50 Days to Moose Jaw (12 Dec. 1962)

An old cowhand and a "greenhorn" join the Shiloh hands for a cattle drive to Moose Jaw, Canada. The old and young cowhand plan a future of running cattle together. The story culminates with a sheriff looking for one of the 2 new friends.

Director:

Maxwell Shane

Writers:

Donald S. Sanford, Maxwell Shane,

Stars:

James Drury, Lee J. Cobb, Doug McClure

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
James Drury	...	The Virginian
Lee J. Cobb	...	Judge Henry Garth (credit only)
Doug McClure	...	Trampas
Gary Clarke	...	Steve Hill
Brandon De Wilde	...	James 'Mike Flynn' Cafferty
James Gregory	...	Slim Jessup
Roberta Shore	...	Betsy Garth
Frank Overton	...	Sam Cafferty
H.M. Wynant	...	Dalton Lacey
Harry Swoger	...	Squat
Midge Ware	...	Regina Lacey
Dennis Cross	...	Boyd Lacey
Nesdon Booth	...	Come Along
Paul Birch	...	Sheriff Halsey
Willis Bouchey	...	Henry Mulford

Storyline

The old ranch hand, Slim Jessup, runs away from the Idaho law after he kills a man in self-defense. Meanwhile, The Virginian is charged with the task of driving 2000 head of cattle to Moose Jaw, Canada to meet a contract deadline the Judge needs to keep Shiloh solvent due to a US financial crisis. The time is short and The Virginia has no experienced trail hands. Slim an old friend of The Virginian trails the herd and when confronted asks for a job which The Viriginian is glad to offer. Along the trail a farmer's 16 year old stepson, James Cafferty, sees the herd and decides to ask to join the drive as a trail hand to escape the dull farm life. Slim counters The Virginian's objections and takes James under his wing and the two become close friends. At Moose Jaw the Idaho law has arrived with extradition papers for Slim forcing Slim to confront the issue.

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Plot Keywords:

number in title

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Genres:

Western

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 December 1962 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Revue Studios, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Revue Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

75 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

User Reviews

Lockjaw in Moose Jaw

Mildewed cattle drive yarn sacrifices big sky grandeur for bargain basement drama, which quickly bogs down. Two inadequate lead performances compound the problems. Dudish James Gregory looks more saddle-sick than saddle-worn as a weathered cow puncher, and mannered juvenile Brandon De Wilde hesitates over his dialog as if he had forgotten it, a far cry from the magically natural child actor of "Shane." Drury and McClure do a commendable salvage job on parts of the episode that Gregory and De Wilde don't totally destroy, but not good enough to keep it from being one of the few outright disappointing efforts from season one.