Law of the Plainsman (1959– )

Sam Buckhart was an Apache Indian who had saved the life of a U.S. Cavalry officer after an Indian ambush. When the officer died, he left Sam money that was used for an education at private... See full summary »

Stars:

Michael Ansara, Gina Gillespie, Dayton Lummis

Cast

Series cast summary:
Michael Ansara	...	Deputy U.S. Marshal Sam Buckhart (30 episodes, 1959-1960)
Gina Gillespie	...	Tess (15 episodes, 1959-1960)

Storyline

Sam Buckhart was an Apache Indian who had saved the life of a U.S. Cavalry officer after an Indian ambush. When the officer died, he left Sam money that was used for an education at private schools and Harvard University. After school, he returned to New Mexico where he became a Deputy Marshal working for Marshal Andy Morrison and living in a boarding house run by Martha Commager. The only other continuing cast member was 8-year old Tess Logan, an orphan who had been rescued by Buckhart.

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Genres:

Western

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 October 1959 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Westerners

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cardiff Productions, Four Star Productions, Levy-Gardner-Laven

Technical Specs

Runtime:

30 min 30 min (30 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Michael Ansara first played his character in this series on 17 Feb 1959 in the episode "The Indian" and again on 9 June 1959 in the episode "The Raid," both on the series The Rifleman, but neither actually plays like a pilot for this program.

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Connections

Spun-off from The Rifleman (1958)

User Reviews

One of a herd of Western series, but with two distinguishing features

1959-60 may have been the TV year in which more than one-half of the prime team schedule was taken-up by Westerns. I can't swear to the virtues of this series-- was only 10 at the time-- but two things have stuck in my mind that recommend it. The first, its narrative gimmick: a lawman who was also Native American. Michael Ansara had charisma to burn. The idea deserved good scripts. The chief tug on my memory all these years was its theme-music-- what I remember is distinctive and beautiful-- a stirring anthem, probably not :45 seconds long. After scanning all the retro-recordings of TV music, hoping against all odds that someone would preserve it, I am resigned to whistling from memory. I wonder who composed it?