Video TV Western Theme Songs 1950s and 1960s TV Videos
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When I was a little kid growing up in the 1950′s and 1960′s, I always used to watch TV Westerns with my folks and sing along with the theme songs which I loved. Nowadays there aren’t many if any TV shows with theme songs but back then some of them were really great especially TV Westerns. I did my best to find online the theme songs from the actual TV shows and in video. I had a few surprises like “Happy Trails” and “Paladin” were only apparently sung in the closing credits which I’ve included and that someone named Bill Hayes who later became a Soap Opera Star sang “The Ballad of Davy Crockett” on the Walt Disney TV Show episodes not Fess Parker! My favorite videos on here are for the short lived Chuck Conners TV Show “Branded” which should be titled “Kicked to the Curb Old West Style” and “Colt .45″ an amazing video. My favorite theme song still remains the “Ballad of Paladin”. I’ve listed everything in Alphabetical Order with some comments on each show. I may have left some shows off so let me know if I have. Oh before I go on, if you need to buy a gift or present for yourself and want to buy it at discount, please check out our Huge Discount Gift Store which supports this Blog by Clicking Here Any business from you helps financially support this blog. Thank You.
Bat Masterson
Starring Gene Barry who starred in the original “War of the Worlds” (he made a cameo in the Tom Cruise remake) and later “Burke’s Law” and “Name of the Game” on TV. Bat Masterson ran from 1958 to 1961. Bat was a well dressed gambler and lawman who relied more on his wits than his gun. The theme song is from the closing credits.
Bonanza
Did the same people who killed JFK, somehow kill Dan Blocker and make it look like a health problem! I really had a problem getting over Dan Blocker’s death especially as his death was not exactly clarified in the newspapers. Bonanza ran from 1959 to 1972 and was one of the earliest color TV shows. You know the rest.
Branded
Branded unfortunately ran only 2 seasons from 1965-1966 and starred the great Chuck Conners formerly of the Brooklyn Dodgers baseball team and The Rifleman. What made this show incredible was the opening intro where Chuck Conners goit kicked to the curb each week Old West style.
Cheyenne
Starring Clint Walker as Cheyenne Bodie, this popular Western TV series ran from 1955 – 1962. To quote IMDB “After the Civil war adventurer Cheyenne Bodie roamed the west looking for fights, women and bad guys to beat up.”
Colt 45
This Western ran from 1957 – 1960 and starred Wayde Preston as Christopher Colt posing as a gun salesman but really a government agent tracking down badguys. This opening intro below is awesome.
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Davy Crockett
Definitely my favorite 1950′s TV show all 5 or so episodes. I even got a coon skin hat which I got rid of years ago and probably is worth a fortune on Ebay. This starred the great Fess Parker and I was shocked to learn while reading this Blog Post that he didn’t sing the “Ballad of Davy Crocket”, Bill Hayes did instead. The only thing I could find online featuring Bill Hayes singing this is from an appearance on the Richard Simmons show I think?
Gunsmoke
Even though this was one of TV’s longest running series, for some reason I didn’t watch many episodes at the time. Starring James Arness, “The Thing”, this series ran from, 1955 – 1975. Amanda Blake, Kitty, unfortunately was one of the earliest Hollywood Actresses to die of Aids.
Have Gun Will Travel Closing Paladin Theme
One of my favorite TV Westerns, especially when my father ran into Richard Boone, Paladin, in a Hotel and Richard Boone gave him a “Have Gun Will Travel Business Card” to give me! “Have Gun Will Travel” ran from 1957 – 63 and it was kind of a Shakespearean Western, a predecessor without the cursing to some degree of “Deadwood”. This show had some interesting choices as guest actors including musician Duane Eddy and the late singer Odetta. The theme song ran at the ending credits. I’ve also included a full version of it.
Have Gun Will Travel Full Paladin Theme
Maverick
A Western with a sense of humor and some great writing starring James Garner as Bret Maverick and Jack Kelly as Bart Maverick who rotated episodes for the most part. Maverick ran from 1957-62 and James Garner eventually quit the show because he was incredibly underpaid for a hit series.
Sugarfoot (Fast forward to the 8 Minute Mark. Sorry Couldn’t Find Another One)
“Sugarfoot” starring Will Hutchins as Tom ‘Sugarfoot’ Brewster as a correspondence-school law graduate travelling the west to seek his fortune was a bit of a comedic Western and ran from 1957-1961.
The Lone Ranger
The Lone Ranger was the first Western I ever saw on TV and it took me years to grasp that “The William Tell Overture” was not “The Lone Ranger”. The Lone Ranger ran from 1949-57 and starred Clayon Moore as The Lone Ranger and Jay Silverheels as Tonto. The Lone Ranger’s horse was Silver as in “Hi Ho Silver”
The Rifleman
Another great Chuck Conners Western. The Rifleman ran from 1958-63 and starred Chuck Conners as The Rifleman aka Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son. Lucas McCain had a specially modified Winchester Rifle that looked totally cool and I received a toy version for my birthday that’s probably worth a lot today but my parents threw out of course!
The Roy Rogers Show (“Happy Trails” Fast Forward to the 8 Minute Mark. Sorry Couldn’t Find Another One)
I watched this show once in a while but can’t remember one episode. I had a crush on Dale Evans though! I didn’t realize till I wrote this that “Happy Trails” was not the opening intro. The Roy Rogers Show ran from 1951-1957. Here’s a bit of TV Trivia. Roy Rogers was a devout religious person and when he guest starred on “Wonder Woman” the TV Executives apparently agreed not to have Lynda Carter in her Wonder Woman outfit for the first time only because Roy Rogers thought it was too revealing. Lynda Carter back then not now was the first actress I had the hots for. I spent a lot of time in the bathroom during those years!
The Wild Wild West
I loved this show. Great writing, great cast, great guest stars. The first sci-fi Western. The Wild West starred Robert Conrad as James T. West and Ross Martin as his sidekick Artemus Gordon playing Wild West Secret Agents. This show was noteworthy for having the late great Michael Dunn as super genius villain Dr. Miguelito Loveless. The Wild Wild West ran from 1965-69 and it ended too early in my opinion. The movie version with Will Smith sucked.
Wyatt Earp (Theme Song Plus)
This show was actually titled “The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp” and I remember I used to love the theme song which I always sang. Starring Hugh O’Brian as Wyatt Earp, this show ran from 1955-61 and I wish I could remember an episode but I can’t even though I saw it regularly. There have been about 3 or 4 feature movies starring Wyatt Earp in the last 20 or so years and all of them have been very good.
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