The High Chaparral

I remember The High Chaparral from when I was a child and rediscovered it as an adult from reruns. What is most noticeable about THC as opposed to other TV westerns are two things; it was actually filmed outdoors instead of on a soundstage, unlike large chunks of other TV westerns such as Rawhide and Gunsmoke and especially The Big Valley. Because of this the show and the actors have an authentic dirty and sweaty look to them appropriate to the period and place. I mean hey, cattle ranching in Arizona now is hard, sweaty and dirty, think about how is was before running water. The other thing I liked about it is that not only did the recurring characters not always get along, some of them flat out just didn't like each other. Kind of like in the real world and unlike other TV westerns. These distinctive features along with superb acting, writing, and technical work (just watching the shows makes me want to sweat) adds to up to one heck of a show.

The High Chaparral was an excellent western. The show had it all-- superb acting, awesome writing, great storylines, characters that had a sense of humor, and gorgeous horses.

Cameron Mitchell was clearly outstanding as Buck Cannon. Never one to back away from a fight, Buck always came to the rescue when needed.

Henry Darrow also did a wonderful job of portraying Manolito Montoya.

Although other westerns were on the air longer than The High Chaparral, I loved this one more than the other ones that did run longer. The characters were more lovable and more believable.

When I was a child, watching The High Chaparral was something the whole family was looking forward too. We would sit on the couch at least 15 minutes before the broadcast started and were 'glued' to the screen during the whole show. The rest of the week we would talk about what happened. Almost 40 years later the show hasn't lost anything of it's charm, my children love it. It is not just an 'adventure' western. Teenagers identify themselves with the troublesome relationship of Blue and his father John. There is something in it for everyone.

It has a wonderful cast, Leif Erickson as patriarch John Cannon, Cameron Mitchell as his brother Buck, Mark Slade as his handsome blue-eyed son Blue, Henry Darrow is a playful Manolito, and Linda Cristal the beautiful Victoria. The Bunkhouse boys add a little extra to this series, Don Collier, Bob Hoy, Ted Markland, Roberto Contreras and Jerry Summers are a treat to watch.

All actors are outstanding and their characters are so believable, that you forget you are watching a TV series. You are 'there', with the heroes in the Arizona Territory , fighting their fights, crying their tears, and laughing their laughs.

It was and is one of the most realistic Westerns series. Apaches were often played by Apaches, Mexicans by Spanish speaking actors. The heroes sweat, get tired, upset and the aren't infallible.

This television series originally aired on NBC-TV on September 10,1967 as part of its Sunday Night Lineup of shows where it aired at 10:00e/9:00c right after the long-running "Bonanza",and faced stiff competition with "Mission:Impossible",and the "ABC Sunday Night Movie" for all 28 color episodes of Season One that aired from September 10, 1967 until March 31,1968. Then from Season Two onward the network moved the series to a different time slot from Sunday nights to Friday nights for the remainder of its four-year run from September 20,1968 until the series finale on March 12,1971 where it aired at 7:30e/6:30c on its Friday night schedule(where it replaced the action-adventure series "Tarzan" after 2 seasons and 57 episodes) right before another one of television's greatest programs,"The Name Of The Game",and the wildly popular science-fiction series "Star Trek". "The High Chaparral",was produced by David Dortort,the creator of the successful "Bonanza" television series where Dortort was the creator and executive producer that ran for four seasons and produced 98 episodes all in color.

The show revolved around "Big" John Cannon(Leif Erickson),a rancher who lived in the Arizona Territory in the 1870's. He ran the ranch with his brother Buck Cannon(Cameron Mitchell),and son Billy "Blue Boy" Cannon (Mark Slade). Blue Boy's mother Annalee(Joan Caulfield)was killed in the first episode by an Indian arrow,and John Cannon then married Victoria Montoya(Linda Cristal),the daughter of the powerful neighbouring rancher Don Sebastian Montoya(played by Frank Silvera,who was one of several African-American actors who played "ethnic" roles for this series)in what is initially a marriage of convenience. His marriage to Victoria brought her brother Manolito Montoya(Henry Darrow) into the picture,and he also not came to live with the family but becoming a hired hand for the ranch. The stories for this series were impeccably written and directed by some of the best in the business while the series was filmed entirely on location. While doing much the same as "Bonanza" would do alternative between high drama and humor with the mix of action-packed and high adventure each week.

The guest stars that were on "The High Chaparral" were some of Hollywood's best ranging from William Windom to Adam West along with Scott Brady, Anthony Caruso, Chief Dan George, Roberto Contreras, Dennis Cross, John Dehner, Paul Fix, Ron Foster, Yaphet Kotto, to Connie Hines, Cesar Romero, William Conrad, Joanna Moore, Dub Taylor, Barry Sullivan and Morgan Woodward. Even Robert Loggia and Ricardo Montalban made guest appearances on this show. Several episodes of this series do stand out as sheer brilliance were the two-part pilot episode "Destination Tucson",and to "The Arrangement" not to mention "The Firing Wall",and "Champion of the Western World","A Time To Laugh,A Time To Cry","A Man To Match The Land", not to mention the two-part episode "The New Lion of Sonara".

When this series was canceled on March 12,1971 after 98 episodes,the powers that be at NBC-TV moved the show around different time slots resulting in its cancellation where it went opposite two powerhouse shows "The Wild,Wild West",and "The Brady Bunch" were it got clobbered on that same Friday night schedule. On September 12,1971, the show that replaced "The High Chaparral" after four seasons was the Jack Webb produced drama "The D.A." starring Robert Conrad(formerly of "The Wild,Wild West" fame),and on January 22,1972,the show that replaced both "The D.A.",and "The High Chaparral" was the comedy "Sanford and Son".

This show is one of the best TV shows I have ever seen, and definitely the best western.

This show is ahead of it's time in many ways. I wasn't even born when this show had it's original run but saw it on re-runs during the 80's and 90's and the show still held up to modern TV shows. Where most old TV shows tend to seem a bit dated 25-30 years down the track High Chaparral is still top quality viewing. The stories are well written and the acting is quite good.

The way that the Apache aren't just portrayed as mindless savages is also a very modern outlook. If the show is ever re-run again I will make a point to watch every episode.