The Big Valley
| The Big Valley | |
|---|---|
| File:The Big Valley tv.jpg The cast of The Big Valley From Top Left: Heath, Nick, Jarrod, Audra, Victoria | |
| Genre | Western |
| Created by | A.I. Bezzerides Louis F. Edelman |
| Starring | Barbara Stanwyck Richard Long Lee Majors Linda Evans Peter Breck |
| Country of origin | United States. |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 4 |
| No. of episodes | 112 |
| Production | |
| Running time | 45–48 minutes |
| Production companies | Levee-Gardner-Laven Productions Four Star Television Margate |
| Original release | |
| Network | ABC |
| Release | September 15, 1965 – May 19, 1969 |
The Big Valley is an American western television series which ran on ABC from September 15, 1965, to May 19, 1969. The show stars Barbara Stanwyck, as the widow of a wealthy nineteenth century California rancher. It was created by A.I. Bezzerides and Louis F. Edelman, and produced by Levy-Gardner-Laven for Four Star Television.
Historical background
The TV series was based loosely on the Hill Ranch located at the western edge of Calaveras County, not far from Stockton. One episode placed the Barkley Ranch a few hours' ride from town while another has Jarrod riding past a Calaveras County sign on his way to the TV series' ranch.[citation needed] The Hill Ranch existed from 1855 until 1931, exceeded 1,000 acres (4.0 km2), and had the Mokelumne River running through it. Lawson Hill ran the ranch until he was murdered in 1861. His wife Euphemia (aka "Auntie Hill") then became the matriarch. During their marriage they had four children, one daughter and three sons. Today, the location of the ranch is covered by the waters of Lake Camanche. A California state historical marker standing at Camanche South Shore Park mentions the historic ranch. The set used to film the exterior of the Barkley Mansion stood on the back-lot of Republic Studios from 1947 until 1975.
In the first episode, "Palms of Glory," the grave of Thomas Barkley (1813–1870) is shown after it is commented that he fought the railroad six years ago establishing that the show was initially set no later than 1876.
In "The Odyssey of Jubal Tanner", Jubal states to Victoria Barkley that he's been gone 30 years since his wife Margaret Tanner's death, her grave showing her passing away in 1854; this appears to indicate that the series starts in 1884. However, in another episode, a newly dug grave has a marker with the year 1878, so the best can be said is that the events of the series take place sometime in the late 1870s or early 1880s.
Characters
Main
- Victoria Barkley, portrayed by Barbara Stanwyck, was the widow of Thomas Barkley. She was the head of the wealthy, influential Barkley family who lived in 19th century Stockton in California's Central Valley. She was the main character of the series. Victoria Barkley was the owner and head of the Barkley ranch. In fact, Stanwyck's refusal to portray Barkley as fragile was controversial at the time. Barkley's husband had been killed six years prior to the beginning of the series. Victoria Barkley loved and was proud of all her children, including her late husband's illegitimate son, Heath, whom she would refer to as "my son." Stanwyck, who was able to go effortlessly and convincingly from the refined, elegant lady of the manor to a jean clad cowgirl as tough as any cowboy, appeared in the most episodes for a total of 103 of the 112 episodes. Her episodes were often surprisingly hard hitting, seeing her character either locked away in a lunatic asylum to prevent her testifying as eyewitness at a murder trial ("Down Shadow Street"), or taken prisoner in a prison wagon to replace a dead female convict ("Four Days to Furnace Hill"), or trapped underground following a cave-in ("Earthquake"). Stanwyck always took her featured lead roles with all the confidence of a Hollywood legend, being both credibly warm and tough where the scripts required.
- Jarrod Thomas Barkley, the eldest son, was a respected attorney. Richard Long played the role of the educated, refined and calmer of the Barkley sons who handled all of the family's legal and business affairs. While Jarrod preferred the law to settle disputes, he was known to resort to frontier justice and violence when necessary. He was briefly married in one episode ("Days of Wrath") only to see his new wife murdered, with a bullet intended for him. It was a memorable episode in which an enraged Jarrod loses all his calm genteel mannerisms, then relentlessly tracks down the killer. He's in the midst of killing him with his bare hands, before he's stopped by Nick and Heath. Long appeared in 96 of the 112 episodes.
- Nicholas "Nick" Jonathan Barkley, the hot-tempered brawling younger son who managed the family ranch, was portrayed by Peter Breck. Well known for his black leather vests, large black hat and black leather gloves, as well as his loud and brawling demeanor, he was notorious for getting into fist fights. At times, he would fight with his brothers as well, though underneath the gruff surface he was warm and caring, had a fun-loving carefree side, a great sense of humor, and loved his family deeply. Breck appeared in 101 of the 112 episodes.
- Audra Barkley, played by Linda Evans, was Victoria's only daughter. Audra was somewhat self-absorbed, bold, and forward. Far from demure, she performed daring stunts and rode astride, like her brothers. Audra, like Nick and Eugene, was initially leery of Heath's story that he was her father's son. Early on, she unsuccessfully attempted to seduce Heath, so as to expose him as a fraud. Later however, Audra and Heath became very close as a real brother-and-sister bond developed between them. She also had a caring side, displayed by tending to children from the local orphanage. A few episodes dealt with her romances, one notable episode being "My Son My Son" in which Robert Walker Jr. guests as a suitor who proves to be mentally unstable. During the show's final two seasons, Evans' appearances were reduced because she wanted to spend more time with her husband John Derek.
- Heath Barkley was the illegitimate son of Victoria's late husband, and he literally had to fight his way into the Barkley home. Lee Majors portrayed even-tempered but rough and tumble Heath, who was often angry and aggressive throughout the early episodes due to his belief that Tom Barkley had abandoned his real mother after she became pregnant. In truth, Tom Barkley never knew about Heath, as Heath's mother had never told him, and never even told Heath until she was on her deathbed. Heath gradually gained acceptance from the rest of the Barkley clan as the first season progressed until he became as much a "Barkley" as the rest of the family, and his love for them became equal. Heath would come to call Victoria "Mother" when speaking to her directly and about her with his siblings. Although Nick was initially leery of Heath and felt he had to test Heath's mettle, Heath would go on to prove himself worthy of even Nick's acceptance, and eventually Nick seemed to grow even closer to Heath than he was to Jarrod, perhaps in a sense due to Heath having more in common with him than Jarrod did. Audra became closer to Heath than either of her other brothers. Majors, who is initially very blond-haired but gradually gets darker haired as the show continues, appeared in 95 of the 112 episodes.
Minor
- The youngest Barkley son was Eugene, a medical student studying at Berkeley, played by Charles Briles. Like his older brothers he was known to have a temper as seen in the Season 1 episode "Boots with My Father's Name". He was seen sporadically in only eight first season episodes and then written out. Only once was his name ever mentioned again. In 1965, Briles was drafted by the United States Army, but was given a deferment long enough for him to complete filming the first season. Briles' unit did all their training in California and he was never shipped to Vietnam. By the time he got out of the army, however, the series had been cancelled.[1]
- Douglas Kennedy, formerly of Steve Donovan, Western Marshal appeared twenty-three times on The Big Valley as Sheriff Fred Madden.
- The regular cast was rounded out by Napoleon Whiting, as Silas, the Barkleys' majordomo.
Episodes
Season 1: 1965-66
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Season 2: 1966-67
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Season 3: 1967-68
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Season 4: 1968-69
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Guest stars
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The Big Valley was well known for its plethora of guest stars. Among others:
Popularity
Despite the show's popularity, the series' ratings never made the top thirty in the yearly ratings charts. The Big Valley was canceled in 1969 as the TV western craze began to fade out to make room for more modern shows.[2] In Ella Smith's 1973 biography, "Starring Miss Barbara Stanwyck," Smith noted that "Valley" had been cancelled by ABC mainly due to a poor time slot. In better times, the series had been enough of a hit to outlive various time slot rivals during its run (mainly on Monday nights at 10 p.m.), including "The Jean Arthur Show," "Run for Your Life" and "I Spy." According to Broadcasting magazine (September 27, 1965), its debut episode (actually Wednesday at 9 p.m., where the show aired for half-a-season) placed #39 in the Nielsen ratings for the week of September 13-19, 1965.
"Valley" was also ranked as one of the top five favorite new shows in viewer TVQ polling (the others were "Get Smart," "I Dream of Jeannie," "Lost in Space" and "F Troop"). Early into its second season, "Valley" was still a mid-range performer, placing #47 of 88 shows during the week of October 28, 1966, higher than such shows as "That Girl," "Daniel Boone," "Petticoat Junction" and "The Wild, Wild West." Indeed, "Valley" was popular enough to warrant at least three "TV Guide" covers. It also acted as a launching pad for two projected spinoffs from special episodes. A 1968 episode guest starring Van Williams was meant to lead to a "Rifleman"-like series titled "Rimfire." A March 1969 episode, "The Royal Road," guest-starring then-heartthrob Sajid Khan as a young rogue, was also hoped to lead to a series. But by that year the rising popularity of CBS's "The Carol Burnett Show" — and vocal complaints by Joey Bishop, ABC's late-night talk show host, that "Valley"'s faltering ratings weren't helping to provide his program with a proper lead-in — ultimately lead to the drama's demise. It was in syndication that "The Big Valley" would prove exceptionally popular in the U.S., Europe and Latin America.
In 1980's smash hit comedy flick "Airplane!" the wacky air-traffic controller Johnny, played by the late Stephen Stucker, paid homage to "Valley"'s penchant for big drama in one of his many asides. After Lloyd Bridges frets about a pilot who cracked under pressure, Johnny tosses out this hilarious non sequitur: "It happened to Barbara Stanwyck! 'Nick, Heath, Jarrod — there's a fire in the barn!'"[3] "The Big Valley" has also seeped into the darker cinematic subconscious. In "Bug," an acclaimed 2006 thriller starring Ashley Judd and Michael Shannon as drug addicts, their characters spiral into a hallucination that leads them to imagine tiny bugs have invaded their dwelling, with one referring to the little critters as "matriarchal aphids" that act "like Barbara Stanwyck in 'Big Valley.'"[4]
Awards
In 1966, for her first season as Victoria Barkley, Barbara Stanwyck won the Emmy for lead actress in a drama series. She was nominated two more times (1967 and 1968) for her work in "The Big Valley" and earned three Golden Globe nominations as "Best TV Star" for the part as well (1966, 1967, 1968). And, on March 15, 1967, Stanwyck was named favorite TV actress at the Photoplay magazine awards, which aired as a special episode of "The Merv Griffin Show" (David Janssen of "The Fugitive" was named favorite TV actor). Richard Long helped present Stanwyck her "Gold Medal" at the event.
"The Big Valley" was also recognized during its run for its polished production. In 1966 and 1968, the American Cinema Editors (ACE) named "Valley" the year's Best Edited Television Program (for the episodes "40 Rifles" and "Disappearance," respectively).
Production notes
While The Big Valley is set primarily in and near the city of Stockton, the filming of the series took place in Southern California.
Crew
The theme music was composed by George Duning. Paul Henreid, of Casablanca fame, directed a number of episodes. Four Star Television produced the series.
Wilfred M. Cline, A.S.C., Technicolor Associate Cinematographer on Gone with the Wind (1939), was director of photography of several Big Valley episodes, together with Chas E. Burke, A.S.C.
Adaptations
Comic book
Dell Comics published a short-lived comic book for six issues in 1966-69. (the last issue reprinted the first, and came out two years after issue #5). All issues had photo covers.
Film
Film columnist Patrick Goldstein reported in the Los Angeles Times in July 2009 that filmmakers Daniel Adams and Kate Edelman Johnson were producing a feature film version of The Big Valley with production to begin in April 2010 in New Mexico and Michigan.[5] In 2012, the aforementioned film version of "The Big Valley", which was to have first starred Susan Sarandon and then Jessica Lange in the role of Victoria Barkley, was put on hold indefinitely in after the film's would-be director, Daniel Adams, was indicted for fraud pertaining to two previous films and sued by investors in "Valley" who claimed foul as well. [6] [7] [8] [9]
Several episodes of the original TV series have been combined into concurrent running feature length TV movies, while the notable two part episodes: 'Legend of A General' and 'Explosion !' have also been made into feature length TV Movies. These have also been issued as TV Movies on DVD as a box set, along with seasons one and two.
DVD releases
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment released the first season on DVD in Region 1 on May 16, 2006.[10] Season 2, Volume 1 was released on January 30, 2007.[11] Season 2, Volume 2 has yet to be released and it is unknown if it ever will be.
References
- ^ Outlier Magazine. "The Big Valley's Lost Son". Retrieved March 17, 2012.
- ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westerns_on_television
- ^ http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/d35c61f4b0/the-best-of-johnny-from-airplane-from-airplanefan
- ^ http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2007/nov/11/horror.thriller
- ^ "The Remake Watch: 'Big Valley' edition". Los Angeles Times. 2009-07-15. Retrieved 2009-07-26.
- ^ http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/susan-sarandon-eyeing-big-valley-20536
- ^ http://www.etonline.com/news/87482_Jessica_Lange_Takes_The_Big_Valley_to_the_Big_Screen/index.html
- ^ http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/movie-director-tax-rebate-massachusetts-272419
- ^ http://www.courthousenews.com/2012/07/31/48840.htm
- ^ http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Big-Valley/6676
- ^ http://www.tvshowsondvd.com/news/Big-Valley/6676
External links
- 1965 television series debuts
- 1969 television series endings
- 1960s American television series
- American Broadcasting Company network shows
- Dell Comics titles
- English-language television series
- Television series by Four Star Television
- Television series by Fox Television Studios
- Television shows set in California
- Western (genre) television series