Wagon Train: The Television Series
by James Rosin, The Autumn Road Company, Philadelphia, 2008, $21.95 paperback.
Westbound wagon trains were a big part of the frontier picture, and they were big again in early television. The show Wagon Train, which debuted during the 1957–58 season and became the top rated show in its fifth season (1961–62), lasted eight years thanks to a strong regular cast and prominent guest stars. James Rosin, an actor, writer and producer, delivers in this 270-page book most everything even die-hard Western coach potatoes want to know about the show—a season-by-season episode guide (284 episodes in all), behind-the-scenes info from cast members and guest stars, biographies and photos.
The character-driven series was inspired by the 1950 John Ford film Wagon Master, with Ward Bond, who later served as first wagon master (Major Seth Adams) on the TV show. The other lead was Robert Horton (as scout Flint McCullough), who said of Bond: “We honestly didn’t relate at all. At the same time, we enjoyed a great rapport on camera.” The Conestogas kept rolling along even after Bond died (replaced by John McIntire) and Horton left (replaced by Robert Fuller). Wagon Train was all about storytelling, and the stories hold up well, both as entertainment and as what cast member Denny Miller (Duke Shannon) calls “a Conestoga classroom…about our country’s western expansion.”
Originally published in the December 2008 issue of Wild West. To subscribe, click here.
