Bonanza season 14: Difference between revisions

*Bonanza*
Bonanza
Season 14
	Cast of Bonanza in 1959
Starring	Lorne Greene; Michael Landon;
No. of episodes	16
Release
Original network	NBC
Original release	September 12, 1972 –; January 16, 1973
Season chronology
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	List of episodes

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Latest revision as of 06:20, 3 January 2025

The fourteenth season of the American Western television series Bonanza premiered on NBC on September 12, 1972, with the final episode airing January 16, 1973.^[1] This was the final season for the series. The series was developed and produced by David Dortort. Season fourteen starred Lorne Greene and Michael Landon, the first season following the death of Dan Blocker. The season consisted of 16 episodes of a series total 431 hour-long episodes, the entirety of which was produced in color.^[2] Season fourteen moved to a new timeslot of Tuesdays from 8:00 pm–9:00 pm on NBC.^[3] The final season fell out of the top 30 in the Nielsen ratings.^[4]

Synopsis

Bonanza is set around the Ponderosa Ranch near Virginia City, Nevada and chronicles the weekly adventures of the Cartwright family. In season 14, this consists of Ben Cartwright (Lorne Greene) and his son Joseph (Michael Landon) and Jamie Hunter Cartwright (Mitch Vogel), a teenage orphan who is adopted by Ben. Veteran actor Victor Sen Yung played the ranch cook, Hop Sing. In the ninth season, David Canary was added to the cast as ranch hand/foreman Candy Canady. Tim Matheson was introduced as ex-prisoner and newly hired ranch-hand Griff King.

Cast and characters

Main cast

Lorne Greene as Ben Cartwright
Michael Landon as Joseph "Little Joe" Cartwright
Mitch Vogel as Jamie Hunter Cartwright
David Canary as "Candy" Canaday
Tim Matheson as Griff King

Recurring

Victor Sen Yung as Hop Sing
Bing Russell as Deputy Clem Foster

Guest cast

Background and production

Casting

Season 14 included a number of changes in casting. Dan Blocker died in May 1972 after season thirteen ended, leaving only Greene and Landon as original top billed cast. David Canary, who had left over a contract dispute after four seasons returned as Candy Canady with opening credits billing. Tim Matheson was introduced as ex-prisoner and newly hired ranch-hand Griff King.

Episodes

*Bonanza*, season 14 episodes
No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date
416	1	"Forever"	Michael Landon	Michael Landon	September 12, 1972 (1972-09-12)
417	2	"Forever"	Michael Landon	Michael Landon	September 19, 1972 (1972-09-19)
Part 1: Little Joe falls in love with Alice Harper (played by a young Bonnie Bedelia) who he meets while rescuing her gambler brother John (Andy Robinson) from a poker game gone bad. Part 2: After Little Joe and Alice Harper are married, she is murdered at their new home. Joe returns to find their house burnt to the ground and his beautiful bride dead.
418	3	"Heritage of Anger"	Nicholas Webster	Don Ingalls	September 26, 1972 (1972-09-26)
Ben helps ex-convict John Dundee (Robert Lansing) re-adjust to society. However, Dundee's boorish attitude complicates matters.
419	4	"The Initiation"	Alf Kjellin	Douglas Day Stewart	October 3, 1972 (1972-10-03)
Jamie joins an elite club. However, when a classmate dies from cardiac arrhythmia during the initiation, the club's president Ted Hoag (Ron Howard) is blamed.
420	5	"Riot!"	Lewis Allen	Robert Pirosh	October 10, 1972 (1972-10-10)
Ben becomes horrified while inspecting living conditions at the Nevada State Prison. So are the frustrated inmates, who take Ben hostage and make a series of demands to improve conditions. Note: first episode of Griff King.
421	6	"New Man"	Leo Penn	Jack B. Sowards	October 17, 1972 (1972-10-17)
In this sequel episode to "Riot," Ben helps parolee Griff King adjust to life outside of prison, giving him a job as a ranch hand.
422	7	"Ambush at Rio Lobo"	Nicholas Colasanto	Joel Murcott	October 24, 1972 (1972-10-24)
Ben and a pregnant woman (Sian Barbara Allen) are held hostage by a gang of robbers, who are plotting a stagecoach robbery and are determined to prevent interference by anyone with the name Cartwright.
423	8	"The 26th Grave"	Nicholas Colasanto	Stanley Roberts	October 31, 1972 (1972-10-31)
Samuel Clemens (Ken Howard) makes his return to Virginia City, this time offering tall tales over an unsolved murder that was tied to a claim jumping.
424	9	"Stallion"	E. W. Swackhamer	Jack B. Sowards	November 14, 1972 (1972-11-14)
Joe is given a beautiful, black stallion for his birthday present, but winds up sacrificing it when he rides to the rescue of a young boy who was accidentally shot by his outlaw father.
425	10	"The Hidden Enemy"	Alf Kjellin	Stanley Roberts	November 28, 1972 (1972-11-28)
Dr. James Wills (Mike Farrell) is Virginia City's new town doctor. He can bring many new procedures to Nevada Territory. However, Dr. Wills is addicted to morphine, which results in trouble ... and in the end, tragedy.
426	11	"The Sound of Sadness"	Michael Landon	Michael Landon	December 5, 1972 (1972-12-05)
Griff's friend, widowed farmer Jonathan May (Jack Albertson), wants to adopt two young orphans, one of whom is unable to talk. When Jonathan is told he cannot adopt the boys, Griff decides to set the adoption agency folks straight on what a loving father is.
427	12	"The Bucket Dog"	William F. Claxton	John Hawkins	December 19, 1972 (1972-12-19)
Jamie buys an Irish setter named April. However, April was a runt and - according to its rightful owner - should be put to sleep because it is a disgrace to the breed. When April competes in a field trial, the dog's owner soon learns that it's not the size of the dog that matters, but the size of the fight in the dog.
428	13	"First Love"	Leo Penn	Richard Collins	December 26, 1972 (1972-12-26)
Jamie becomes friends with Kelly Edwards (Pamela Franklin), who is abused by her husband, Dan. The catch: the husband happens to be the new teacher at the Virginia City School.
429	14	"The Witness"	Lewis Allen	Story by : Arthur Heinemann Teleplay by : Joel Murcott and Arthur Heinemann	January 2, 1973 (1973-01-02)
A man posing as Candy robs one of Ben's elderly business associates; during the robbery, the woman suffers a fatal heart attack. Candy is quickly arrested and brought to trial.
430	15	"The Marriage of Theodora Duffy"	William F. Claxton	Ward Hawkins	January 9, 1973 (1973-01-09)
Unknown to the Cartwrights, Griff is asked to be a government witness in helping to bring a gang of war criminals to justice and Griff is asked to pose as the husband of beautiful Theodora Duffy (Karen Carlson), whom the Cartwrights think Griff had abandoned years ago.
431	16	"The Hunter"	Michael Landon	Michael Landon	January 16, 1973 (1973-01-16)
During a delivery run, Joe meets Cpl. Bill Tanner (Tom Skerritt), who turns out to be a war-deranged madman who enjoys stalking down his helpless victims before killing them. After stealing Joe's wagon and his supplies, the psychotic Tanner explains that Joe just became his latest "prey."

Release

For season fourteen, Bonanza was moved from its previous Sunday night 9:00 pm–10:00 pm timeslot to Tuesdays from 8:00 pm–9:00 pm on NBC.^[3] On Tuesdays, it was opposite Maude and Hawaii Five-O on CBS and Temperatures Rising and the Tuesday Movie of the Week on ABC.^[5]

Reception

The move from Sunday to Tuesday did not help the show's declining ratings. Hawaii Five-O was already the leader on Tuesdays, at 12 overall in the Nielsen ratings for the previous season.^[6] By the 1972 season, Hawaii Five-O gained in the ratings, lifting Maude along with it, topping the Tuesday ratings and securing the number 3 and 4 spots respectively overall. Bonanza fell out of the top 30.^[4]

References

Footnotes

^ Shapiro 1997, pp. 107, 111.
^ Shapiro 1997, pp. 5, 65–157.
^ ^a ^b Brooks & Marsh 2007, p. 164.
^ ^a ^b "TV Ratings: 1972–1973". ClassicTVGuide.com. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
^ Brooks & Marsh 2007, pp. 1594–1595.
^ "TV Ratings: 1971–1972". classictvguide.com. Retrieved October 11, 2023.

Bibliography

Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle F. (2007). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present. New York: Ballantine Books. ISBN 978-0-345-49773-4.
Greenland, David R. (2010). Bonanza: A Viewer's Guide to the TV Legend. BearManor Media. ISBN 978-1-62933-722-7.
Greenland, David R. (2015). Michael Landon: The Career and Artistry of a Television Genius. BearManor Media. ISBN 978-1-59393-785-0.
Leiby, Bruce R.; Leiby, Linda F. (2015). A Reference Guide to Television's Bonanza: Episodes, Personnel, and Broadcast History. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 9781476600758.
McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present. New York: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8.
Shapiro, Melany (1997). Bonanza: The Definitive Ponderosa Companion. Cyclone Books. ISBN 978-1-890723-18-7.

External links

[FOOTNOTEShapiro1997107,_111-1] Shapiro 1997, pp. 107, 111.

[FOOTNOTEShapiro19975,_65–157-2] Shapiro 1997, pp. 5, 65–157.

[FOOTNOTEBrooksMarsh2007164-3] Brooks & Marsh 2007, p. 164.

[ratings-4] "TV Ratings: 1972–1973". ClassicTVGuide.com. Retrieved September 14, 2023.

[FOOTNOTEBrooksMarsh20071594–1595-5] Brooks & Marsh 2007, pp. 1594–1595.

[6] "TV Ratings: 1971–1972". classictvguide.com. Retrieved October 11, 2023.

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}
 {{Infobox television season
-| bg_colour            = #c5b358
+| bg_colour    = #c5b358
-| image                = Bonanza main cast 1959.JPG
+| image        = Bonanza main cast 1959.JPG
-| image_alt            = Cast of ''[[Bonanza]]'' in 1959
+| image_alt    = Cast of ''[[Bonanza]]'' in 1959
-| caption              = Cast of ''[[Bonanza]]'' in 1959
+| caption      = Cast of ''[[Bonanza]]'' in 1959
-| starring             =
+| starring     = * [[Lorne Greene]]
-* [[Lorne Greene]]
 * [[Michael Landon]]
+| num_episodes = 16
-| country              = United States
-| num_episodes         = 16
+| network      = [[NBC]]
+| first_aired  = {{Start date|1972|9|12}}
-| network              = [[NBC]]
-| first_aired          = {{Start date|1972|9|12}}
+| last_aired   = {{End date|1973|1|16}}
+| episode_list = List of Bonanza episodes
-| last_aired           = {{End date|1973|1|16}}
-| episode_list         = List of Bonanza episodes
 }}
 The fourteenth season of the American [[Westerns on television|Western television]] series '''''[[Bonanza]]''''' premiered on [[NBC]] on September 12, 1972, with the final episode airing January 16, 1973.{{sfn|Shapiro|1997|pp=107, 111}} This was the final season for the series. The series was developed and produced by [[David Dortort]]. Season fourteen starred [[Lorne Greene]] and [[Michael Landon]], the first season following the death of [[Dan Blocker]].  The season consisted of 16 episodes of a series total 431 hour-long episodes, the entirety of which was produced in [[Color television|color]].{{sfn|Shapiro|1997|pp=5, 65–157}} Season fourteen moved to a new timeslot of Tuesdays from 8:00{{Nbsp}}pm{{Ndash}}9:00{{Nbsp}}pm on [[NBC]].{{sfn|Brooks|Marsh|2007|p=164}} The final season fell out of the top 30 in the [[Nielsen Ratings|Nielsen ratings]].<ref name="ratings">{{cite web |title=TV Ratings: 1972–1973 |url=https://classictvguide.com/tvratings/1972.htm |access-date=September 14, 2023 |work=ClassicTVGuide.com}}</ref>
@@ Line 18: / Line 18: @@
 ==Synopsis==
-''Bonanza'' is set around the [[Ponderosa Ranch#TV origins of the fictional Ponderosa Ranch|Ponderosa Ranch]] near [[Virginia City, Nevada]] and chronicles the weekly adventures of the Cartwright family, consisting of [[Ben Cartwright (character)|Ben Cartwright]] ([[Lorne Greene]]) and his three sons (each by a different wife), [[Adam Cartwright|Adam]] ([[Pernell Roberts]]), Eric [[Hoss Cartwright|"Hoss"]] ([[Dan Blocker]]), and [[Little Joe Cartwright|Joseph]] ([[Michael Landon]]). Veteran actor [[Victor Sen Yung]] played the ranch cook, Hop Sing. In 1964, Pernell Roberts began expressing a desire to leave the series, and so prospective replacements were introduced via Barry Coe as Little Joe's wayward maternal half-brother Clay, and [[Guy Williams (actor)|Guy Williams]] as Ben's nephew Will Cartwright. However, Roberts was persuaded to complete his contract, and remained through season six. The characters of Clay and Will were discontinued. In the ninth season, [[David Canary]] was added to the cast as ranch hand/foreman [[Bonanza#David Canary – "Candy" Canaday|Candy Canady]]. After four years with the series, Canary left due to a contract dispute. In the twelfth season, [[Mitch Vogel]] joined the cast as [[Bonanza#Mitch Vogel – Jamie Hunter/Cartwright|Jamie Hunter]], a teenage orphan who is adopted by Ben Cartwright. Following Dan Blocker's death in May 1972 after season thirteen ended, Greene, Landon, and Vogel continued the series into a fourteenth season, with Canary returning as Candy and [[Tim Matheson]] was introduced as ex-prisoner and newly hired ranch-hand Griff King.
+''Bonanza'' is set around the [[Ponderosa Ranch#TV origins of the fictional Ponderosa Ranch|Ponderosa Ranch]] near [[Virginia City, Nevada]] and chronicles the weekly adventures of the Cartwright family. In season 14, this consists of [[Ben Cartwright (character)|Ben Cartwright]] ([[Lorne Greene]]) and his son [[Little Joe Cartwright|Joseph]] ([[Michael Landon]]) and [[Bonanza#Mitch Vogel – Jamie Hunter/Cartwright|Jamie Hunter Cartwright]] ([[Mitch Vogel]]), a teenage orphan who is adopted by Ben. Veteran actor [[Victor Sen Yung]] played the ranch cook, Hop Sing. In the ninth season, [[David Canary]] was added to the cast as ranch hand/foreman [[Bonanza#David Canary – "Candy" Canaday|Candy Canady]]. [[Tim Matheson]] was introduced as ex-prisoner and newly hired ranch-hand Griff King.
 ==Cast and characters==
-{{see also|Bonanza#Cast|l1=Bonanza cast}}
+{{see also|List of Bonanza characters}}
 ===Main cast===
 * [[Lorne Greene]] as Ben Cartwright
 * [[Michael Landon]] as Joseph "Little Joe" Cartwright
+* [[Mitch Vogel]] as Jamie Hunter Cartwright
+* [[David Canary]] as "Candy" Canaday
+* [[Tim Matheson]] as Griff King
 === Recurring ===
 * [[Victor Sen Yung]] as Hop Sing
 * [[Bing Russell]] as Deputy Clem Foster
-* [[David Canary]] as "Candy" Canaday
-* [[Mitch Vogel]] as Jamie Hunter Cartwright
-* [[Tim Matheson]] as Griff King
 ===Guest cast===
@@ Line 48: / Line 48: @@
 * [[Tom Skerritt]]
 }}
+== Background and production ==
+=== Casting ===
+Season 14 included a number of changes in casting.  Dan Blocker died in May 1972 after season thirteen ended, leaving only Greene and Landon as original top billed cast.  David Canary, who had left over a contract dispute after four seasons returned as Candy Canady with opening credits billing.  [[Tim Matheson]] was introduced as ex-prisoner and newly hired ranch-hand Griff King.
 ==Episodes==
@@ Line 54: / Line 59: @@
 <onlyinclude>{{Episode table |caption=''Bonanza'', season 14 episodes |background=#c5b358|overall=4|season=4|title= 20|director=15 |writer=19|airdate= 14|episodes=
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | NumParts=2
 | EpisodeNumber_1=416
@@ Line 69: / Line 74: @@
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=418
 | EpisodeNumber2=3
@@ Line 79: / Line 84: @@
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=419
 | EpisodeNumber2=4
@@ Line 89: / Line 94: @@
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=420
 | EpisodeNumber2=5
@@ Line 100: / Line 105: @@
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=421
 | EpisodeNumber2=6
@@ Line 110: / Line 115: @@
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=422
 | EpisodeNumber2=7
@@ Line 120: / Line 125: @@
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=423
 | EpisodeNumber2=8
 | Title=The 26th Grave
-| DirectedBy=[[Nicholas Colasanto]]
+| DirectedBy=Nicholas Colasanto
 | WrittenBy=[[Stanley Roberts (screenwriter)|Stanley Roberts]]
 | OriginalAirDate={{start date|1972|10|31}}
@@ Line 130: / Line 135: @@
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=424
 | EpisodeNumber2=9
@@ Line 140: / Line 145: @@
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=425
 | EpisodeNumber2=10
@@ Line 150: / Line 155: @@
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=426
 | EpisodeNumber2=11
@@ Line 160: / Line 165: @@
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=427
 | EpisodeNumber2=12
@@ Line 170: / Line 175: @@
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=428
 | EpisodeNumber2=13
@@ Line 180: / Line 185: @@
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=429
 | EpisodeNumber2=14
@@ Line 190: / Line 195: @@
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=430
 | EpisodeNumber2=15
@@ Line 198: / Line 203: @@
 | OriginalAirDate={{start date|1973|1|9}}
 | ShortSummary= Unknown to the Cartwrights, Griff is asked to be a government witness in helping to bring a gang of war criminals to justice and Griff is asked to pose as the husband of beautiful Theodora Duffy ([[Karen Carlson]]), whom the Cartwrights think Griff had abandoned years ago.
-''Note'': This episode features the final appearances of Candy Canaday and Griff King and Victor Sen Yung as Hop Sing.
-''Note'': Last episode filmed, but broadcast second to last based on edict from NBC that a season finale episode could not be focused on character(s) that weren't Cartwrights.
 | LineColor=c5b358
 }}
-{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza (season 14)
+{{Episode list/sublist|Bonanza season 14
 | EpisodeNumber=431
 | EpisodeNumber2=16
@@ Line 216: / Line 218: @@
 == Release ==
-Season fourteen aired on Tuesdays from 8:00{{Nbsp}}pm{{Ndash}}9:00{{Nbsp}}pm on [[NBC]].{{sfn|Brooks|Marsh|2007|p=164}}
+For season fourteen, ''Bonanza'' was moved from its previous Sunday night 9:00{{Nbsp}}pm{{Ndash}}10:00{{Nbsp}}pm timeslot to Tuesdays from 8:00{{Nbsp}}pm{{Ndash}}9:00{{Nbsp}}pm on [[NBC]].{{sfn|Brooks|Marsh|2007|p=164}}  On Tuesdays, it was opposite ''[[Maude (TV series)|Maude]]'' and ''[[Hawaii Five-O (1968 TV series)|Hawaii Five-O]]'' on [[CBS]] and ''[[Temperatures Rising]]'' and the ''[[ABC Movie of the Week|Tuesday Movie of the Week]]'' on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]].{{Sfn|Brooks|Marsh|2007|pp=1594-1595}}
 ==Reception==
+The move from Sunday to Tuesday did not help the show's declining ratings.  ''Hawaii Five-O'' was already the leader on Tuesdays, at 12 overall in the [[Nielsen Ratings|Nielsen ratings]] for the previous season.<ref>{{Cite web |title=TV Ratings: 1971–1972 |url=https://classictvguide.com/tvratings/1971.htm |access-date=2023-10-11 |website=classictvguide.com}}</ref> By the 1972 season, ''Hawaii Five-O'' gained in the ratings, lifting ''Maude'' along with it, topping the Tuesday ratings and securing the number 3 and 4 spots respectively overall.  ''Bonanza'' fell out of the top 30.<ref name="ratings" />
-The final season fell out of the top 30 in the [[Nielsen Ratings|Nielsen ratings]].<ref name="ratings" />
 ==References==
@@ Line 232: / Line 234: @@
 *{{cite book|last=McNeil |first=Alex |title=Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present |location=New York |publisher=[[Penguin Books]] |isbn=0-14-02-4916-8 |date=1996 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dctkAAAAMAAJ}}
 *{{cite book |title=Bonanza: The Definitive Ponderosa Companion |first=Melany |last=Shapiro |publisher=Cyclone Books |date=1997 |isbn=978-1-890723-18-7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zI4LAAAACAAJ }}
+==External links==
+* {{IMDb episodes|0052451|Bonanza {{noitalic|season 14}}}}
+* [https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/bonanza/episodes-season-14/1030242320/ ''Bonanza'' season 14] at ''[[TV Guide]]''
+* {{Epguides|id=Bonanza}}
 {{Bonanza}}
 [[Category:Bonanza seasons]]
+[[Category:1972 American television seasons]]
+[[Category:1973 American television seasons]]

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