Bonanza: Season 1

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Season Details & Credits

NBC | Season Premiere Date: September 12, 1959

Starring: Dan Blocker, Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts

Summary: White-haired Ben was the proud patriarch of the Cartwrights, the family at the center of one of TV's most beloved and long-running series. Their ranch, the Ponderosa, was 1,000 square-miles (600,000 acres) in size and sprawled from mountainous shores of Lake Tahoe to the desert terrain near Virginia City in the Nevada Territory. BenWhite-haired Ben was the proud patriarch of the Cartwrights, the family at the center of one of TV's most beloved and long-running series. Their ranch, the Ponderosa, was 1,000 square-miles (600,000 acres) in size and sprawled from mountainous shores of Lake Tahoe to the desert terrain near Virginia City in the Nevada Territory. Ben oversaw his frontier empire with the help of his three sons: Adam, Hoss, and Joe. The series was set in 1859 when the series began and would progress through and following the Civil War.
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Series creator and producer David Dortort, who oversaw the series during its 14 year network run on NBC, says he first first got the idea for the series writing the 1953 episode of "Fireside Theatre" titled "Man of the Comstock."
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By 1959, NBC wanted a big filmed series to promote the sales of color television sets. NBC was the only network investing in color programs since its parent company RCA owned the electronic color transmitting system used by TV. "Bonanza" was just the type of show the network needed to "show off" its living color. In its initial season, it floundered in the ratings on Saturday nights against CBS' "Perry Mason"; it's said its renewal had a lot to do with its being shot in color. In the second season, "Bonanza" more than held its own in the Nielsens. It was the network's decision to move the series to Sunday nights that allowed it explode into a Top-10 hit.
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"Bonanza" differed in many ways from the dozens of other westerns on the air during its run. It relied more heavily on the characters than it did on action--though there was plenty of that. Good and bad weren't always as simple as "black hats" vs. "white hats"; many times, good people didn't live happily ever after. Despite that, Ben imparted a high code of ethics upon his sons. Among the principles: 1-Intolerance and bigotry were not acceptable. The Cartwrights often came to the defense of Indians, Chinese, and others who were the targets of the narrow-minded.
2-Once a man had paid his debt to society and was released from prison, he deserved a clean slate and a chance to start over.
3-The land was sacred. Ben's greatest business headaches came from his refusal to allow his land to be polluted and destroyed for profit. When the Cartwrights cut down a tree for lumber, they planted another. Their environmental concerns remain unique for a television series.
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Ben's path to his dream home of the Ponderosa (named for the Ponderosa Pine, plentiful in that area) was a long time in coming. He was a seaman, acting as first mate for Captain Abel Stoddard, when he met his boss' daughter Elizabeth and fell in love. She died after giving birth to first child Adam. Leaving the sad memories behind in the Northeast, he traveled to St. Louis and opened a trading company. He met and married the Swedish stunner Inger Inger Borgstrom who loved horses and shooting. She gave birth to son Hoss en route to the frontier, but was killed by an arrow during an ambush. Moving to New Orleans, Ben became an importer/exporter and fell for Creole beauty Marie DeMarigny. He made her wife number three and finally made it to the West. They established the Ponderosa and she gave him another son, Joseph. Marie died several years later in a riding accident. The story of each of these romance were detailed in individual episodes early in the series' run.
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The high mortality rate of women encountered by Ben and his sons, known jokingly as the "Cartwright Curse," became a running gag among comedians and viewers alike. If a female became a love interest to any of the show's men, even money says she'll be sick, dying, or dead by the end credits.
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Location filming kept the series from feeling "studio bound" and gave Bonanza a chance to highlight its color cinematography. Though much was filmed on a huge sound stage at Paramount Studios, scenes were regularly shot on the studio's outdoor "Western Street" and on locations throughout Southern California and Lake Tahoe, Nevada. The rising cost of shooting at Paramount eventually forced a move to the Warner Brothers studio in Burbank. To explain the new appearance of Virginia City, Season 12 began with "The Night Virginia City Died" where a huge fire destroyed the "old" town.
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Changes inevitably took place among cast members during "Bonanza"'s long run. After several years of complaining about being held back from a movie career, Pernell Roberts was finally sent on his merry way after of Season 6. Prior to that, amid fears of Roberts' departure, Guy Williams was brought in for a few episodes as Ben's nephew Will Cartwright. It's said the cast resented his character being added and he disappeared after five appearances. Beginning with "Sense of Duty" in Season 9, David Canary joined the cast as Ponderosa ranch foreman Candy Canady. He practically became a Cartwright, appearing in roughly a third of the series' total episodes. He disappeared with no mention at the end of season eleven after failing to get a raise from producer Dortort. Young orphaned teenager Jamie Hunter did become a real fourth Cartwright son when he was taken in by Ben in Season 12 and legally adopted in "A Home for Jamie" the next season. In the wake of Dan Blocker's death following Season 13, the cast was beefed up. David Canary returned as Candy (reportedly Michael Landon personally asked him to appear) and Tim Matheson was added a Griff King, a young man paroled into Ben's custody who was hired as a ranch hand.
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The loss of Blocker left a hole that simply couldn't be filled. This, combined with the show's move to Tuesday nights after eleven years on Sunday, dealt the series a death blow. Ratings took a nosedive and Bonanza aired it final episode in the middle of Season 14 on January 16. 1973.
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After all these years, Bonanza remains hugely popular. Besides the quality of the program itself, having filmed in color has kept it from looking "old". Episodes began to be released by CBS/Paramount on DVD beginning in 2009, and were uncut from their network airing with all the original music intact. … Expand

Genre(s): Comedy, Drama, Action & Adventure

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Season 1 Episodes

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S1:E32. Death at Dawn
Air Date: April 30, 1960
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S1:E31. Dark Star
Air Date: April 23, 1960
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S1:E30. Feet of Clay
Air Date: April 16, 1960

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Seasons & Episodes

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Series Overview
Season 15

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- Season 15 Overview
  Air Date: September 12, 1959
Season 14

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- Season 14 Overview
  Air Date: September 12, 1972
Season 13

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- Season 13 Overview
  Air Date: September 19, 1971
Season 12

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- Season 12 Overview
  Air Date: September 13, 1970
Season 11

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- Season 11 Overview
  Air Date: September 14, 1969
Season 10

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- Season 10 Overview
  Air Date: September 15, 1968
Season 9

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- Season 9 Overview
  Air Date: September 17, 1967
Season 8

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- Season 8 Overview
  Air Date: September 11, 1966
Season 7

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- Season 7 Overview
  Air Date: September 12, 1965
Season 6

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- Season 6 Overview
  Air Date: September 20, 1964
Season 5

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- Season 5 Overview
  Air Date: September 22, 1963
Season 4

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- Season 4 Overview
  Air Date: September 23, 1962
Season 3

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- Season 3 Overview
  Air Date: September 24, 1961
Season 2

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- Season 2 Overview
  Air Date: September 10, 1960
Season 1

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- Season 1 Overview
  Air Date: September 12, 1959
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  S1:E32. Death at Dawn
  Air Date: April 30, 1960
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  S1:E31. Dark Star
  Air Date: April 23, 1960
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  S1:E30. Feet of Clay
  Air Date: April 16, 1960
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  S1:E29. Bitter Water
  Air Date: April 9, 1960
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  S1:E28. San Francisco
  Air Date: April 2, 1960
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  S1:E27. The Last Trophy
  Air Date: March 26, 1960
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  S1:E26. The Avenger
  Air Date: March 19, 1960
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  S1:E25. Escape to Ponderosa
  Air Date: March 5, 1960
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  S1:E25. Escape to the Ponderosa
  Air Date: March 5, 1960
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  S1:E24. The Stranger
  Air Date: February 27, 1960
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  S1:E23. Desert Justice
  Air Date: February 20, 1960
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  S1:E22. Blood on the Land
  Air Date: February 13, 1960
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  S1:E21. The Spanish Grant
  Air Date: February 6, 1960
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  S1:E20. The Fear Merchants
  Air Date: January 30, 1960
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  S1:E19. The Gunmen
  Air Date: January 23, 1960
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  S1:E18. A House Divided
  Air Date: January 16, 1960
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  S1:E17. The Outcast
  Air Date: January 9, 1960
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  S1:E16. El Toro Grande
  Air Date: January 2, 1960
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  S1:E15. The Last Hunt
  Air Date: December 19, 1959
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  S1:E14. The Sisters
  Air Date: December 12, 1959
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  S1:E13. Vendetta
  Air Date: December 5, 1959
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  S1:E12. The Hanging Posse
  Air Date: November 28, 1959
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  S1:E11. The Truckee Strip
  Air Date: November 21, 1959
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  S1:E10. The Magnificent Adah
  Air Date: November 14, 1959
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  S1:E9. Mr. Henry Comstock
  Air Date: November 7, 1959
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  S1:E8. The Philip Diedesheimer Story
  Air Date: October 31, 1959
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  S1:E7. The Saga of Annie O'Toole
  Air Date: October 24, 1959
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  S1:E6. The Julia Bulette Story
  Air Date: October 17, 1959
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  S1:E5. Enter Mark Twain
  Air Date: October 10, 1959
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  S1:E4. The Paiute War
  Air Date: October 3, 1959
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  S1:E3. The Newcomers
  Air Date: September 26, 1959
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  S1:E2. The Sun Mountain Herd
  Air Date: September 19, 1959
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  S1:E2. Death On Sun Mountain
  Air Date: September 19, 1959
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  S1:E1. A Rose for Lotta
  Air Date: September 12, 1959