- Tombstone Territory
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Tombstone Territory Genre Western Starring Pat Conway
Richard EasthamNarrated by Richard Eastham Theme music composer William M. Backer Opening theme "Whistle Me Up a Memory" performed by William M. Backer Country of origin United States Language(s) English No. of seasons 3 No. of episodes 93 Production Executive producer(s) Frederick W. Ziv Producer(s) Frank Pittman
Andy WhiteEditor(s) W. Duncan Mansfield
Joseph SilverCinematography Monroe P. Askins
Curt Fetters
Robert HoffmanRunning time 22–24 minutes Production company(s) ZIV Television Programs Broadcast Original channel ABC (1957-1959)
Syndication (1959-1960)Picture format Black-and-white Audio format Monaural Original run October 16, 1957 – July 8, 1960Tombstone Territory is an American Western series starring Pat Conway and Richard Eastham. The series' first two seasons aired on ABC from 1957 to 1959. The third and final season aired in syndication from 1959 until 1960.
Contents
Series background
The program takes place in the boom town of Tombstone, Arizona Territory, one of the Old West's most notorious frontier towns and the site of the shootout, the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Located south of Tucson, Tombstone was then known by the sobriquet, "the town too tough to die." The theme song, "Whistle Me Up a Memory" was composed and performed by William M. Backer.[1]
The series did not deal with Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, or the Clanton Gang of the early 1880s, but with fictional characters in the American Southwest. Conway, then twenty-six, played the lawman in the series, Sheriff Clay Hollister. The Tombstone Epitaph, the actual name of the longstanding local newspaper, was edited in the series by Eastham's character of Harris Claibourne, who also narrated the series in a deep baritone voice.[2]
The Ziv TV series aired on Wednesdays on ABC in the 1957-1958 season opposite Robert Young's sitcom Father Knows Best, then broadcast on NBC. It was returned to the ABC schedule for twelve new episodes on March 13, 1959, followed by summer rebroadcasts. It replaced the first season of Charles Bronson's Man with a Camera on Friday evenings at the 9 Eastern time slot, preceding the popular detective series 77 Sunset Strip. After the network run, Tombstone Territory was placed in syndication and ran mostly outside prime time in selected markets until it ceased production. Conway and Eastham appeared in all ninety-three episodes.[2]
Cast
- Pat Conway as Sheriff Clay Hollister
- Richard Eastham as Harris Clayton Claibourne, Editor
Recurring
- Quintin Sondergaard appeared as Quint in eleven episodes of the two later seasons
- Gilman Rankin starred as Deputy Charlie Riggs in seven episodes
- Dennis Moore appeared as "Deputy" in five segments
- Robert J. Wilke, John Doucette, and Warren Oates all appeared three times, respectively, as Burt Foster, Apache Chief Geronimo, and Bob Pickett and in occasional other roles too.
Guest stars
- James Best
- Peter Breck
- Diane Brewster
- Harry Carey, Jr.
- Lon Chaney, Jr.
- James Coburn
- Russ Conway
- Angie Dickinson
- Jack Elam
- Constance Ford
- Bruce Gordon
- Tom Greenway
- Dabbs Greer
- Virginia Gregg
- Ron Hagerthy
- Ron Hayes
- Michael Landon
- Keith Larsen
- Ron Hayes
- Patrick McVey
- Tyler McVey
- Joyce Meadows
- Gerald Mohr
- Ed Nelson
- Leonard Nimoy
- Kathleen Nolan
- Denver Pyle
- Rhodes Reason
- Paul Richards
- Pernell Roberts
- Bing Russell
- Fay Spain
- Guy Stockwell
- Liam Sullivan
- Ralph Taeger
- Lee Van Cleef
- John Vivyan
References
- ^ "TV Westerns: Tombstone Territory". fiftiesweb.com. http://www.fiftiesweb.com/western-2.htm. Retrieved February 1, 2009.
- ^ a b Alex McNeil, Total Television, New York: Penquin Books, 1996, 4th ed., p. 849, ISBN 0-140-24916-8
External links
Categories:- 1957 television series debuts
- 1960 television series endings
- 1950s American television series
- 1960s American television series
- American Broadcasting Company network shows
- Black-and-white television programs
- English-language television series
- First-run syndicated television programs in the United States
- Television series by MGM Television
- Television shows set in Arizona
- Western (genre) television series
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