The Adventures of Champion (TV series)

The Adventures of Champion is an American children's Western series that aired from September 23, 1955 to March 3, 1956 for 26 episodes on CBS. In the United Kingdom, the series was re-broadcast under the title Champion the Wonder Horse.[1] Unusually for a black and white show, the series was repeated on and off by the BBC in the UK throughout the 70s, 80s and early 90s, with its final BBC broadcast being the episode "The Stone Heart" on 23rd January 1993.[2]

This article is about the television series. For the radio series, see The Adventures of Champion.
The Adventures of Champion
The Adventures of Champion Titlecard
Also known asChampion the Wonder Horse
GenreWestern/Children's
Written byOliver Drake
Peter Dixon
Paul Franklin
Eric Freiwald
Paul Gangelin
Orville H. Hampton
Robert Schaefer
Directed byGeorge Archainbaud
Ford Beebe
Thomas Carr
William McCarthy
Frank McDonald
Robert G. Walker
StarringBarry Curtis
Jim Bannon
Theme music composerNorman Luboff (music) Marilyn Bergman (lyrics)
Opening theme"Champion, the Wonder Horse"
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes26
Production
Executive producerArmand Schaefer
ProducersGene Autry
Louis Gray
Eric Jenson
Production locationsNewhall, California and Lone Pine, California
Running time30 minutes
Production companyFlying A Productions
DistributorCBS Television
Release
Original networkCBS
Picture formatBlack-and-white
Audio formatMonaural
Original releaseSeptember 23, 1955 (1955-09-23) –
March 3, 1956 (1956-03-03)

Synopsis

Set in the 1880s in the Southwest,[3] the series starred Barry Curtis as 12-year-old Ricky North, who lived on his uncle's ranch in the American Southwest. Ricky's uncle, Sandy North, was played by Jim Bannon. Ricky's companions were a wild Mustang stallion, Champion, and a German Shepherd, Rebel, played by Blaze.[4]

The television program used characters similar to those in the 1949-50 radio serial, The Adventures of Champion. The radio serial told of young Ricky West (rather than Ricky North), who was raised on a ranch by his adoptive Uncle Smoky (rather than Sandy). Ricky was often accompanied by his German Shepherd, Rebel.

Beginning in 1950, The Gene Autry Show, a western/cowboy television series, aired for 91 episodes on CBS.[5] The Adventures of Champion was a prime time spinoff for the 1955-1956 season.

TV Champ

In real life, the Wonder Horse, Champion, was owned by Gene Autry who, over many years, owned a succession of celebrity horses bearing the same name. The horse starring in The Adventures of Champion was known as Television Champion, or TV Champ, for short. He was distinguished by his chestnut coat, blond mane and tail, four white stockings and broad white facial blaze. TV Champ made frequent appearances with Autry in films and television during the 1950s. Unlike his fictional namesake, TV Champ was a gelding.

The horse that played Champ was bred in the United Kingdom. The mare rejected the foal then called Dawn that was hand reared by Walter Ellams and his daughter Patricia. Due to the foal being hand reared it was extremely tame and was then later sold to play Champion.

Blaze

Ken Beck and Jim Clark, in their book, The Encyclopedia of TV Pets: A Complete History of Television's Greatest Animal Stars, quote animal trainer Bob Blair as identifying the dog as J.R., the canine that had the title role in The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin TV program. "Rebel was played by J.R. and was owned by Frank Barnes. He was the best-trained dog in the business," Blair said.[6]

Filming

Filmed by Flying A Productions,[7] the series was shot on location within California. Vasquez Rocks. 34.479887°N 118.31657°W / 34.479887; -118.31657 was used for the introduction and episodes. The Andy Jauregui Ranch at Placerita Canyon, Newhall 34.377°N 118.475°W / 34.377; -118.475 was also used for several exteriors.

Episode list
  • 1 "The Saddle Tramp"
  • 2 "Crossroad Trail"
  • 3 "Salted Ground"
  • 4 "The Medicine Man Mystery"
  • 5 "Lost River"
  • 6 "Renegade Stallion"
  • 7 "Canyon of Wanted Men"
  • 8 "Challenge of the West"
  • 9 "The Outlaw's Secret"
  • 10 "Hangman's Noose"
  • 11 "King of the Rodeo"
  • 12 "A Bugle for Ricky"
  • 13 "The Stone Heart"
  • 14 "The Deer Hunters"
  • 15 "The Golden Hoax"
  • 16 "Johnny Hands Up"
  • 17 "Black Kachina"
  • 18 "Mystery Mountain"
  • 19 "Rails West"
  • 20 "The Real Unfriendly Ghost"
  • 21 "Andrew and the Deadly Double"
  • 22 "Bad Men of the Valley"
  • 23 "The Return of Red Cloud"
  • 24 "Brand of the Lawless"
  • 25 "The Die-Hards"
  • 26 "Calhoun Rides Again"

Title song

Although uncredited, the title song was sung by Mike Stewart, and later recorded by Frankie Laine. It was written by Marilyn Bergman and Norman Luboff.

"Champion the Wonder Horse! Champion the Wonder Horse!
Like a streak of lightnin' flashin' cross the sky,
Like the swiftest arrow whistlin' from a bow,
Like a mighty cannonball he seems to fly.
You'll hear about him everywhere you go.
The time'll come when everyone will know
The name of Champion the Wonder Horse!"

The version recorded by Frankie Laine contains an additional verse, and repeats the chorus. (According to YouTube, Laine had intended to record an album for children, but this was never completed.) Laine's version was recorded on the Philips label, with Paul Weston and his Orchestra.

In 1991, the song was re-issued on Laine's album On the Trail Again.

During the years 1953 to 1960, comic annuals were published by World Distributors, Daily Mirror and Purnell. Second-hand copies of these may be obtained. 'Ricky North' became 'Ricky West' in these, as with the radio serial.

Champion also had his own comic book, Gene Autry's Champion, published by Dell Comics from 1951 to 1955, which continued as Gene Autry and Champion from 1955 to 1959.

Starting from the issue dated 4 June 1966, Champion the Wonder Horse ran as a comic strip in the UK comic book Buster. Minor characters in the strip included Sheriff Sean Kelly, Gentleman Tom, the bare-knuckle boxing champion, Dick Crabtree, the town's ambulance-chasing lawyer, and Nicky Brandwood, queen of the saloon.

DVD release

In 2005, a set of six DVDs was released in the UK, by Pickwick Group Limited, under license from Encore Home Video. The set is entitled The Adventures of Champion the Wonder Horse and sub-titled "the complete television series on 6 DVDs".

The set includes 23 of the original 26 episodes. The missing episodes are "Mystery Mountain", "The Golden Hoax", and "Real Unfriendly Ghost". DVD 6 includes a bonus film entitled Horses and Guns, starring Gene Autry and one of his several horse-stars named Champion.

In August 2018, a 16mm film of "Real Unfriendly Ghost", dubbed in French, was discovered in the Archives of the University of Maryland by missing episodes hunter Ray Langstone.

References
  1. Hughes, Howard (2007). Stagecoach to Tombstone: The Filmgoers' Guide to the Great Westerns. I.B.Tauris. ISBN 9780857730466. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
  2. https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/search/200/20?order=asc&q=%22champion+the+wonder+horse%22#search
  3. Terrace, Vincent (2011). Encyclopedia of Television Shows, 1925 through 2010 (2nd ed.). Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. p. 12. ISBN 978-0-7864-6477-7.
  4. Brooks, Tim & Marsh, Earle (2007). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present (9th ed.). New York: Ballantine Books. ISBN 978-0-345-49773-4.
  5. IMDb: The Gene Autry Show (1950)
  6. Beck, Ken; Clark, Jim (2002). The Encyclopedia of TV Pets: A Complete History of Television's Greatest Animal Stars. Thomas Nelson Inc. ISBN 9781418557379. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
  7. "Television Film" (PDF). Broadcasting. July 11, 1955. p. 27. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
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