Which was a better Western........Gunsmoke or Bonanza?

[jon_berzerk]

No, but in comparison to the rest of Eastwood's spaghetti westerns, it was a BIG improvement.

He and his movies improved considerably as he aged, in my opinion Unforgiven was a masterpiece probably the best western he ever did.

i love all of his westerns

even with some of the more obvious flaws

i suppose that is what sets them apart

Don't get me wrong, I like many of the old westerns, Jimmy Stewart was always one of my favorites though there was little to nothing historically correct about any of his westerns. Same with John Wayne though a few of his were fairly historically correct primarily in terms of clothing, weapons, etc.

one of my all time favorite lines is from

the good the bad and the ugly

eastwood says "you see in this world there are 2 kinds of people my friend those with loaded guns and those who dig - you dig"

--LOL

I think I watched about ten minutes of that movie and bits and pieces when someone else was watching it and I walked through the living room like last week when my wife of all people was kinda sorta watching it. For her I think it was more background noise as she played on her laptop, I was in my office watching something else on my computer.

whenever the family is together and it gets to some tv time

we all pretty much settle for an old western

i like some of the new ones also

the 3:10 to Yuma is really good

the salvation is another one

 

[hjmick]

He and his movies improved considerably as he aged, in my opinion Unforgiven was a masterpiece probably the best western he ever did.

i love all of his westerns

even with some of the more obvious flaws

i suppose that is what sets them apart

Don't get me wrong, I like many of the old westerns, Jimmy Stewart was always one of my favorites though there was little to nothing historically correct about any of his westerns. Same with John Wayne though a few of his were fairly historically correct primarily in terms of clothing, weapons, etc.

one of my all time favorite lines is from

the good the bad and the ugly

eastwood says "you see in this world there are 2 kinds of people my friend those with loaded guns and those who dig - you dig"

--LOL

I think I watched about ten minutes of that movie and bits and pieces when someone else was watching it and I walked through the living room like last week when my wife of all people was kinda sorta watching it. For her I think it was more background noise as she played on her laptop, I was in my office watching something else on my computer.

whenever the family is together and it gets to some tv time

we all pretty much settle for an old western

i like some of the new ones also

the 3:10 to Yuma is really good

the salvation is another one

Check out The Proposition.

 

[Uncensored2008]

I used to love Bonanza but watching it now it seems the writing and acting was kind of corny. Can you get any more racist than Hop Sing?

Gunsmoke has held up well. Good acting and good screenwriting. They also covered more socially relevant issues

You're an idiot and a racist,

Hop Sing (Sen Yung) was in real life exactly as the character he portrayed, a master chef.

Sen Yung authored The Great Wok Cookbook in 1974.

Gunsmoke was by far the better Western, Bonanza concentrated more on family dynamics and played fast and loose with the period settings.

 

[Uncensored2008]

Django Unchained was a really good Western. It was like an entire movie made from the best scenes of Inglorious Basterds, but with cowboys and slave-owners instead of hero's and Nazi's.

It was an entertaining fiction, but a shitty Western. Django Unchained was a fantasy less connected to reality than the Harry Potter movies.

 

[jon_berzerk]

i love all of his westerns

even with some of the more obvious flaws

i suppose that is what sets them apart

Don't get me wrong, I like many of the old westerns, Jimmy Stewart was always one of my favorites though there was little to nothing historically correct about any of his westerns. Same with John Wayne though a few of his were fairly historically correct primarily in terms of clothing, weapons, etc.

one of my all time favorite lines is from

the good the bad and the ugly

eastwood says "you see in this world there are 2 kinds of people my friend those with loaded guns and those who dig - you dig"

--LOL

I think I watched about ten minutes of that movie and bits and pieces when someone else was watching it and I walked through the living room like last week when my wife of all people was kinda sorta watching it. For her I think it was more background noise as she played on her laptop, I was in my office watching something else on my computer.

whenever the family is together and it gets to some tv time

we all pretty much settle for an old western

i like some of the new ones also

the 3:10 to Yuma is really good

the salvation is another one

Check out The Proposition.

thanks i will

i also like a cute little movie by Dwight Yoakam

south of heaven west of hell

 

[Vandalshandle]

Without a doubt. The best of the era was Wagon Train.

Bonanza was lightweight. Gunsmoke was better, but I could not quite buy in to Kitty, who played the owner of a saloon who was pretty much the marshall's girlfriend, when in the real world, she would have been the madam of a whorehouse. Doc was a good character actor, but after having removed at least 100 bullets from Matt over the years, I began to question the authenticity of the show. Matt's deputy was also a little hard to buy in to, providing comedy relief when needed, but as tough as nails when up against the bad guys. I guess that was an improvement over the days when they were putting on Roy Rogers, when the side kick was ALWAYS an incompetent clown.

 

[yiostheoy]

I used to love Bonanza but watching it now it seems the writing and acting was kind of corny. Can you get any more racist than Hop Sing?

Gunsmoke has held up well. Good acting and good screenwriting. They also covered more socially relevant issues

I used to watch all these TV Westerns.

My favorite was "Have Gun Will Travel" with Richard Boone. Nielsen rated the show #3 during its early seasons.

Boone was an actual descendent Daniel Boone on his father's side.

His mother was Jewish from Russia so he was 50% Jewish and thus entitled to call himself Jewish since born to a 100% Jewish mother. There is no record of his religious activity if any at all.

He was a combat naval veteran of WW2 in the Pacific as a tail gunner on a bomber.

His TV character "Paladin" (means knight of Charlemagne's court) was my role model as a kid.

Loved that show and lived for it !!

Watched all the other TV Westerns too, but not as devotedly.

 

[rightwinger]

I used to love Bonanza but watching it now it seems the writing and acting was kind of corny. Can you get any more racist than Hop Sing?

Gunsmoke has held up well. Good acting and good screenwriting. They also covered more socially relevant issues

You're an idiot and a racist,

Hop Sing (Sen Yung) was in real life exactly as the character he portrayed, a master chef.

Sen Yung authored The Great Wok Cookbook in 1974.

Gunsmoke was by far the better Western, Bonanza concentrated more on family dynamics and played fast and loose with the period settings.

Oh Missa Hoss.....you eat too much, make Hop Sing mad, you be solly

 

[Vandalshandle]

All of this leads, of course to which was the best spy show , and the best spy spoof, during the 1960's. I vote for Mission Impossible as best spy drama (Martin Landau was great, and I had a tremendous crush on his wife, What'shername!), and Get Smart as best spoof.

 

[yiostheoy]

Without a doubt. The best of the era was Wagon Train.

Bonanza was lightweight. Gunsmoke was better, but I could not quite buy in to Kitty, who played the owner of a saloon who was pretty much the marshall's girlfriend, when in the real world, she would have been the madam of a whorehouse. Doc was a good character actor, but after having removed at least 100 bullets from Matt over the years, I began to question the authenticity of the show. Matt's deputy was also a little hard to buy in to, providing comedy relief when needed, but as tough as nails when up against the bad guys. I guess that was an improvement over the days when they were putting on Roy Rogers, when the side kick was ALWAYS an incompetent clown.

I now love watching the Wagon Train re-runs on the 60's channel, particularly since all those dynamics apply to the settling of the American West including Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Oregon, and California. I have lived in the Rockies and California for the past 45 years except for a brief tour of duty in Virginia.

Free land in the West was a strong allure to Easterners. The West was mostly beef cattle country, so the long cattle drives to Kansas City or hides to San Francisco was the main economic dynamo of those days. Subsistence farming or ranching was the main economy.

The Wagon Train features showed how they got here. It is historic.

 

[yiostheoy]

All of this leads, of course to which was the best spy show , and the best spy spoof, during the 1960's. I vote for Mission Impossible as best spy drama (Martin Landau was great, and I had a tremendous crush on his wife, What'shername!), and Get Smart as best spoof.

Need a new thread.

 

[Bush92]

I used to love Bonanza but watching it now it seems the writing and acting was kind of corny. Can you get any more racist than Hop Sing?

Gunsmoke has held up well. Good acting and good screenwriting. They also covered more socially relevant issues

Eh, wasn't really big on either one. Now F Troop on the other hand.........

F Troop was like a mini-documentary on the Old West

Never figured out the relationship between Capt Parmenter and Jane though

I was never very big on any of the TV western series I preferred western movies, to a degree besides I still don't watch much TV even now. I'm probably one of the very few who truly hated the spaghetti westerns with a passion, yes that includes the Clint Eastwood ones. Loved the old John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart ones but laugh at most of them now.

Even * Mules for Sister Sarah? (Can't remember the number)

2

 

[Vandalshandle]

Naw, I suspect that Gunsmoke and Bonanza are pretty much over with, so I thought I would keep it going with something similar.

I remember. Barbara Bain was married to Martin Landau:

 

[Ringel05]

He and his movies improved considerably as he aged, in my opinion Unforgiven was a masterpiece probably the best western he ever did.

i love all of his westerns

even with some of the more obvious flaws

i suppose that is what sets them apart

Don't get me wrong, I like many of the old westerns, Jimmy Stewart was always one of my favorites though there was little to nothing historically correct about any of his westerns. Same with John Wayne though a few of his were fairly historically correct primarily in terms of clothing, weapons, etc.

one of my all time favorite lines is from

the good the bad and the ugly

eastwood says "you see in this world there are 2 kinds of people my friend those with loaded guns and those who dig - you dig"

--LOL

I think I watched about ten minutes of that movie and bits and pieces when someone else was watching it and I walked through the living room like last week when my wife of all people was kinda sorta watching it. For her I think it was more background noise as she played on her laptop, I was in my office watching something else on my computer.

whenever the family is together and it gets to some tv time

we all pretty much settle for an old western

i like some of the new ones also

the 3:10 to Yuma is really good

the salvation is another one

Most of the early westerns (50s, 60s and 70s) were Hollywood's version of the dime novel. Since I'm a historian and a living historian to boot the biggest issue for me is historical accuracy. Granted though I definitely like many historically incorrect movies I still look for details and most movies supposedly based on historical events fall short in many areas. Since it's Hollywood I expect it so I'm not disappointed when they "Hollywood" a story so look at it for the entertainment value, conversely I'm pleasantly surprised when they get it mostly correct.
Nowadays I find it amusing to see a western that is supposedly late 1860s, early 1870s and everyone is running around in jeans, modern cowboy boots, modern cowboy hats, 1894 Winchesters and M1873s revolvers (Peacemakers), modern (1930s style) holsters, etc.
Even those movies that are set in the 1880s everyone has Winchesters and Peacemakers......... not.....

 

[jon_berzerk]

All of this leads, of course to which was the best spy show , and the best spy spoof, during the 1960's. I vote for Mission Impossible as best spy drama (Martin Landau was great, and I had a tremendous crush on his wife, What'shername!), and Get Smart as best spoof.

Get Smart without question

 

[jon_berzerk]

i love all of his westerns

even with some of the more obvious flaws

i suppose that is what sets them apart

Don't get me wrong, I like many of the old westerns, Jimmy Stewart was always one of my favorites though there was little to nothing historically correct about any of his westerns. Same with John Wayne though a few of his were fairly historically correct primarily in terms of clothing, weapons, etc.

one of my all time favorite lines is from

the good the bad and the ugly

eastwood says "you see in this world there are 2 kinds of people my friend those with loaded guns and those who dig - you dig"

--LOL

I think I watched about ten minutes of that movie and bits and pieces when someone else was watching it and I walked through the living room like last week when my wife of all people was kinda sorta watching it. For her I think it was more background noise as she played on her laptop, I was in my office watching something else on my computer.

whenever the family is together and it gets to some tv time

we all pretty much settle for an old western

i like some of the new ones also

the 3:10 to Yuma is really good

the salvation is another one

Most of the early westerns (50s, 60s and 70s) were Hollywood's version of the dime novel. Since I'm a historian and a living historian to boot the biggest issue for me is historical accuracy. Granted though I definitely like many historically incorrect movies I still look for details and most movies supposedly based on historical events fall short in many areas. Since it's Hollywood I expect it so I'm not disappointed when they "Hollywood" a story so look at it for the entertainment value, conversely I'm pleasantly surprised when they get it mostly correct.
Nowadays I find it amusing to see a western that is supposedly late 1860s, early 1870s and everyone is running around in jeans, modern cowboy boots, modern cowboy hats, 1894 Winchesters and M1873s revolvers (Peacemakers), modern (1930s style) holsters, etc.
Even those movies that are set in the 1880s everyone has Winchesters and Peacemakers......... not.....

yeah

i get a kick out of the scenes with the pistol being a cap and ball revolver

with the holster holding bullets

--LOL

 

[Vandalshandle]

i love all of his westerns

even with some of the more obvious flaws

i suppose that is what sets them apart

Don't get me wrong, I like many of the old westerns, Jimmy Stewart was always one of my favorites though there was little to nothing historically correct about any of his westerns. Same with John Wayne though a few of his were fairly historically correct primarily in terms of clothing, weapons, etc.

one of my all time favorite lines is from

the good the bad and the ugly

eastwood says "you see in this world there are 2 kinds of people my friend those with loaded guns and those who dig - you dig"

--LOL

I think I watched about ten minutes of that movie and bits and pieces when someone else was watching it and I walked through the living room like last week when my wife of all people was kinda sorta watching it. For her I think it was more background noise as she played on her laptop, I was in my office watching something else on my computer.

whenever the family is together and it gets to some tv time

we all pretty much settle for an old western

i like some of the new ones also

the 3:10 to Yuma is really good

the salvation is another one

Most of the early westerns (50s, 60s and 70s) were Hollywood's version of the dime novel. Since I'm a historian and a living historian to boot the biggest issue for me is historical accuracy. Granted though I definitely like many historically incorrect movies I still look for details and most movies supposedly based on historical events fall short in many areas. Since it's Hollywood I expect it so I'm not disappointed when they "Hollywood" a story so look at it for the entertainment value, conversely I'm pleasantly surprised when they get it mostly correct.
Nowadays I find it amusing to see a western that is supposedly late 1860s, early 1870s and everyone is running around in jeans, modern cowboy boots, modern cowboy hats, 1894 Winchesters and M1873s revolvers (Peacemakers), modern (1930s style) holsters, etc.
Even those movies that are set in the 1880s everyone has Winchesters and Peacemakers......... not.....

There is a scene in High Noon, where they failed to edit out a telephone pole.

 

[rightwinger]

i love all of his westerns

even with some of the more obvious flaws

i suppose that is what sets them apart

Don't get me wrong, I like many of the old westerns, Jimmy Stewart was always one of my favorites though there was little to nothing historically correct about any of his westerns. Same with John Wayne though a few of his were fairly historically correct primarily in terms of clothing, weapons, etc.

one of my all time favorite lines is from

the good the bad and the ugly

eastwood says "you see in this world there are 2 kinds of people my friend those with loaded guns and those who dig - you dig"

--LOL

I think I watched about ten minutes of that movie and bits and pieces when someone else was watching it and I walked through the living room like last week when my wife of all people was kinda sorta watching it. For her I think it was more background noise as she played on her laptop, I was in my office watching something else on my computer.

whenever the family is together and it gets to some tv time

we all pretty much settle for an old western

i like some of the new ones also

the 3:10 to Yuma is really good

the salvation is another one

Most of the early westerns (50s, 60s and 70s) were Hollywood's version of the dime novel. Since I'm a historian and a living historian to boot the biggest issue for me is historical accuracy. Granted though I definitely like many historically incorrect movies I still look for details and most movies supposedly based on historical events fall short in many areas. Since it's Hollywood I expect it so I'm not disappointed when they "Hollywood" a story so look at it for the entertainment value, conversely I'm pleasantly surprised when they get it mostly correct.
Nowadays I find it amusing to see a western that is supposedly late 1860s, early 1870s and everyone is running around in jeans, modern cowboy boots, modern cowboy hats, 1894 Winchesters and M1873s revolvers (Peacemakers), modern (1930s style) holsters, etc.
Even those movies that are set in the 1880s everyone has Winchesters and Peacemakers......... not.....

Face it
Most of the "real west" was kind of boring

Hard work, isolation, disease, early death

 

[Ringel05]

Don't get me wrong, I like many of the old westerns, Jimmy Stewart was always one of my favorites though there was little to nothing historically correct about any of his westerns. Same with John Wayne though a few of his were fairly historically correct primarily in terms of clothing, weapons, etc.

one of my all time favorite lines is from

the good the bad and the ugly

eastwood says "you see in this world there are 2 kinds of people my friend those with loaded guns and those who dig - you dig"

--LOL

I think I watched about ten minutes of that movie and bits and pieces when someone else was watching it and I walked through the living room like last week when my wife of all people was kinda sorta watching it. For her I think it was more background noise as she played on her laptop, I was in my office watching something else on my computer.

whenever the family is together and it gets to some tv time

we all pretty much settle for an old western

i like some of the new ones also

the 3:10 to Yuma is really good

the salvation is another one

Most of the early westerns (50s, 60s and 70s) were Hollywood's version of the dime novel. Since I'm a historian and a living historian to boot the biggest issue for me is historical accuracy. Granted though I definitely like many historically incorrect movies I still look for details and most movies supposedly based on historical events fall short in many areas. Since it's Hollywood I expect it so I'm not disappointed when they "Hollywood" a story so look at it for the entertainment value, conversely I'm pleasantly surprised when they get it mostly correct.
Nowadays I find it amusing to see a western that is supposedly late 1860s, early 1870s and everyone is running around in jeans, modern cowboy boots, modern cowboy hats, 1894 Winchesters and M1873s revolvers (Peacemakers), modern (1930s style) holsters, etc.
Even those movies that are set in the 1880s everyone has Winchesters and Peacemakers......... not.....

There is a scene in High Noon, where they failed to edit out a telephone pole.

Pretend it's a telegraph pole........

 

[jon_berzerk]

Don't get me wrong, I like many of the old westerns, Jimmy Stewart was always one of my favorites though there was little to nothing historically correct about any of his westerns. Same with John Wayne though a few of his were fairly historically correct primarily in terms of clothing, weapons, etc.

one of my all time favorite lines is from

the good the bad and the ugly

eastwood says "you see in this world there are 2 kinds of people my friend those with loaded guns and those who dig - you dig"

--LOL

I think I watched about ten minutes of that movie and bits and pieces when someone else was watching it and I walked through the living room like last week when my wife of all people was kinda sorta watching it. For her I think it was more background noise as she played on her laptop, I was in my office watching something else on my computer.

whenever the family is together and it gets to some tv time

we all pretty much settle for an old western

i like some of the new ones also

the 3:10 to Yuma is really good

the salvation is another one

Most of the early westerns (50s, 60s and 70s) were Hollywood's version of the dime novel. Since I'm a historian and a living historian to boot the biggest issue for me is historical accuracy. Granted though I definitely like many historically incorrect movies I still look for details and most movies supposedly based on historical events fall short in many areas. Since it's Hollywood I expect it so I'm not disappointed when they "Hollywood" a story so look at it for the entertainment value, conversely I'm pleasantly surprised when they get it mostly correct.
Nowadays I find it amusing to see a western that is supposedly late 1860s, early 1870s and everyone is running around in jeans, modern cowboy boots, modern cowboy hats, 1894 Winchesters and M1873s revolvers (Peacemakers), modern (1930s style) holsters, etc.
Even those movies that are set in the 1880s everyone has Winchesters and Peacemakers......... not.....

There is a scene in High Noon, where they failed to edit out a telephone pole.

yeah there is a radio tower in dances with wolves also

--LOL