From 1959 to 1973, Bonanza became the soap opera of TV westerns. Each episode could stand alone, yet it was one of the first Westerns to introduce a continuous storyline that enraptured America.

In the 1950s and 60s, Westerns were the dominant genre on TV, much as they were at the movie theater. By 1959—a year when there were only three TV networks—there were thirty prime-time ...

78. ‘Bonanza’ 1959–1973 The legendary Cartwrights of the Ponderosa—Ben, Adam, Hoss and Little Joe—balance family life and frontier challenges. Fourteen seasons of iconic Western drama. 79.

On television, certainly there used to be a higher percentage of Westerns airing, with shows like “Gunsmoke” and “Bonanza” running forever. That doesn’t mean the Western has disappeared ...

Teal was well-versed in the world of Westerns when he joined the cast of Bonanza. His credits include Colt .45, Empire and The Everglades. He died in April 1976 at the age of 74.

The longest running TV western and the first of the so called “realistic” westerns, the much loved Gunsmoke starred James Arness as Matt Dillon, marshal of Dodge City in the 1880s.

Olive Sturgess, a TV Western regular and actress best known for the satirical horror film The Raven, has died. She was 91 years old. The actress passed away in Los Angeles, Calif., on Wednesday ...

As classic 1950s episodes of “ Gunsmoke ” make it into the Nielsen streaming rankers, Weigel Broadcasting is capitalizing on the recent western revival by launching WEST, a new over-the-air ...

Will Hutchins, who had a comically genteel starring role during the craze for television westerns in the 1950s, playing a sheriff who favored cherry soda over whiskey on “Sugarfoot,” died on ...