Nichols (1971–1972)

In 1914, Nichols, a soldier, sick of killing, returns to his Arizona home town, named after his family, and is strong-armed into serving as sheriff by the Ketcham clan, who run the area. ... See full summary »

Creator:

Frank Pierson

Stars:

James Garner, Margot Kidder, Neva Patterson

Cast

Complete series cast summary:
James Garner	...	Nichols (24 episodes, 1971-1972)
Margot Kidder	...	Ruth (24 episodes, 1971-1972)
Neva Patterson	...	Ma Ketcham (24 episodes, 1971-1972)
John Beck	...	Ketcham (24 episodes, 1971-1972)
Stuart Margolin	...	Mitch (24 episodes, 1971-1972)
John Harding	...	Salter (10 episodes, 1971-1972)

Storyline

In 1914, Nichols, a soldier, sick of killing, returns to his Arizona home town, named after his family, and is strong-armed into serving as sheriff by the Ketcham clan, who run the area. Nichols, who doesn't believe in toting a gun, scoots around via an Indian motorcycle. The Ketchams install as deputy their relative, Mitch Mitchell. The nasty deputy has a dog named Slump, and Mitchell is very dumb. A business-savvy local gal has an undefined relationship with Nichols, but it's obvious there's lots of action in the back rooms of her saloon. The strict moral lines of traditional Westerns are absent in this very Vietnam War era show's view of the Old West's dying days: the Ketchams aren't all bad, and little-respected Sheriff Nichols wouldn't mind ripping off the town to head for Mexico.

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Plot Keywords:

sheriff | arizona | characters killed in final episode | modern west | character name in title

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Genres:

Western

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 September 1971 (USA)

Also Known As:

James Garner as Nichols

Filming Locations:

Stage 22, Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cherokee Productions, Warner Bros. Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min 60 min (23 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in You Will Believe: The Cinematic Saga of Superman (2006)

User Reviews

Brilliant, almost completely unknown, revisionist Western

James Garner starred in two of the most celebrated, popular, and delightful Television Shows ever, Maverick and The Rockford Files. However, they were not his only contributions to our TV heritage. One can think of the wonderful, but rapidly canceled God, The Devil, and Bob, in which he was utterly convincing Deity. However, his most shamefully overlooked TV show was this startling comedy western, which my family loved. Set in the dying old West of 1914, and starring , in addition to Garner, Henry Darrow, Margot Kidder and Stuart Margolin, this show poked fun at most of the conventions of the western genre. It was wonderfully written, directed and acted. Perhaps not surprisingly,it was canceled, in an act of network stupidity ranking right up there with the cancellations of East Side / West Side, Slattery's People, Star Trek, My World And Welcome To it, and The Rogues.