Nominally based on John Ford's 1950 feature film Wagon Master, NBC's primetime Western series Wagon Train debuted in 1957 and ran five seasons before moving to ABC, where it lasted another three years. The hour-long series, which revolved around the seemingly endless westward treks of pioneers in Conestoga wagons, aired in b&w for most of its run, but the seventh-season episodes (1963-64) were expanded to 90 minutes and shot in color. By this time, the principal players included John McIntire as wagon master Christopher Hale, Robert Fuller as trail scout Cooper Smith, Denny Scott Miller as his assistant Duke Shannon, and Frank McGrath as irascible cook Charlie Wooster. As an “adult” Western that gave Gunsmoke stiff competition (even beating it in the ratings for a time), Wagon Train initially eschewed lavish action scenes and extensive location shooting in favor of tightly scripted, dialogue-heavy character studies that relied on sequences shot on sound stages outfitted to resemble desert terrain. The color episodes, made on slightly increased budgets, featured more outdoors footage and were often directed by such veterans of grade-B Western features as William Witney and R.G. Springsteen, who were accustomed to shooting horse operas on tight schedules. Wagon Train's young and handsome leads, Fuller and Miller, had sizable fan followings, but the show's big drawing cards were—and still are—its guest stars. “The Gus Morgan Story,” for instance, showcases the talents of teen idol Tommy Sands and Peter Falk, the latter being one of several future TV stars you can spot (others include William Conrad, Robert Lansing, Tom Skerritt, and Suzanne Pleshette). Barbara Stanwyck and Rhonda Fleming are just two of the major big-screen stars who pop up here, while ‘60s icon Annette Funicello guests in “The Sam Pulaski Story,” and future cult favorites Bruce Dern and David Carradine appear together in “The Eli Bancroft Story.” In addition to all 32 color episodes of the seventh season, this 16-disc boxed set also contains 16 b&w earlier episodes and interviews with Fuller and Miller. A strong optional purchase. (E. Hulse)
Wagon Train: The Complete Color Season
Timeless Media Group, 16 discs, 3,900 min., not rated, DVD: $119.98 Volume 24, Issue 1
Wagon Train: The Complete Color Season
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
Order From Your Favorite Distributor Today: