Favorite TV Western star - Motorcycle-Journal Forums

trailbuster30 · 08-05-2006, 08:05 PM

Boy, is this ever off topic

. The little lady and I had a lively conversation the other night debating who was the better '50s to '60s western TV star. Compared to todays lot of TV stars they all are #1 with me, and picking a fav from then is a tough job. My personal favorite would be Chuck Conners-Rifleman. I may get flamed for this but even though he hailed from the east coast, to me growing up in the 60s he potrayed a western character much better than Clint Eastwood. Clint Walker - Cheyenne to me also was better than Eastwood.

Some Contenders...
Richard Boone - Paladin
Steve McQueen - Wanted: Dead or Alive
Clayton Moore - Lone Ranger
James Arness - Gunsmoke
Fess Parker - Davey Crockett
Guy Williams - Zorro
Jim Garner - Maverick
Gene Barry - Bat Masterson
Hugh O' Brian - Wyatt Earp
Bill Williams - Kit Carson
William Boyd - Hopalong Cassidy
Guy Madison - Wild Bill Hickock
Jim Davis - Tales of the Century
Ward Bond - Wagon Train
Robert Culp - Trackdown

Yeah I know, I forgot Bonanza, one of my favorites.
Man, can you imagine trying to round up a group of talent like these guys nowadays. Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Johnny Depp

LOL!LOL!. I wonder if they could get Leonardo di Caprio to play Lucas McCain in a remake of "The Rifleman, 2006"! About the closest I've seen is Viggo Mortensen, in Hidalgo, that can hold a candle to the above group. You know, it's too bad they couldn't have collected some genetic material from some of these guys that have passed on so we can clone them and finally have some talented actors again. LOL

Dan

geoffsimpson · 08-05-2006, 08:15 PM

Jim Garner - Maverick

There is no answer but this...and only this...

Unless you remember who played Tonto...Tonto was cool

Danr · 08-05-2006, 08:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by geoffsimpson

Jim Garner - Maverick

There is no answer but this...and only this...

Unless you remember who played Tonto...Tonto was cool

Jay Silverheels

ChicsterMG · 08-05-2006, 10:46 PM

Lorne Greene - Ben Cartwright - Bonanza

Champion (Gene Autry's horse) - The Gene Autry show

We can't forget Rin Tin Tin!!!! (not technically a western, but I had to throw that in)

TechJD · 08-06-2006, 12:29 AM

oh come on, none of them could touch "John Wayne"

Did you know he was the first "Singing Cowboy" but they had to dub in a singer as John couldnt sing lol

you did say TV huh

well Chuck Conners-Rifleman or James Arness - Gunsmoke
after thinking about it James Arness as he taught most of the others how to draw

GSX1100FL · 08-06-2006, 08:17 PM

Grwing up there wwere only 3 western shows to watch, Bonanza, Gunsmoke & Maverick, out of those I pick James Arness - Gunsmoke, more action, reminded me a lot of John Wayne.

cb400bill · 08-06-2006, 08:26 PM

The TV people wanted John Wayne to play the role of Matt Dillon. He couldn't do it but recommended James Arness for the job.

BTW, James Arness' brother is Mission Impossible's Peter Graves

jkersh · 08-06-2006, 08:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by trailbuster30

The little lady and I had a lively conversation the other night debating who was the better '50s to '60s western TV star.

Dan

I didn't know tv was invented in the 60's way before my time.

RampageRider · 08-06-2006, 09:23 PM

Yea TV goes way back to the 30's, but the reception was really terrible back then

Apertureguy · 08-08-2006, 01:45 PM

There is one which is older than all the others which have been mentioned.

Sadly, I'm old enough to remember it. It was called the Cisco Kid.

Apertureguy · 08-08-2006, 01:58 PM

But, there were also a bunch of actors too. While they might not have gotten the noteriety of the others mentioned....westerns wouldn't be the same without them.

Does anyone remember Slim Pickens, Walter Brennan, Tex Ritter, Roy Rogers, Randolph Scott & Jack Palance. Heck, I think Jack is still alive...just a few years ago he was doing one-arm push ups at some awards show.

They were cut from a different cloth than the whimpy tough guys we have now. All of these guys actually rode live horses...nowadays, it's an automatron using wheels for legs, rolling over un-even ground for a more 'realistic look'.

Ext1jdh · 08-08-2006, 01:59 PM

Nathan Fillion - Cpt. Malcolm Reynolds from Firefly.
Yes, it was a western. They rode horses, gorramit. Just cause its on another planet doesnt mean its not a western.

**drgibson** · 08-08-2006, 02:27 PM

What you forgot

The Texan - Rory Calhoun

Colt 45 - Wade Preston

The Lawman - John Russell

Rawhide - Eric Fleming & Clint Eastwood

Laramie - John Smith & Robert Fuller

The Virginian - A bunch of players

Big Valley - more players

Branded - Chuck Conners

Wild, Wild West - Robert Conrad

High Chaparral - Leif Erickson

Larado - Nevill Brand

And My Favorite...

F Troup - Ken Berry & Forrest Tucker

techgesture · 08-08-2006, 02:36 PM

I wasnt born 'till 79, so I never got into Westerns. The closest thing for me growing up to a Cowboy and his horse would be Michael Knight and KITT in Knight Rider.

Ok, Ok... That was a cheap shot at a joke, but it's all I had. LOL.

AZRyder · 08-08-2006, 02:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cb400bill

BTW, James Arness' brother is Mission Impossible's Peter Graves

Do you like movies about Gladiators?

AZRyder · 08-08-2006, 02:47 PM

I liked the Rifleman and Clint Eastwood in Rawhide

Danr · 08-08-2006, 06:28 PM

Richard Boone in "Have gun Will travel" as Paladen

It defined Cool for that era.

trailbuster30 · 08-08-2006, 10:49 PM

Okay, okay, I think I got one you guys forgot .......... man, this is like down at the local watering hole on a Friday night mulling over some obscure topic while under the influence

. First of all, leave it to the guy from Texas to remember the westerns that I forgot. LOL But I just remembered one that wasn't mentioned yet, Nick Adams as Johnny Yuma in The Rebel. You know, this turned out to be kindof an indisputable post. How can anyone say that James Arness wasn't as good an actor as Richard Boone? Or Chuck Conners wasn't as good as Clint Walker? and so on. These guys were all fantastic, there's no debating the fact at all, but I thought for sure that some younger guy was gonna jump in here and say that the movie remake of The Wild, Wild West was better than the original series. Then we could've flamed the h377 out of 'em.

John Russell, so that was the guy's name in the Lawman, funny, I remembered his name in the series, Dan Troupe (?), but not his real name. Man, did we ever love F Troop, they just put out the first season DVD boxed set a couple of weeks ago and we watch one episode a night. Forgot how funny the Hakawi's were.

Little known fact about two of the Indian characters- Roaring Chicken the medicine man, was the voiceover in the Fractured Fairy Tales in the Rocky and Bullwinkle show and Crazy Cat did a voiceover for one of the cats in Top Cat. Our westerns DVD collection sits on hallowed ground directly beneath our Borax 20 mule team model.

Dan

Apertureguy · 08-09-2006, 08:35 AM

Yeah...saying that the newer version of the Wild Wild West was better would have been fun.

But I had forgotten about one show someone mentioned....High Chaparral. With little Boy Blue, and the foreman (who's name I can't remember) were really good.

I can remember watching these right after the Flintstones...which at the time was also on at Prime Time.

Those were some great times...growing up life was so simple. We had 1 phone in our house, 1 TV and 1 bathroom...but 5 kids. Yet some how we were able to manage.

Now I have 2 kids and we have 3 bathrooms, 6 TV's and at least 8 phones throughout the house. What the heck happened?

Danr · 08-09-2006, 08:49 AM

OK, I got one, how many remember Cimarron City

with George Montgomery as Mayor Matthew Rockford

ran from 1958 to 60

George was married to Dinah Shore at one time (See the USA in your Chevrolet)

I remember one episode when they thought they had some kind of creature holed up in a cave. gave me the Willy's that night !

08-05-2006, 08:05 PM	#1 (permalink)
trailbuster30 Seat Tester Joined: Apr 2006 Posts: 69	Favorite TV Western star Boy, is this ever off topic . The little lady and I had a lively conversation the other night debating who was the better '50s to '60s western TV star. Compared to todays lot of TV stars they all are #1 with me, and picking a fav from then is a tough job. My personal favorite would be Chuck Conners-Rifleman. I may get flamed for this but even though he hailed from the east coast, to me growing up in the 60s he potrayed a western character much better than Clint Eastwood. Clint Walker - Cheyenne to me also was better than Eastwood. Some Contenders... Richard Boone - Paladin Steve McQueen - Wanted: Dead or Alive Clayton Moore - Lone Ranger James Arness - Gunsmoke Fess Parker - Davey Crockett Guy Williams - Zorro Jim Garner - Maverick Gene Barry - Bat Masterson Hugh O' Brian - Wyatt Earp Bill Williams - Kit Carson William Boyd - Hopalong Cassidy Guy Madison - Wild Bill Hickock Jim Davis - Tales of the Century Ward Bond - Wagon Train Robert Culp - Trackdown Yeah I know, I forgot Bonanza, one of my favorites. Man, can you imagine trying to round up a group of talent like these guys nowadays. Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Johnny Depp LOL!LOL!. I wonder if they could get Leonardo di Caprio to play Lucas McCain in a remake of "The Rifleman, 2006"! About the closest I've seen is Viggo Mortensen, in Hidalgo, that can hold a candle to the above group. You know, it's too bad they couldn't have collected some genetic material from some of these guys that have passed on so we can clone them and finally have some talented actors again. LOL Dan Last edited by trailbuster30; 08-05-2006 at 08:14 PM.

08-05-2006, 08:15 PM	#2 (permalink)
geoffsimpson Throttle Jockey Joined: Jun 2006 Bike: Grey, not silver, GREY 2006 Suzuki Boulevard M50 * 1983 GS750E Cafe Racer project Location: Prince George BC Posts: 3,111	Jim Garner - Maverick There is no answer but this...and only this... Unless you remember who played Tonto...Tonto was cool __________________ Please Note: All opinions contained herein are worth exactly what you paid for them. It's true that every time you hear a bell ring, an angel gets its wings... But what they don't tell you is that every time you hear a mouse trap "snap", and Angel gets set on fire... Grey * De-badged * V & H Straightshots w/ Thunder-Monster Baffles and Billet Hot-Tips * POWAH COMMANDAH!! * Kury Wide Style Levers * Kury Zombie Pegs (what's left of them) * Johnskit Forward Controls * Johnskit 2.5" Lowering Kit * Carbon Fibre-esque Trim kit * your mom * Memphis Shades HellCat windshield * Passenger Backrest * Baddass MO-FO behind the bars * Metz 880's w/ lettering * Flamed Thunder MFG Teardrop Intake *

08-05-2006, 10:46 PM	#4 (permalink)
ChicsterMG Refrigerator Magnet Test Engineer Joined: May 2005 Bike: Boulevard C50 Location: Afghanistan Posts: 3,506	Lorne Greene - Ben Cartwright - Bonanza Champion (Gene Autry's horse) - The Gene Autry show We can't forget Rin Tin Tin!!!! (not technically a western, but I had to throw that in) __________________ Sometimes you need to ask yourself, "WWGD?"...Just be awesome, that's all! GUT-CUT 2007: 177 LBS. 160 LBS.

08-06-2006, 12:29 AM	#5 (permalink)
TechJD Found second gear by accident Joined: Mar 2006 Bike: 1996 Shadow ACE VT1100C2 Location: 50 miles south of Lexington, KY Posts: 337	oh come on, none of them could touch "John Wayne" Did you know he was the first "Singing Cowboy" but they had to dub in a singer as John couldnt sing lol you did say TV huh well Chuck Conners-Rifleman or James Arness - Gunsmoke after thinking about it James Arness as he taught most of the others how to draw Last edited by TechJD; 08-06-2006 at 12:33 AM.

08-06-2006, 09:23 PM	#9 (permalink)
RampageRider Fourth gear and illegal Joined: Oct 2005 Bike: 05 Red M50 Location: Iowa, riding in the Rain! Posts: 782	Yea TV goes way back to the 30's, but the reception was really terrible back then __________________ . "Grow up, what a waste of a good time, if Peter Pan can do it so can we............... " 05 Red M50 (mine) 97 Yellow Honda Rebel (her's)

08-06-2006, 08:17 PM	#6 (permalink)
GSX1100FL Puddle Runner Joined: Oct 2004 Location: Missouri Posts: 369	Grwing up there wwere only 3 western shows to watch, Bonanza, Gunsmoke & Maverick, out of those I pick James Arness - Gunsmoke, more action, reminded me a lot of John Wayne.

08-06-2006, 08:26 PM	#7 (permalink)
cb400bill Seat Tester Joined: Oct 2004 Bike: 02 B6 Location: Kalamazoo Posts: 54	The TV people wanted John Wayne to play the role of Matt Dillon. He couldn't do it but recommended James Arness for the job. BTW, James Arness' brother is Mission Impossible's Peter Graves

08-08-2006, 01:45 PM	#10 (permalink)
Apertureguy Throttle Jockey Joined: Jun 2006 Bike: 2006 Blue M50 Location: New York Posts: 3,185	There is one which is older than all the others which have been mentioned. Sadly, I'm old enough to remember it. It was called the Cisco Kid.

08-08-2006, 01:58 PM	#11 (permalink)
Apertureguy Throttle Jockey Joined: Jun 2006 Bike: 2006 Blue M50 Location: New York Posts: 3,185	But, there were also a bunch of actors too. While they might not have gotten the noteriety of the others mentioned....westerns wouldn't be the same without them. Does anyone remember Slim Pickens, Walter Brennan, Tex Ritter, Roy Rogers, Randolph Scott & Jack Palance. Heck, I think Jack is still alive...just a few years ago he was doing one-arm push ups at some awards show. They were cut from a different cloth than the whimpy tough guys we have now. All of these guys actually rode live horses...nowadays, it's an automatron using wheels for legs, rolling over un-even ground for a more 'realistic look'.

08-08-2006, 01:59 PM	#12 (permalink)
Ext1jdh Top Gear ! Full Throttle! Joined: Apr 2005 Bike: Sold Location: Elgin, IL, US Posts: 5,252	Nathan Fillion - Cpt. Malcolm Reynolds from Firefly. Yes, it was a western. They rode horses, gorramit. Just cause its on another planet doesnt mean its not a western. __________________ I am lurking. I am likely to be eaten by a grue.

08-08-2006, 02:27 PM	#13 (permalink)
drgibson Antebellum Mod Joined: Jul 2005 Bike: 2008 Kawasaki KLR 650 Location: Dallas, Texas Directly above the center of the earth. Posts: 10,683	What you forgot The Texan - Rory Calhoun Colt 45 - Wade Preston The Lawman - John Russell Rawhide - Eric Fleming & Clint Eastwood Laramie - John Smith & Robert Fuller The Virginian - A bunch of players Big Valley - more players Branded - Chuck Conners Wild, Wild West - Robert Conrad High Chaparral - Leif Erickson Larado - Nevill Brand And My Favorite... F Troup - Ken Berry & Forrest Tucker __________________ “Please Remember to Kazoo Responsibly.”

08-08-2006, 02:36 PM	#14 (permalink)
techgesture Brought his own beer Joined: May 2006 Bike: '05 Black M50 Location: Charlotte, NC Posts: 830	I wasnt born 'till 79, so I never got into Westerns. The closest thing for me growing up to a Cowboy and his horse would be Michael Knight and KITT in Knight Rider. Ok, Ok... That was a cheap shot at a joke, but it's all I had. LOL. __________________

08-08-2006, 02:47 PM	#16 (permalink)
AZRyder Sit speling cheker Joined: Jun 2006 Bike: Suzuki C90T Location: Chandler Arizona Posts: 1,653	I liked the Rifleman and Clint Eastwood in Rawhide __________________ -------------------------------------------------- I don't care if it's the unholy four, John Wayne and Dorothy Lamour I just don't wanna talk to him now......

08-08-2006, 06:28 PM	#17 (permalink)
Danr Sit speling cheker Joined: May 2005 Posts: 1,615	Richard Boone in "Have gun Will travel" as Paladen It defined Cool for that era.

08-08-2006, 10:49 PM	#18 (permalink)
trailbuster30 Seat Tester Joined: Apr 2006 Posts: 69	Okay, okay, I think I got one you guys forgot .......... man, this is like down at the local watering hole on a Friday night mulling over some obscure topic while under the influence . First of all, leave it to the guy from Texas to remember the westerns that I forgot. LOL But I just remembered one that wasn't mentioned yet, Nick Adams as Johnny Yuma in The Rebel. You know, this turned out to be kindof an indisputable post. How can anyone say that James Arness wasn't as good an actor as Richard Boone? Or Chuck Conners wasn't as good as Clint Walker? and so on. These guys were all fantastic, there's no debating the fact at all, but I thought for sure that some younger guy was gonna jump in here and say that the movie remake of The Wild, Wild West was better than the original series. Then we could've flamed the h377 out of 'em. John Russell, so that was the guy's name in the Lawman, funny, I remembered his name in the series, Dan Troupe (?), but not his real name. Man, did we ever love F Troop, they just put out the first season DVD boxed set a couple of weeks ago and we watch one episode a night. Forgot how funny the Hakawi's were. Little known fact about two of the Indian characters- Roaring Chicken the medicine man, was the voiceover in the Fractured Fairy Tales in the Rocky and Bullwinkle show and Crazy Cat did a voiceover for one of the cats in Top Cat. Our westerns DVD collection sits on hallowed ground directly beneath our Borax 20 mule team model. Dan

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)

08-09-2006, 08:35 AM	#19 (permalink)
Apertureguy Throttle Jockey Joined: Jun 2006 Bike: 2006 Blue M50 Location: New York Posts: 3,185	Yeah...saying that the newer version of the Wild Wild West was better would have been fun. But I had forgotten about one show someone mentioned....High Chaparral. With little Boy Blue, and the foreman (who's name I can't remember) were really good. I can remember watching these right after the Flintstones...which at the time was also on at Prime Time. Those were some great times...growing up life was so simple. We had 1 phone in our house, 1 TV and 1 bathroom...but 5 kids. Yet some how we were able to manage. Now I have 2 kids and we have 3 bathrooms, 6 TV's and at least 8 phones throughout the house. What the heck happened?

08-09-2006, 08:49 AM	#20 (permalink)
Danr Sit speling cheker Joined: May 2005 Posts: 1,615	OK, I got one, how many remember Cimarron City with George Montgomery as Mayor Matthew Rockford ran from 1958 to 60 George was married to Dinah Shore at one time (See the USA in your Chevrolet) I remember one episode when they thought they had some kind of creature holed up in a cave. gave me the Willy's that night !

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