Horse Play Trivia Quiz

Answer: Seth Adams

Ward Bond (1903-1960) played the paternal, grizzled old trail boss and wagon master Major Seth Adams on "Wagon Train". Adams was a Civil War veteran who then headed up a wagon train on its journey from Missouri to California. In 1960, in the middle of the fourth season, Bond died of a heart attack and was replaced by John McIntire. The show was on from 1957 to 1965. "Wagons Ho!".

Answer: Hopalong Cassidy

In the early 1950s, when television was in its infancy, there were only three channels. Aside from "I Love Lucy" and "Lassie", about the only programs you could watch were Westerns. One of the earliest pioneers of the genre was "Hopalong Cassidy", with William Boyd (1895-1972) playing the title role. With his trusty horse Topper and his six-shooter, Hoppy fought the bad guys and always won.

Answer: Gil Favor

Most old Western fans remember Clint Eastwood as Rowdy Yates on "Rawhide". However, the real star of the show was trail boss Gil Favor, played by Eric Fleming (1925-1966). Favor was responsible for overseeing the cattle drives in the 1860s and to "keep them doggies rollin'". "Rawhide" aired from 1959 to 1965.

Answer: Eric Cartwright

Did you know that the big, gentle teddy bear that was known as "Hoss" was really named Eric Cartwright? The show about three brothers and their father on the Ponderosa was, of course, "Bonanza". Hoss was played by actor Dan Blocker (1928-1972). He was one of the few men who could really fill a ten gallon hat. "Bonanza" ran from 1959 to 1973.

Answer: Marshal Dan Troop

"Lawman" was an early Western which was popular in its day. It was set in Laramie, Wyoming, and featured Marshal Dan Troop and his deputy Johnny McKay. The Marshall was played by John Russell (1921-1991) who was in other Westerns, including the 1985 film "Pale Rider". The show ran from 1958 to 1962, and was sort of a "Gunsmoke" lite.

Answer: Chester Goode

Speaking of "Gunsmoke", it was the paradigm for TV Westerns, and the model for those to come. For twenty years we got to see Marshal Dillon enforcing the law in Dodge City, with reason and justice. The very first character cast for the show happened to be Chester Goode. Dennis Weaver (1924-2006) got the part, and played the role of the Marshal's sidekick with a Kentucky accent and a limp.

Answer: Heath Barkley

"Big Valley" was one of the few Westerns with a female lead character (I can't think of any others). Barbara Stanwyck played the matriarch at the Barkley Ranch in the San Joaquin Valley in California. A distaff "Bonanza", Victoria had three sons and a daughter.

Heath Barkley, the illegitimate son, was played by Lee Majors before he became a "Six Million Dollar Man". The show was on from 1965 to 1969.

Answer: Josh Randall

Before Steve McQueen became the icon of 'cool' in movies, he started out on the small screen in "Wanted Dead or Alive". He played bounty hunter Josh Randall who carried a sawed-off rifle long before Lucas McCain ("The Rifleman"). Randall hunted bad guys in the Wild West of the 1870s. The show ran from 1958 to 1961.

Answer: Bart Maverick

Many older Western fans may remember James Garner as the poker playing Bret Maverick on "Maverick". But how many of you remember his gambler brother Bart? These well-dressed card sharps traveled around always looking for a good game. Jack Kelly (1927-1992) played brother Bart.

In later seasons, they added British cousin Beauregarde, played by Roger Moore ("Bond", "James Bond"). The show lasted from 1957 to 1962.

Answer: Jim Hardie

"Tales of Wells Fargo" was another early Western. It featured Wells Fargo Agent Jim Hardie who becomes the owner of a ranch in San Francisco, California, but still manages to fight bad guys. It starred Dale Robertson (1923-2013), with co-stars William Demarest ("My Three Sons") and Kit Carson (not THAT one!). The show was on the air from 1957 to 1962.

Answer: Artemus Gordon

Before it was a terrible movie, "Wild, Wild West" was actually a pretty good television show. James West (Robert Conrad) and Artemus Gordon were secret service agents in the Old West who worked for the government out of a train filled with spy-catching gadgets. Artemus Gordon, a master of disguise, was played by Ross Martin (1920-1981). The show ran from 1965 to 1969.

Answer: Kwai Chang Caine

Moving into the 1970s, we have the more modern Western with Eastern overtones. Set in the wild west, "Kung Fu" was about Kwai Chang Caine, a Shaolin Monk who has escaped to America to avoid capture for the killing of the man who killed his teacher (still following, 'Grasshopper'?).

While he searches for his brother, he keeps running into evil-doers where he must use his martial arts skills. Caine was played with serene force by David Carradine (1936-2009).

Answer: Tom Brewster

In "Sugarfoot" we are presented with sort of an anti-cowboy, i.e., a tenderfoot, correspondence school lawyer who moves west to find his fortune, while lacking the typical shootin', ropin' and herdin' skills. Tom Brewster is the correspondence school graduate who earns himself the sobriquet of 'Sugarfoot', even lower than a tenderfoot. Will Hutchins plays the baby-faced, inept cowboy from 1957 to 1961.

Answer: Tonto

"A fiery horse with the speed of light, a cloud of dust and a hearty Hi-Yo Silver!" That and the William Tell overture told us we were watching "The Lone Ranger", the masked man with the silver bullets and his trusty sidekick Tonto. Tonto was played by Native Canadian Jay Silverheels (1912-1980), born Harold Jay Smith, a Mohawk from the Six Nations Reserve in Ontario. One of TV's earliest Westerns, "The Lone Ranger" aired from 1949 to 1957.

Answer: Charles Ingalls

"Little House on the Prairie" showed the softer side of family life in the midwest of the 1800s. From 1974 to 1983, we watched the Ingalls family live, love and survive the hardships of pioneer times. It was like "Father Knows Best", but a hundred years earlier, and based on a real life family. Charles Ingalls was the softhearted, gentle patriarch played by Michael Landon (1936-1991), after 'Little Joe' Cartwright grew up.