- Bat Masterson (TV series)
-
Bat Masterson Genre Western Starring Gene Barry Narrated by Bill Baldwin Theme music composer Havens Wray (David D. Rose) Ending theme Mike Stewart (Singer) Country of origin 
United StatesLanguage(s) English No. of seasons 3 No. of episodes 107 Production Producer(s) Frank Pittman
Andy White
Frederick W. ZivLocation(s) Los Angeles, California Running time 30 mins. Broadcast Original channel NBC Original run October 8, 1958 – June 1, 1961 Bat Masterson is an American Western television series which showed a fictionalized account of the life of real-life marshal/gambler/dandy Bat Masterson. The title character was played by Gene Barry and the half-hour black and white shows ran on NBC from 1958 to 1961. It was produced by Ziv Television Productions, the company responsible for such hit series as Sea Hunt and Highway Patrol.
Contents
Overview
The show took a tongue-in-cheek outlook, with Barry's Masterson often dressed in expensive Eastern clothing and preferring to use his cane rather than a gun to get himself out of trouble, hence the nickname "Bat". Masterson was also portrayed as a ladies' man who traveled the West looking for women and adventure.
The black derby, fancy vest, black jacket, and elegant cane were his trademarks. Miniaturized versions were marketed to children as tie-in products during the run of the show.[1]
The theme song was sung by Mike Stewart, who had previously contributed to a children's album in 1956, Walt Kelly's Songs of the Pogo.
The series was loosely based on Richard O'Connor's 1957 biography of Masterson.[2] This was highlighted by the book's front cover being shown at the end of the closing credits with an onscreen notation "based on".
Guest stars
Bat Masterson guest stars included the character actor Robert F. Simon, who appeared as Harrison Whitney in the episode "Death by Decree", and Richard Eastham, who appeared in the 1961 episode "A Lesson in Violence". George Macready appeared as Clyde Richards in the 1961 episode "Tempest at Tioga Pass". Quintin Sondergaard appeared in various roles on the series five times between 1958 and 1961. Ron Hayes appeared four times on the series in the role of Wyatt Earp. Gary Vinson appeared as Billy Thompson in the 1958 episode "A Noose Fits Anybody". Tyler McVey appeared from 1958 to 1961 in different roles in three episodes ("Dynamite Blows Two Ways", "Incident at Fort Bowie", and "Dead Man's Claim"). Ron Foster (1960) appeared twice as Toby Dawson in "Six Feet of Gold" and as Sheriff Buck Simpson in "Jeopardy at Jackson Hole" (1961). Tom Greenway guest starred twice, as Charlie in "Buffalo Kill" (1959) and as Ben Pick in "Dagger Dance" (1961). Diane Brewster, also known as second-grade teacher "Miss Canfield" in Leave It to Beaver, played the role of Miss Lynn Harrison in the 2-part episode "The Conspiracy" (1959).
Comic strip and comic book
Dell Comics issued nine issues of a quarterly Bat Masterson comic book between Aug./Oct. 1959 and Nov. 1961/Jan. 1962 with the initial issue a Four Color tryout (#1013).[3] Columbia Features syndicated a comic strip from September 7, 1959 to April 1960 written by Ed Herron and drawn by Howard Nostrand (Sept. 1959-Dec. 1959) and Bob Powell (Dec. 1959-April 1960).[4] Notably Nostrand was assisted (on backgrounds) by Neal Adams who had just graduated from the School of Industrial Arts; it was among his first professional art jobs.[5]
Historical errors
One notable error occurs in episode 2:12, The Inner Circle. Bat campaigns for woman's suffrage in Wyoming territory in 1869 -- at the age of 16.
Other Barry roles
Barry went on to star in Burke's Law, a detective series set in modern-day Los Angeles, as well as The Name of the Game, a series in which he alternated the lead with Tony Franciosa and Robert Stack, appearing in most of his episodes with newcomer Susan Saint James.
Barry recreated the role of Bat Masterson in an episode of the television series Guns of Paradise (1990), alongside Hugh O'Brian as Wyatt Earp, and again in 1991 in The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw, also with O'Brian as Earp, as well as Jack Kelly as Bart Maverick and Clint Walker as Cheyenne Bodie.[6]
Syndication and DVD release
In 2007, the series was televised in the United States on the Encore Westerns channel, with two episodes on weekdays, between 5-6 pm (Eastern Time). The series is currently seen on This TV.
Episodes
The series consisted of three seasons and 107 episodes:
Season 1 (36 episodes)
Ep # Title Airdate 1 "Double Showdown" October 8, 1958 2 "Two Graves for Swan Valley" October 15, 1958 3 "Dynamite Blows Two Ways" October 22, 1958 4 "Stampede at Tent City"
(with James Best and William Conrad)October 29, 1958 5 "The Fighter"
(with Marie Windsor and Robert J. Wilke)November 5, 1958 6 "Bear Bait" November 12, 1958 7 "A Noose Fits Anybody" November 19, 1958 8 "Dude's Folly" November 26, 1958 9 "The Treasure of Worry Hill"
(with Ross Martin)December 3, 1958 10 "Cheyenne Club" December 17, 1958 11 "Trail Pirate" December 31, 1958 12 "Double Trouble in Trinidad" January 7, 1959 13 "Election Day" January 14, 1959 14 "One Bullet from Broken Bow" January 21, 1959 15 "A Personal Matter" January 8, 1959 16 "License to Cheat" February 4, 1959 17 "Sharpshooter" February 11, 1959 18 "River Boat" February 18, 1959 19 "Battle of the Pass" February 25, 1959 20 "Marked Deck" March 11, 1959 21 "Incident in Leadville" March 18, 1959 22 "The Tumbleweed Wagon" March 25, 1959 23 "Brunette Bombshell" April 1, 1959 24 "Deadline" April 8, 1959 25 "A Matter of Honor"
with John VivyanApril 22, 1959 26 "Man of Action" April 29, 1959 27 "Lottery of Death" May 13, 1959 28 "The Death of Bat Masterson" May 20, 1959 29 "The Secret is Death" May 27, 1959 30 "Promised Land" June 10, 1959 31 "The Conspiracy: Part 1" June 17, 1959 32 "The Conspiracy: Part 2" June 24, 1959 33 "The Black Pearls" July 1, 1959 34 "The Desert Ship" July 15, 1959 35 "The Romany Knives" July 22, 1959 36 "Buffalo Kill" July 29, 1959 Season 2 (37 episodes)
Ep # Title Airdate 1 "To the Manner Born" October 1, 1959 2 "Wanted -- Dead" October 15, 1959 3 "No Funeral for Thorn" October 22, 1959 4 "Shakedown at St. Joe" October 29, 1959 5 "Lady Luck" November 5, 1959 6 "Who'll Bury My Violence?" November 12, 1959 7 "Dead Men Don't Pay Debts" November 19, 1959 8 "Death and Taxes" November 26, 1959 9 "Bat Plays a Dead Man's Hand" December 3, 1959 10 "Garrison Finish" December 10, 1959 11 "The Canvas and the Cane" December 17, 1959 12 "The Inner Circle" December 31, 1959 13 "The Pied Piper of Dodge City" January 7, 1960 14 "A Picture of Death" January 14, 1960 15 "Pigeon and Hawk" January 21, 1960 16 "Flume to the Mother Lode" January 28, 1960 17 "Death by the Half Dozen" February 4, 1960 18 "Deadly Diamonds" February 11, 1960 19 "Mr. Fourpaws" February 18, 1960 20 "Six Feet of Gold" February 25, 1960 21 "Cattle and Cane" March 3, 1960 22 "The Disappearance of Bat Masterson" March 10, 1960 23 "The Snare" March 17, 1960 24 "Three Bullets for Bat" March 24, 1960 25 "The Reluctant Witness" March 31, 1960 26 "Come Out Fighting" April 7, 1960 27 "Stage to Nowhere" April 14, 1960 28 "Incident at Fort Bowie" April 21, 1960 29 "Masterson's Arcadia Club" April 28, 1960 30 "Welcome to Paradise" May 5, 1960 31 "A Grave Situation" May 12, 1960 32 "Gold Is Where You Steal It" May 19, 1960 33 "Wanted -- Alive Please" May 26, 1960 34 "The Elusive Baguette" June 2, 1960 35 "The Big Gamble" June 16, 1960 36 "Blood on the Money" with Walter Coy June 23, 1960 37 "Barbary Castle" July 1, 1960 Season 3 (34 episodes)
Ep # Title Airdate 1 "Debt of Honor" September 29, 1960 2 "Law of the Land" October 6, 1960 3 "Bat Trap" October 13, 1960 4 "The Rage of Princess Ann" October 20, 1960 5 "The Hunter"
with guest star John VivyanOctober 27, 1960 6 "Murder Can Be Dangerous" November 3, 1960 7 "High Card Loses" November 10, 1960 8 "Dakota Showdown " November 17, 1960 9 "The Last of the Night Raiders" November 24, 1960 10 "Last Stop to Austin" December 1, 1960 11 "A Time to Die" December 15, 1960 12 "Death by Decree" December 22, 1960 13 "The Lady Plays Her Hand" December 29, 1960 14 "Tempest at Tioga Pass" January 5, 1961 15 "The Court Martial of Major Mars" January 19, 1961 16 "The Price of Paradise" January 19, 1961 17 "End of the Line" January 26, 1961 18 "The Prescott Campaign" February 2, 1961 19 "Bullwhacker's Bounty" February 16, 1961 20 "A Lesson in Violence" February 23, 1961 21 "Run for Your Money" March 2, 1961 22 "Terror on the Trinity" March 9, 1961 23 "Episode in Eden" March 16, 1961 24 "The Good and the Bad" March 23, 1961 25 "No Amnesty for Death"
(with DeForest Kelly)March 30, 1961 26 "Ledger of Guilt" April 6, 1961 27 "Meeting at Mimbers" April 13, 1961 28 "Valley of Death" April 20, 1961 29 "The Fourth Man" April 27, 1961 30 "Dead Man's Claim" May 4, 1961 31 "The Marble Slab" May 11, 1961 32 "Farmer with a Badge" May 18, 1961 33 "The Fatal Garment" May 25, 1961 34 "Jeopardy at Jackson Hole" June 1, 1961 References
- ^ http://sentimental-journeys.com/2010/02/08/bat-masterson-cane--derby-hat--comic-book-ad.aspx
- ^ Robert K. Dearment. Bat Masterson: The Man and the Legend. University of Oklahoma Press , 1989. p.9
- ^ BAT MASTERSON
- ^ The Badmouths of the West
- ^ Neal Adams: Renaissance Man Part I
- ^ [1]
External links
Categories:- NBC network shows
- 1958 television series debuts
- 1961 television series endings
- 1950s American television series
- 1960s American television series
- Western (genre) television series
- Television series based on actual events
- Television series by MGM Television
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
