Western Series

Howard Anderson Jr. on creating the opening titles for Daniel Boone

Howard Anderson Jr. on creating the opening titles for Little House on the Prairie  and working on Bonanza

John Aniston on guest-starring on The Virginian

James Arness on playing "Marshall Matt Dillon" on Gunsmoke

James Arness on How the West Was Won

James Arness on doing several Gunsmoke reunion movies

John Astin on appearing on Maverick

Richard L. Bare on working with producer Roy Huggins on the TV show, Cheyenne

Richard L. Bare on directing Clint Walker in Cheyenne

Richard L. Bare on working with Bill Orr on the show Cheyenne

Richard L. Bare on directing Maverick

Richard L. Bare on his working style with Roy Huggins on The Virginian

Earl Bellamy on directing Annie Oakley

Earl Bellamy on directing The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin

Earl Bellamy on directing Mike Hammer and The Lone Ranger

Earl Bellamy on directing Wagon Train

Earl Bellamy on directing U.S. Marshall and Rawhide

Earl Bellamy on directing Laramie and Laredo

Earl Bellamy on directing The Virginian, and on filming stunts for Westerns

Earl Bellamy on directing Daniel Boone

Sharon Bialy on her first TV project as a solo casting director -- the TV series The Young Riders

William Blinn on his earliest television writing jobs for the westerns Maverick, Laramie, Rawhide, and others

William Blinn on being hired to be on the writing staff of Bonanza, and on learning from the older writers there

William Blinn on the elements and formula of Westerns on television, the "horse-operas" and on the quality of Gunsmoke

William Blinn on writing for Bonanza

Haskell Boggs on acting as director of photography for Bonanza

Haskell Boggs on acting as director of photography on Bonanza

Haskell Boggs on acting as director of photography on Bonanza

Haskell Boggs on acting as director or photography on The High Chaparral

Haskell Boggs on acting as director of photography for Bonanza and on working with Michael Landon on Highway to Heaven

Tom Bosley on guest-starring on The Virginian and Bonanza

Harvey Bullock on writing for The Real McCoys with  Walter Brennan 

David Canary on his recurring role as "Candy Canaday" on Bonanza

David Canary on acting in Western roles

Phil Carey on the challenges of acting in a western

Leo Chaloukian on the challenges of doing sound for Gunsmoke

Robert Conrad on auditioning for The Wild, Wild West

Robert Conrad on his character "James T. West" on The Wild, Wild West

Robert Conrad on The Wild, Wild West stunts

Robert Conrad on the violence on The Wild, Wild West

Robert Conrad on the legacy of The Wild, Wild West

John Conte on guest-starring on Bonanza

Richard Coogan on playing "Matthew Wayne" in The Californians

Hal Cooper on directing Death Valley Days

Jeanne Cooper on working on Western series television

Richard Crenna on playing "Luke McCoy" on The Real McCoys

Richard Crenna on playing "Luke McCoy" on The Real McCoys

Robert Culp on writing and starring in Trackdown

Robert Culp on the Western genre

Robert Culp on writing for the Western genre

Robert Culp on meeting and working with Sam Peckinpah on The Westerner episode "Line Camp"

Ossie Davis on guest-starring on Bonanza with Michael Landon

John Debney on composing for The Young Riders

Richard Donner on directing Wanted: Dead or Alive

Richard Donner on directing the series Wagon Train

Richard Donner on directing Have Gun, Will Travel

David Dortort on writing and producing The Restless Gun  

David Dortort on creating and writing Bonanza

David Dortort on creating and writing for Bonanza

David Dortort on creating and writing for Bonanza

David Dortort on creating The High Chaparral

David Dortort on creating the Bonanza prequel Ponderosa 

Charles S. Dubin on directing The Dinah Shore Chevy Show, The Virginian, The Meanest Man in the West, Tarzan, and The Big Valley

Barbara Eden on one of her first television jobs, on Gunsmoke

Barbara Eden on guest-starring on Rawhide

Peter Ellenshaw on working as a matte artist on Davy Crockett

Harrison Ellenshaw on his father working on Davy Crockett

Jeannie Epper on being Linda Evans' stunt double on The Big Valley and still maintaining a home life

Rod Erickson on working on Hopalong Cassidy

George Faber on doing publicity for Gunsmoke

Dorothy Fontana on the first story she sold for television on The Tall Man

Dorothy Fontana briefly on writing scripts for Shotgun Slade and Frontier Circus

Dorothy Fontana on writing three scripts for Bonanza

Dorothy Fontana on writing for The Big Valley

Dorothy Fontana on writing for Here Come the Brides

Chuck Fries on Ziv Television producing The Cisco Kid

Arthur Gardner on the genre of Westerns in the late 50's

Arthur Gardner on the number of episodes and production schedule of The Big Valley

Arthur Gardner on his involvement in the TV show The Rifleman

James Garner on almost being cast in the title role of Cheyenne

James Garner on starring on the series Maverick

James Garner on acting on the series Maverick

James Garner on acting on the series Nichols

Betty Garrett on guest-starring on Harts of the West with Beau Bridges

Herschel Burke Gilbert on composing for The Rifleman

Herschel Burke Gilbert on composing for features produced by Levy-Gardner-Laven, and on them going into television with The Rifleman

Herschel Burke Gilbert on supervising the music for Black Saddles

Herschel Burke Gilbert on supervising the music for The Westerner, directed by Sam Peckinpah

Herschel Burke Gilbert on supervising the music for Dick Powell's Zane Gray Theatre, and for various other Four Star shows

Herschel Burke Gilbert on supervising music for The Wild Wild West and Rawhide

Sandra Gimpel on being the stunt coordinator and second unit director on Harts of the West

Leonard H. Goldenson on ABC's success with Westerns

Jerry Goldsmith on being under contract for FOX and composing music for The Loner

Earle Hagen on using library music for Guestward Ho!

Earl Hamner on developing the show The Young Pioneers

Jeffrey Hayden on his affinity for the western genre, having directed for such series as The Men from Shiloh and Alias Smith and Jones

Jeffrey Hayden on the difficulty in location shooting on Alias Smith and Jones

Albert Heschong on returning to CBS and art directing various shows including Gunsmoke and Pete and Gladys

Albert Heschong on being hired on Gunsmoke as the production designer

Albert Heschong on art directing for The Wild Wild West and Hawaii Five-O

Albert Heschong on being involved with creating special effects on shows, and on some memorable effects from The Wild Wild West

Arthur Hiller on directing Gunsmoke

Arthur Hiller on directing The Rifleman

Arthur Hiller on directing The Rifleman

Arthur Hiller on directing Gunsmoke starring James Arness

Lee Holdridge on an experience on the music scoring stage for a Hec Ramsey TV movie

Lee Holdridge on scoring episodes of Hec Ramsey

Roy Huggins on writing and producing Cheyenne

Roy Huggins on writing Cheyenne

Roy Huggins on creating Maverick

Roy Huggins on creating Maverick (Part 2)

Roy Huggins on leaving Maverick

Roy Huggins on creating The Fugitive 

Roy Huggins on writing and producing The Virginian 

Kim Hunter on working with Clint Eastwood on Rawhide

Frank Inn on acting as animal trainer for The Roy Rogers Show

Seaman Jacobs on writing for The Real McCoys

Alan Jaggs on editing The Wild, Wild West

Joseph Jennings on acting as art director for The Wild, Wild West starring Robert Conrad

Joseph Jennings on acting as art director for The Wild, Wild West

Joseph Jennings on being art director for Gunsmoke

Geri Jewell on how she came to be cast on Deadwood

Geri Jewell on her character on Deadwood, "Jewel," and the fact that she wrote "Jewel's" backstory

On working with her castmates on Deadwood and a particularly challenging scene where she had to dance

Geri Jewell on the Deadwood episode "Jewel's Boot Is Made for Walking"

Geri Jewell on how she learned that Deadwood had been cancelled and her career following the cancellation

Lamont Johnson on directing several episodes of Have Gun - Will Travel and Naked City

Lamont Johnson on directing various western series and features

Russell Johnson on appearing in early television Westerns as the "heavy"

Rocky and Irma Kalish on the popularity of westerns in the late 1950s and early 1960s, on being prolific writers, and the kind of people who write comedy

Rita Lakin on writing the Daniel Boone episode "The Reunion"

Richard Lewis on producing Schlitz Playhouse of the Stars and Tales of Wells Fargo

Richard Lewis on producing Wagon Train

Richard Lewis on producing Wagon Train

Richard Lewis on producing Laramie, Riverboat and various other shows

Richard Lewis on testifying to Congress about violence in television Westerns

A.C. Lyles on associate producing Rawhide

A.C. Lyles on why he liked working in the Western genre, and on working with John Wayne and John Ford

A.C. Lyles on Michael Landon doubling DeForest Kelley on Rawhide

A.C. Lyles on the terminology of the Western genre, and on the cultural importance of the Western

A.C. Lyles on working as an executive consultant on David Milch's Deadwood

Leslie H. Martinson on directing The Roy Rogers Show

Leslie H. Martinson on directing The Roy Rogers Show (Part 2)

Leslie H. Martinson on directing Maverick  and winning an Emmy

Leslie H. Martinson on directing Cheyenne

Leslie H. Martinson on directing Tales of Wells Fargo

Leslie H. Martinson on directing Colt .45

Leslie H. Martinson on directing Bronco and The Lawman

Kent McCray on being production manager for Bonanza

Kent McCray on associate producing The High Chaparral

Kent McCray on the decline of the western as a television genre, and on the end of Bonanza

Kent McCray on working on Bonanza and The High Chaparral

Kent McCray on working on Little House on the Prairie, Father Murphy, and Highway to Heaven

David Milch on creating and writing Deadwood   (Part 1) 

David Milch on co-creating and writing Deadwood (Part 2)

Nolan Miller on working for Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre

Nolan Miller on designing for Joan Crawford and Barbara Stanwyck on Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre

Ricardo Montalban on his Emmy-winning performance as an American Indian in How the West was Won (1978)

Thomas W. Moore on programming and developing The Real McCoys

Diana Muldaur on working on Gunsmoke

Hal Needham on his early stunt work on Have Gun Will Travel

Hal Needham on doing stunts for Gunsmoke, The Wild, Wild West and Wells Fargo

Anne Nelson on doing the deal for Gunsmoke

Hugh O'Brian on getting the starring role in The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp

Hugh O'Brian on his co-stars on The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp; on fan mail he received and why the show went off the air

Hugh O'Brian on his favorite episodes of The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp; on the violence on the program and the show's legacy

Hugh O'Brian on reprising the role of Wyatt Earp in Paradise

Fess Parker on starring in Davy Crockett

Fess Parker on starring in Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone

Fess Parker on starring on Davy Crockett

Fess Parker on starring on Davy Crockett

Fess Parker on starring on Daniel Boone

Pam Polifroni on casting Gunsmoke

Frances Reid on appearing on several episodes of Wagon Train and on working on Alfred Hitchcock Presents

Del Reisman on Hotel De Paree

Del Reisman on working on Rawhide during its last years

John Rich on directing Gunsmoke

John Rich on directing Gunsmoke and James Arness

Rita Riggs on saving the Universal costume stock, and on costuming for various westerns

Meta Rosenberg on developing Daniel Boone

Meta Rosenberg on developing the series Nichols for James Garner

Meta Rosenberg on producing Nichols for James Garner

Barney Rosenzweig on taking over as producer of Daniel Boone in its fourth season

Barney Rosenzweig on why he's proud of his work on Daniel Boone

Barney Rosenzweig on how he transformed Daniel Boone in its fourth season (by "introverting" the show)

Marion Ross on her guest roles (and stunts) on Rawhide

Joseph Sargent on directing Gunsmoke

Joseph Sargent on directing Gunsmoke  (Part 2)

William Schallert on working on TV Westerns

William Self on developing The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, Daniel Boone, and 12 O'Clock High

Ralph Senensky on directing The Wild, Wild West starring Robert Conrad

David Shaw on writing for The Defenders and Shane

Sid Sheinberg on shepherding various shows at Universal Television including The Virginian and Wagon Train

James Sheldon on learning how to direct a Western television show while directing Zane Grey Theater

James Sheldon on directing The Virginian

Doris Singleton on working on Frontier Doctor with Rex Allen

Doris Singleton on working on Gunsmoke

Howard Smit on doing makeup for The Virginian

Herbert F. Solow on how Bonanza was shot in color

Lynn Stalmaster on casting Gunsmoke

Lynn Stalmaster on casting Sam Peckinpah's The Westerner starring Brian Keith

Fred Steiner on composing for Gunsmoke

Fred Steiner on scoring several episodes of Bonanza

Fred Steiner on scoring several episodes of Hec Ramsey

Fred Steiner on scoring O'Hara, U.S. Treasury

Richard Thomas on appearing on Bonanza

Daniel J. Travanti on his guest appearances on Gunsmoke

Clint Walker on winning the starring role in Cheyenne; on the setting, premise, and theme song  

Clint Walker on his approach to playing "Cheyenne Bodie"; on the ins and outs of the character, and shooting the first episode of Cheyenne

Clint Walker on Cheyenne being one of the first successful Westerns; on Westerns as a format

Clint Walker on his ensemble, format, guest stars, and stunts on Cheyenne; on a typical production day

Clint Walker on the producers, directors, and showrunners on Cheyenne; on shooting on location and on the backlot; on how he stayed in shape

Clint Walker on Ty Hardin becoming the lead in Cheyenne when Walker had a contract dispute and Hardin spinning off in Bronco

Clint Walker on the popularity and subsequent demise of television Westerns

Clint Walker on favorite episodes, storylines, and fan reactions to Cheyenne

George Watters on working with Frank Pierson on Have Gun, Will Travel

George Watters on editing Rawhide

George Watters on his first job as an editor on Rawhide, starring Clint Eastwood and the challenges of editing a western

George Watters on editing The High Chapparal and Bonanza for producer David Dortort

Dennis Weaver on playing "Chester" on Gunsmoke

Dennis Weaver on playing "Chester" on Gunsmoke

Dennis Weaver on appearing in Lonesome Dove: The Series

Dennis Weaver on appearing in The Virginian

Dennis Weaver on how the western genre will always be with us

Adam West on where the Warner Bros westerns shot

Adam West on appearing on Cheyenne starring Clint Walker

Adam West on appearing on Sugarfoot with Will Hutchins

Adam West on appearing on Maverick starring James Garner

Adam West on appearing on Bonanza, Gunsmoke, The Rifleman, and Geronimo

Adam West on appearing on The Real McCoys with Walter Brennan and Petticoat Junction

Adam West on appearing on Bewitched with Elizabeth Montgomery and The Virginian with Lee J. Cobb

Frederic Ziv on the premiere of Cisco Kid, his first original programming for television

Frederic Ziv on producing Bat Masterson starring Gene Barry