Branded (TV series)

Branded is an American Western series that aired on NBC from 1965 through 1966. It was sponsored by Procter & Gamble in its Sunday night, 8:30 p.m. Eastern time period. The series is set in the post Civil War old west. The show starred Chuck Connors as Jason McCord, a United States Army cavalry captain who had been court-martialed and drummed out of the service following an unjust accusation of cowardice.

Branded
Connors as Jason McCord and guest star Anna Morrell, 1965
GenreWestern
Created byLarry Cohen
StarringChuck Connors
Opening theme"Branded" by Dominic Frontiere and Alan Alch
ComposersDominic Frontiere
Richard Markowitz
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes48
Production
Executive producerHarris Katelman
ProducersCecil Barker
Andrew J. Fenady
Production companiesThe Branded Company (1965)
Goodson-Todman Productions
Sentinel Productions
DistributorKing World
CBS Television Distribution
Fremantle
Release
Original networkNBC
Picture formatBlack-and-white
Color
Original releaseJanuary 24, 1965 (1965-01-24) 
September 4, 1966 (1966-09-04)

Overview

McCord leaving the fort as the gates close behind him

The opening title credits of each episode in the series feature a depiction of McCord's cashiering and drumming out of the military. He is then sent out of the fort where this ceremony occurred, and the gates are closed behind him. Although the exact date of McCord's cashiering is never given, events and people depicted in episodes place the events of the series itself as sometime during the first administration of President Ulysses S. Grant (1869–72) and after William Seward negotiated the Alaska purchase. The name and location of the fort are also not given; but since Bitter Creek, where the battle that caused McCord's discharge took place, is in southern Wyoming, the location of the fort is presumably within what was in 1869 the Wyoming Territory. U.S. military forts known to be in operation at that time in the territory included Fort Bridger, Fort Fetterman, and Fort Laramie.

In the pilot episode, "The Vindicator", McCord is confronted by a newspaper reporter (Claude Akins) who wants a follow-up story on the Bitter Creek massacre. McCord refuses to cooperate. He knows that General James Reed, McCord's mentor, was on a peace mission to meet representatives of the Cheyenne nation at Bitter Creek. His unit of 31 men was attacked by a group of renegade Indians known as Dog Soldiers. During the attack, McCord realized that the old general had taken leave of his senses. McCord assumed command, but it was too late. McCord was wounded in the battle and left for dead, the only survivor. He remained in a coma for 10 days after the attack. McCord was later charged with desertion, convicted at court-martial, and cashiered out of the Army.

The reporter tracks down a widow of the Bitter Creek massacre (June Lockhart). Her husband was third in command and had written several letters questioning Reed's mental state. Those letters would have been enough to grant McCord a new trial and possibly exonerate him, but McCord convinced the widow to burn the letters to protect Reed's reputation. McCord feared that if Reed's reputation were damaged, certain people in Washington, DC, would try to start a new war with the Apaches. McCord chose never to speak about what really happened at Bitter Creek.

McCord retained the handle of his broken saber with attached pommel. He had the remaining blade sharpened into a long knife, which he used in many episodes. He traveled throughout the Old West, continually confronted by people who refused to believe his innocence, requiring him to prove them wrong.

John M. Pickard appeared in six episodes as General Phil Sheridan. Other notable guest stars included Chris Alcaide, Russ Conway, Don Collier, Burgess Meredith, John Carradine, Pat Conway, Alex Cord, Janet De Gore, Dolores del Río, Chad Everett, I. Stanford Jolley, Martin Landau, June Lockhart, Gregg Palmer, Larry Pennell, Burt Reynolds, Lee Van Cleef, Bruce Dern, and Michael Rennie.

Production

Created by Larry Cohen, the show was co-produced for most of its run by Mark Goodson-Bill Todman Productions (which later folded ultimately into Fremantle), more widely associated with their productions of various game shows, in association with Sentinel Productions. Current distribution rights are possessed by CBS Television Distribution, the successor in interest to original distributor KingWorld. Historically, stations that air Branded have paired it with another Western series, the early Aaron Spelling production The Guns of Will Sonnett; this series, which starred veteran Western actor Walter Brennan in the title role, is also distributed by CBSTD.

Parts of the series were filmed at the Kanab movie fort and Kanab Canyon in Utah.[1]

The series followed Connors's series The Rifleman, but it did not have that show's longevity, lasting only 48 episodes over two seasons. The first season was shot in black and white (with the exception of the three-part story "The Mission", which was shot in color); the second season of 32 episodes was made in color.

Andrew J. Fenady served as the producer, later executive producer, on the series. Fenady was also the producer of The Rebel.

Episodes

Season 1 (1965)

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
11"Survival"Richard WhorfLarry CohenJanuary 24, 1965 (1965-01-24)
22"The Vindicator"Joseph H. LewisLarry CohenJanuary 31, 1965 (1965-01-31)
33"The Test"Leonard HornJohn Wilder & Jerry ZiegmanFebruary 7, 1965 (1965-02-07)
44"The Rules of the Game"Lawrence DobkinLarry CohenFebruary 14, 1965 (1965-02-14)
55"The Bounty"Harry HarrisLarry CohenFebruary 21, 1965 (1965-02-21)
66"Leap Upon Mountains..."Harry HarrisAndrew J. FenadyFebruary 28, 1965 (1965-02-28)
77"Coward Step Aside"Harry HarrisStory by: Larry Cohen
Teleplay by: John Wilder & Jerry Ziegman
March 7, 1965 (1965-03-07)
Guest star: Johnny Crawford, Connors's co-star from their earlier series, The Rifleman
88"The Mission*: Part 1"Bernard McEveetyStory by: Larry Cohen
Teleplay by: Jameson Brewer
March 14, 1965 (1965-03-14)
99"The Mission*: Part 2"Bernard McEveetyStory by: Larry Cohen
Teleplay by: Jameson Brewer
March 21, 1965 (1965-03-21)
1010"The Mission*: Part 3"Allen ReisnerFrank ChaseMarch 28, 1965 (1965-03-28)
1111"The First Kill"Alex MarchFrank ChaseApril 4, 1965 (1965-04-04)
1212"Very Few Heroes"Bernard McEveetyJohn Wilder & Jerry ZiegmanApril 11, 1965 (1965-04-11)
1313"One Way Out"Bernard McEveetyJameson BrewerApril 18, 1965 (1965-04-18)
1414"That the Brave Endure"Ron WinstonStory by: Michael Dunn
Teleplay by: Michael Dunn & John Wilder & Jerry Ziegman
April 25, 1965 (1965-04-25)
1515"Taste of Poison"Ron WinstonStory by: Larry Cohen
Teleplay by: William Putnam & Nicholas Rowe
May 2, 1965 (1965-05-02)
1616"Price of a Name"Leonard HornStory by: Larry Cohen
Teleplay by: Nicholas Rowe
May 23, 1965 (1965-05-23)

*In color

Parts One, Two and Three of the color episode "The Mission" were later released as a movie titled Broken Sabre, with new footage. According to Western Clippings, the re-edited movie version ends with Jason "regaining his commission and resuming his army career," thus giving an ending to the series. It also ends with Jason asking a woman to marry him and she says yes. The movie was released to theaters on May 30, 1965.

Season 2 (1965–66)

No.
overall
No. in
season
TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
171"Judge Not"Vincent McEveetyJerome B. ThomasSeptember 12, 1965 (1965-09-12)
182"Now Join the Human Race"Harry HarrisKen PettusSeptember 19, 1965 (1965-09-19)
193"Mightier Than the Sword"Vincent McEveetyFrank ChaseSeptember 26, 1965 (1965-09-26)
204"I Killed Jason McCord"Larry PeerceJoseph HoffmanOctober 3, 1965 (1965-10-03)
215"The Bar Sinister"Larry PeerceJack ParitzOctober 10, 1965 (1965-10-10)
226"Seward's Folly"Larry PeerceGeorge W. Schenck & William MarksOctober 17, 1965 (1965-10-17)
237"Salute the Soldier Briefly"Lee H. KatzinFrederick Louis FoxOctober 24, 1965 (1965-10-24)
248"The Richest Man in Boot Hill"Larry PeerceElon PackardOctober 31, 1965 (1965-10-31)
259"Fill No Glass For Me: Part 1"Vincent McEveetyFrederick Louis FoxNovember 7, 1965 (1965-11-07)
2610"Fill No Glass For Me: Part 2"Vincent McEveetyFrederick Louis FoxNovember 14, 1965 (1965-11-14)
2711"The Greatest Coward on Earth"Lee H. KatzinNathaniel TanchuckNovember 21, 1965 (1965-11-21)
2812"$10,000 for Durango"Larry PeerceJerome B. ThomasNovember 28, 1965 (1965-11-28)
2913"Romany Roundup: Part 1"Lee H. KatzinStory by: Lou Shaw
Teleplay by: Lou Shaw & Jameson Brewer
December 5, 1965 (1965-12-05)
3014"Romany Roundup: Part 2"Lee H. KatzinStory by: Lou Shaw
Teleplay by: Lou Shaw & Jameson Brewer
December 12, 1965 (1965-12-12)
3115"A Proud Town"Larry PeercePaul L. FreedmanDecember 19, 1965 (1965-12-19)
3216"The Golden Fleece"Lee H. KatzinJay Selby & Jessica BensonJanuary 2, 1966 (1966-01-02)
3317"The Wolfers"Larry PeerceFrank ParisJanuary 9, 1966 (1966-01-09)
3418"This Stage of Fools"Lee H. KatzinKen TreveyJanuary 16, 1966 (1966-01-16)
3519"A Destiny Which Made Us Brothers"Allen ReisnerAndrew J. FenadyJanuary 23, 1966 (1966-01-23)
3620"McCord's Way"William WitneyBorden ChaseJanuary 30, 1966 (1966-01-30)
3721"Nice Day for a Hanging"Allen ReisnerFrank ChaseFebruary 6, 1966 (1966-02-06)
3822"Barbed Wire"Harry HarrisKen TreveyFebruary 13, 1966 (1966-02-13)
3923"Yellow for Courage"Harry HarrisFrederick Louis FoxFebruary 20, 1966 (1966-02-20)
4024"Call to Glory: Part 1"Allen ReisnerJohn Wilder & Jerry ZiegmanFebruary 27, 1966 (1966-02-27)
4125"Call to Glory: Part 2"Allen ReisnerJohn Wilder & Jerry ZiegmanMarch 6, 1966 (1966-03-06)
4226"Call to Glory: Part 3"Allen ReisnerJohn Wilder & Jerry ZiegmanMarch 13, 1966 (1966-03-13)
4327"The Ghost of Murietta"William WitneyFrank ParisMarch 20, 1966 (1966-03-20)
4428"The Assassins: Part 1"William WitneyJameson BrewerMarch 27, 1966 (1966-03-27)
4529"The Assassins: Part 2"William WitneyJameson BrewerApril 3, 1966 (1966-04-03)
4630"Headed for Doomsday"Edward LudwigPeter BarryApril 10, 1966 (1966-04-10)
4731"Cowards Die Many Times"Bernard McEveetyFrank ChaseApril 17, 1966 (1966-04-17)
4832"Kellie"Marc DanielsFrank ChaseApril 24, 1966 (1966-04-24)

Home media

Timeless Media Group released both seasons of Branded on DVD in Region 1 in 2004–2005. Season 1 was released on August 3, 2004,[2] and season 2 was released on February 8, 2005.[3] On February 16, 2010, Timeless Media Group released Branded: The Complete Series, a six-disc box set featuring all 48 episodes of the series and several bonus features.[4] More-recent prints cut for syndication are used for the set, and as a result, three minutes are missing from each episode. Broken Saber (the film re-editing of "The Mission Parts One, Two, And Three") is not included.

Merchandise

At the time, a board game called Branded Game was released by Milton Bradley in 1966.

References

  1. D'Arc, James V. (2010). When Hollywood came to town: a history of moviemaking in Utah (1st ed.). Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith. ISBN 9781423605874.
  2. "Branded: Season One". Timelessvideo.com. Archived from the original on March 4, 2012. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  3. "Branded: The Complete Second Season". Timelessvideo.com. Archived from the original on March 4, 2012. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  4. "Branded DVD news: Announcement for Branded - The Complete Series". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Archived from the original on March 17, 2014. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
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