A few questions about 'Bonanza', please...

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by Hawkman, Mar 5, 2011.

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  1. Hawkman

    Hawkman Supercar Gort Staff Thread Starter

    Location:
    New Jersey
    Last weekend and earlier this week while waylaid by a nasty stomach virus, I 'discovered' Bonanza. I was late to the dance as usual. My dad and relatives used to watch Bonanza in the 60's. He was raised on westerns in the 40's and 50's. But as a 10 year old, it never held the same sway for me as it did with other kids my age. And when you are laid up with a stomach virus and there is NOTHING on tv but Wisconsin, Libya and Charlie Sheen, this was like chicken soup for the soul.

    I watched an episode with the legendary Michael Rennie called 'Once A Doctor' which was pretty good. It came from Season 6 in 1965. Well it sparked an interest and of course NOW I want all things Bonanza, starting with Season 6 which only appears to be on DVD in Germany.

    So my questions are this......

    1) Is there a season of Bonanza that it generally considered the 'best'?

    2) Are there episodes that are generally considered 'must see' episodes?

    3) Is anyone aware of plans to put any more seasons on DVD in THIS country? I haven't seen anything outside of this thread last year.

    4) Does anyone have this Bear Family Bonanza set? Brad Olson, where are you? I know you have this! How is it?? It's kind of moot since I have a copy on the way but just want to hear from anyone else who has it.

    5) Have you read Gort Mark's column on Bonanza? If not, WHY not?? :D It hits on many of the reasons why it hit me so well when I watched it on TV Land earlier this week.

    Thank you in advance for any answers and opinions that you can give. :wave:
     
    Hawkman, Mar 5, 2011
    #1
  2. Steve Hoffman

    Steve Hoffman Your host Your Host

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    I was too young for the original three brothers version. It was marred by being filmed on interior for exterior sets a lot. I got into the two brother version late in the game when they filmed the exteriors on a real ranch up north. Was it on after Disney on Sunday?

    I liked the show but didn't love it like Maverick. I had a fondness for The Virginian as well but only because it was always on when I saw the big Color TV's at the department stores when they stayed open late. Could never see Bonanza in color until we got a Zenith color set on November 6th, 1968.

    Bonanza was a good show that caused the United States (along with "Walt Disney's Wonderful World Of Color") to finally switch to color television in 1963-64. Without those two shows the swift transition to color would never have happened like it did. I think that more people bought Color TV in 1964 than in the entire 10 year period before, just because they wanted to watch Bonanza in color.

    That being said, I can't actually answer any of your questions, sorry..:)

    Popkiss out!
     
    Steve Hoffman, Mar 5, 2011
    #2
  3. Benno123

    Benno123 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ohio
    What's the episode where Hoss wears the bunny outfit about?
     
    Benno123, Mar 5, 2011
    #3
  4. dewey02

    dewey02 Forum Resident

    Location:
    The mid-South.
    In my opinion, Adam was the best character on the set.
    Kind of a Pete Best - mean, moody and magnificent (probably a better drummer, tho!)
    The show really went down hill when they started adding characters like the red headed kid in the later years (forget his name - Mitch something)

    Actually, a much better show, in my opinion, was High Chapparrel. It seemed more real. In Bonanza, everyone's clothes were always pressed and clean, everything was clinical. In High Chapparell, Big John Gannon was tough, his ranch hands were dirty and human. Heck, his original wife was killed off in the first episode!
     
    dewey02, Mar 5, 2011
    #4
  5. Steve Hoffman

    Steve Hoffman Your host Your Host

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Is that the show with the guy who was married to Francis Farmer in a past life? Had a cute English girl named Lacey or something? On NBC in color, right?
     
    Steve Hoffman, Mar 5, 2011
    #5
  6. stereoguy

    stereoguy Its Gotta Be True Stereo!

    Location:
    NYC
    Liked both shows, BUT for Westerns, to me, nothing beat "The Big Valley".

    On Big Valley, they sweated over every story line to make them honest, period worthy and believable. Then, the actors reading those fine scripts were top notch. Richard Long, as the family lawyer was completely different than his brother "Nick", played by Peter Breck. Lots of great story lines emminated from that.

    I always thought that creators of "Dallas" modeled the show after The Big Valley. Too many elements were the same for it to have been a coincidence:

    Extremely Weathy Family
    Strong Female Family Patriarch
    Two brothers , always fighting , with completely different personalites and attitudes
    Both shows made extensive use of " Family vs the outside world" saga
    Many of the plot lines of both shops involve money as a good/evil subject.

    The Big Valley has been issued on DVD, but only the first 1 and 1/2 seasons. apparantly it did not sell well, so Paramount stopped it. I really wish they would put out the whole 5 year run in one big box like The Man From UNCLE. I'd buy it sight unseen.

    The TNT channel used to run Big Valley from the worst looking, faded, crappy syndication prints you could ever imagine. Luckilly, the DVD issue uses excellent quality prints.
     
    stereoguy, Mar 5, 2011
    #6
  7. Gregory Earl

    Gregory Earl Senior Member

    Location:
    Kantucki
    High Chapparrel was a great show. I wanted to be Blue Boy.

    I'm a big fan of Bananza as well. I don't think there is a best year. All of them were good but my favorites were when the story centered around Little Joe and Hoss. Also, it's fun to see up and coming actors on the show that would go on to be stars in their own right.
     
    Gregory Earl, Mar 5, 2011
    #7
  8. Hawkman

    Hawkman Supercar Gort Staff Thread Starter

    Location:
    New Jersey
    You're killing me. :)

    When I became 'aware' of Bonanza in my youth, it was only Hoss and Little Joe. I wasn't aware of a third brother until later.

    I hate it when shows do that stuff. But it was kind of cool to watch the 'English' connection when watching Michael Rennie and the other character in the episode I watched who spoke Cockney. It was in the midst of Beatlemania and it was probably a nod in that direction.

    You guys have to understand something. My dad probably watched all of these shows at some point but I didn't. It was next to impossible to watch a western with my dad because he watched it for the guns and had to comment on each weapon that was shown on screen. :D He had to tell you, whether you wanted to hear it or not, what the make and model was as well as it's accuracy. To this DAY, I have a slight aversion to westerns because of it. As a kid, when a western came on, I usually went outside or upstairs to play instead of hearing it. :D



    Well I hope that they don't do that with Bonanza. I may just have to get them from Amazon in Germany if they do stop issuing them here. They seem to have half the seasons out over there already.

    Do you think that the first two seasons on DVD here might be worth a look??
     
    Hawkman, Mar 5, 2011
    #8
  9. stumpy

    stumpy Forum Resident

    Location:
    South of Nashville
    If you ever get a chance to see the very last original episode aired, grab a box of Kleenex. I can say no more.
     
    stumpy, Mar 5, 2011
    #9
  10. billdcat

    billdcat Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Golden Isles of Georgia
    Another fun thing for me while watching the old western TV shows
    is spotting actors from other series of my youth.

    "Say.... isn't that . . . ? ".
     
    billdcat, Mar 5, 2011
    #10
  11. Hawkman

    Hawkman Supercar Gort Staff Thread Starter

    Location:
    New Jersey

    Cool. I'll do that.
     
    Hawkman, Mar 5, 2011
    #11
  12. benjaminhuf

    benjaminhuf Forum Resident

    Location:
    Louisville, KY, USA
    There's a good fan page and complete episode guide for Bonanza here:

    http://ponderosascenery.homestead.com/index.html

    Of the tv Westerns of this era, I still like The Virginian the best...But Bonanza was a huge hit for a reason. I think the humor and chemistry in that show were top notch.

    As mentioned, a lot of the show, even when it's "outdoors," was filmed in the studio.

    The Virginian was one of the shows that actually filmed on located a lot, and all of the cast could ride a horse to some degree.

    That High Chaparral show sounds interesting. It was created by David Dortort, who also helped create Bonanza. It was a more realistic and gritty show, apparently, that touched on tougher issues. I've never seen it, but would like to. There's a web site for it here:

    http://www.thehighchaparral.com/
     
    benjaminhuf, Mar 5, 2011
    #12
  13. benjaminhuf

    benjaminhuf Forum Resident

    Location:
    Louisville, KY, USA
    Any chance you'd let us know what happened? Maybe using a spoiler hider, or something?

    What's weird about these shows is that when someone leaves or dies they almost never mention it. Dan Blocker as Hoss was a key part of the show for 12 friggin years. He drops dead, and they never mention his character again as if he never existed, which seems kinda crazy. I mean at least he should have died off screen or something....?
     
    benjaminhuf, Mar 5, 2011
    #13
    Grand_Ennui likes this.
  14. Hawkman

    Hawkman Supercar Gort Staff Thread Starter

    Location:
    New Jersey
    Hawkman, Mar 5, 2011
    #14
  15. Hawkman

    Hawkman Supercar Gort Staff Thread Starter

    Location:
    New Jersey
    What season did they start shooting in color???
     
    Hawkman, Mar 5, 2011
    #15
  16. benjaminhuf

    benjaminhuf Forum Resident

    Location:
    Louisville, KY, USA
    The first season in 1959! It was one of the very first shows on TV in color. I think maybe even RCA helped pay for it a bit to help sell color TVs.....? Not sure...
     
    benjaminhuf, Mar 5, 2011
    #16
    fr in sc likes this.
  17. Macman

    Macman Senior Member

    Location:
    Halifax, Nova Scotia
    It used to be after Ed Sullivan, at least up here.
     
    Macman, Mar 5, 2011
    #17
  18. Hawkman

    Hawkman Supercar Gort Staff Thread Starter

    Location:
    New Jersey
    They filmed in COLOR in 1959??????!!! Wow!!!! NBC must have really had high hopes for the show!
     
    Hawkman, Mar 5, 2011
    #18
  19. Gregory Earl

    Gregory Earl Senior Member

    Location:
    Kantucki
    Yes I do.

    And that's not my post concerning the Big Valley DVD's.
     
    Gregory Earl, Mar 5, 2011
    #19
  20. Hawkman

    Hawkman Supercar Gort Staff Thread Starter

    Location:
    New Jersey
    Sorry about that! I was copying and pasting a little too fast for my own good. :D
     
    Hawkman, Mar 5, 2011
    #20
  21. signothetimes53

    signothetimes53 Senior Member

    Location:
    Eastern Tennessee USA
    signothetimes53, Mar 5, 2011
    #21
  22. JulesDassin

    JulesDassin Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    monterey,ca.usa
    :righton: High Chaparral was the best!
     
    JulesDassin, Mar 5, 2011
    #22
  23. Steve-oh

    Steve-oh Senior Member

    Location:
    Michigan, USA
    This doesn't answer any of the questions, but every time I hear the Bonanza theme song, I think how cool it would have been if Jimi Hendrix had played a version of it.
     
    Steve-oh, Mar 5, 2011
    #23
    fr in sc likes this.
  24. maclen

    maclen Senior Member

    Location:
    lawrenceville georgia
    They did reference Hoss being gone as i recall. I think by this time Micheal Landon was directing some episodes. The only think I remember from that show was Little Joe standing around a tree and as he walks away or as the camera pans away you see Hoss and Joe's names carved in the tree from when they were kids. A rather powerful moment.
     
    maclen, Mar 5, 2011
    #24
  25. SixtiesGuy

    SixtiesGuy Ministry of Love

    Location:
    Where the weather suits my clothes
    RCA was the parent company of NBC back then, so there was the "synergy" (as overpaid consultants would later call it) of having the entertainment division produce programming that would spur demand for the manufactuirng division's product. Along this line, in 1961 Walt Disney's Sunday evening program moved from ABC to NBC and was renamed "Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color". Legend has it that this show along with Bonanza were largely responsible for the success of color TV in the USA.
     
    SixtiesGuy, Mar 5, 2011
    #25
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