Tombstone Territory

Tombstone Territory
Pat Conway as Clay Hollister, 1958
Genre	Western
Starring	Pat Conway Richard Eastham Gilman Rankin
Narrated by	Richard Eastham
Theme music composer	William M. Backer
Opening theme	"Whistle Me Up a Memory" performed by Jimmy Blaine
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	91
Production
Executive producer	Frederick W. Ziv
Producers	Frank Pittman Andy White
Cinematography	Monroe P. Askins Curt Fetters Robert Hoffman
Editors	W. Duncan Mansfield Joseph Silver
Running time	30 minutes
Production company	Ziv Television Programs
Original release
Network	ABC (1957-1959) Syndication (1959-1960)
Release	October 16, 1957 (1957-10-16) – July 8, 1960 (1960-07-08)

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 (consumer products) and the second season by Lipton (tea/soup) and Philip Morris (Marlboro cigarettes). The third and final season aired in syndication from 1959 until 1960. The program was produced by Ziv Television.

Overview

This program took place in the boomtown of Tombstone, Arizona Territory, one of the Old West's most notorious towns and the site of the shootout known as the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Located south of Tucson, Tombstone was then known by the sobriquet "the town too tough to die". The program's theme song, "Whistle Me Up a Memory", was written by William M. Backer and performed by Jimmy Blaine. ^[1]

The series did not deal with real characters in the history of Tombstone in the 1880s, such as Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, or the Clanton gang, with the exception of Curly Bill Brocius, who appeared in the first season. It was about fictional characters in the American Southwest. The first episode opens, according to the narrator, on August 4, 1881. Conway played Sheriff Clay Hollister. Eastham, the only other actor besides Conway to appear in all the episodes, played Harris Claibourne, editor of The Tombstone Epitaph (an actual newspaper that still exists in limited form). Eastham, originally a singer in opera and on Broadway, also narrated the series in a deep baritone voice, ^[2] describing each episode as an actual report from the newspaper's archives.

Gerald Mohr played Doc Holliday in the first-season Tombstone Territory episode titled "Doc Holliday in Durango", initially broadcast in 1958. The previous year, Mohr had portrayed Holliday in an episode of Maverick titled "The Quick and the Dead" starring James Garner and Marie Windsor. Mohr's version of Holliday was identical in both series.

The ending credits indicate, "This series is produced with the full cooperation of Clayton A. Smith, editor of the TOMBSTONE EPITAPH and D'Estell Iszard, historian". ^[3]

The program was a notable early example of a television network imitating itself. At the time it was airing Tombstone Territory, whose main character resembled Wyatt Earp in everything but name, ABC also was broadcasting The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp .

Cast

• Pat Conway as Sheriff Clay Hollister
• Richard Eastham as Harris Clayton Claibourne, editor
• Gilman Rankin starred as Deputy Charlie Riggs in eight episodes, only appearing in the first season. ^[4]

Recurring

• Robert Foulk appeared as Curly Bill Brocius. ^[5]
• Quentin Sondergaard was cast as Deputy Sheriff Quint in 11 episodes of the two later seasons.
• Dennis Moore appeared as Deputy in five segments.
• Robert J. Wilke, John Doucette, and Warren Oates all appeared three times, as Burt Foster, Apache Chief Geronimo, and Bob Pickett, respectively, as well as occasional other roles.

Guest stars

Fred Aldrich Lee Allen John Anderson Rayford Barnes James Best Peter Breck Diane Brewster Harry Carey Jr. John Carradine Anthony Caruso Lon Chaney Jr. James Coburn Fred Coby William Conrad Russ Conway Elisha Cook Jr. Angie Dickinson John Doucette Andrew Duggan Jack Elam Bill Erwin Margaret Field Duke Fishman Constance Ford Bruce Gordon Leo Gordon Dabbs Greer Virginia Gregg Raymond Guth Herman Hack Ron Hagerthy Alan Hale Jr. Allison Hayes Ron Hayes Myron Healey Thomas Browne Henry Robert Hinkle Ed Hinton Bern Hoffman Rodolfo Hoyos Jr. Don Kennedy Douglas Kennedy Brett King Wright King Ethan Laidlaw

Michael Landon Keith Larsen Harry Lauter Karl Lukas Herbert Lytton Ken Mayer Patrick McVey Tyler McVey Joyce Meadows Jan Merlin Gerald Mohr Donald Murphy Anna Navarro Ed Nelson Leonard Nimoy Jimmy Noel Kathleen Nolan Warren Oates Larry Pennell Joe Ploski Mala Powers Andrew Prine Denver Pyle - appeared in "Crime Epidemic" as Will Gunther Rhodes Reason Richard Reeves Paul Richards Pernell Roberts Bing Russell Milan Smith Fay Spain Guy Stockwell Liam Sullivan Ralph Taeger Kent Taylor Regis Toomey Brad Trumbull Lee Van Cleef John Vivyan Patrick Waltz Peter Whitney Tony Young Len Lesser

Episode list

Season 1 (1957–58)

No. overall	No. in series	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date
1	1	"Gunslinger from Galeyville"	Eddie Davis	Story by : Frank Pittman and Andy White Teleplay by : Andy White	October 16, 1957 (1957-10-16)
2	2	"Reward for a Gunslinger"	Leon Benson	Stuart Jerome	October 23, 1957 (1957-10-23)
3	3	"Ride Out at Noon"	Leon Benson	Clark E. Reynolds and Martin Berkeley	October 30, 1957 (1957-10-30)
4	4	"Revenge Town"	Eddie Davis	Steve Fisher	November 6, 1957 (1957-11-6)
5	5	"A Bullet for an Editor"	Walter Doniger	Leo Gordon	November 13, 1957 (1957-11-13)
6	6	"Killer Without a Conscience"	Walter Doniger	William Tunberg	November 20, 1957 (1957-11-20)
7	7	"Guns of Silver"	Eddie Davis	Fred Freiberger	November 27, 1957 (1957-11-27)
8	8	"Desert Survival"	Eddie Davis	Gene Levitt	December 4, 1957 (1957-12-4)
9	9	"Apache Vendetta"	Walter Doniger	Andy White	December 11, 1957 (1957-12-11)
10	10	"Ambush at Gila Gulch"	Leon Benson	William Tunberg	December 18, 1957 (1957-12-18)
11	11	"Sermons and Six Guns"	Walter Doniger	Laurence Heath	December 25, 1957 (1957-12-25)
12	12	"The Youngest Gun"	Leon Benson	Harold Shumate	January 1, 1958 (1958-1-1)
13	13	"Shoot Out at Dark"	Eddie Davis	Martin Berkeley and Clark E. Reynolds	January 8, 1958 (1958-1-8)
14	14	"The Rebels' Last Charge"	Eddie Davis	Steve Fisher	January 15, 1958 (1958-1-15)
15	15	"Gun Fever"	Eddie Davis	Barney Slater	January 22, 1958 (1958-1-22)
16	16	"Mexican Bandito"	Ted Post	Paul Savage	January 29, 1958 (1958-1-29)
17	17	"Tong War"	Eddie Davis	Leo Gordon	February 5, 1958 (1958-2-5)
18	18	"Postmarked for Death"	Ted Post	Martin Berkeley and Clark E. Reynolds	February 12, 1958 (1958-2-12)
19	19	"Johnny Ringo's Last Ride"	Ted Post	Story by : Andy White Teleplay by : Sam Peckinpah	February 19, 1958 (1958-2-19)
20	20	"Outlaw's Bugle"	Walter Doniger	Laurence Heath	February 26, 1958 (1958-2-26)
21	21	"Geronimo"	Harold D. Schuster	Story by : Andy White Teleplay by : Leo Gordon	March 5, 1958 (1958-3-5)
22	22	"The Return of the Outlaw"	Walter Doniger	Barney Slater	March 12, 1958 (1958-3-12)
23	23	"Guilt of a Town"	Norman Foster	Story by : Frank Pittman and Andy White Teleplay by : Andy White	March 19, 1958 (1958-3-19)
24	24	"Cave-In"	Walter Doniger	Story by : Andy White Teleplay by : Gene Levitt	March 26, 1958 (1958-3-26)
25	25	"Skeleton Canyon Massacre"	Christian Nyby	Robert C. Bennett	April 2, 1958 (1958-4-2)
26	26	"Strange Vengeance"	Christian Nyby	Don Brinkley	April 9, 1958 (1958-4-9)
27	27	"The Tin Gunman"	Walter Doniger	Warren Douglas	April 16, 1958 (1958-4-16)
28	28	"The Outcasts"	Tom Gries	Tom Gries	April 23, 1958 (1958-4-23)
29	29	"Doc Holliday in Durango"	Richard L. Bare	Gene Levitt, Frank Pittman, and Andy White	April 30, 1958 (1958-4-30)
30	30	"Triangle of Death"	Henry S. Kesler	Paul Savage	May 7, 1958 (1958-5-7)
31	31	"Pick up the Gun"	Walter Doniger	Maurice Tombragel	May 14, 1958 (1958-5-14)
32	32	"The Assassin"	Tom Gries	Fred Friedberger	May 21, 1958 (1958-5-21)
33	33	"The Lady Gambler"	Walter Doniger	William Driskill	May 28, 1958 (1958-5-28)
34	34	"Fight for a Fugitive"	Paul Guilfoyle	Barney Slater	June 4, 1958 (1958-6-4)
Kenne Duncan as the Bartender
35	35	"Legacy of Death"	Tom Gries	Milton S. Gelman	June 11, 1958 (1958-6-11)
36	36	"The Gatling Gun"	Richard L. Bare	David Lang	August 27, 1958 (1958-8-27)
Kenne Duncan as the Bartender
37	37	"The Black Marshal from Deadwood"	Christian Nyby	James Edmiston	September 3, 1958 (1958-9-3)
Kenne Duncan as the Bartender
38	38	"Thicker Than Water"	Walter Doniger	Leo Gordon	September 10, 1958 (1958-9-10)
39	39	"Rose of the Rio Bravo"	Walter Doniger	Andy White	September 17, 1958 (1958-9-17)

Season 2 (1959)

No. overall	No. in series	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date
40	1	"Whipsaw"	Richard L. Bare	Bret Hill	March 13, 1959 (1959-3-13)
41	2	"Marked for Murder"	William Conrad	Barney Slater	March 20, 1959 (1959-3-20)
42	3	"Payroll to Tombstone"	Richard L. Bare	D.D. Beauchamp	March 27, 1959 (1959-3-27)
43	4	"Day of the Amnesty"	Richard L. Bare	Don Ingalls	April 3, 1959 (1959-4-3)
44	5	"Trail's End"	Otto Lang	Martin Berkeley and Clarke Reynolds	April 10, 1959 (1959-4-10)
45	6	"The Black Diamond"	William Conrad	Melvin Levy	April 17, 1959 (1959-4-17)
46	7	"The Man from Brewster"	Richard L. Bare	Guy de Vry	April 24, 1959 (1959-4-24)
47	8	"Gun Hostage"	Eddie Davis	Jim Carling and Martin Mooney	May 1, 1959 (1959-5-1)
48	9	"Warrant for Death"	Richard L. Bare	Turnley Walker	May 8, 1959 (1959-5-8)
49	10	"Surrender at Sunglow"	Richard L. Bare	Harold Shumate	May 15, 1959 (1959-5-15)
50	11	"Grave Near Tombstone"	Lew Landers	John Elliotte	May 22, 1959 (1959-5-22)
51	12	"Death Is to Write About"	Otto Lang	Leo Gordon	May 29, 1959 (1959-5-29)

Season 3 (1959–60)

No. overall	No. in series	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date
52	1	"Red Terror of Tombstone"	Eddie Davis	Andy White	October 9, 1959 (1959-10-9)
53	2	"The Gunfighter"	Eddie Davis	Guy de Vry	October 16, 1959 (1959-10-16)
54	3	"Stolen Loot"	Franklin Adreon	Stephen Kandel	October 23, 1959 (1959-10-23)
55	4	"The Writer"	Alan Crosland Jr.	John W. Krafft	October 30, 1959 (1959-10-30)
56	5	"Payroll Robbery"	Eddie Davis	William Tunberg	November 6, 1959 (1959-11-6)
57	6	"The Horse Thief"	Eddie Davis	Virginia M. Cooke	November 13, 1959 (1959-11-13)
58	7	"The Legend"	Otto Lang	Wells Root and Ron Bishop	November 20, 1959 (1959-11-20)
59	8	"Premature Obituary"	Eddie Davis	Paul Franklin	November 27, 1959 (1959-11-27)
60	9	"Dangerous Romance"	Otto Lang	Barney Slater	December 4, 1959 (1959-12-4)
61	10	"Self-Defense"	Franklin Adreon	Stuart Jerome	December 11, 1959 (1959-12-11)
62	11	"The Marked Horseshoe"	Herman Hoffman	Jim Carling and Martin Mooney	December 18, 1959 (1959-12-18)
63	12	"The Noose That Broke"	Alan Crosland Jr.	Stuart Jerome	December 25, 1959 (1959-12-25)
64	13	"Mine Disasters"	Franklin Adreon	S.H. Barnett and Fran van Hartesveldt	January 1, 1960 (1960-1-1)
65	14	"The Witness"	James Goldstone	Barney Slater	January 8, 1960 (1960-1-8)
66	15	"The Capture"	Eddie Davis	Barney Slater	January 15, 1960 (1960-1-15)
67	16	"State's Witness"	Lew Landers	Teddi Sherman	January 22, 1960 (1960-1-22)
68	17	"The Target"	James Goldstone	Dave Clay	January 29, 1960 (1960-1-29)
69	18	"The Bride"	Otto Lang	Robert Turner	February 5, 1960 (1960-2-5)
70	19	"Female Killer"	James Goldstone	Leo Gordon	February 12, 1960 (1960-2-12)
71	20	"The Lady Lawyer"	Jack Herzberg	Teddi Sherman	February 19, 1960 (1960-2-19)
72	21	"Silver Killers"	William Conrad	Joe Richardson	February 26, 1960 (1960-2-26)
73	22	"Holcomb Brothers"	Otto Lang	Paul Franklin	March 4, 1960 (1960-3-4)
74	23	"Young Killer"	James Goldstone	S.H. Barnett and Fran van Hartesveldt	March 11, 1960 (1960-3-11)
75	24	"Coded Newspaper"	James Goldstone	S.H. Barnett, Marion Parsonnet, and Fran van Hartesveldt	March 18, 1960 (1960-3-18)
76	25	"Memory"	William Conrad	Robert Turner	March 25, 1960 (1960-3-25)
77	26	"Revenge"	Eddie Davis	Stuart Jerome	April 1, 1960 (1960-4-1)
78	27	"The Hostage"	Franklin Adreon	Vernon E. Clark	April 8, 1960 (1960-4-8)
79	28	"The Governor"	William Conrad	Ron Bishop and Wells Root	April 16, 1960 (1960-4-16)
80	29	"The Kidnapping"	Eddie Davis	Stuart Jerome	April 22, 1960 (1960-4-22)
81	30	"Girl from Philadelphia"	Herman Hoffman	Ron Bishop and Wells Root	April 29, 1960 (1960-4-29)
82	31	"The Fortune"	James Goldstone	Guy de Vry	May 6, 1960 (1960-5-6)
83	32	"The Innocent Man"	Alan Crosland Jr.	Guy de Vry	May 13, 1960 (1960-5-13)
84	33	"The Siesta Killer"	David Friedkin	Lee Berg	May 20, 1960 (1960-5-20)
85	34	"The Return of Kansas Joe"	Franklin Adreon	William Tunberg	May 27, 1960 (1960-5-27)
86	35	"Betrayal"	William Conrad	Guy de Vry	June 3, 1960 (1960-6-3)
87	36	"The Treaty"	Eddie Davis	Guy de Vry	June 10, 1960 (1960-6-10)
88	37	"The Outlaw"	James Goldstone	Mikhail Rykoff	June 17, 1960 (1960-6-17)
89	38	"The Injury"	Eddie Davis	Don Brinkley	June 24, 1960 (1960-6-24)
90	39	"Crime Epidemic"	Herman Hoffman	Melvin Levy	July 1, 1960 (1960-7-1)
91	40	"Juan Diega"	Franklin Adreon	Leo Gordon	July 8, 1960 (1960-7-8)

Release

Home media

On April 2, 2013, Timeless Media Group released season 1 on DVD in Region 1. ^[6]

As of late 2014,The complete series of all 91 episodes has been released on DVD. ^[7]

Syndication

Rerun aired on FETV from 2021 to 2022, an as of 2022, the show are aired daily on Grit as a part of its daytime schedule.

Merchandising

The TV show was also adapted into a comic book by Dan Spiegle, distributed by Dell Comics. ^[8]

References

1. "TV Westerns: Tombstone Territory". fiftiesweb.com. July 5, 1999. Retrieved February 1, 2009.
2. Alex McNeil, Total Television, New York: Penguin Books, 1996, 4th ed., p. 849, ISBN   0-14-024916-8
3. "TOMBSTONE TERRITORY - THE TARGET". YouTube . Archived from the original on December 5, 2021.
4. Aaker, Everett (1997). Television Western Players of the Fifties: A Biographical Encyclopedia of All Regular Cast Members in Western Series, 1949-1959. McFarland. p. 434. ISBN   9780786402847.
5. Brode, Douglas (January 1, 2010). Shooting Stars of the Small Screen: Encyclopedia of TV Western Actors, 1946–Present. University of Texas Press. p. 92. ISBN   9780292783317 – via Google Books.
6. "DVD Calendar Feature Articles - Metacritic". www.metacritic.com. Archived from the original on January 20, 2013.
7. "Tombstone Territory: The Complete TV Series". Amazon. December 17, 2013.
8. "Dan Spiegle". lambiek.net.

External links

• Tombstone Territory at IMDb