Mexican Adventure" | Unknown | Unknown | December 20, 1957 |
55 | 17 | "Silk Purse" | Unknown | Unknown | December 27, 1957 |
56 | 18 | "Choctaw Honor" | Unknown | Unknown | January 3, 1958 |
57 | 19 | "Close Shave" | Unknown | Unknown | January 10, 1958 |
58 | 20 | "Pirate on Horseback" | Unknown | Unknown | January 17, 1958 |
59 | 21 | "Curfew Cannon" | Unknown | Unknown | January 24, 1958 |
60 | 22 | "Home Sweet Home" | Unknown | Unknown | January 31, 1958 |
61 | 23 | "Deaf Smith" | Unknown | Unknown | February 7, 1958 |
62 | 24 | "Ursula" | Unknown | Unknown | February 14, 1958 |
63 | 25 | "Apache Silver" | Unknown | Unknown | February 21, 1958 |
64 | 26 | "A Grave for Jim Bowie" | Unknown | Unknown | February 28, 1958 |
65 | 27 | "Up the Creek" | Unknown | Unknown | March 7, 1958 |
66 | 28 | "The Lion's Cub" | Unknown | Unknown | March 14, 1958 |
67 | 29 | "Horse Thief" | Unknown | Unknown | March 21, 1958 |
68 | 30 | "Jim Bowie, Apache" | Unknown | Unknown | March 28, 1958 |
69 | 31 | "The Brothers" | Unknown | Unknown | April 4, 1958 |
70 | 32 | "Patron of the Arts" | Unknown | Unknown | April 11, 1958 |
71 | 33 | "Bad Medicine" | Unknown | Unknown | April 18, 1958 |
72 | 34 | "A Night in Tennessee" | Unknown | Unknown | April 25, 1958 |
73 | 35 | "Bowie's Baby" | Unknown | Unknown | May 2, 1958 |
74 | 36 | "The Cave" | Unknown | Unknown | May 9, 1958 |
75 | 37 | "Man of the Streets" | Unknown | Unknown | May 16, 1958 |
76 | 38 | "The Puma" | Unknown | Unknown | May 23, 1958 |
The theme song was "Adventurin' Man", performed by the Ken Darby Singers. [7] The series' music was unusual in that it was primarily vocal, provided by Ken Darby and The King's Men (save for a few episodes in season two).
A two-DVD set containing 13 episodes of the program has been published. [6]
The TV show was also adapted into a comic book by Dan Spiegle, distributed by Dell Comics. [8]
Tales of the Texas Rangers is a 20th century Western old-time radio and television police procedural drama which originally aired on NBC Radio from 1950 to 1952 and later on CBS Television from 1955 to 1958. Film star Joel McCrea voiced the radio version as the fictitious Texas Ranger Jace Pearson, who uses the latest scientific techniques to identify criminals. His faithful horse, Charcoal, helps Pearson to track down the culprits. The radio shows, some of which are available on the Internet, are reenactments of actual Texas Ranger cases.
James Black was an American knifemaker best known for his improvements to the Bowie knife designed by Jim Bowie.
Maverick is an American Western television series with comedic overtones created by Roy Huggins and originally starring James Garner as an adroitly articulate poker player plying his trade on riverboats and in saloons while traveling incessantly through the 19th-century American frontier. The show ran for five seasons from September 22, 1957, to July 8, 1962 on ABC.
Annie Oakley is an American Western television series that fictionalizes the life of the famous Annie Oakley. Featuring actress Gail Davis in the title role, the weekly program ran from January 1954 to February 1957 in syndication. A total of 81 black-and-white episodes were produced, with each installment running 25 minutes in length. ABC aired daytime reruns of the series on Saturdays and Sundays from 1959 to 1960 and then again from 1964 to 1965.
Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. is an American sitcom that originally aired on CBS from September 25, 1964, to May 2, 1969. The series was a spin-off of The Andy Griffith Show, and the pilot episode was aired as the season finale of the fourth season of its parent series on May 18, 1964. The show ran for a total of 150 half-hour episodes spanning over five seasons, in black-and-white for the first season, and then in color for the remaining four seasons. In 2006, CBS Home Entertainment began releasing the series on DVD. The final season was released in November 2008.
Denver Dell Pyle was an American film and television actor and director. He was well known for a number of TV roles from the 1960s through the 1980s, including his portrayal of Briscoe Darling in several episodes of The Andy Griffith Show, as Jesse Duke in The Dukes of Hazzard from 1979 to 1985, as Mad Jack in the NBC television series The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams, and as the titular character's father, Buck Webb, in CBS's The Doris Day Show. In many of his roles, he portrayed either authority figures, or gruff, demanding father figures, often as comic relief. Perhaps his most memorable film role was that of Texas Ranger Frank Hamer in the movie Bonnie and Clyde (1967), as the lawman who relentlessly chased down and finally killed the notorious duo in an ambush.
Jacob "Jack" Kruschen was a Canadian character actor who worked primarily in American film, television and radio. Kruschen was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Dr. Dreyfuss in the 1960 comedy-drama The Apartment.
Lassie is an American television series that follows the adventures of a female Rough Collie dog named Lassie and her companions, both human and animal. The show was the creation of producer Robert Maxwell and animal trainer Rudd Weatherwax and was televised from September 12, 1954, to March 25, 1973. The eighth longest-running scripted American primetime television series, the show ran for 17 seasons on CBS before entering first-run syndication for its final two seasons. Initially filmed in black and white, the show transitioned to color in 1965.
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp is the first Western television series written for adults. It premiered four days before Gunsmoke on September 6, 1955. Two weeks later came the Clint Walker western Cheyenne. The series is loosely based on the life of frontier marshal Wyatt Earp. The half-hour, black-and-white program aired for six seasons on ABC from 1955 to 1961, with Hugh O'Brian in the title role.
Wanted Dead or Alive is an American Western television series starring Steve McQueen as bounty hunter Josh Randall. It aired on CBS for three seasons from 1958–1961. The black-and-white program was a spin-off of a March 1958 episode of Trackdown, a 1957–1959 Western series starring Robert Culp. Both series were produced by Vincent Fennelly for Four Star Television in association with CBS.
Rawhide is an American Western television series starring Eric Fleming and Clint Eastwood. The show aired for eight seasons on the CBS network on Friday nights from January 9, 1959 to September 3, 1965 before moving to Tuesday nights from September 14, 1965 until December 7, 1965, with a total of 217 black-and-white episodes. The series was produced and sometimes directed by Charles Marquis Warren, who also produced early episodes of Gunsmoke. The show is remembered by many for its theme song, "Rawhide".
Colt .45 is an American Western television series, originally starring Wayde Preston, which aired on ABC between October 1957 and September 1960.
Conrad Scott-Forbes, popularly known as Scott Forbes, was a British film and television actor and screenwriter. In his later career as a screenwriter, he was credited as C. Scott Forbes.
The Aquanauts is an American adventure/drama series that aired on CBS in the 1960–1961 season. The series stars Keith Larsen, Jeremy Slate and Ron Ely, who later replaced Larsen on midseason.
Kenneth Lorin Darby was an American composer, vocal arranger, lyricist, and conductor. His film scores were recognized by the awarding of three Academy Awards and one Grammy Award. He provided vocals for the Munchkinland mayor in The Wizard of Oz (1939), who was portrayed in the film by Charlie Becker. Darby is also notable as the author of The Brownstone House of Nero Wolfe (1983), a biography of the home of Rex Stout's fictional detective.
The Texan is a Western television series starring film and television actor Rory Calhoun, which aired on the CBS television network from 1958 to 1960.
Tombstone Territory is an American Western television series starring Pat Conway and Richard Eastham. The first two seasons aired on ABC from 1957 to 1959. The first season was sponsored by Bristol-Myers and the second season by Lipton (tea/soup) and Philip Morris. The third and final season aired in syndication from 1959 until 1960. The program was produced by Ziv Television.
Coronado 9 is an American crime drama series starring Rod Cameron that aired in syndication in 1960.
Walter Darwin Coy was an American stage, radio, film, and, principally, television actor, arguably most well known as the brother of John Wayne's character in The Searchers (1956).
Safari is a 1940 American adventure film directed by Edward H. Griffith and starring Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Madeleine Carroll and Tullio Carminati.