Cheyenne: The Complete Second Season (5 Disc)

My dad loves westerns,

Cheyenne Bodie (Clint Walker) continues his travels and adventures in 20 Second-Season episodes (1956-7). “Cheyenne,” he says, is “the only first name I can remember having;” his parents were killed in a wagon-train massacre, but apparently not by that tribe, which found him and took him in. He has “scouted for the Army during the Dakota campaign,” been several times over the El-Paso-to-Yuma route, served as a deputy in Leadville and in Salmon City, Idaho, even done some mining, and at one point it's revealed that five years ago he was “a greenhorn deputy” in Tombstone. He roams from Mexico (where he hunts mustangs) through Texas (he has “made four drives up the trail” from there) to Montana (whence he takes a riverboat to St. Louis) and the Dakota Territory, and along the way clashes with crooked gamblers out to skin a friend of his, a ruthless woman who's out to get control of a silver mine, and a gang of vicious young train robbers who've decided to move a step up and kidnap the President, finds himself deputized by a lawman who turns out not to be of the “bring-'em-back-alive” persuasion, struggles to clear his name after being accused of murder, does counterintelligence for the Army, comes to the aid of a couple working a gold claim in Sioux country, works as a stock detective for a Colorado Cattlemen's Protective Association and a special agent for the Indian Bureau, traps fur, and tries to avert an Indian war when a gold-miner accuses the Sioux of killing one of his partners—an attempt complicated by an Eastern newspaperwoman determined to get a story.Most of the stories carry no specific date, but those that do tend to be slightly confusing: in “The Iron Road” Grant is President and Custer's Last Stand is spoken of in past tense, yet Cheyenne says he once saw “Billy Bonney, better known as Billy the Kid” in action (Billy, who lived 1859-81, didn't really gain a name until August of '77, when he killed his first man, and by that time Grant was out of office); “Test of Courage” likewise mentions the Custer fight as a recent occurrence, but “The Broken Pledge” (the final episode of the season) finds Custer still alive and Little Big Horn not yet fought. One of the best segments in the set is “Born Bad,” featuring Robert F. Simon as a veteran sheriff who has spent six of the last 20 years hiding a terrible secret: his only son, the twin of his beloved daughter, is an outlaw. It's Cheyenne who serves as the catalyst: when the youngster rifles his trapping cabin, he pursues him, wounds him from a distance, and drives him to seek sanctuary from his father. This results in Cheyenne being appointed temporary sheriff when the distraught father decides he has no option but to resign his office—and staying on for three months, during which time he and the daughter seem to be, at least, on the very edge of falling in love. (Interestingly, he mentions in an earlier segment that he “was in love” once—which, given the data above, suggests that the stories of his adventures are being told out of sequence. This is supported by his line in “Pledge” that he's “never seen a woman rigged out man-fashion” (i.e., in pants)—but in fact he does in “Hard Bargain,” broadcast just before.) In “The Brand,” while trying to track down a missing friend, Cheyenne encounters the three children of a notorious outlaw, whose oldest son seems bent on following in his footsteps all the way to the gallows—which, in turn, has inspired a case of terminal hero-worship in his kid brother. “Big Ghost Basin” turns on a mysterious “thing”—it leaves tracks even the Indian-trained Bodie can't recognize—that roams the basin of the title, killing anyone it finds out after dark. Then there's “The Long Winter,” in which we have the treat of seeing Cheyenne riding a mule about two sizes too small for him, and “The Spanish Grant,” with Anthony George thoroughly charming as the Mexican ranchero/bandidio with whom Cheyenne makes common cause to regain an infant's rightful inheritance.Guest stars include such stalwarts of the era as Myron Healey, Fay Spain, Hayden Rorke, Stacy Keach, Arthur Hunnicutt, Dan Blocker, Dennis Hopper, Sheb Woolley, Eddie Little Sky (billed as Eddie Little), James Griffith, Rhodes Reason, Paul Brinegar, Bob Steele, Angie Dickinson, James Garner (in a “heavy” role), Michael Pate, Slim Pickens, Arrthur Kennedy, Peggie Castle, Frank Ferguson, John Carradine, Marie Windsor, Richard Crenna, Regis Toomey, Frank deKova, Whit Bissell (as General Custer!), Iron Eyes Cody (uncredited), Stuart Randall (playing a sheriff, as usual), several who fill two different roles (Diane Brewster, Andrew Duggan, Hal Baylor, Robert J. Wilkie, William Fawcett), Peggie Castle making a return appearance from the previous season, and “Edward” Byrnes (later Edd, and best known as “Kookie,” the cult heartthrob on 77 Sunset Strip). Some of the scripts are credited as being from stories by Bennett Foster, Steve Frazee, Noel M. Loomis, and Harry Sinclair Drago—all well-known Western novelists of the day, which gives you some idea of their quality.

I grew up with this show and am so happy to have all seasons on disc now. Two complaints, tho, one is that it would be nice if the sound would go a little higher. The other is that some seasons have a show that just won't play properly, but I'm to afraid to return them. What if I couldn't replace it! Altogether, its just a few so far. (I haven't watched the last couple of seasons.)

I have the "Cheyenne" collection series of the first, second, third and fourth season and I must say that in my opinion, the second season is by far the best season. I admit that I have not seen the fifth or six season but by then most of the storylines start to decline in quality and originality due to the fact that the writers have to keep churning out future episodes for upcoming seasons and fresh ideas, material and new storylines start to wear thin. The writing, the directing, the storylines, the panoramic scenes of the old west as well as the superb acting by the supporting actors has made this the best season. Guest stars who appear on this DVD set as well as appearing on the other seasons, are a staple to the TV western genre, and do a great job as supporting cast. Robert J. Wilke was a great character actor who appeared frequently on the Cheyenne series, sometimes as a villain but other times as a "good guy." The price for this collection is not bad considering that it contains 22 episodes, and many of the episodes are as good in quality as many of those 70 to 80 minute black-and-white movie westerns abundant in the 40s and 50s. When I was a boy about seven or eight years of age, I remember watching the "Monster of the Basin" episode which I remember was the title of this episode then, but watching this episode almost 50 years later it was probably renamed or the original title was probably the "Ghost of the Basin." Those two glaring shining eyes watching at you in the dark surely scared my brother and me! In fact, when I bought this season 2 the first episode that I watched was the "Ghost of the basin." It brought back great memories. I would highly recommend this DVD to all those Clint Walker fans.

I love the entire series and it's exciting and fresh and the quality is excellent. I only wish it was 4 k and blue ray or color. But I love it and want more. The video I try and show the package design and I only wish they would have done behind the scenes and a better menu design on the inside when I insert the disc. The show is excellent and the entire show is fun and exciting with bad guys and horse riding and adventure in every moment. Thanks for putting these out.

Received as promised

I enjoy watching westerns

I loved the whole DVD set ! It worked perfectly and getting to see all the old shows brought back memories of watching shows like this with my dad and gramps. I smiled the whole time I was watching...even enjoying the way they did 'sets' way back then. Clint Walker never disappointed, God bless him.

Series two builds on what was achieved in the first season and the Cheyenne character is fully established. The stories really are very good, they must have scouted round for any ideas/scripts/novels submitted to the studio, but never made into movies and filmed them as Cheyenne episodes. The quality of the story-telling is that good. The on-screen picture quality is very sharp. Continuing with great guest stars like a mustachioed James Garner, playing a very ruthless bad guy, before his 'jokey' style of delivery was developed. A very young Richard Crenna, Andrew Duggan (twice) and a pre-Bonanza Dan Blocker, even he has to look up at the big guy Walker. If you like eerie TV episodes, look out for 'Big Ghost Basin'.

As a fan of the 50/60s show, it was great to re-live my childhood memories. Enjoyed every episode. Thank you.

I bought this as a gift for my grandmother and she loves it !

Excellent quality DVD

Well, Cheyenne was a pretty good show from the fifties. I remembered only two episodes, but this in itself was fascinating, since I last saw them in 1961 when I was nine years old. I was amazed at how much I remembered after 57 years.The most appealing factor in the show was the star, Clint Walker. Walker may have been the most heroic-looking leading man ever to appear in a TV show or movie. Think what Charlton Heston would have looked like if he'd been fed human growth hormone and steroids from the age of fifteen until thirty, and that's what you got with Walker. Walker in his prime could have punched it out with the 24 year old Arnold Schwarzenegger and handily won. He's just enormous. Six foot-six and about 240 pounds. He has never been topped as an avatar of physical masculinity. Plus he could act quite well, and had a fine baritone voice.