Dan BlockerFilmography

Born:: December 10, 1928 in Bowie County, TX
Occupation:: Actor
Biography:: Big, burly Dan Blocker only did a handful of movies in his 17-year acting career, but he became one of the most beloved and popular television stars of the 1960s for his portrayal of Hoss Cartwright on the Western series Bonanza. Weighing 14 pounds at birth, Blocker was the largest baby ever born...Read More

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Bonanza: Customs of the Country

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Alfonso Arau, Alan Oppenheimer

Synopsis: Hoss and Joe Cartwright are arrested in a Mexican border town and thrown in jail. Hoss is all for expediting the trial, but Joe is in no hurry: He's being treated like a king, with beautiful Ines (Pilar Seurat) and various other senoritas waiting on him hand and foot. Only when it is almost too Read More

1972
Bonanza: Shanklin

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Charles Cioffi

Synopsis: Charles Chioffi plays the title character in the thrill-packed Bonanza installment Shanklin. Hoss Cartwright is shot by a band of ex-rebel soldiers who want Ben Cartwright to finance the formation of a Second Confederacy. Only Shanklin, the man who pulled the trigger, can save Hoss' life-and he Read More

1972
Bonanza: Frenzy

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Kathleen Widdoes, Michael Pataki

Synopsis: Anna Kosovo (Kathleen Widdoes), a friend of Ben Cartwright, has good reason to be terrified of her antagonistic immigrant husband Nick (Michael Pataki). Trapped in her own house by her husband, Anna-and her young son-must rely upon Ben to rescue them. Written by Preston Wood and Karl Tunberg, this Read More

1972
Bonanza: One Ace Too Many

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel

Synopsis: Once more, Lorne Greene essays the dual role of Ben Cartwright and Ben's lookalike, confidence trickster Bradley Meredith. This time out, Meredith takes advantage of Ben's trip to Carson City to auction off the Ponderosa, piece by piece. Kate Jackson makes an early TV appearance as Ellen, while Read More

1972
Bonanza: He Was Only Seven

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Roscoe Lee Browne

Synopsis: Roscoe Lee Browne guest-stars as Joshua, the crippled grandfather of a black youngster killed in a bank robbery. Struggling to overcome his bitterness against the white race in general, Joshua accepts the assistance of Joe Cartwright and Jamie in tracking down his grandson's killers. Featured in Read More

1972
Bonanza: The Younger Brothers' Younger Brother

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Strother Martin

Synopsis: Written and directed by Bonanza star Michael Landon, "The Younger Brothers' Younger Brother" is one of the series' zaniest episodes. It all begins when Hoss Cartwright is mistaken for one of the notorious Younger Brothers, who have recently resumed their criminal activities after a 12-year prison Read More

1972
Bonanza: A Visit to Upright

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Alan Oppenheimer

Synopsis: Three of the Cartwright men-Joe, Hoss and Jamie-head to the town of Upright to sell a rundown saloon. They decide to hold onto the property when it develops that a fortune in gold might be hidden on the premises. The boys' insistence upon retaining the saloon messes up Ben's business deal with Read More

1972
Bonanza: Search in Limbo

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Albert Salmi, Pamela Payton-Wright

Synopsis: Having suffered a blow to the head, Ben Cartwright awakens to discover that he has lost track of a whole day. During that period, Ben's longtime enemy Sid Langley (Lawrence Montaigne) was murdered. The local sheriff (Albert Salmi) arrests Ben-who doesn't know if he is guilty or not! Others in the Read More

1972
Bonanza: The Saddle Stiff

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Buddy Ebsen, Don Collier

Synopsis: Fresh from his nine-year stint on The Beverly Hillbillies, Buddy Ebsen is cast as Ponderosa hired hand Cactus Murphy, fired for incompetence by Ben Cartwright. His dander up, the old hand challenges Ben to do all the work Cactus does in a week-and without using the Cartwright money or power to his Read More

1972
Bonanza: A Place to Hide

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Suzanne Pleshette

Synopsis: Fugitive Confederate officer Cody Ransom (Jon Cypher) is finally willing to surrender to the Union forces-but only if the Cartwright men act as intermediaries. Unfortunately, by-the-book Northern officer Major Donahue (Hurd Hatfield) insists upon handling the capture all by himself-and he is Read More

1972
Bonanza: Second Sight

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Joan Hackett

Synopsis: Joan Hackett guest-stars as Judith, the fiancee of a young pastor named Jess (James Booth). Blessed-or, perhaps, cursed-with the gift of clairvoyance, Judith is called in to locate a missing Jamie. But her intensely religious sweetheart does not want Judith to use her "special powers." Written by Read More

1972
Bonanza: Don't Cry, My Son

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Richard Mulligan, Diane Shalet

Synopsis: Bonanza star Michael Landon both wrote and directed the poignant episode "Don't Cry, My Son." After the death of her baby, Ruth (Diana Shalet), the distraught wife of an overworked doctor (Richard Mulligan), walks out on her husband. Unhinged by this, the doctor kidnaps the newborn child of the Read More

1971
Bonanza: Face of Fear

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Bradford Dillman

Synopsis: Neta (Jewel Blanch), a teenaged friend of Ben Cartwright's adopted son Jamie, witnesses the murder of Mr. Trunkett, but is too frightened to say anything about it. Meanwhile, the murderer, a man named Bannon (Bradford Dillman), impersonates the dead man in order to inherit a fortune. The danger to Read More

1971
Bonanza: Fallen Woman

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Susan Tyrrell, Arthur O'Connell

Synopsis: Hoss Cartwright's testimony results in a prison term for the husband of alcoholic dance-hall girl Jill Conway (Susan Tyrell). Motivated by a combination of resentment and desperation, Jill leaves her son Petey (Johnny Lee) in Hoss' care. At first prepared to adopt the abandoned boy, Hoss opts Read More

1971
Bonanza: Rock-a-Bye Hoss

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Victor Sen Yung, Edward Andrews

Synopsis: In this comic episode, Hoss Cartwright is tapped to judge a Virginia City "beautiful baby" contest. In so doing, he inadvertently sparks a chain reaction of disaster and ill will, culminating with the exposure of a long-suppressed "scandal". The Moral: All babies are beautiful, but most grownups Read More

1971
Bonanza: Bushwacked!

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Richard O'Brien, Peggy McCay

Synopsis: Wounded in an ambush, Joe Cartwright is rescued by the Griswolds, a farming family. Delirious with fever, Joe experiences surrealistic flashbacks and bizarre disturbing visions (in one, he sees Hoss trying to kill him!) As his condition worsens, it becomes obvious that emergency surgery is called Read More

1971
Bonanza: Cassie

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Jack Cassidy

Synopsis: Jack Cassidy guest-stars as O'Casey, a shiftless dreamer whose get-rich-quick schemes have brought nothing but grief for his wife (Diane Baker) and daughter Cassie (Lisa Gerritsen). When O'Casey hatches a duplicitious scheme to sell and reclaim a race horse, Hoss Cartwright takes it upon himself Read More

1971
Bonanza: The Prisoners

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mike Witney, Manuel Padilla

Synopsis: In Sheriff Coffee's absence, Joe Cartwright is called upon to escort prisoner Hank Simmons (Michael Witney) through a particularly rugged patch of terrain. Trouble is, Simmons knows the area far better than Joe. Things get even tougher for the youngest Cartwright as the charismatic Simmons banks Read More

1971
Bonanza: The Reluctant American

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Daniel Massey

Synopsis: Londoners Leslie and Gillian Harwood (Daniel Massey and Jill Haworth) arrive in Nevada to take charge of a ranch on behalf of a British investment firm-and immediately mistake the Ponderosa for the ranch in question. Thus, the Cartwrights become involved in the couple's travails, attempting to Read More

1971
Bonanza: Shadow of a Hero

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Dean Jagger, Laurence Luckinbill

Synopsis: Dean Jagger guest-stars as General Ira Cloninger, a legendary Indian fighter. The General hopes to ride into the Nevada governor's office on the coattails of his long-standing friendship with Ben Cartwright. The fly in the ointment is San Francisco reporter Freed (Laurence Luckinbill), who in Read More

1971
Bonanza: The Silent Killer

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Meg Foster

Synopsis: "The Silent Killer" is the deadly influenza epidemic that has swept through the territory around the Ponderosa. To combat the disease, tradition-bound Doc Martin (Harry Holcombe) and Harriet Clinton (Louise Latham) set up an emergency hospital on the Cartwright spread. Further complications ensue Read More

1971
Bonanza: The Desperado

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Louis Gossett, Jr., Marlene Clark

Synopsis: Lou Gossett and Marlene Clark are cast as a fugitive black couple, on the run after being accused of killing two white men. While heading toward the mountains, the desperate pair captures Hoss Cartwright as insurance that they won't be lynched. Understanding the couple's plight, Hoss tries to Read More

1971
Bonanza: The Gold Plated Rifle

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Lou Frizzell

Synopsis: To silence the taunts of his young friends, Jamie tries to prove that he's a "real Cartwright" by showing up at school with Ben's rifle-and without Ben's permission. Inevitably, the rifle is broken, and a reluctant Ben punishes Jamie for lying about the incident. Embittered, Jamie runs away from Read More

1971
Bonanza: Top Hand

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Ben Johnson, Roger Davis

Synopsis: Joining his fellow ranchers in a big cattle drive, Ben Cartwright chooses veteran cowboy Kelly James (Ben Johnson) as trail boss. This decision is staunchly opposed by rancher Weatherby (Walter Barnes), who once fired James for drunkenness. Meanwhile, Weatherby's cocksure young foreman Bert Yates Read More

1971
Bonanza: A Deck of Aces

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Alan Oppenheimer

Synopsis: Lorne Greene plays a dual role, as Ponderosa patriarch Ben Cartwright and Ben's con-man lookalike Bradley Meredith. The fun begins when Meredith, posing as Ben, makes a major land sale to the railroad-a deal that the real Ben had previously turned down flat. Also in the cast are Alan Oppenheimer Read More

1971
Bonanza: An Earthquake Called Callahan

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Victor French, Sandy Duncan

Synopsis: Ponderosa ranchhand Dusty Rhodes (Lou Frizzell) has landed in jail. The only man who can clear Dusty is an itinerant, ill-tempered wrestler named Tom Callahan (Victor French), who is nowhere to be found. While searching for the reluctant witness, Joe Cartwright not only runs afoul of Callahan but Read More

1971
Bonanza: A Single Pilgrim

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Beth Brickell, Jeff Corey

Synopsis: Hoss Cartwright is accidentally shot and wounded by Tom Brennan (John Schuck), a settler fresh out of Virginia. Feeling guilty, Tom allows his wife Dilsey (Beth Brickell) to nurse Hoss back to health. Meanwhile, Tom's mean-spirited father Frank (Jeff Corey), convinced that Hoss will seek revenge Read More

1971
Bonanza: The Grand Swing

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Charlotte Stewart

Synopsis: Season Thirteen of Bonanza began on September 19, 1971 with the series' 390th episode, "The Grand Swing." Young Jamie's carelessness results in the loss of a valuable horse. Hurt and humiliated, Jamie offers to leave the Ponderosa for good. Rather than display anger, the boy's adoptive father Ben Read More

1971
Bonanza: Kingdom of Fear

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Alfred Ryder

Synopsis: All three Cartwright men-Ben, Hoss and Joe-are arrested for trespassing along with their ranch hand Candy. The men are summarily sentenced to a brutal prison camp run by a despot known as The Judge (Alfred Ryder), who specializes in acquiring slave labor to work his gold mine, then in killing his Read More

1971
Bonanza: The Stillness Within

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Jo Van Fleet

Synopsis: Blinded in an explosion, Joe Cartwright, uncertain as to whether his sight will ever be restored, bitterly cuts himself off from the rest of his family. Enter Miss Ellen Dobbs (Jo Van Fleet) from San Francisco, who specializes in teaching the blind how to cope with the "sighted" world. Electing Read More

1971
Bonanza: A Time to Die

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Vera Miles

Synopsis: Vera Miles guest-stars as Ben Cartwright's longtime friend April Christopher. While visiting the Ponderosa, April is bitten by a rabid wolf. As the story progresses, both April and Ben must come to grips with the agony April is in for-and even more importantly, the woman's daughter Lori (Melissa Read More

1971
Bonanza: Winter Kill

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Glenn Corbett

Synopsis: The Virginia City Bank refuses to lend money to a group of Sierra Nevade ranchers who lost most of their stock during a particularly brutal winter. Ben Cartwright tries to come to the aid of the imperiled ranchers by bringing in a new breed of cattle from Montana, a breed capable of surviving the Read More

1971
Bonanza: Warbonnet

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Chief Dan George, Forrest Tucker

Synopsis: Native American actor Chief Dan George, who had catapulted to stardom in the 1971 theatrical feature Little Big Man, appears in this Bonanza episode as Red Cloud, a dying Indian chieftan. Before being gathered to his fathers, Red Cloud wants to reclaim a precious warbonnet lost in battle, which Read More

1971
Bonanza: A Home for Jamie

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Will Geer

Synopsis: Having unofficially adopted Jamie, Ben is poised to make it official in court. His plans are scuttled by the arrival of Jamie's actual grandfather Callahan (Will Geer, who wants to take the boy back with him to Boston. Written by Jean Holloway, this Bonanza episode served as a reunion for Will Read More

1971
Bonanza: Terror at 2:00

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Steve Ihnat

Synopsis: Steve Ihnat guest-stars as a self-proclaimed journalist named Gans, who shows up with his entourage in Virginia City to cover the signing of a treaty between the Paiute Indians and the Army. In truth, however, the rabidly racist Gans plans to kill everyone at the ceremony with his Gatling Gun. It Read More

1971
Bonanza: Season 13

Actors: Lorne Greene, Dan Blocker, Michael Landon

Synopsis: Had the long-running Bonanza been on CBS instead of NBC, it might have been canceled during the 1970-1971 season as part of CBS' campaign to "de-ruralize" its core audience. Instead, Bonanza was still on the air as of the 1971-1972 season, marking the program's 13th year on NBC. In addition to Read More

1971
Bonanza: The Iron Butterfly

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mariette Hartley, Peter Whitney

Synopsis: In her fourth Bonanza appearance, Mariette Hartley is cast as Lola, a temperamental touring actress. When Lola is forced to kill her abusive boyfriend, Hoss Cartwright gallantly shoulders the blame. This brings down the wrath of Senator Carson (Peter Whitney), the ruthlessly powerful father of the Read More

1971
Bonanza: Blind Hunch

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Rip Torn

Synopsis: Rip Torn guest-stars as Will Hewitt, a former soldier who was blinded in the last battle of the Civil War. Determined to solve the murder of his brother, Hewitt is given a helping hand by Ben Cartwright's adopted son Jamie. The teleplay by John Hawkins and Robert Pirosh is capped by a truly Read More

1971
Bonanza: Easy Come, Easy Go

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Ann Prentiss, Dub Taylor

Synopsis: The cantankerous Calhouns-nouveau riche prospector Luke Calhoun (Dub Taylor) and his man-hungry daughter Meena (Ann Prentiss-return to Bonanza in the December 12, 1971 episode "Easy Come, Easy Go." As Meena again tries to snare a husband, Luke-reduced to poverty by a crooked land deal-accepts Read More

1971
Bonanza: The Rattlesnake Brigade

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Neville Brand

Synopsis: Neville Brand makes another Bonanza appearance in the December 5, 1971 episode "The Rattlesnake Brigade." This time, Brand is cast as the vicious head of the Doyle Gang, who hold Jamie and three other teenagers hostage while making their escape. Jamie's adoptive father Ben Cartwright agonizes Read More

1971
Bonanza: A Matter of Circumstance

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Ted Gehring

Synopsis: The eleventh season of Bonanza was wrapped up on April 19, 1970 with the powerhouse episode "A Matter of Circumstance." Though several prominent actors-notably young Vincent Van Patten-appear in the supporting cast, the episode is virtually a one-man show, focusing on Michael Landon as Joe Read More

1970
Bonanza: Danger Road

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Robert Lansing

Synopsis: Robert Lansing is cast as Gunny, a former Army officer dishonorably discharged for desertion, and now the owner of a small freight-hauling concern. Though Ben Cartwright cannot forgive Gunny for his dereliction of duty, he is willing to let the man prove his mettle by delivering three 30-foot Read More

1970
Bonanza: It's a Small World

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Michael Dunn

Synopsis: Multi-talanted dwarf actor Michael Dunn guest-stars as George Marshall, a former circus midget who, fulfilling a promise to his late wife, gives up show business to lead a normal life in Virginia City. Despite the assistance of his friend Ben Cartwright, George is unable to secure employment Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Night Virginia City Died

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Angel Tompkins, Ray Teal

Synopsis: Bonanza's twelfth season commenced on September 13, 1970 with the episode titled "The Night Virginia City Died." Several Virginia City buildings have burned to the ground; the townsfolk are in an uproar, and the local constabulary is apparently helpless. Meanwhile, the Cartwrights have befriended Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Power of Life and Death

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Rupert Crosse

Synopsis: Rupert Crosse guest-stars as Davis, a fugitive killer. While searching for Davis, Joe and a seriously wounded Ben are stranded at a desert water hole with the escapee. As Ben's life slowly ebbs away and a band of renegade Indians close in, Joe heads into the desert on foot to seek help-forcing him Read More

1970
Bonanza: Gideon, the Good

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Richard Kiley, Terry Moore

Synopsis: Guest star Richard Kiley is cast as Sheriff Gideon Yates, one of Nevada's most admired lawmen. When Joe Cartwright comes to Yates claiming that he has witnessed a murder, the Sheriff realizes to his horror that the killer was his own wife Lydia (Terry Moore). With grim determination, Yates quietly Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Wagon

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Denver Pyle, Salome Jens

Synopsis: When one of his prisoners escapes, sadistic prison-wagon boss Price Buchanan (Denver Pyle) abducts Hoss Cartwright and forces him to take the missing convict's place. Facing five years at hard labor, Hoss formulates an escape plan with another railroaded prisoner, Madge Tucker (Salome Jens). Read More

1970
Bonanza: A Matter of Faith

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Lou Frizzell

Synopsis: Originally telecast September 20, 1970, "A Matter of Faith" served to introduce new Bonanza regular Mitch Vogel in the role of Jamie Hunter. The son of an itinerant rainmaker, Jamie is unofficially adopted after his dad's death by Ponderosa hand Dusty Rhodes (Lou Frizzell. Despite the skepticism Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Weary Willies

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Richard Thomas

Synopsis: Robert Pirosh's teleplay for this Bonanza episode was based on an actual 19th century phenomenon. In the years following the Civil War, many young and disillusioned ex-soldiers formed nomadic groups called the "Weary Willies", who roamed throughout the west living off the land and avoiding Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Big Jackpot

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Walter Brooke

Synopsis: Inheriting a fortune from an Indian benefactor, Candy fulfills his long-standing ambition to quit the Ponderosa. Before long, Candy has accepted an executive position with a prosperous-looking land promoter (Walter Brooke). But when he discovers that his boss is a crook, Candy enlists the aid of Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Gold Mine

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Tony DeCosta

Synopsis: Tony De Costa is cast as Ramon, a Mexican youth who has suffered a lifetime of abuse at the hands of his father, and now is under the thumb of his cruel boss. Mad at the world, Ramon refuses to reveal the fact that he's discovered a rich gold vein. And then, inevitably, the boy is befriended by Read More

1970
Bonanza: Return Engagement

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Sally Kellerman

Synopsis: When Bonanza debuted in 1959, its first episode was "A Rose for Lotta", guest-starring Yvonne DeCarlo as real-life musical peformer Lotta Crabtree. Written by Stanley Roberts, the series' March 1, 1970 episode "Return Engagement" found Sally Kellerman in the role of the fabulous Lotta. As Read More

1970
Bonanza: Decision at Los Robles

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, William H. Bassett, Joe de Santis

Synopsis: During a stopover in Los Robles, Ben Cartwright is assaulted and wounded by town boss John Walker (Emile Meyer. Forced to kill Walker in self-defense, Ben finds himself targeted for revenge by the despot's son Jed (William H. Bassett), who threatens to blow up the town unless the citizens deliver Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Horse Traders

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Dub Taylor, Ann Prentiss

Synopsis: Introduced in the earlier episode "Meena", the scraggly Calhouns make a return Bonanza appearance in the April 5, 1970 episode "The Horse Traders." Having struck it rich, unkempt miner Luke Calhoun (Dub Taylor) and his feisty daughter Meena (Ann Prentiss) now wear fancy clothes and reek of Read More

1970
Bonanza: Caution, Easter Bunny Crossing

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Marc Lawrence

Synopsis: Perhaps the silliest Bonanza episode ever filmed, "Caution, Easter Bunny Crossing" was written by Larry Markes. This is the one in which Hoss Cartwright dresses up in a huge rabbit costume to entertain a group of orphans at an Easter party. En route to the festivities, Hoss runs afoul of four Read More

1970
Bonanza: Long Way to Ogden

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Walter Barnes

Synopsis: Ben and his fellow cattlemen find themselves at the mercy of Chicago meat packer Emmett J. Whitney (Walter Barnes). Having purchased the rights to all railroad cattle cars, the greedy Whitney refuses to allow anyone to use those cars unless they allow him to purchase their stock at the Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Lady and the Mark

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Christopher Connelly

Synopsis: Having accumulated $67,000 from a gold strike, prospector Chris Keller (Christopher Connelly) finds himself the target of virtually every confidence trickster in the country. To save himself and his cash, Chris hides out at the Ponderosa, only to be lured into the open by lovely Charity McGill Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Trouble with Amy

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Jo Van Fleet, John Crawford

Synopsis: Jo Van Fleet guest-stars as Amy Wilder, one of those peppery old eccentrics who loves animals but despises people. Coveting Amy's property, land developer Barton Roberts (John Crawford) hauls her into court to prove that she is mentally incompetent. Ben Cartwright invites Amy's long-estranged Read More

1970
Bonanza: Is There Any Man Here?

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Mariette Hartley

Synopsis: In her third Bonanza appearance, Mariette Hartley is here cast as Jennifer, the daughter of Ben Cartwright's old friend Harry Carlis (John McLiam). Slated to be wed to influential banker Tuttle Ames (Burr DeBennings, Jennifer leaves her intended at the altar and makes a beeline to the Ponderosa Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Law and Billy Burgess

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Mercedes McCambridge

Synopsis: Making her second Bonanza appearance, Mercedes McCambridge is cast as wealthy widow Matilda Curtis, who helps Ben Cartwright establish a free school for the children of Ponderosa's employees and tenant farmers. When the schoolmaster is murdered, troublesome student Billy Burgess (a pre-Partridge Read More

1970
Bonanza: What Are Pardners For?

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Slim Pickens

Synopsis: Innocent Hoss Cartwright is thrown in jail, suspected of complicity in a bank robbery. The real bandits are a pair of Easterners named Luke (John Beck) and Calvin (Hamilton Camp), who'd been drawn to the west after reading an abundance of dime novels. Hoping to live up to the exploits of their Read More

1970
Bonanza: For a Young Lady

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Jewel Blanch

Synopsis: Carri Sturgis (Jewel Blanch), a young friend of Ben Cartwright's adopted son Jamie, lives in terror under the cruel supervision of her Aunt Vella (Madeleine Sherwood) and Uncle Gifford (William Bramley). Inasmuch as the couple hates children, Jamie can't understand why they so desperately desire Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Impostors

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Strother Martin, Tony Colti

Synopsis: Oscar winner Strother Martin is cast as Joad Bruder, the father of jailed stagecoach robber Randy Bruder (Anthony Colti). Aware that Joad is holding the Ponderosa money that was stolen by Randy, Joe and Hoss hatch another of their hare-brained schemes to retrieve the loot. Heading to Pineville Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Trouble with Trouble

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Gene Evans, G.D. Spradlin

Synopsis: "Trouble" is the apt cognomen for one of the toughest towns in California. Through a fluke, Hoss Cartwright is named temporary sheriff of Trouble, determined to do his duty even though the citizens want nothing to do with law and order. Through methods both persuasive and pugnacious, Hoss ends up Read More

1970
The Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County

Actors: Dan Blocker, Nanette Fabray, Jim Backus, Wally Cox, Jack Elam

Synopsis: Charley (Dan Blocker) is the kindly but simple-minded blacksmith who sends a year's earnings back East for a mail-order bride. When he and the town turn out for the woman's arrival at the train station, he is embarrassed when she never appears. The saddened giant plans to leave town. The Read More

1970
Bonanza: Season 12

Actors: Lorne Greene, Dan Blocker, Michael Landon

Synopsis: Two major changes marked the opening of Bonanza's 12th season. In "The Night Virginia City Died," several of the series' familiar exterior sets were deliberately burned down so that Bonanza could move out of its longtime home at Paramount Pictures and into its new headquarters as Warner Bros. Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Love Child

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Carol Lawson

Synopsis: Carol Lawson plays Etta, an unwed mother determined to carve out a decent life for her son Scott (Michael-James Wixted). When she learns she is dying, Etta asks her long-estranged parents to look after Scott-but her stern and merciless father Zac (Will Geer) is unwilling to do so. Josephine Read More

1970
Bonanza: Thornton's Account

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Gregory Walcott, Carl Reindel

Synopsis: Far from the Ponderosa, Ben Cartwright is badly injured in a fall from his horse. Seeking help in a nearby town, Ben's son Joe finds himself in the middle of a range feud, with no one willing to come to his assistance-except for an enigmatic stranger named Thornton (played by frequent Bonanza Read More

1970
Bonanza: Honest John

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Jack Elam

Synopsis: Jack Elam plays the title role in this Bonanza episode from December 20, 1970. Belying his nickname, Honest John is a prevaricating drifter, who over the protests of the Cartwrights has settled on the Ponderosa. Banking on the trust and friendship of young Jamie, Honest John finds himself in a Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Luck of Pepper Shannon

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mitch Vogel, Neville Brand

Synopsis: Neville Brand guest-stars as Pepper Shannon, a stage robber whose career has been blown up to "heroic" proportions by the dime-novel brigade. Unfortunately, Ben Cartwright's adopted son Jamie idolizes Shannon, who has allowed Jamie to "capture" him to avoid being shot by his enemies. It is only Read More

1970
Bonanza: El Jefe

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Rodopho (Rudy) Acosta, Warren Stevens

Synopsis: Aranda (Rodolfo Acosta, the Mexican-born sheriff of Prince River, regularly betrays his own people by participating in a land grab perpetrated by ruthless miner Owen Driscoll (Warren Stevens). The Cartwrights become involved when Aranda frames Mexican farmer Ramon Cardenas (Jaime Sanchez) for Read More

1970
Bonanza: The Fence

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, John Anderson, J.D. Cannon

Synopsis: The Civil War is over, but mine owner Sam Masters (John Anderson) will never be able to forget his tenure as commander of a brutal Confederate prison where 500 POW's died. Now, ex-union officer Colonel Hudson, backed up by a small but vicious group of followers, has arrived to wreak vengeance Read More

1969
Bonanza: Speak No Evil

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Patricia Smith

Synopsis: Self-reliant 14-year-old Coley (Kevin Burchett) inherits a valuable gold mine from his otherwise luckless father. Having spent most of his life being rejected by the adult world, Coley suddenly finds himself in the middle of a custody tug-of-war between his long-estranged mother Margaret Read More

1969
Bonanza: Sweet Annie Laurie

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Joan Van Ark, James Olson

Synopsis: Joan Van Ark made an early TV starring appearance in this January 5, 1969 episode of Bonanza. The actress is cast as Laurie Adams, who is desperate to break off her relationship with her fugitive-outlaw husband Kelly Adams (James Olson). Hoss Cartwright tries to help Laurie, a task made difficult Read More

1969
Bonanza: The Unwanted

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Bonnie Bedelia

Synopsis: Before she played Joe Cartwright's ill-fated love interest in the 1972 Bonanza episode "Forever," Bonnie Bedelia guest-starred in the series' April 6, 1969 episode "The Unwanted." Bedelia is cast as Lorrie, the daughter of Ben Cartwright's old friend, lawman Luke Mansfield (Charles McGraw). Read More

1969
Bonanza: A Lawman's Lot is Not a Happy One

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Tom Bosley

Synopsis: While Sheriff Coffee testifies at a trial in San Francisco, Hoss Cartwright serves as temporary sheriff of Virginia City. Before long, Hoss has outraged and astonished the townsfolk by locking up millionaire Paul Forbes (Robert Emhardt) and his valet Fairfax (Jay Novello), for reasons which remain Read More

1969
Bonanza: Anatomy of a Lynching

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Guy Stockwell

Synopsis: When Will Griner (Walter Barnes) is acquitted of murder, the angry townsfolk, convinced that the trial was rigged in Will's favor, organize a lynch mob. It is up to the Cartwrights, Candy, and Sherriff Coffee to protect Will throughout a long and violent night. Meanwhile, Ben quietly re-opens the Read More

1969
Bonanza: The Silence at Stillwater

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Pat Hingle

Synopsis: Sheriff Austin (Pat Hingle) of Stillwater jails Candy on the basis of highly suspicious eyewitness testimony. Not only does Austin refuse to tell Candy that he's suspected of robbery and murder, but he also refuses to inform the Cartwrights of their top hand's whereabouts. Why is the Sheriff Read More

1969
Bonanza: A Ride in the Sun

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Robert Hogan, Marj Dusay

Synopsis: Passing themselves off as wealthy business owners, brother-and-sister swindlers Tobias and April Horn (Robert Hogan, Marj Dusay) hoodwink the Cartwrights into helping them rob the Virginia City bank. Humiliated at being taken in by the siblings, and angry that his father was wounded in the Read More

1969
Bonanza: The Witness

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Melissa Murphy

Synopsis: Melissa Murphy is cast as Jenny Winters, who claims she can identify the outlaw Logan gang as the men who robbed a stagecoach and murdered the driver. Hoping to protect Jenny from the Logans, Joe Cartwright and Candy offer the girl shelter at the Ponderosa. What neither the good guys nor the bad Read More

1969
Bonanza: My Friend, My Enemy

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, John Saxon

Synopsis: On trial for the murder of John Leggett, Candy comes before "hanging judge" Butler (Chick Chandler). The only eyewitness to the murder is Jacova (John Saxon), an Indian horse thief presently on the lam from the law. As the Cartwrights scour the countryside in search of Jacova, Candy is forced to Read More

1969
Bonanza: The Wish

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Ossie Davis, George Spell

Synopsis: Written and directed by Michael Landon, "The Wish" would remain Landon's favorite Bonanza episode long after its original airing on March 9, 1969. Preparing for a two-month fishing trip, Hoss Cartwright meets Sam Davis (Ossie Davis), an ex-slave trying to make a go of a drought-plague farm. Though Read More

1969
Bonanza: Five Candles

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Ray Teal

Synopsis: During a murder trial, Ben Cartwright is trapped in the basement of the courthouse by a mine cave-in. Also entombed with Ben are the accused murderer, the main prosecution witness, the witness' fiancee, and the court clerk. As Joe, Hoss, and Candy race against time to rescue the prisoners before Read More

1969
Bonanza: The Deserter

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Ben Johnson

Synopsis: Ben Johnson guest-stars as Sgt. Samuel Bellis, accused of desertion, murder, and selling guns to the Indians. Bellis insists that he's innocent, and Candy believes him-but before he can clear Bellis' name, he must elude the Army patrol that is hot on the fugitive sergeant's heels. In a further Read More

1969
Bonanza: The Running Man

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Will Geer

Synopsis: Joe Cartwright and Candy head to Butlerville, there to help out Candy's old friend Jess Parker (Robert Pine). The town is run with an iron hand by Calvin Butler (Will Geer), who will stop at nothing to drive all "squatters" out of the territory. Having witnessed Butler's brutality first hand Read More

1969
Bonanza: Emily

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Elliot Gilbert, David Canary

Synopsis: Joe Cartwright's coquettish former fiancee Emily Anderson (Beth Brickell) returns to town, quickly wrapping the moonstruck Joe around her little finger once more. Unfortunately, Emily has neglected to inform Joe that she is now married to Deputy Marshal Wade McPhail (Ron Hayes). Furthermore, the Read More

1969
Bonanza: Erin

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Mary Fickett

Synopsis: Mary Fickett is cast as Erin O'Donnell, an Irish girl raised by the Sioux in Paiutes. Falling in love with Erin, Hoss Cartwright does his best to shield her from the bigotry of the townspeople. But Erin regards Hoss' efforts as futile, citing the tribal prophecy that she is "the wolf child, born Read More

1969
Bonanza: Mrs. Wharton and the Lesser Breeds

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Mildred Natwick

Synopsis: Mildred Natwick guest-stars as the formidable Mrs. Wharton, a snobbish Englishwoman living by her wits and will in the Wild, Wild West. When the stage on which she is travelling is held up by outlaws, the snooty Mrs. Wharton must rely upon that "uncouth creature" Candy to retrieve her valuables. Read More

1969
Bonanza: Company of Forgotten Men

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, James Gregory

Synopsis: The Cartwrights give food and shelter to a bedraggled, impoverish company of army veterans, who have been denied their pensions for various and sundry reasons. What the Cartwrights don't know is that the ex-soldiers intend to get even with the government by robbing the Carson City mint. Read More

1969
Bonanza: The Lady and the Mountain Lion

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Richard Haydn, Alyce Andrece

Synopsis: The mellifluous Richard Haydn is cast as Malcolm the Magificent, a seedy travelling magician. To fool the yokels, Malcolm uses his twin daughters in his act: Jan (Alyce Andrece) is sweet and demure, while Janice (Rhae Andrece) is a pool-playing hellion. A comedy of errors ensues when Joe and Hoss Read More

1969
Bonanza: The Clarion

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Phyllis Thaxter, Simon Oakland

Synopsis: Phyllis Thaxter guest-stars as widowed newspaper publisher Ruth Manning, yet another old friend of Ben Cartwright. Ben comes to Ruth's assistance when her newspaper is targeted for extinction by ruthless town boss Judge Seth Tabor (Simon Oakland). Featured in the cast are William Jordan as Leek Read More

1969
Bonanza: Abner Willoughby's Return

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, John Astin

Synopsis: John Astin and Emmaline Henry, who back in 1962 played husband and wife in the short-lived sitcom I'm Dickens-He's Fenster, were reunited in the December 21, 1969 Bonanza episode "Abner Willoughby's Return." Astin is cast as ex-miner Abner, who after 17 years at sea comes back to Virginia City to Read More

1969
Bonanza: Old Friends

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Victor Sen Yung

Synopsis: Ben Cartwright finds himself in the uncomfortable position of choosing between two old and treasured friends, both of whom abuptly re-enter his life after 27 years. Charlie Sheppard (Robert Wilke), formerly Ben's prospecting partner, is now a wanted outlaw, while Jess Waddell (Morgan Woodward) has Read More

1969
Bonanza: Dead Wrong

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Arthur Hunnicutt

Synopsis: Although Salty Hubbard (Arthur Hunnicutt) is Sunville's biggest liar, everyone in town believes Salty's claim that stranger Hoss Cartwright is really notorious outlaw Big Jack (Mike Mazurki). To stay alive, Hoss is forced to fake his own death, funeral and all. Meanwhile, the real Big Jack Read More

1969
Bonanza: Season 11

Actors: Lorne Greene, Dan Blocker, Michael Landon, David Canary

Synopsis: Season 11 of Bonanza marks the temporary departure of David Canary as Candy, enigmatic ranch hand at the Ponderosa spread run by Ben Cartwright (Lorne Greene); Candy would not return to the series until its 14th and final season. Highlights during Bonanza's 11th year on the air include "Another Windmill to Go Read More

1969
A Woman for Charlie

Synopsis: In this comedy western, a town rallies together to help a heart-broken blacksmith find new love after his mail-order-bride is a no show. They end up pairing him with a dance hall girl. The story is also called Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide Read More

1969
Bonanza: Another Windmill to Go

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Laurence Naismith

Synopsis: The "Don Quixote" legend was given a 19th century western spin on Bonanza's inaugural eleventh-season entry "Another Windmill to Go." The Cartwrights are dumbstruck when they find Don Q. Hought (Laurence Naismath) rowing a wheeled boat across their grazing land. But Don Q. is not as daffy as he Read More

1969
Bonanza: The Stalker

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Charlotte Stewart

Synopsis: Candy is forced to kill the rancher husband of Lisa Campbell (Charlotte Stewart) in self-defense. Hoping to overcome Lisa's bitterness, Candy goes to work for her as a ranchhand. Ultimately, love blossoms between the two-but Lisa has already hired gunslinger Jake (Lloyd Battista) to kill Candy Read More

1969
Bonanza: The Medal

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Dean Stockwell

Synopsis: Dean Stockwell guest-stars as Mathew, a former Northern war hero and Congressional Medal of Honor Winner, now living a pauper's existence in Nevada. Ben Cartwright comes to Mathew's aid when the man is victimized by Seth Nagel (Harry Townes), a Southerner determined to avenge the loss of his home Read More

1969
Bonanza: To Stop a War

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Steve Forrest, Miriam Colon

Synopsis: An epidemic of rustling has fueled the flames of a possible range war between the cattlemen and the nesters. Ex-sheriff Dan Logan (Steve Forrest) is hired to stop the war before it starts, while rancher Slater (Warren Kemmerling), convinced that the nesters are responsible for the trouble, offers Read More

1969
Bonanza: A Darker Shadow

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Gregory Walcott

Synopsis: Joe Cartwright is dumbfounded when his friend, bank employee Wade Turner (Gregory Walcott), abruptly leaves town before his marriage to his sweetheart Sarah (Sandra Smith). Wade's abrupt exit coincides with a shortage in the bank's accounts, prompting Joe to seek out his friend and demand an Read More

1969
Bonanza: Meena

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Ann Prentiss

Synopsis: Originally telecast on November 16, 1969, "Meena" was the first of three Bonanza episodes featuring the troublesome Calhouns. When Joe Cartwright is kidnapped by bumbling crooks Jesse (Victor French), Owen (Robert Donner), and Virge (George Morgan), he is rescued by pretty Meena Calhoun (Ann Read More

1969
Bonanza: The Bottle Fighter

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Albert Dekker

Synopsis: On trial for murder, Hoss Cartwright may well be sent to the gallows on circumstantial evidence. Worse still, Hoss is suffering from amnesia, and doesn't know if he is guilty or innocent. The only person willing to take Hoss' case is legendary Sacramento defense attorney Barney Sturgess (Albert Read More

1968
Bonanza: The Arrival of Eddie

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Jan-Michael Vincent

Synopsis: Forced to kill the father of young Eddie McKay (Jan-Michael Vincent), Hoss Cartwright tries to make amends by hiring Eddie as a Ponderosa hand. Eddie accepts the job-but only because he has entered into an unholy alliance with rancher Sam Butler (Jim Davis), who also has a grudge against the Read More

1968
Bonanza: To Die in Darkness

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, James Whitmore

Synopsis: Michael Landon made his directorial debut with this Bonanza episode from May 5, 1968, which Landon also wrote. Ben Cartwright and his ranchhand Candy are trapped in a mine by John Postley (James Whitmore), who'd been wrongly sent to prison for 18 months on his captives' testimony. The embittered Read More

1968
Bonanza: In Defense of Honor

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Lou Antonio, Arnold Moss

Synopsis: Ben's longtime unofficial ward Davy (Lou Antonio), a Ute Indian, tries to rejoin the tribe that had exiled him years earlier. Davey's re-entry into the culture of his ancestors is complicated when he falls in love with Bright Moon (Cherie Latimer), the daughter of Chief Lone Spear (Arnold Moss) Read More

1968
Bonanza: A Dream to Dream

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Julie Harris, Steve Ihnat

Synopsis: Feeling responsible for the death of his oldest son, Josh Carter (Steve Ihnat) has become an abusive alcoholic. As a result, he has alienated himself from his wife, Sarah (Julie Harris), and surviving children Timmy (Johnnie Whitaker) and Sally (Michele Tobin). When Hoss Cartwright tries to help Read More

1968
Bonanza: Stage Door Johnnies

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Kathleen Crowley, Walter Brooke

Synopsis: On July 28, 1968, the producers of Bonanza surprised the series' fans by interrupting their summer-rerun schedule with the first-run episode "Stage Door Johnnies." Kathleen Crowley appears as Mademoiselle Denise, the sexy new singer at the Silver Dollar Saloon. The men of the Ponderosa vie for her Read More

1968
Bonanza: Different Pines, Same Wind

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Irene Tedrow

Synopsis: Bonanza inaugurated its tenth season on September 15, 1968, with the episode titled "Same Pines, Different Winds." Irene Tedrow is cast as tenacious widow Carrie Picket, who owns a parcel of land which she calls "her piney woods." Because her late husband never filed a legal claim for the Read More

1968
Bonanza: Child

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Yaphet Kotto

Synopsis: Unbeknownst to Hoss Cartwright, the horse he has just purchased previously belonged to a murdered millionaire. As a result, Hoss is railroaded into jail on a murder-theft charge. Threatened with lynching by a band of townsfolk eager to get their hands on the dead man's missing money, Hoss breaks Read More

1968
Bonanza: The Stronghold

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Mike Witney

Synopsis: Originally telecast on May 26, 1968 as Bonanza's 300th episode, "The Stronghold" finds Joe Cartwright and Ponderosa hand Candy chasing Josh and Mike Farrell (Michael Witney and Paul Mantee), the two men who swindled them out of a herd of cattle. Joe and Candy catch up with the duplicitous brothers Read More

1968
Bonanza: Pride of a Man

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Kevin Coughlin

Synopsis: When schoolteacher Abby Pettigrew (Anne Helm is incapacitated, Joe Cartwright takes over Abby's classroom. He is able to connect with all of the students except for the troublemaking McNab boys, Willy (Kevin McCoughlin) and Billy (Steve Cory). It turns out that the source of the brothers' Read More

1968
Bonanza: A Severe Case of Matrimony

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Susan Strasberg, J. Carrol Naish

Synopsis: Breaking from tradition, Bonanza offered two first-run episodes amidst the usual sea of reruns in the summer of 1968. The first of these, "A Severe Case of Matrimony", aired on July 7, 1968. Susan Strasberg plays Rosalita, a fiery gypsy girl who aspires to a career in opera-and never mind that she Read More

1968
Bonanza: The Crime of Johnny Mule

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Noah Beery, Jr.

Synopsis: Noah Beery Jr. guest-stars as Johnny Mule, on trial for the murder of David Lowdon. Typically, Hoss Cartwright casts the vote which deadlocks the jury, convinced that there is reasonable doubt regarding Johnny's guilt. But when Johnny breaks out of jail rather than face a retrial, Hoss must come Read More

1968
Bonanza: Blood Tie

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Robert Drivas, Conlan Carter

Synopsis: In the town of Smithville, Joe Cartwright's life is saved by Tracy Blaine (Robert Drivas), who then manages to sweet-talk his way into a job at the Ponderosa. Neither Joe nor the rest of the Cartwrights are aware that Blaine has formulated a diabolically clever scheme to rob Ben Cartwright, a Read More

1968
Bonanza: The Late Ben Cartwright

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Sidney Blackmer

Synopsis: Ben Cartwright is determined to block the gubernatorial bid of John Faraday (Simon Scott), the corrupt stooge of crooked tycoon Sam Endicott (Sidney Blackmer). When Ben is shot by one of Endicott's henchmen, he decides to "play dead" until the convention, then expose both Endicott and Faraday as Read More

1968
Bonanza: Trouble Town

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Robert J. Wilke

Synopsis: Candy makes good his long-standing promise to quit the Ponderosa to join his longtime sweetheart Lila Holden (Elizabeth MacRae) in the town of River Bend. His dreams of starting life anew are shattered when he is arrested on a trumped-up charge and held without bail. Hoping to help Candy out, the Read More

1968
Bonanza: Star Crossed

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Tisha Sterling

Synopsis: Candy comes to the aid of down-and-out Laura Jean Pollard (Tisha Sterling), offering the bedraggled young woman the shelter and hospitality of the Ponderosa. Before long, however, an ex-marshal named Passmore (William Windom) has arrived on the scene to blackmail poor Laura. What is her secret-and Read More

1968
Bonanza: The Price of Salt

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Kim Hunter

Synopsis: Kim Hunter guest-stars as greedy Ada Halle, who holds a monopoly on all salt deposits in Spanish Wells. Charging exorbitant prices for her precious salt, Ada sparks a war between the haves (the wealthy cattlemen of the territory) and the have-nots (the small ranchers). Making things dicier is the Read More

1968
Bonanza: The Trackers

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Warren Stevens

Synopsis: Ben and Hoss Cartwright, together with ranchhand Candy, join a posse to capture Cully Maco (Bruce Dern), an ex-convict wanted for robbery and murder. Trouble is, the other members of the posse are determined to kill their prisoner without a trial. And as if that wasn't enough intrigue, Cully is Read More

1968
Bonanza: Commitment at Angelus

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Marj Dusay

Synopsis: Joe Cartwright is grief-stricken when his friend Steve Regan, leader of a miners' strike, is accidentally killed. Because the Cartwrights are major stockholders in the mining company, Joe feels partially responsible for Steve's death, and does what he can to help the man's widow Stephanie (Marj Read More

1968
Bonanza: A Girl Named George

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Jack Albertson

Synopsis: Though the title of this episode refers to the young lady played by Sheila Wells, the emphasis is on George's father, photographer Enos Blessing (Jack Albertson). Hired to provide an alibi for crooked lawyer Cato Troxell (Gerald Mohr), who plans to murder the judge (Fred Clark) responsible for Read More

1968
Bonanza: The Burning Sky

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Dawn Wells

Synopsis: Ben Cartwright hires a new horse trainer named Will Holt (Michael Murphy), who brings with him an Indian bride named Moon (Dawn Wells, fresh from her stint on Gilligan's Island). When the neighbors express vicious bigotry towards the interracial couple, the Cartwrights try to smooth over the Read More

1968
Bonanza: The Thirteenth Man

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Albert Salmi, Richard Carlson

Synopsis: Over the protests of the Cartwrights, the Carttlemen's Association hires range detective Marcus Alley (Albert Salmi) to round up a gang of rustlers by any means necessary. Unfortunately, Alley is a psycho who shoots first and asks questions later-and as a result, several innocent people are Read More

1968
Bonanza: Mark of Guilt

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Victor Sen Yung

Synopsis: This episode of Bonanza is a showcase for Victor Sen Yung as Hop Sing, the Cartwrights' loyal Chinese manservant. When Hop Sing's pigtail is cut off by town bully Emo Younger (Sam Greene), Joe Cartwright vows to avenge this act of public humiliation-and is subsequently arrested for murder when Read More

1968
Bonanza: A World Full of Cannibals

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, James Patterson

Synopsis: Grand Jury witness Charles Ball (James Patterson) is prepared to charge seven men with fraud-not out of any sense of civic duty, but because he has been paid off by Vandeman (Mark Richman a co-conspirator of the seven defendants, and the worst of the lot. With his life in jeopardy, Ball hides out Read More

1968
Bonanza: Queen High

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Celeste Yarnall

Synopsis: Joe Cartwright, Candy and Kate Kelly (Celeste Yarnell) form a partnership to establish an ore-stamping mill. Though Joe and Candy know next to nothing about running the mill, they have no trouble courting Kate, with both partners showing up at the lady's doorstep on alternate evenings. But it Read More

1968
Bonanza: Yonder Man

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, John Vernon

Synopsis: Beaudry (John Vernon), an old army buddy of Ben Cartwright, is just a man who wants to have fun. Unfortunately, his idea of fun is to steal Hoss' horse, pick fights with the townsfolk, and seriously injure Candy. But there may be even worse in store: Tired of a life as vagabond, Beaudry plans to Read More

1968
Lady in Cement

Actors: Frank Sinatra, Raquel Welch, Richard Conte, Martin Gabel, Lainie Kazan

Synopsis: Tony Rome (Frank Sinatra) is a Miami private detective who discovers a lady in cement while scuba diving. Rome is hired by Gronsky (Dan Blocker) to find out if the woman is his missing girlfriend. He interviews Kit Forrest (Raquel Welch), a boozy socialite who had seen the woman at a drunken party Read More

1968
Bonanza: Season 10

Actors: Lorne Greene, Dan Blocker, Michael Landon, David Canary

Synopsis: Though no longer the number one program in America by the time it entered its tenth season, Bonanza still weighed in at a respectable third place, just after Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In and Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. Of the major characters, Lorne Greene as Ben Cartwright, Dan Blocker as Hoss Cartwright Read More

1968
Bonanza: The Passing of a King

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Jeremy Slate

Synopsis: Taking advantage of the illness of his powerful rancher father Claude Roman (Denver Pyle), mean-spirited Jermey Roman (Jeremy Slate) runs roughshod over everyone. In addition to browbeating his sister Mary (Diane Muldaur) and reneging on a legitimate business deal with the Cartwrights, Jeremy also Read More

1968
Something for a Lonely Man

Synopsis: Dan Blocker made his first non-Bonanza appearance in nine years in the 1968 TV movie Something for a Lonely Man. Blocker plays a blacksmith, John Killibrew, who leads several Easterners to a boomtown in the High Sierras -- only to discover that the town is slated for extinction because the Read More

1968
Bonanza: The Last Vote

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Tom Bosley, Wally Cox

Synopsis: As a result of a wager, Hoss and Joe Cartwright decide to enter politics, each supporting an opposing mayor candidate for the upcoming Virginia City election. Comic chaos ensues when both brothers become campaign managers for their respective candidates, and are thus forced to suck up to the man Read More

1968
Bonanza: Salute to Yesterday

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Patrick Conway

Synopsis: The focus in this Bonanza episode of September 29, 1968 is on ranch hand Candy, played by David Canary. Candy and the Cartwrights offer their assistance to a US Army unit, presently under attack from a gang of gold bandits. Crisis mounts upon crisis when it develops that Captain Harris (Pat Read More

1968
Bonanza: The Real People of Muddy Creek

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Joe Don Baker, Jean Hale

Synopsis: When Sheriff Walker (Stuart Randall) of Muddy Creek is murdered, Ben and Joe Cartwright volunteer to guard prisoner Luke Harper (Joe Don Baker). Fearful of retaliation from Harper's gang, the townspeople refuse to assist Ben and Joe, going so far as to desert the town. The only remaining citizens Read More

1968
Bonanza: Catch as Catch Can

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Paul Richards

Synopsis: The Cartwrights and Candy find themselves stranded in the backwater town of Tinbucket. Having picked up false rumors that the Ponderosa is on its last legs, the townsfolk refuse to extend Ben Cartwright any credit. Meanwhile, a series of bizarre coincidences leads to several embarrassing arrests Read More

1968
Bonanza: The Sound of Drums

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Jack Kruschen

Synopsis: Jack Kruschen makes his third and final Bonanza appearance as Giorgio Rossi, the bombastic patriarch of an Italian wine-growing family. Having been awarded a parcel of Ponderosa land to create a vineyard, Rossi causes consternation for Ben Cartwright when he invites a group of hungry Indians to Read More

1968
Bonanza: The Survivors

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Mariette Hartley

Synopsis: Mariette Hartley makes a return visit to Bonanza in the November 10, 1968 episode "The Survivors." This time, Hartley is cast as Alicia, a former captive of the Paiutes. During her captivity, Alicia had been forced to bear a son to one of the braves, and as a result is shunned by the townsfolk-and Read More

1968
Bonanza: Little Girl Lost

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Linda Sue Risk

Synopsis: A distant relative of Ben Cartwright, preteen tomboy Samantha Dorcas (Linda Sue Risk is delivered to the Ponderosa in the hope that Ben will be able to "tame" the troublesome girl. Meanwhile, Sam's mother Martha (Antoinette Bower) struggles desperately to escape her existence as a saloon girl. Read More

1968
Bonanza: A Man Without Land

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Jeremy Slate, Royal Dano

Synopsis: Ben Cartwright prevents crooked Ponderosa foreman Ed Philips (Jeremy Slate) from swindling rancher Matt Jeffers (Royal Dano). In retaliation, Philips uses Joe Cartwright and Jeffers' son Harry (James Gammon) as pawns in an elaborate revenge scheme. As a result, Harry lies dead, and Joe is accused Read More

1967
Bonanza: Dark Enough to See the Stars

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Richard Evans, Linda Foster

Synopsis: Rescued from the desert by Ben Cartwright, young Billy Wilcox (Richard Evans) is hired as a ranch hand at the Ponderosa. Falling in love with Jennifer Yardley (Linda Foster), Billy suddenly breaks off the relationship, displaying inexplicable terror at the sight of Jennifer's lawman father Tom Read More

1967
Bonanza: The Deed and the Dilemma

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Jack Kruschen, Donald Woods

Synopsis: In this sequel to the previous season's "The Big Shadow of the Land", Jack Kruschen returns as Giorgio Rossi, the bombastic patriach of a family of Italian winegrowers. Hoping to improve the Rossis' financial situation, Ben Cartwright grants Giorgio eighty acres of Ponderosa property, which the Read More

1967
Bonanza: The Prince

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Lloyd Bochner, Warren Stevens

Synopsis: The Cartwrights play host to two members of the Russian aristocracy, Count Alexis (Warren Stevens) and Countess Elena (Claire Griswold). Meanwhile, Russian-expatriate outlaw Peters (Lloyd Bochner) has other plans in store for the Count and Countess. The object of Peters' avaricious scheme are the Read More

1967
Bonanza: Napoleon's Children

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Michael Burns, Bob Biheller

Synopsis: Virginia City finds itself under siege from a group of highly organized juvenile delinquents, all guided by a disturbed young man (Bob Biheller) who calls himself Napoleon. Raised by his dissolute uncle (Woodrow Parfrey), a professor with a drinking problem, the boy knows his history well, and Read More

1967
Bonanza: The Greedy Ones

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Robert Middleton, George Chandler

Synopsis: Bonanza's final eighth-season offering, "The Greedy Ones" first aired on May 14, 1967. Rumors are flying that old prospector Gus Schultz has struck it rich on the Ponderosa. As a result, Ben Cartwright must contend with a veritable batallion of greedy gold hunters. The worst of the lot is Read More

1967
Bonanza: Second Chance

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, James Gregory, Bettye Ackerman

Synopsis: The ninth season of Bonanza began on September 17, 1967 with the episode titled "Second Chance". Ben Cartwright joins an army patrol to rescue his sons Hoss and Joe, who are presently at the mercy of renegade Indians. The boys are pinned down with a wagon party, consisting almost exclusively of Read More

1967
Bonanza: Maestro Hoss

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Kathleen Freeman

Synopsis: Hoss Cartwright once again falls victim to a clever palm reader, in this case a travelling prognosticator named Madama Morova, played by no less than Zsa Zsa Gabor. Giving Hoss a Stradivarius, Morova informs him that he is an undiscovered violin virtuoso, destined to give his first public concert Read More

1967
Bonanza: The Wormwood Cup

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Judi Meredith, Frank Overton

Synopsis: Both Linda Roberts (Judi Meredith) and Amos Crenshaw (Frank Overton) have sworn vengeance against Joe Cartwright. Linda thinks that Joe killed her brother, while Amos' son was shot by Joe in self-defense. The tension reaches the boiling point when Linda hires a man to assassinate Joe, then changes Read More

1967
Bonanza: Clarissa

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Nina Foch, Roy Roberts

Synopsis: Nina Foch guest-stars as Clarissa, Ben Cartwright's snooty Eastern cousin. Swooping down upon the Ponderosa, the well-meaning but insufferable Clarissa manages to alienate all of the Cartwrights' friends-and even worse, causes ranch cook Hop Sing to tender his resignation. It has been suggested Read More

1967
Bonanza: Black Friday

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, John Saxon, Ford Rainey

Synopsis: John Saxon makes the first of three Bonanza appearances as Steve Friday, a former Ponderosa ranchhand turned gunfighter. Putting his own life on the line, Joe Cartwright tries to save an ailing Friday from a paid assassin, hired by the powerful and revenge-driven Judge Wyllit (Ford Rainey). Read More

1967
Bonanza: The Unseen Wound

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Leslie Nielsen, Nancy Malone

Synopsis: Leslie Nielsen, who had once studied acting under Bonanza star Lorne Greene in his native Canada, is here cast as Sheriff Paul Rowan, an old friend of Ben Cartwright. Driven to madness after twelve hard years on the job, Rowan holes up in a stable, shooting or threatening to shoot anyone who comes Read More

1967
Bonanza: A Bride for Buford

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Lola Albright, Jack Elam

Synopsis: The rest of the Ponderosa men are astonished when Hoss Cartwright shows up reeking of cologne and dressed to the nines. It is all part of Hoss' scheme to prove that mercenary saloon gal Dolly Bantree (Lola Albright) only loves grungy miner Buford Buckelew (Jack Elam) for his money. Paul Brineger Read More

1967
Bonanza: Ponderosa Explosion

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Victor Sen Yung, Dub Taylor

Synopsis: In this comic episode, Hoss and Joe Cartwright embark on yet another big-business scheme. Investing in two rabbits, our heroes intend to make a fortune selling rabbit skins. Alas, neither brother has the heart to take a knife to the cute little bunnies, which of course proceed to multiply at an Read More

1967
Bonanza: Justice

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Beau Bridges, Shirley Bonne

Synopsis: Joe Cartwright's impending marriage to the lovely Sally Cutler (Shirley Bonne) is threatened by the girl's unwanted suitor Horace (Beau Bridges), who is not only clumsy and inept, but also potentially dangerous. When Horace accidently strangles Sally to death, Joe swears vengeance. Ben tries to Read More

1967
Bonanza: Judgement at Red Creek

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, John Ireland, Harry Carey, Jr.

Synopsis: Joe Cartwright joins a posse led by Sheriff Rimbau (John Ireland) to capture two robbery/murder suspects. For Rimbau, it is personal: His own brother Jack (James B. Sikking) was killed by the outlaws. Before long, Joe realizes that Rimbau intends to be judge, jury and executioner, thoroughly Read More

1967
Bonanza: Joe Cartwright, Detective

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mort Mills, Ken Lynch

Synopsis: Thoroughly immersed in the mystery novel {^Inspector Foot of Scotland Yard}, Joe Cartwright begins to fancy himself an ace detective. Attempting to apply the latest Scotlard Yard techniques to prevent a bank robbery, Joe causes more trouble than he's worth-while his dad Ben and Sheriff Coffee end Read More

1967
Bonanza: A Woman in the House

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Diane Baker, Paul Richards

Synopsis: Ben Cartwright protects longtime family friend Mary Farnum (Diane Baker) from the drunken rampages of her brutal husband Russ Wharton (Paul Richards). Misinterpreting Ben's kindness, the long-suffering Mary falls desperately in love with the Cartwright patriarch. Also in the cast are Dennis Cross Read More

1967
Bonanza: Journey to Terror

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, John Ericson

Synopsis: Visiting the Blackwell farm, Joe Cartwright is aghast to learn that his friend Tom Blackwell (Jason Evers) has turned to crime. Enter a gang of outlaws, who hold Joe, Blackwell's wife Ellie Sue (Elizabeth Rogers) and the couple's son captive, thereby forcing Mrs. Blackwell to tend to the injuries Read More

1967
Bonanza: Amigo

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Henry Darrow, Gregory Walcott

Synopsis: Henry Darrow guest-stars as Amigo, a role originally written for Sammy Davis Jr.). Persecuted all his life merely because of his Mexican heritage, Amigo has cast his lot with a band of terrorists, led by the vicious Cap Fenner (Gregory Walcott). When Ben saves his life, Amigo's loyalties are torn Read More

1967
Bonanza: Six Black Horses

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Burgess Meredith, David Lewis

Synopsis: Burgess Meredith guest-stars as Irishman Ownie Dugan. Suddenly striking it rich, Ownie decides to strike a blow against political corruption by turning the tables on his ex-partner Giblin (David Lewis)-but has he really turned over a new leaf, or is this just another scam? Featured in the cast are Read More

1967
Bonanza: Showdown at Tahoe

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Richard Anderson

Synopsis: Jamison Fillmore (Richard Anderson), the crooked owner of a paddle-wheel steamboat, plans an aquatic escape after robbing the Ponderosa timber supplies and stealing a shipment of currency. Fillmore proves he's not kidding when he murders steamboat skipper Captain Larson (Karl Swenson), a friend of Read More

1967
Bonanza: The Sure Thing

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Kim Darby, Tom Tully

Synopsis: Ben Cartwright purchaeses a stallion from drunken lout Burt Loughlin (Tom Tully), hoping to fulfill the fondest dreams of Burt's sweet daughter Trudy (Kim Darby). It is Trudy's wish to ride the stallion to victory in a upcoming high-stakes race. But Ben's good intentions may be undone by Burt, who Read More

1967
Bonanza: Check Rein

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, James MacArthur

Synopsis: Future Hawaii 5-0 regular James MacArthur guest-stars as Jase Fredericks, who tries to protect his inheritance, and his life, from his selfish uncle Bingham (Ford Rainey). The Cartwrights become involved when the conflict between Jase and Bingham boils down to Jase's prize stallion. Patricia Read More

1967
Bonanza: Season 09

Actors: Lorne Greene, Dan Blocker, Michael Landon, David Canary

Synopsis: Season nine of Bonanza marks the introduction of a new recurring character; one of several developed by the series' producers as a potential replacement for former series star Pernell Roberts. David Canary makes his first appearance as enigmatic stranger Candy in "A Sense of Duty"; having passed Read More

1967
Bonanza: The Gold Detector

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Wally Cox, Paul Fix

Synopsis: Ever the champion of the underdog, Hoss Cartwright is determined to prove that the gold mine owned by his friend McNulty (Wally Cox) is not as worthless as everyone claims. To this end, Hoss is gulled into purchasing a "gold detector"-which, amazingly, actually seems to work! A gang of Read More

1967
Bonanza: Justice Deferred

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Simon Oakland

Synopsis: Hoss Cartwright is among the jurors who votes to hang Frank Scott (Claude Akins) for murder. Only after the sentence is carried out does Hoss discover he may have erred, and that the genuine killer was probably Frank's lookalike Mel Burns (also Claude Akins). Unfortunately, none of the other Read More

1967
Bonanza: Judgement at Olympus

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Barry Sullivan

Synopsis: While visiting the remote community of Olympus, Candy is accused of murdering the son of town boss A.Z. Wheelock (Arch Johnson). Things don't look very rosy for the Ponderosa ranchhand: Determined to see Candy hang, Wheelock has paid off both the district attorney and a drunken eyewitness. Read More

1967
Bonanza: The Conquistadores

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, John Saxon, Ray Teal

Synopsis: Joe Cartwright is kidnaped by a band of impoverished Mexicans, who hope to save their rundown village by collecting a $25,000 ransom from Joe's father Ben. Meanwhile, a pair of thieves named Anderson (John Kellogg) and Perkins (Eddie Ryder) prepare to steal the ransom before it can be delivered Read More

1967
Bonanza: Sense of Duty

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Gene Rutherford

Synopsis: Written by John Hawkins and Gil Lasky, "Sense of Duty" served to introduce new Bonanza regular David Canary as Candy. Donning a military uniform for the first time in years, Ben Cartwright is placed in command of the 116th Virginia City Militia, a unit including his own sons Joe and Hoss. Ben's Read More

1967
Bonanza: Night of Reckoning

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Richard Jaeckel

Synopsis: A gang of outlaws, led by the sadistic Dibs (Richard Jaeckel), descends upon the Ponderosa. The crooks are determined to retrieve $60,000 in stolen money from their duplicitous partner Don Buckler (Ron Hayes), now wounded and under the care of the Cartwright boys. Eve McVeigh appears as Read More

1967
Bonanza: Desperate Passage

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Steve Forrest

Synopsis: The Cartwrights must carefully wend their way through Paiute territory, guarding two survivors of a recent massacre. One of the survivors, Josh Tanner (Steve Forrest), is an accused murderer. The other, Mary Burns (Tina Louise), knows that Josh is innocent, but can't-or won't-reveal this fact. Read More

1967
Bonanza: The Gentle Ones

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Robert Walker, Jr., Lana Wood

Synopsis: Written by Frank Chase, "The Gentle Ones" is the tale of two brothers, both in the horse trading business. Kindhearted Mark (Robert Walker Jr.) is a cowboy who loves horses; his brutal sibling Frank (Pat Conway) is a rancher who likes nothing more than to "break" his horses in the most sadistic Read More

1967
Bonanza: False Witness

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, David Canary, Davey Davison

Synopsis: After delivering a herd of cattle to the town of Sand Dust, Joe and Hoss Cartwright, together with ranchhand Candy and local girl Valerie Townsend (Davey Davidson), are eyewitness to a fatal shooting. When the brothers of accused killer Billy Slader (Michael Blodgett) threaten to permanently Read More

1967
Bonanza: Ride the Wind, Part Two

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Rod Cameron, Tom Lowell

Synopsis: In Part Two of "Ride the Wind", Curtis Wade (Rod Cameron takes over from the late Charles Ludlow as head of the new Pony Express service. Determined to keep the service running and to finish the route despite attacks by the Paiutes, Wade is driven not so much by duty as by his ego, which has been Read More

1966
Bonanza: Ride the Wind, Part One

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Noah Beery, Jr., Victor Jory, Rod Cameron, Dorothy Green

Synopsis: Written by Paul Schneider, "Ride the Wind" was Bonanza's first two-part story. Ben Cartwright is willing to provide Charles Ludlow (Victor Jory) with money to help finance the new Pony Express service, but isn't keen on allowing his son Joe to join Ludlow's riders. Nor is the Paiute Indian tribe Read More

1966
Bonanza: Peace Officer

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Eric Fleming, Ted Knight

Synopsis: In Sheriff Coffee's absence, Virginia City's mayor (Ted Knight) hires ruthlessly efficient lawman Wes Dann (Eric Fleming) as peacekeeper. At first an admirer of Dann, Joe Cartwright soon learns that the cold-blooded temporary sheriff is less interested in upholding the law than meting out his own Read More

1966
Bonanza: Destiny's Child

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Dick Peabody, Walter Burke

Synopsis: When two strangers, Sonny (Dick Peabody) and Jesse (Walter Burke), help Ben Cartwright get his wagon out of the mud, Ben invites them to supper at the Ponderosa, then secures them both jobs. Ben's son Hoss immediately bonds with Sonny, who has the strength of Hercules but the mind of a child. A Read More

1966
Bonanza: To Kill a Buffalo

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Jose de Vega, Steve Gravers

Synopsis: Jose De Vega is cast as Tatu, an embittered Indian youth who hates all white men. Injured and left to die by his tribe, Tatu is rescued by Hoss, who makes it his mission in life to prove to the boy that not all whites are monsters. Before the episode is over, both Tatu and Hoss have their faithful Read More

1966
Bonanza: A Dollar's Worth of Trouble

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Sally Kellerman, Hampton Fancher

Synopsis: Bonanza closed out its seventh season on May 15, 1966 with the comic episode "A Dollar's Worth of Trouble." Gypsy palm reader Mme. Adella (Mabel Albertson predicts that Hoss Cartwright's life will soon accommodate a blue-eyed blonde, a moonshiner, and a murderous gunslinger. As these Read More

1966
Bonanza: Something Hurt, Something Wild

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Lynn Loring, Lyle Bettger

Synopsis: On September 11, 1966, the eighth episode of Bonanza got off to a strong start with the episode titled "Something Hurt, Something Wild." The long-standing friendship between the Cartwrights and Jed Ferguson is shattered when Jed's daughter Laurie (Lynn Loring) screamingly accuses Joe Cartwright of Read More

1966
Bonanza: A Dublin Lad

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Liam Sullivan, Maggie Mahoney

Synopsis: Joe Cartwright is a member of the jury that must determine whether or not Terence O'Toole (Liam Sullivan is guilty of robbery and murder. The jury votes eleven to one to conviction-with Joe, naturally, as the sole holdout. The story's unexpected climax proves to be yet another growing experience Read More

1966
Bonanza: The Last Mission

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, R.G. Armstrong, Brendon Boone

Synopsis: R.G. Armstrong guest-stars as Colonel Keith Jarell, Ben Cartwright's old comrade in arms. Arriving at the Ponderosa, Jarrell asks Ben to join him in his efforts to secure a lasting peace with the Paiute Indians. But the General is hiding his true agenda-one involving that deadly new weapon of Read More

1966
Bonanza: The Code

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, George Montgomery, Robert Ellenstein

Synopsis: An uncharacteristically villainous George Montgomery guest-stars as gunslinger Dan Taggert, who challenges Joe Cartwright to a duel. As an opportunist named Fitts (Robert Ellenstein) begins taking bets on the outcome of the gunfight, Ben and Hoss try to use a soft answer to turneth away Taggert's Read More

1966
Bonanza: The Unwritten Commandment

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Wayne Newton, Anne Jeffreys

Synopsis: Singer Wayne Newton makes his dramatic debut as Andy Walker, the son of domineering dirt farmer Willard Walker (Malcolm Atterbury). Desirous of pursuing a musical career, Andy is stopped in his tracks by his hidebound father. Ben Cartwright intervenes in this domestic dilemma-and along the way Read More

1966
Bonanza: The Genius

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Lonny Chapman, Jorja Curtright

Synopsis: Hoss Cartwright befriends philosophical drifter Will Smith (Lonny Chapman), a brilliant poet but a chronic alcoholic. Characteristically, Hoss tries to reform Will-only to discover that his new friend is not the rootless vagabond everyone thinks he is. Jorja Curtwright is cast as the obligatory Read More

1966
Bonanza: The Fighters

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Michael Conrad, Phillip Pine

Synopsis: Hoss Cartwright seriously injures washed-up boxer Hank Kelly (Michael Conrad in a challenge fight. Feeling guilty, Hoss refuses all entreaties to fight on a professional basis-but younger brother Joe is eager and willing to show off his pugilistic prowess. Featured in the cast are Phillip Pine as Read More

1966
Bonanza: The Big Shadow on the Land

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Jack Kruschen, Penny Santon

Synopsis: Originally broadcast April 17, 1966, "The Big Shadow on the Land" was the first of three Bonanza episodes focusing on the Rossis, an immigrant Italian family. Headed by bombastic Giorgio Rossi (Jack Kruschen), the family encamps on the Ponderosa, intending to revitalize their winemaking business. Read More

1966
Bonanza: Shining in Spain

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Judie Rolin, Gene Lyons

Synopsis: Joe Cartwright is in love with Wendy Dant (Judi Rolin), but she has no room in her heart for anyone but her "wealthy and influential" father Taylor Dant (Gene Lyons), whom she idolizes. Wendy's bubble bursts when, after a lengthy absence, Taylor returns to her life, revealing himself to be Read More

1966
Bonanza: The Emperor Norton

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Sam Jaffe, Parley Baer

Synopsis: Joshua Norton was a real-life character in 19th century San Francisco, formerly a man of wealth who in middle age declared himself "Emperor of the United States and Protector of Mexico", even going so far as to purchase a resplendant uniform (complete with plumed hat) for the occasion. Amused by Read More

1966
Bonanza: Three Brides for Hoss

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Majel Barrett

Synopsis: The Ponderosa is thrown into a tizzy when Kentucky woman Annie Slocum (Majel Barrett) shows up, claiming that Hoss Cartwright asked her to be his bride. In short order, two other women named Yvette (Danielle Aubry and Libby (Mitzi Hoag) also arrive, making the same claim! It is all the handiwork Read More

1966
Bonanza: The Trouble With Jamie

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Michael Burns, Ross Elliott

Synopsis: Former Wagon Train regular Michael Burns guest-stars as Jamie, the spoiled-rotten son of Ben Cartwright's eastern cousin Matthew (Ross Elliot). Appalled by Jamie's petulant arrogance, Ben takes it upon himself to teach the boy a lesson. It gradually develops that Jamie is jealous because of Read More

1966
Bonanza: His Brother's Keeper

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Nancy Gates, Wesley Lau

Synopsis: Growing increasingly fond of lovely Claire Amory (Nancy Gates), Ben Cartwright must deal with Claire's invalid brother Carl (Wesley Lau). Cruel and manipulative, Carl exploits his infimirities to force Claire to marry Ben whether she wants to or not. A real-life accident forced Lorne Greene to Read More

1966
Bonanza: Horse of a Different Hue

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Charlie Ruggles, Julie Parrish

Synopsis: At the request of gallant Colonel Fairchild (Charles Ruggles) and his lovely daughter Patty Lou (Julie Parrish), Ben Cartwright agrees to arrange a championship horse race. What Ben doesn't know is that the Colonel has fixed the outcome of the race to rid himself of nasty creditor Jack Geller Read More

1966
Bonanza: The Oath

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Tony Bill, Douglas Kennedy

Synopsis: Future movie-studio executive Tony Bill is cast as halfbreed Charlie Two, who has sworn to killi the Cartwrights to avenge the hanging of his father Charlie Monahan. Hoping to dissuade Charlie, Joe Cartwright adopts an alias and accompanies the boy on his journeys. In the course of events, the two Read More

1966
Bonanza: Ballad of the Ponderosa

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Randy Boone, Ann Doran

Synopsis: Fifteen years after Ben Cartwright's testimony sent a man named Preston to the gallows, Preston's son Colter arrives in Virginia City. A self-styled troubador, Colter sings a bitter ballad denouncing Ben and proclaiming his own father's innocence, forcing the authorities to re-open the case. Read More

1966
Bonanza: The Bridegroom

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Joanne Linville, Jeff Corey

Synopsis: Spinster Maggie Dowling (Joanne Linville) has been told all her life that she is dowdy and unattractive. Joe Cartwright doesn't agree, further speculating that Maggie would make an ideal spouse for shy widower Jared Wilson (Tuck Dowling). To bring the two lonely souls together, Joe pretends to Read More

1966
Bonanza: A Real Nice, Friendly Little Town

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Louise Latham, Mark Slade

Synopsis: A ricocheting bullet catches Little Joe Cartwright in his-er-nether regions. Seeking answers to his brother's non-fatal but certainly embarrassing injury, Hoss tries to communicate with world-weady female gunslinger Willie Mae Rikeman (Louise Latham) and her two uncontrollable sons Judd (Mark Read More

1966
Bonanza: Old Charlie

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, John McIntire, Jeanette Nolan

Synopsis: Hoss Cartwright saves Old Charlie (John McIntire, the town's premiere spinner of tall and outlandish tales, from a knife-wielding outlaw. Determined to prove himself a hero, Charlie takes credit for killing the outlaw, even though the brothers of the dead man have sworn revenge. Does Charlie truly Read More

1966
Bonanza: To Bloom for Thee

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Geraldine Brooks, Don Haggerty

Synopsis: Geraldine Brooks, who played Ben Cartwright's first wife in the 1961 Bonanza episode "Elizabeth, My Love," was cast as Hoss Cartwright's love interest in the October 16, 1966 episode "To Bloom for Thee." Beaten down by life, Carol Attley (Brooks) has become cold, aloof and distrustful. Read More

1966
Bonanza: The Pursued, Part Two

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Eric Fleming, Dina Merrill

Synopsis: In Part Two of "The Pursued", Mormon rancher Heber Clawson (Eric Fleming) is burned out of his home and shot to death by a bigoted mob, spurred on by a demented self-ordained minister. It is up to the Cartwrights to provide safe passage for Heber's two wives Susannah (Dina Merrill) and Elizabeth Read More

1966
Bonanza: Four Sisters from Boston

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Vera Miles, Lyn Edgington

Synopsis: The title characters in this episode of Bonanza are the Lowell sisters: Ara (Vera Miles, Gabrielle (Lyn Edgington, Lorraine (Madeline Mack) and Heather (Melinda Plowman). Having inherited their uncle's ranch, the ladies arrive in Virginia City to discover that all they've received is a pile of Read More

1966
Bonanza: Credit for a Kill

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Don Collier, Luana Patten

Synopsis: A horse thief with a price on his head is shot by both Joe Cartwright and his friend, stone-broke farmer Morgan Tanner (Dean Harens). When the authorities arrive, Joe takes full credit for the killing-and claims the reward, which Morgan and his family need desperately. Why is Joe acting in this Read More

1966
Bonanza: Tommy

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Mike Witney

Synopsis: The wife of vicious outlaw Jess Miller (Michael Witney), long-suffering Allie (Janet De Gore takes refuge at the Ponderosa, where she grew up. Jess wants to forcibly take Allie back-but he wants nothing to do with their son Tommy (Teddy Quinn, a deaf mute. Frank Puglia appears as the kindly Padre. Read More

1966
Bonanza: Season 08

Actors: Lorne Greene, Dan Blocker, Michael Landon

Synopsis: Season eight of Bonanza begins with one of the series' most famous episodes, "Something Hurt, Something Wild," in which the nonplussed Little Joe Cartwright (Michael Landon) is accused of sexual assault by the daughter of one of Ben Cartwright's (Lorne Greene) best and oldest friends. Later down Read More

1966
Bonanza: The Pursued, Part One

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Eric Fleming, Dina Merrill

Synopsis: Written by Thomas Thompson and Marc Michaels, "The Pursued" was the second of Bonanza's two-part stories. In Beehive, Nevada, the Cartwrights arranged to buy horses from Mormon rancher Heber Clawson (Eric Fleming). Soon they become involved in Clawson's stubborn determination to remain in Beehive Read More

1966
Bonanza: A Time to Step Down

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Ed Begley, Sr., Audrey Totter

Synopsis: Ed Begley Sr. makes a return visit to Bonanza in the role of proud old Ponderosa wrangler Dan Tolliver. Sensing that Dan is getting too old for his work, Ben Cartwright arranges for the stubborn ranchhand to take on an easier job. Infuriated, Dan quits the Ponderosa and falls in with two outlaws Read More

1966
Bonanza: Home from the Sea

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Alan Bergmann, Ivor Francis

Synopsis: Though the character of Adam Cartwright was gone from Bonanza, he was far from forgotten, as proven by this episode from May 1, 1966. Alan Bergmann guest-stars as Gilly Maples, a shipmate of the now-seafaring Adam. Arriving at the Ponderosa, Gilly claims to be a lonely fellow, seeking only the Read More

1966
Ride the Wind

Synopsis: This western is the movie-length pilot for the long-running television series Bonanza. The story follows the Cartwright clan as they help keep the nearly bankrupt Pony Express from going under. They also work to keep the angry Paiute Indians at bay. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide Read More

1966
Bonanza: A Christmas Story

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Wayne Newton, Jack Oakie

Synopsis: Not surprisingly, "A Christmas Story" originally aired on December 25, 1966. Wayne Newton returns to Bonanza in the role of singer Andy Walker, who herein agrees to perform at the annual Oprhan's Christmas Benefit. The fly (or grinch) in the ointment is Andy's crooked uncle/manager Thaddeus Cade Read More

1966
Bonanza: The Reluctant Rebel

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Tim Considine, Royal Dano

Synopsis: Former My Three Sons regular Tim Considine guest-stars as Billy Penn, son of a family of humble pig farmers. Hoping to escape his humdrum life and his stern father Hank (Royal Dano), Billy impulsively joins a gang of rustlers. When Billy is caught stealing from the Cartwrights, Hoss decides to Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Strange One

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Louise Sorel, Willard Sage

Synopsis: "The Strange One" is Marie (Louise Sorel), who is expelled from a wagon train when she is accused of being a witch. Marie is rescued from her tormentors by Hoss and Joe Cartwright, who offer her shelter at the Ponderosa. Before long, it becomes obvious that Marie is gifted with "second sight"-but Read More

1965
Bonanza: Found Child

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Gerald Mohr, Charles Bateman

Synopsis: Hoss Cartwright rescues a little girl named Lisa (Eileen Baral), who is in a state of speechless shock after surviving a stagecoach holdup in which her parents were killed. In his efforts to snap Lisa out of her trauma, Hoss grows to love the child, and as such is devastated when her uncle, a man Read More

1965
Bonanza: Mighty is the Word

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Glenn Corbett, Sue Randall

Synopsis: Virginia City welcomes new preacher Paul Watson (Glenn Corbett), a former gunslinger who'd "seen the light" five years earlier. But Watson's new lifestyle-and indeed, his life itself-is threatened by the arrival of Cliff Rexford (Michael Witney), who has not quite forgiven Paul for killing Cliff's Read More

1965
Bonanza: Five Sundowns to Sunup

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Marie Windsor, James Davidson

Synopsis: Virginia City is held in a grip of terror by the vicious family of condemned killer Harry Lassiter (Jack Chaplain. Cold-blooded matriarch Ma Lassiter (Marie Windsor) promises to kidnap one citizen per day until Harry is set free. Things get personal for the Cartwrights when Little Joe is among Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Trap

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Steve Cochran

Synopsis: When her husband Booth (Steve Cochran) is murdered, Hallie Shannon (Joan Freeman) is convinced that her former sweetheart Joe Cartwright committed the dirty deed so that Joe and Hallie could be together again. Unfortunately, Booth's twin brother Buck (also Steve Cochran) is of the same opinion-and Read More

1965
Bonanza: Season 07

Actors: Lorne Greene, Dan Blocker, Michael Landon

Synopsis: That the seventh season of Bonanza would be slightly different from the previous six was obvious the moment the main credits of the season's first episode were emblazoned on the screen. There was Lorne Greene as Ponderosa patriarch Ben Cartwright, and Dan Blocker and Michael Landon as Ben's sons Read More

1965
Bonanza: Meredith Smith

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Anne Helm, Strother Martin

Synopsis: Ben Cartwright makes a solemn promise that the entire estate of dying skinflint Jake Smith (Burt Mustin will go to Jake's next of kin, Meredith Smith. But Ben never expected to be besieged by six different people, all laying claim to be the Meredith Smith-among them a woman named Meredith Read More

1965
Bonanza: A Natural Wizard

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Eddie Hodges, Karl Swenson

Synopsis: Former child star Eddie Hodges is cast as Skeeter Dexter, who has the acute ability to communicate with animals. After releasing the furry victims of the traps set by his drunken lout of a stepfather, Skeeter is soundly beaten. Rescued from his stepdad's wrath by Hoss Cartwright, the boy is taken Read More

1965
Bonanza: All Ye His Saints

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Leif Erickson, Clint Howard

Synopsis: Clint Howard is the center of attention on this Bonanza episode as impressionable young Michael Thorpe. When his father Evan (Simon Scott) is seriously wounded, Michael takes literally the words of Ponderosa ranchhand Lijah (Rodolfo Acosta), who mournfully declares that "Only God" can save Evan Read More

1965
Bonanza: Once a Doctor

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Michael Rennie

Synopsis: Virginia City is visited by one Thomas Crippen (Ashley Cowan), an Englishman who has travelled all over the world in search of the man who "murdered" his wife on the operating table. Crippen is convinced that a doctor named Mundy is guilty of the crime-and as it turns out, Mundy is the real name Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Deadliest Game

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Cesar Romero

Synopsis: A group of flamboyant Italian acrobats pay a visit to the Ponderosa. Despite his long friendship with Guido Borelli (Cesar Romero), leader of the acrobats, Ben Cartwright is disturbed over Borelli's exhibitions of jealousy whenever his sweetheart Pitina (Ilze Taurins) shows interest in another Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Search

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker

Synopsis: Pernell Roberts plays a dual role in this February 14, 1965 installment of Bonanza. Adam Cartwright discovers that his exact double, a man named Tom Burns, is posing as Adam to raise money under false pretense. With the help of a saloon girl named Ann (Lola Albright), Adam attempts to track down Read More

1965
Bonanza: Dead and Gone

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Hoyt Axton

Synopsis: Singer Hoyt Axton made his dramatic debut in this episode of Bonanza, which first aired April 4, 1965. Axton is cast as drifter Howard Mead, whose singing skills are matched only by his predilection for running afoul of the law. While trying to straigthen Mead out, Adam Cartwright is forced to Read More

1965
Bonanza: Hound Dog

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Bruce Yarnell

Synopsis: Bruce Yarnell pays a return visit to Bonanza as the Cartwright's cousin Muley Jones. Still the proud possessor of an ear-splitting singing voice, Muley is on this occasion accompanied by an equally noisy pack of hound dogs. Hoping to train the dogs to hunt the coyotes which have been preying upon Read More

1965
Bonanza: Right is the Fourth R

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Everett Sloane

Synopsis: Adam Cartwright rescues long-suffering schoolteacher Barbara (Mariette Hartley), who has been tied to a burning post by her unruly pupils. While Barbara recovers from her ordeal, Adam takes over her classroom, determined to teach her contentious charges the history of the Nevada Territory. In so Read More

1965
Bonanza: Woman of Fire

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Joan Hackett

Synopsis: In this frontier spin on Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew, Joan Hackett guest-stars as Margarita, the fiery, sharp-tongued daughter of a Mexican nobleman (Jay Novello). Having frightened off most of her potential suitors, Margarita may never be married-a sorry state of affairs for younger Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Far, Far Better Thing

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Brenda Scott

Synopsis: Joe Cartwright and his friend Tuck (Warren Vanders) vie for the attentions of pretty Easterner Lucy Melviney (Brenda Scott), a sheltered young girl whose view of the world has been formed by the romantic literature she reads. When Lucinda is targeted for abduction by a renegade band of Paiutes Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Flapjack Contest

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Johnny Seven

Synopsis: One of the handful of truly classic Bonanza episodes, "The Flapjack Contest" first aired January 3, 1965. Having entered the titular contest, Hoss Cartwright is put on a starvation diet by his brother Joe to ensure victory. Meanwhile, several other plot strands are woven into the proceedings Read More

1965
Bonanza: Ponderosa Birdman

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Ed Wynn

Synopsis: The great Ed Wynn appears on this Bonanza episodes a Phineas T. Klump, a lovable old eccentric who is determined to be the first man to fly. Klump hopes to achieve this goal with a bulky set of artificial feathered wings, with "true believer" Hoss Cartwright as his ground crew. But when Klump is Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Flannel-Mouth Gun

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Earl Holliman

Synopsis: Held in thrall by a gang of rustlers, the local cattleman's association hires a professional gunman named Simmons (Robert Wilke) to deal with the outlaws. The Cartwrights vote against engaging the services of Simmons, fearing that he will cause more harm than good. Their predictions apparently Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Ballerina

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Barrie Chase

Synopsis: Dancer Barrie Chase, best known for her appearances on the TV specials of Fred Astaire, guest-stars in this Bonanza episode, written by her brother Frank Chase. Hoss Cartwright takes it upon himself to rescue racuous Kellie Conrad (Barrie) from dancing in saloons as her father Ned (Douglas Fowley) Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Brass Box

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Ramon Novarro, Michael Dante

Synopsis: Former silent-movie idol Ramon Novarro guest-stars as Jose Ortega, a prevaricating old windbag who claims to possess a Spanish land grant deeding him the Ponderosa and most of the surrounding territory. Of course, nobody believes Ortega, and everybody takes turns beating him up. Rescued from Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Dilemma

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Tom Tully, Anthony Call

Synopsis: Acting magistrate Ben Cartwright is dismayed when Sundown (Tom Tully), an old reprobate whom he'd helped parole, is suspected of robbing the Virginia City bank. Magnanimously, Sundown offers to tell Ben where the stolen money is in exchange for his freedom. Ben refuses this offer, whereupon the Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Debt

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Tommy Sands, Brooke Bundy

Synopsis: Bonanza entered its seventh season, minus Pernell Roberts but still as popular as ever, with the September 12, 1965 episode "The Debt." Guest stars Tommy Sands and Brooke Bundy are cast as Wiley and Annie Kane, determined to pay off a debt incurred by their no-good father Sam (Ford Rainey) Read More

1965
Bonanza: Devil on Her Shoulder

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Ina Balin, John Doucette

Synopsis: Emma Morgan (Adrienne Marden, the jealous wife of religious cult leader Rev. Evan Morgan (John Doucette), is convinced that Morgan's niece Sarah Reynolds (Ina Balin) is possessed by the Devil. It is up to Ben Cartwright to save Sarah from a grisly demise at the hands of Morgan's more rabid Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Lonely Runner

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Gilbert Roland, Ken Lynch

Synopsis: Gilbert Roland guest-stars as poor but proud horse rangher Jim Acton. Hoping to get back on his financial feet, Acton is devastated when his prize mare is legally awared to Sam Whipple (Ken Lynch). Not long afterward, Acton kills Sam in self defense, but an overeager deputy named Pete (Pat Conway) Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Other Son

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Ed Begley, Sr., Tom Simcox

Synopsis: Ed Begley Sr. is cast as Clint Watson, an old muleskinner friend of Ben Cartwright. Now an explosives expert, Clint agrees to help Ben transport a shipment of nitroglycerin to a flood site, with Clint's sons Andy (Tom Simcox) and Ellis (Richard Evans) providing assistance. What begins as a western Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Return

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Tony Young, Joan Blackman

Synopsis: Former convict Trace Cordell (Tony Young) is back in town, and everyone lets him know he's not welcome. Particularly displeased with Trace's return is banker Paul Dorn (John Conte), who'd been crippled by Trace and is now married to the ex-convict's former girl friend Clara (Joan Blackman). The Read More

1965
Bonanza: To Own the World

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Telly Savalas

Synopsis: Telly Savalas guest-stars as Charles Hackett, the richest man in the world. Accustomed to getting what he wants, Hackett now covets the Ponderosa. When Ben Cartwright refuses to sell, Hackett uses every method at his disposal-fair and foul-to force Ben off his own property. But in so doing Read More

1965
Bonanza: A Good Night's Rest

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Jean Willes

Synopsis: Poor Ben Cartwright is unable to get any peace and quiet on the Ponderosa, thanks to his uncommonly noisy offspring and their friends. In desperate need of a few hours' sleep, he checks into the Virginia City hotel. Not unexpectedly, comic chaos ensues, much of it caused by a bickering husband and Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Jonah

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Andrew Prine, Angela Clarke

Synopsis: Andrew Prine guest-stars as George Whitman, a self-proclaimed "jinx" who inadvertently leaves disaster in his wake wherever he goes. Over the protests of the Ponderosa ranchhands, Whitman is hired by Hoss Cartwright, who is determined to prove that George's hard-luck reputation is undeserved. But Read More

1965
Bonanza: Patchwork Man

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Grant Williams, Bruce Gordon

Synopsis: Season Six of Bonanza was brought to a close on May 23, 1965, with another of the series' many "redeption" yarns. In "Patchwork Man," Grant Williams (best known for his star turn in the classic sci-fier The Incredible Shrinking Man) is cast as Albert "Patch" Saunders, a self-deprecating loner Read More

1965
Bonanza: The Spotlight

Actors: Lorne Greene, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Viveca Lindfors, Ron Randell

Synopsis: Written by Dick Carr, "The Spotlight" is a showcase for Viveca Lindfors in the role of long-retired opera diva Angela Drake. Appointed entertainment-committee chairman of the Virginia City anniversary celebration, Ben persuades Angela to come out of retirement for a command performance. Angela is Read More

1965
Bonanza: Season 06

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Dan Blocker, Michael Landon

Synopsis: It was no secret that Pernell Roberts was wearying of his role as Adam Cartwright by the time Bonanza entered its sixth season on NBC. In fact, Roberts had been making noises about quitting the show for several years, but had always been persuaded to stick around. But come season six and the actor Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Saga of Muley Jones

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Bruce Yarnell

Synopsis: Bruce Yarnell makes his first appearance as the Cartwrights' cousin Muley from Missouri. "Blessed" with a singing voice that can literally shatter glass, Muley manages to make life difficult for his rich relations-and also inadvetently louses up negotiations with a neighboring Indian tribe. The Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Roper

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Guy Williams

Synopsis: The focus is on new series regular Will Cartwright (Guy Williams) in the Peter Packer-scripted Bonanza episode "The Roper." In the absence of Ben and his sons, outlaws invade the Ponderosa, attempt to rob Ben's safe, and take Will as hostage. As the crooks await Ben's return-the better to demand Read More

1964
Bonanza: No Less a Man

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Ray Teal

Synopsis: In anticipation of a raid by the deadly Wagner outlaw gang, the townsfolk of Virginia City want to replace their ageing sheriff Roy Coffee, whom they feel is not equal to the task of standing up to the Wagners. Adam Cartwright is among the few who insists that Coffee remain in office-but even he Read More

1964
Bonanza: Return to Honor

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Guy Williams

Synopsis: First telecast March 22, 1964, "Return to Honor" served to introduce onetime Zorro star Guy Williams in the role of Ben Cartwright's nephew Will-a potential replacement for Adam Cartwright, should Pernell Roberts make good on his repeated threats to leave Bonanza. As the story opens, Ben receives Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Dark Past

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Dennis Hopper

Synopsis: The men of the Ponderosa cannot understand why bounty hunter Dev Farnum (Dennis Hopper) is so unfriendly and secretive. Could it have anything to do with the fact that Dev is the outcast son of a celebrated preacher? Or perhaps it is because the Cartwrights' house guest is Holly Burnside (Susan Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Pressure Game

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Guy Williams

Synopsis: Kathie Browne makes her third appearance as Adam Cartwright's erstwhile lady friend Laura Dayton. Encouraged by her Aunt Lil (Joan Blondell) to rush Adam into marriage, Laura decides to make her sweetheart jealous by playing up to Adam's cousin Will (Guy Williams). The scheme backfires when Laura Read More

1964
Bonanza: A Pink Cloud Comes from Old Cathay

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Marlo Thomas

Synopsis: Hoping to purchase some fireworks from the Chinese Yiphee Trading Company, Hoss Cartwright gets his order scrambled, and as a result winds up with a "picture bride" named Tai Li (Marlo Thomas), aka Pink Cloud. Hardly the shy, retiring type, the feisty, outspoken Tai Li proceeds to make like Read More

1964
Bonanza: Enter Thomas Bowers

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, William Marshall

Synopsis: This landmark Bonanza episode stars William Marshall (long before his tenure as "Blacula" and as "The King of Cartoons" on Pee-wee's Playhouse) in the role of celebrated black opera singer Thomas Bowers. Returning from a triumphant tour of Italy, Bowers encounters the rawest, most vicious forms of Read More

1964
Bonanza: Love Me Not

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Antoinette Bower

Synopsis: Another deft Bonanza combination of humor and tears, Frank Cleaver's teleplay for "Love Me Not" is more than a little beholden to Shaw's Candida. Antoinette Bower guest-stars as Joan, a white girl captured in childhood by the Paiutes. The tribal chief (Jack Bighead) presents Ben Cartwright with Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Lila Conrad Story

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Andrew Duggan

Synopsis: Patricia Blair guest-stars as dance hall girl Lila Conrad, who after killing a man in self-defense hides out in the Cartwright's supply wagon. Ben Cartwright and his sons try to protect Lila from the lynch-happy cronies of the man she killed, but their efforts are thwarted by stern and merciless Read More

1964
Bonanza: Ponderosa Matador

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Marianna Hill

Synopsis: Written by Alex Sharp, the comic episode "Ponderosa Matador" finds the Cartwright boys vying for the attention of the lovely Dolores (Marianna Hill), the daughter of Ben's house guest Señor Tenino (Nestor Paiva). Discovering that Dolores is an aficionado of the bull ring, the boys decide to Read More

1964
Bonanza: Bullet for a Bride

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Marlyn Mason

Synopsis: Marlyn Mason guest-stars as Tessa Caldwell, who is accidentally blinded in a hunting accident caused by Joe Cartwright. More out of pity and guilt than love, Joe offers to marry the girl. Eventually, she regains her sight-but her covetous father (Denver Pyle), anxious to see his daughter wed to a Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Cheating Game

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Kathie Browne

Synopsis: In this sequel to "The Waiting Game", Kathie Browne returns in the role of Laura Dayton, erstwhile sweetheart of Adam Cartwright. A smooth stranger named Ward Bannister (Peter Breck) arrives in town claiming that Laura's husband had willed her a fortune. Unaware that the duplicitous Bannister is Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Gentleman from New Orleans

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, John Dehner

Synopsis: The title character in this Bonanza episode is a middle-aged Frenchman (John Dehner) who claims to be legendary pirate-patriot Jean Lafitte. Making a nuisance of himself in Virginia City with his grandiose claims, "Lafitte" is thrown into jail, only to be bailed out by Hoss Cartwright, who is Read More

1964
Bonanza: King of the Mountain

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Slim Pickens

Synopsis: Slim Pickens makes a return appearance in the role of shifty, slovenly mountaineer Jim Leyton. Incredibly, Jim has become engaged to the lovely Julie (Laurie Mitchell), despite his long-standing feud with Julie's well-named father Grizzly (Robert Middleton). Hoss Cartwright is yanked into this Read More

1964
Bonanza: My Son, My Son

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Teresa Wright

Synopsis: A widower for many years, Ben Cartwright finally decides to take another bride, the lovely Katherine Saunders (Teresa Wright). Alas, the wedding plans are shelved when Katherine's son Eden (Dee Pollack) is accused of murder. Out of loyalty to his fiancee, Ben defends Eden from the law, but soon Read More

1964
Bonanza: Alias Joe Cartwright

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker

Synopsis: A deft blend of comedy and suspense, "Alias Joe Cartwright" affords series regular Michael Landon the opportunity to play a dual role: His usual characterization of Joe Cartwright, and murderous Army deserter Angus Borden. Mistaken for Borden, Joe is sentenced to a firing squad by martinet Captain Read More

1964
Bonanza: Old Sheba

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, William Demarest

Synopsis: "Old Sheba" is a scraggly circus elephant, which the Cartwrights receive as payment for Hoss' one-night stand as a big-top performer. Ben and Adam insist that Hoss and Joe return the pachyderm, but the boys are convinced that they can take care of Old Sheba all by themselves. To make a long story Read More

1964
Bonanza: A Man to Admire

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, James Gregory

Synopsis: Accused of murder, Hoss Cartwright puts his life in the hands of celebrated lawyer Whitney Parker (James Gregory). Unforunately, Parker's glory days are behind him: more to the point, he is now the town drunk. The Cartwrights struggle to keep Parker sober long enough to save Hoss from the gallows. Read More

1964
Bonanza: Square Deal Sam

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Ernest Truex

Synopsis: Ernest Truex guest-stars as "Square Deal Sam" Washburn, a veteran confidence trickster. Sam's latest suckers are the Cartwrights and their cook Hop Sing, whom he sweet-talks into a phony land deal. But redemption is at hand for Sam and his wife Martha (Nydia Westman), courtesy of a group of Read More

1964
Bonanza: Between Heaven and Earth

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Richard Jaeckel

Synopsis: This compelling Bonanza episode focuses almost exclusively on Little Joe Cartwright. Plagued by a fear of heights, Joe suffers severe nightmares after losing his rifle on precarious Eagles Peak. The only way Joe will find peace is to "conquer" the peak and retrieve his weapon-but he may not live Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Saga of Squaw Charlie

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Anthony Caruso

Synopsis: Charlie (Anthony Caruso) is an old and somewhat shabby Indian. Regularly taunted and persecuted by the self-righteous townfolk. Charlie has only two friends in the world: Ben Cartwright, and a little girl named Angela (Vicki Ros). Things take a nasty turn when Angela vanishes and Charlie is Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Pure Truth

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Glenda Farrell

Synopsis: Suffering from a advanced case of "spring fever," Hoss Cartwright is nonetheless assigned to pick up a prisoner in the town of Rimrock. Alas, Hoss arrives in the wrong town, where he ends up being jailed as a bank robber. Escaping, he finds shelter in the shack of local recluse Loulabelle (Glenda Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Underdog

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Charles Bronson

Synopsis: Charles Bronson guest-stars as Harry Star, a halfbreed who is regularly subjected to the bigotry of the townsfolk. Feeling that Harry has been unjustly persecuted, Ben Cartwright hires the man as a ranchhand. What Ben doesn't know, but the audiences does, is that Harry is a member of a gang of Read More

1964
Bonanza: A Knight to Remember

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Henry Jones

Synopsis: Guest star Henry Jones plays a flamboyant eccentric who imagines himself to be King Arthur. Wearing full armor, "Arthur" rescues Adam Cartwright from stagecoach bandits. When Adam is accused of masterminding the holdup, he finds that no one believes his wild yarn about a "knight in shining Read More

1964
Bonanza: A Dime's Worth of Glory

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Walter Brooke

Synopsis: Pulp novelist Tobias Finch (Walter Brooke) wants to write "The Saga of the Courageous Cartwrights"-but the courageous Cartwrights want no part of such an exploitive project. Undaunted, Finch decides to pen the life story of over-the-hill lawman Reed Laramore (Bruce Cabot), who revels in being Read More

1964
Bonanza: Invention of a Gunfighter

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Guy Stockwell

Synopsis: Publicly humiliated by town tough Al Mooney (Ron Foster), young Johnny Chapman (Guy Stockwell) asks his friend Joe Cartwright to teach him how to use a gun. Joe agrees, but eventually regrets this decision when Johnny becomes a cold-blooded bounty hunter. Making matters worse, Johnny has been Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Hostage

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Harold J. Stone

Synopsis: A gang of four criminals-three men, one women-kidnap Ben and hold him for a $100,000 ransom. Tension mounts as Ben tries to formulate an escape plan by turning the crooks against each other. The guest cast includes Harold J. Stone as Chad, Jacqueline Scott as Willa, and Conlan Carter as Tip. Read More

1964
Bonanza: Triangle

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Guy Williams

Synopsis: As originally intended, Kathie Browne was to make between eight and ten Bonanza appearances as widow Laura Dayton, so as to prepare audiences for the wedding of Laura and Adam Cartwright-and the eventual exit from the series of Pernell Roberts. In addition, Guy Williams had been brought in as Read More

1964
Bonanza: Walter and the Outlaws

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Arthur Hunnicutt

Synopsis: Season Five of Bonanza came to a close on May 24, 1964 with the episode titled "Walter and the Outlaws", a sequel to the previous season's "Any Friend of Walter's" (the scripts for both episodes were written by Lois Hire). Arthur Hunnicutt returns as grizzled prospector Obie, who lives in a Read More

1964
Bonanza: Logan's Treasure

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Dan Duryea

Synopsis: When Sam Logan (Dan Duryea) was sent to prison, he claimed he didn't know where his partner Jack Crawford hid $100,000 in stolen gold. After serving 20 years, Sam is released, whereupon his trail is dogged by a number of shady and avaricious characters, among them a relentless bounty hunter named Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Scapegoat

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, George Kennedy

Synopsis: George Kennedy guest-stars as Waldo Watson, a born loser who has decided to end it all. Feeling pity for Waldo, Hoss Cartwright hires him as a Ponderosa ranch hand. Alas, not only is Waldo a clumsy and inept worker, but he also puts the Cartwrights' lives in danger, courtesy of a gang of Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Wild One

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Aldo Ray

Synopsis: "The Wild One" is ornery Lafe Jessup (Aldo Ray), a pugnacious horse wrangler who'd sooner pick a fight than eat or sleep. While trying to pummel Hoss Cartwright, Lafe is interrupted by Prudence (Kathryn Hays), the Quaker wife whom he'd deserted a few months back. Prudence announces that Lafe is Read More

1964
Bonanza: Thanks for Everything, Friend

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Rory Calhoun

Synopsis: Adam Cartwright is rescued from drowning by Tom Wilson (Rory Calhoun), a man as lucky at cards as he is at love. Though grateful to Tom, Adam looks askance when Tom moves in on Matilda (Barbara Wilkin), the girlfriend of a man named Jerry (Tom Skerritt). When Tom is accused of killing Matilda's Read More

1964
Bonanza: The Colonel

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, John Larkin

Synopsis: "The Colonel" is habitual liar Frank Medford, an old friend of Ben Cartwright. Now a poverty-stricken travelling salesman, Frank is determined to convince everyone that he is as successful as Ben. Thus, Frank tells one of his celebrated whoppers, claming to be a millionaire. It takes the love of a Read More

1963
Bonanza: The Last Haircut

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Perry Lopez

Synopsis: While sitting in a barber's chair, Carlos Rodriguez (Alex Montoya) is killed by impatient customer Duke Miller (Perry Lopez. The only person who could possibly identify Duke as the murderer is Joe Cartwright-who, unfortunately, was unconscious during the tragedy. Feeling responsible for Rodriguez' Read More

1963
Bonanza: Half a Rogue

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Slim Pickens

Synopsis: Slim Pickens makes his first appearance as the rogueish but lovable mountaineer Jim Leyton. Wounded while busting out of jail, Jim tries to steal Hoss Cartwright's horse for a quick getaway, then passes out from his injuries. When he comes to, Jim tries to beat his murder rap by claiming that Hoss Read More

1963
Bonanza: Elegy for a Hangman

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker

Synopsis: Ben Cartwright plays host to Judge Whitaker (Otto Kruger), better known to one and all as "Hanging Harry." Among those sentenced to death by Whitaker was the father of Bob Jolley (Keir Dullea), who, believing his dad was innocent, now relentlessly dogs Whitaker's trail, trying to goad the Judge Read More

1963
Bonanza: Song in the Dark

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Gregory Walcott

Synopsis: Gregory Walcott is cast as Danny Morgan, a guitar-strumming "travelling troubadour." Grateful that Danny once saved his life, Adam Cartwright returns the favor by hiring the wandering minstrel as a ranchhand. The plot thickens when Danny is accused of murdering Widow Baker, with the sole witness Read More

1963
Bonanza: Any Friend of Walter's

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Arthur Hunnicutt

Synopsis: One of the best-remembered and best-loved Bonanza episodes, "Any Friend of Walter's" first aired on March 24, 1963. While travelling to visit his sweetie Bessie Sue (Katie Sue), Hoss Cartwright is forced to take shelter in the shack occupied by scroungy prospector Obie (Arthur Hunnicutt) and Read More

1963
Bonanza: Rich Man, Poor Man

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, John Fiedler

Synopsis: Perennial loser Claude Miller (John Fiedler) becomes a winner overnight when he strikes a rich silver lode. Determined to get even with the people who had previously subjected him to ridicule, Claude buys out his tormentors' mortgages. Alas, once a loser, always a loser: Claude's plans for revenge Read More

1963
Bonanza: The Boss

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Carroll O'Connor

Synopsis: A decidedly pre-All in the Family Carroll O'Connor stars as freight line owner Tom Slayden. Using underhanded and monopolistic tactics, Slayden has managed to crown himself the unofficial boss of Virginia City. The Cartwrights become mixed up with the ruthlessly ambitious Slayden when one of his Read More

1963
Bonanza: The Prime of Life

Actors: Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Michael Landon, Dan Blocker, Jay C. Flippen

Synopsis: While trying to land a lucrative lumber contract with the railroad, Ben Cartwright once again finds himself in competition with his old and hated rival, ruthless ranchowner Barney Fuller (Jay C. Flippen). Determined to prove that he is up to the challenge, Ben displays an uncharacteristic streak Read More

1963