5 sharpshooting facts about Cheyenne
Making history as the first hour-long Western television series, Cheyenne is a prominent cornerstone of Western television history. Starring the 6'6" "Man-Mountain" himself, Clint Walker, the series won the hearts of audiences across the country at its premiere in 1955.
But do you know everything about the groundbreaking Western? Here are some quick, sharpshooting facts.
Clint Walker was a real deputy sheriff
The star had real-life experience as a deputy sheriff before his role as Cheyenne and other Western sheriff roles. Before Hollywood, he worked as a deputy sheriff in Las Vegas, doing security for the Sand Hotel. There, his friend Van Johnson suggested he try acting.
It was the first Warner Brothers series
Cheyenne made history for Warner Bros. by being the first hour-long Western series and part of the first television series produced by the studio. It aired as part of the "wheel program" Warner Bros. Presents, the reluctant movie giant's first foray into TV. The show recycled shots first seen in various Western films made by the studio.
Cheyenne briefly had a sidekick
For the first three episodes, Cheyenne had a sidekick named "Smitty," played by L.Q. Jones. After that, he was dropped, and Cheyenne traveled solo for the rest of the series.
The series used old footage from movies
To save money, Warner Bros. based many early episodes on previous movies they produced to recycle stock footage. The first episode, "Mountain Fortress," was based on the 1950 Errol Flynn adventure Rocky Mountain. You can even see one of the movie's characters, "Plank," die in a reused shot in the first episode.
Walker did NOT take his shirt off every episode
A common myth about the show is that Cheyenne goes bare-chested in every episode. In reality, he only takes his shirt off in 25 of the 108 episodes. Sorry, ladies.