Frontier Circus

Frontier Circus is an American Western television series about a traveling circus roaming the American West in the 1880s. Filmed by Revue Productions, the program originally aired on CBS from October 5, 1961, until September 20, 1962.[1] It was also shown on the BBC in England.[2]

Frontier Circus
James Barton with Nan Peterson (left) and Jackie Russell in "The Clan MacDuff" episode, 1962
GenreWestern
Created bySamuel A. Peeples
Written by
Directed by
Starring
ComposerDavid Buttolph
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes26
Production
Camera setupSingle-camera
Running time60 minutes
Production companies
Release
Original networkCBS
Original releaseOctober 5, 1961 (1961-10-05) –
September 6, 1962 (1962-09-06)

Overview

The show's setting was the T & T Circus in the late 1800s in the American Southwest.[1] Colonel Casey Thompson, played by Chill Wills, and Ben Travis, played by John Derek, were the co-owners. Richard Jaeckel portrayed Tony Gentry, the circus's scout.[2]

Episodes depicted interactions of circus personnel with each other and with outsiders whom they encountered as they traveled from one town to another via wagon train.[1] (The TV series Wagon Train provided inspiration for Frontier Circus.[3])

Guest stars

Episodes
No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
1"The Depths of Fear"William WitneySamuel A. PeeplesOctober 5, 1961 (1961-10-05)
2"The Smallest Target"UnknownUnknownOctober 12, 1961 (1961-10-12)
3"Lippizan"William WitneyStory by : Dorothy C. Fontana
Teleplay by : Lawrence Kimble		October 19, 1961 (1961-10-19)
4"Dr. Sam"John EnglishJean HollowayOctober 26, 1961 (1961-10-26)
5"The Hunter and the Hunted"Alan Crosland Jr.Frank PriceNovember 2, 1961 (1961-11-02)
6"Karina"Sydney PollackJean HolllowayNovember 9, 1961 (1961-11-09)
7"Journey from Hannibal"Don WeisFrank PriceNovember 16, 1961 (1961-11-16)
8"Winter Quarters"John EnglishSteven ThornleyNovember 23, 1961 (1961-11-23)
9"The Patriarch of Purgatory"William WitneyLes CrutchfieldNovember 30, 1961 (1961-11-30)
10"The Shaggy Kings"Richard Irving[5]Samuel A. PeeplesDecember 7, 1961 (1961-12-07)
11"Coals of Fire"William WitneyShimon WincelbergJanuary 4, 1962 (1962-01-04)
12"The Balloon Girl"Gilbert L. KayVince SkarstedtJanuary 11, 1962 (1962-01-11)
13"Mr. Grady Regrets"Don WeisLawrence KimbleJanuary 25, 1962 (1962-01-25)
14"Quick Shuffle"Robert GistRobert E. ThompsonFebruary 1, 1962 (1962-02-01)
15"The Courtship"Hollingsworth MorseFrank PriceFebruary 15, 1962 (1962-02-15)
16"Stopover in Paradise"Earl BellamyBob BarbashFebruary 22, 1962 (1962-02-22)
17"Calamity Circus"Lesley SelanderFrank PriceMarch 8, 1962 (1962-03-08)
18"The Inheritance"Sydney PollackSteven RitchMarch 15, 1962 (1962-03-15)
19"Naomi Champagne"Don WeisSteven RitchMarch 29, 1962 (1962-03-29)
20"Mighty Like Rouges"UnknownUnknownApril 5, 1962 (1962-04-05)
21"Never Won Fair Lady"UnknownUnknownApril 12, 1962 (1962-04-12)
22"The Good Fight"UnknownUnknownApril 19, 1962 (1962-04-19)
23"The Clan MacDuff"UnknownUnknownApril 26, 1962 (1962-04-26)
24"The Race"UnknownUnknownMay 3, 1962 (1962-05-03)
25"The Daring Durandos"Robert GistDonn Mullally & Lee ErwinMay 17, 1962 (1962-05-17)
26"Incident at Pawnee Gun"UnknownUnknownSeptember 6, 1962 (1962-09-06)

Production

Frontier Circus was produced by Calliope Productions, Incorporated, and filmed by Revue Productions, Incorporated. Samuel A. Peeples created the show and was the producer, and Richard Irving was the executive producer.[7] Directors included Don Weis, William Witney,[3] and Sydney Pollack. David Buttolph and Jeff Alexander composed the music.[7]

Interior shots were filmed on the back lot at Revue's studio. Exterior scenes were filmed at a variety of sites in Nevada and California.[3]

Schedule

Frontier Circus initially was broadcast from 7:30 to 8:30 Eastern Time on Thursdays. In February 1962 it moved to 8-9 p.m. ET on Thursdays. In September 1961 it returned to the original time slot.[1]

Critical response

Richard F. Shepard, writing in The New York Times, described the initial episode as "a cross between an adult Western and a horse-drawn study of mental cases."[9] Noting that the episode dealt with one lion tamer who was an alcoholic and one who was sadistic, he wrote, "If frontier circuses ran on and on like this, it's small wonder that the rodeo caught on out West."[9]

A review of that same episode in the trade publication Variety commented, "The sawdust-and-sagebrush saga is strictly a potboiler, and its only saving grace is that it doesn't pretend to be anything more."[8] It noted the similarity of the show's concept to that of Wagon Train but added, ". . . the similarity ends where script quality begins. This is pure escape stuff . . .".[8]

Home media

Timeless Media Group released the complete series on DVD in Region 1 on April 20, 2010.[10]

References
  1. Brooks, Tim; Marsh, Earle F. (June 24, 2009). The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present. Random House Publishing Group. p. 509. ISBN 978-0-307-48320-1. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
  2. McNeil, Alex (1996). Total Television: the Comprehensive Guide to Programming from 1948 to the Present (4th ed.). New York, New York: Penguin Books USA, Inc. p. 307. ISBN 0-14-02-4916-8.
  3. Capua, Michelangelo (March 20, 2020). John Derek: Actor, Director, Photographer. McFarland. pp. 87–89. ISBN 978-1-4766-7588-6. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
  4. Adams, Val (October 16, 1961). "Irene Dunne gets role in TV drama". The New York Times. p. 59. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
  5. "Tuesday, December 7". Ross Reports on Television including The Television Index. December 4, 1961. p. 49-B. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  6. "Thursday, November 16". Ross Reports on Television including The Television Index. November 13, 1961. p. 46-B. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  7. Meyer, Janet L. (August 13, 2015). Sydney Pollack: A Critical Filmography. McFarland. p. 204. ISBN 978-1-4766-0979-9. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
  8. "Frontier Circus". Variety. October 11, 1961. p. 36. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  9. "'Frontier Circus' Seen". The New York Times. October 6, 1961. p. 71. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
  10. "Frontier Circus - The Complete Series". tvshowsondvd.com. Archived from the original on August 31, 2010. Retrieved January 24, 2013.
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