Bonanza was a television Western which aired on NBC from 1959 until 1973. The series became the second longest-running TV Western, after Gunsmoke. Bonanza focused on the Cartwrights, owners of the Ponderosa ranch, and their attempts to help friends and neighbors in nearby Virginia City.
In 1970, for the second season of Sesame Street, series stars Lorne Greene (Ben Cartwright), Michael Landon (Little Joe), and Dan Blocker (Hoss) appeared in multiple inserts in character, on the Virginia City set, and with their horses. Greene and Landon subsequently did similar duty on The Electric Company.
The 2023 release of Bonanza: The Official Complete Series box set contains a bonus disc of extra content and footage. Its list of features includes, "The Cartwrights Visit Sesame Street (1970)."[1]
Inserts
- Counting to twenty (First: Episode 0131)
- Saying the alphabet (First: Episode 0136)
- Adding horses (First: Episode 0150)
- Subtracting horses (First: Episode 0150)
- Demonstrating near and far (First: Episode 0161)
References
- In The Jim Henson Hour episode 101, Space Guy is reluctant to communicate with alien visitors, for fear of missing Bonanza.
- The Bonanza theme (by Ray Evans and Jay Livingston) was used during the cowboy portion of the Sesame Street Live show When I Grow Up.
- Big Bird refers to the elephant as "Little Joe" in Sesame Street Episode 4015 during the first scene.
Connections
In addition to the three stars, several performers who appeared on the series have also worked in Muppet/Henson productions.
- Bruce Bilson directed "Caution, Easter Bunny Crossing" (1970)
- Roscoe Lee Browne played Joshua in "He Was Only Seven" (1972)
- David Canary played ranch hand Candy (1968-1970, 1972-1973)
- James Coburn played Pete Jessop in "The Truckee Strip" (1959), Ross Marquette in "The Dark Gate" (1961), and Trace in "The Long Night" (1962)
- Dabney Coleman played Ivor Peterson in "Queen High" (1968) and Clyde in "A Darker Shadow" (1969)
- Ossie Davis played Sam Davis in "The Wish" (1969)
- Sandy Duncan played Colleen in "An Earthqauke Called Callahan" (1971)
- Jodie Foster played Bluebird in "A Place to Hide" (1972)
- George Gaynes played Senator Purdy in "The Late Ben Cartwright" (1968)
- Mariette Hartley played Alicia Purcell in "The Survivors" (1968)
- Pat Hingle played Sheriff Austin in "The Silence at Stillwater" (1969)
- James Hong played Hop Sing's cousin in "San Francisco" and "Badge Without Honor" (both 1960)
- Ron Howard played Ted Hoag in "The Initation" (1972)
- Sally Kellerman played Kathleen Walker in "A Dollar's Worth of Trouble" (1966) and Lotta Crabtree in "Return Engagement" (1970)
- Ted Knight played Sgt. Brown in "A Place to Hide" (1972)
- Richard Mulligan played Farley in "Kingdom of Fear" and Dr. Mark Sloan in "Don't Cry, My Son" (both 1971)
- Leslie Nielsen played Sheriff Paul Rowan in "The Unseen Wound" (1967)
- Leonard Nimoy played Freddy in "The Ape" (1960)
- Jaime Sánchez played Ramon Cardenez in "El Jefe" (1970)
- Telly Savalas played Charles Hackett in "To Own the World" (1965)
- William Schallert played George Norton in "Look to the Stars" (1962)
- Olan Soule played the town telegrapher in several episodes
- Harry Dean Stanton played Bill in "The Dark Gate" (1961) and Stiles in "The Way of Aaron" (1963)
- John Stephenson played John Henry in "The Sisters" (1960)
- Marlo Thomas played Tai Lee in "A Pink Cloud Comes from Old Cathy" (1964)
- John Vernon played Beaudry in "Yonder Man" (1968)
- Scott Walker played Blue in "Thornton's Account" (1970), Guthrie Amber in "The Rattlesnake Brigade" (1971), and Grange in "Shanklin" (1972)
- Jack Warden played Mike Wilson in "The Paiute War" (1959)