I love a lazy Saturday afternoon when I can sit down and enjoy some episodes of Bonanza. When I was a little girl it was a big deal for my family to gather around the living room and watch Bonanza on a Sunday evening. As I read through the article topics, choosing this topic popped up at me with so much excitement as I relived the many memories growing up with this series. I think I must have fallen in love with Little Joe a hundred times but then again I can say the same for Adam and believe it or not Hoss got to me at times with his humility, sweetness and just being a gentle bear.
I once visited the house where the filming was done on one of my trips and was able to relive some of the episodes as I saw the original vests hung up in the living room. I was so surprised though that the upstairs was just that stairs. There were no rooms since the filming in the bedroom scenes were done elsewhere. Amazing!
This one hour western drama took place in the Nevada territory and was the first western TV show filmed in color which ran from September 12, 1959 through January 16, 1973. In the fourteen seasons of running it was rated in the top ten for ten seasons. The main sponsors for the show were Chevy, RCA and Lucky Strike. The scenery of most of Bonanza was on a thousand square miles of the beautiful Ponderosa Ranch near Virginia City and owned by the wealthy Ben Cartwright. We were all given beautiful views of Lake Tahoe skies and lakes in many of the scenes.
Ben Cartwright played by Lorne Greene was the father of three sons all of whom were born from different mothers that Ben had married. Ben was widowed three times and valued his sons proudly as he raised them to be responsible and well respected young men. Even if they were about to do something wrong, Ben raised them well enough to make them think about the choices they made and take responsibility for them.
The eldest son Adam was played by Pernell Roberts who was the intellect in the family. He wore all black, liked the guitar and even sang in some episodes. Adam always knew right from wrong and earned himself a good education. Adam was the most serious of the brothers and very rarely showed emotion but always loyal to Pa and his brothers.
The second son was Hoss played by Dan Blocker. Hoss had an outgoing personality but was sometimes nave with a very big heart. Probably the friendliest and most gullible of the brothers he was a good natured sweet man who enjoyed good meals and animals.
The youngest and third son was Little Joe who played by Michael Landon. Little Joe was quick tempered and always showed a romantic side with the women. Little Joe loved to play pranks on his older brother Hoss and is always remembered with the black and white horse. Young and handsome was this cowboy that would allow this role to not only schmooze with the women but being the youngest always meant he had to prove something to Pa and his older brothers.
When all was said and done, this show showed us a very tight strong bond of love, affection and respect between Ben and his sons. Through love found, going out to find a killer in a posse, or just any emotional crisis, this family stuck it out together.
What about Hop Sing? The cook and loyal employee of Ben Cartwright who made sure they were fed and always expected them to be on time to eat their meals. Hop Sing would show frustration if any of the men were late for dinner and especially if Hoss stole food out of the kitchen. Hop Sing was played by Victor Sen Yung.
Then we had others join the case such as Candy Canaday played by David Canary who was put into a role some time after the departure of Adam Cartwright. Candy was a loner and had lost both his parents.
Jamie also joined the cast in later years as the orphaned teenage boy whom Ben takes in, adopts and raises him as one of his own. Jamie was played by Mitch Vogel.
Then we have Sheriff Roy Coffee played by Ray Teal who was always either on the Ponderosa visiting Ben or in his office getting a visit from Ben. Although they were very good friends, Ben never let that stand in the way of the role of the Sheriff. If Ben or one of his sons was accused of something (and often that would happen), the Sheriff needed to do his job and although Ben didn't like it and the Sheriff knew the accusations were false, they had an understanding.
With three good looking sons, a well distinguished rich father, I often wondered why none of them would ever get married. Sure they had close calls and Ben naturally had three of his wives die on him but it never went further than the romance itself.
Today, I can say that Bonanza is still a very popular show and airs regularly. I am a loyal fan of the show but I can tell you that there are many new fans out there that enjoy this show as much as I did and still do.