User Reviews

This is the first episode of Cheyenne I remember watching (today, not from some childhood memory), I enjoyed it. I set my DVR to record anything James Garner is in and also got Clint Walker as the main star bonus! I was wondering why James Garner was playing a supporting role to Clint Walker so I looked up his credits and this is very very early in his career. One of his first film roles would be a very small role (I'm guessing because his name is buried in the credits) in a Tab Hunter film! Oh the irony there, James Garner an unknown, to closeted leading man Tab! I loved Tab in Polyester, one of my favorite comedies, but it's hard to take some of these macho film actors seriously when you know the secrets. Luckily for me, James Garner and Clint don't have those skeletons in their closets and I can drift into believability in the production that much easier. I didn't really pay attention in the beginning (there was a lot going on) and thought James Garner's preacher was married instead of that being his sister! So naturally I was curious how that was going to end in a divorce and a marriage. Luckily I read the plot here and that's all straightened out. Garner's character is named Bret here (foretelling of his near future Maverick days?), he was also in this same series just a few weeks before as a different character! For the first time watching Cheyenne, I thought it played out like a standard B Western (an oater), which isn't a bad thing, it is giving the viewer something they are familiar with from watching media in the theater. There was one graphic arrow killing to the guy that no one liked, but I was a little surprised at that for mid 50's family TV. I liked that Gordon Jones was in this, he plays a likable guy. I loved him as "Mike the Cop" on Abbott and Costello. I saw that he died in his early 50's of a heart attack in 1963 and then saw how he was in 25 productions (TV and films) since 1961, the guy worked too much? The life and death of a bread and butter supporting actor, sigh. I'm glad the Indians didn't think out their massive attack better (looked like over 100 braves with guns!) or that they couldn't comprehend that if you mess up the train tracks than the train will crash! The shoot out in the end reminded me of The Naked Gun spoof with the guys shooting at each other 3 feet away, lol. Clint Walker taking off at the end and leaving the woman alone was also pretty lame but hey, that's a 1950's TV Western series for you. I did like how they tried to incorporate the train ride out west characteristics, and how they all lived for days together in a passenger car without much comfort, technical stuff I never saw much before in a Western! Educating! I give it a 8 of 10, I watched it all the way through so I must had been entertained! In 1956 ABC had only one top 30 TV show (Disney), by 1957 they would triple it to three top 30 shows and Cheyenne was one of them! If you have a oater craving, I caught this on the Starz Western channel in 2017. Yee-haw!

When we first see Cheyenne Bodie, he's wearing a suit, white dress shirt, and western tie, and he looks uneasy; that's our first clue that something's up. He's in line to buy a ticket for the train to the Ocatilla Valley for a dollar; it's a gimmick to draw tradesmen and skilled craftsmen who would help develop that far west territory. Our second clue is when he gives his name as Jim Wade. As it turns out, Cheyenne is wanted for murder and he's got to get to White Bluff to clear his name. Of course, there are sundry fellow travelers who in one way or another could affect whether or not he will be successful. The most serious threat to his plans is Ruth (Barbara Eiler), staid sister of a preacher prophetically named Bret, one of the four appearances in the series by James Garner in his pre-Maverick days.

Cheyenne decides that the only way to neutralize the threat is to win her over, which he realizes will "be like trying to soften up a mountain." However, due to the providential lurch of the train that throws her into his arms, she begins to thaw, although still conflicted. But before she can turn him in as promised, he manages to stay one step ahead of the law by escaping when they board the train looking for him. When he appropriates clothes and a gun from a rather congenial lawman who gives chase, they see distant smoke signals and realize that the Comanches are on the warpath. So despite the danger to himself, back goes Cheyenne to warn the passengers on the train. During the ensuing battle, he teaches Ruth her first lesson about what the right kind of woman does when a man is wounded at her feet. She might as well learn the code of the western land that she's about to make her home. After the Indians are outrun, Cheyenne is hailed as a hero and Ruth proves to be no longer a threat. Without further ado, he makes it to White Bluff, where he goes about seeing to it that justice is done.

Clint Walker's Cheyenne Bodie is his usual confident, resolute, gallant self, a pleasure to watch under any circumstances. Barbara Eiler is very good as the repressed Ruth and all the supporting players are fine, including Barbara Lawrence as an actress with a past and James Garner as the preacher who proves to be her salvation. A standout, though, is Gordon Jones as C. R. Tatum, the jolly organizer of the "last train west" determined to earn his $5.00 a head. In his 'welcome aboard' spiel, he assures concerned passengers that "our bed boards are made of soft wood"; then when someone asks about bathing facilities, he replies jovially, "I'm glad you brought that up," and proceeds without taking a breath to add, "now all of you go right ahead and get better acquainted. You know, you might as well; most of you are gonna be neighbors for the rest of your lives."

Among all the Westerns that dominated the screen in the 1950s and '60s, "Cheyenne" was distinguished for the variety of scenarios in which the valiant central character was thrust and the satisfying ways he was able to resolve whatever the issue might be. Add to that the touches of humor and romance that were notable throughout the series, and you have the formula for a television phenomenon that to this day captures the hearts and minds of people who believe that the spirit of heroism is alive and well.