Wanted: Dead or Alive (1958–1961)

A Civil War veteran with a sawed-off rifle as a holstered weapon makes a living as a bounty hunter in the Wild West of the 1870s.

Stars:

Steve McQueen, Wright King, Olan Soule

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
Steve McQueen	...	Josh Randall (94 episodes, 1958-1961)

Storyline

A Civil War veteran with a sawed-off rifle as a holstered weapon makes a living as a bounty hunter in the Wild West of the 1870s.

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Plot Keywords:

bounty hunter | cult tv | anti hero | gunslinger | warrior | 

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Genres:

Western

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 September 1958 (USA)

Also Known As:

Randall, el justiciero

Filming Locations:

Apacheland Studios - 4369 S. Kings Ranch Road, Gold Canyon, Arizona, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS), Four Star Productions, Malcolm Enterprises

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

4:3

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Mare's Leg weapon carried by Josh Randall (Steve McQueen) is a cut down Winchester model 1892 carbine in 44-40 caliber, but the bullets in his cartridge belt are 45-70 caliber rounds used in the larger, more powerful rifles of the day. The producers wanted to use the 45-70s because they were more visually impressive than the relatively small, pistol sized rounds actually used in the 1892 carbine. The use of the 1892 carbine is itself an anarchism as the series is set in the 1870s.

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Connections

Featured in Steve McQueen: The King of Cool (1998)

User Reviews

Was it McQueen or his 'hogleg' that made this series so great?

Wanted: Dead or Alive has always been my favourite TV western. I first watched it as a seven year old in the mid '60s, even then it was in reruns.

Right from the start the show had the coolest lead-in ever with the camera focused squarely on Josh Randall's 'hogleg' as he slowly walks up to a wanted poster and rips it away from the board. There was something 'mighty' intriguing about the lone bounty hunter who brought in many more bad guys alive than dead. And then there was that sawed-off Winchester '86 and those large 45-70 caliber cartridges. I never did figure out how Josh could load so fast. It couldn't have taken more than three rounds in its magazine, but Josh could easily get off four or five rounds in rapid succession. What about Josh's horse? He/she seemed to prefer to walk sideways but could back up as well as Trigger. Great memories, no doubt. I've viewed countless westerns over the years and I am firmly convinced that absolutely no one but Steve McQueen could have played TV's purest bounty hunter. Todays version is colourized and I think that's fantastic. Even my kids will sit and watch from time to time.