The Dakotas
When Clint Walker’s Cheyenne came to trail's end mid-way through the ’62-’63 season, ABC had a replacement waiting in the wings. Warner Brother’s production, The Dakotas fit right into the Cheyenne time slot.
The Dakotas starred Larry Ward as U.S. Marshal Frank Ragan and his battle to bring law and order to the Black Hills and badlands of Dakota Territory. A no nonsense lawman, Ragan was often tested to bend law to fit the order needed. He was assisted by a trio of deputies, J. D. Smith played by Jack Elam as a reformed gunfighter, Mike Green as Vance Porter and Chad Everett as Del Stark. Everett later played Dr. Joe Gannon on the hit series Medical Center.
To this day The Dakotas is critically acclaimed for its fast paced, hard hitting western action. From theme song to cast to one hour black and white episodes the series got high marks and good ratings. So what derails a winner after half a season and nineteen episodes? Sanctuary at Crystal Springs, that’s what.
Episode 18 by that title aired May 6, 1963. Ragan and Smith are on the trail of a vicious pair of murderous brothers. The brothers take sanctuary in a church with the pastor as hostage. Consistent with the series’ signature intense action, the standoff ends in a fiery gun battle with the bad guys gunned down in the church. These days such an ending would be seen for just cause and we move on. Not so in 1963. The fact the characters debated the moral dilemma of the action they took on haloed ground made no difference. Public outcry over the sacrilegious spectacle of violence in a church became so strident ABC had no choice but to cancel the show a week later.
Next Week: Sidekicks
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Ride easy,
Paul
The Dakotas starred Larry Ward as U.S. Marshal Frank Ragan and his battle to bring law and order to the Black Hills and badlands of Dakota Territory. A no nonsense lawman, Ragan was often tested to bend law to fit the order needed. He was assisted by a trio of deputies, J. D. Smith played by Jack Elam as a reformed gunfighter, Mike Green as Vance Porter and Chad Everett as Del Stark. Everett later played Dr. Joe Gannon on the hit series Medical Center.
To this day The Dakotas is critically acclaimed for its fast paced, hard hitting western action. From theme song to cast to one hour black and white episodes the series got high marks and good ratings. So what derails a winner after half a season and nineteen episodes? Sanctuary at Crystal Springs, that’s what.
Episode 18 by that title aired May 6, 1963. Ragan and Smith are on the trail of a vicious pair of murderous brothers. The brothers take sanctuary in a church with the pastor as hostage. Consistent with the series’ signature intense action, the standoff ends in a fiery gun battle with the bad guys gunned down in the church. These days such an ending would be seen for just cause and we move on. Not so in 1963. The fact the characters debated the moral dilemma of the action they took on haloed ground made no difference. Public outcry over the sacrilegious spectacle of violence in a church became so strident ABC had no choice but to cancel the show a week later.
Next Week: Sidekicks
Return to Facebook to comment
Ride easy,
Paul
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