Category: Gene-ology

The first episode of the western series Wrangler is broadcast on NBC in the United States, starring Jason Evers as Pitcairn and guest starring Susan Oliver. The episode is written by future Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, who also created the series, his first to get past the pilot stage. Wrangler also boasts another historic first, being the first western to be shot on videotape instead of film. As of 2024, it is uncertain if the episode has been preserved in its entirety, though a videotape of unedited footage is held in UCLA’s archives.

The second episode of the western series Wrangler is broadcast on NBC in the United States, starring Jason Evers as Pitcairn and guest starring Paul Carr. The episode is written by future Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, who also created the series, his first to get past the pilot stage.

The third episode of the western series Wrangler is broadcast on NBC in the United States, starring Jason Evers as Pitcairn. James Anderson guest stars in an episode written by George F. Slavin. Wrangler is produced by future Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, who also created the series, his first to get past the pilot stage.

The fourth episode of the western series Wrangler is broadcast on NBC in the United States, starring Jason Evers as Pitcairn and guest starring Julie Adams (Creature From The Black Lagoon). This episode is written by future Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, who also created the series, his first to get past the pilot stage.

The fifth episode of the western series Wrangler is broadcast on NBC in the United States, starring Jason Evers as Pitcairn and guest starring Michael Keep. The episode is written by Stanley H. Silverman and Richard P. McDonagh, heavily reworking an original script by Bob Greene and Joe L. Davis. Wrangler is produced by future Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, who also created this series, his first to get past the pilot stage.

The sixth episode of the western series Wrangler is scheduled to air on NBC in the United States, starring Jason Evers as Pitcairn. Though TV Guide listings at the time indicate the episode was to air on this date, it is pre-empted for unknown reasons; as only an incomplete worktape exists in the UCLA archives, it’s possible that the reason for the delay was failure to complete the episode on time, possibly as a result of the series’ unprecedented method of shooting and editing on the then-very-new medium of videotape. Wrangler is produced by future Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, who also created this series, his first to get past the pilot stage; Roddenberry also wrote the episode (as indicated by the archived scripts), which would have been credited on screen to the pseudonym of “Leon Edward”. Though 1960 TV listings indicated that this episode was rescheduled for the following week, there is significant evidence that this episode was never actually broadcast, replaced by another episode which does exist archivally in finished form.

The seventh and final episode of the western series Wrangler is broadcast on NBC in the United States, starring Jason Evers as Pitcairn. Mary Murphy and Frank Silvera guest star in an episode written by future Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, who also created this series, his first to get past the pilot stage. Despite contemporary TV listings showing that a previous episode of Wrangler, Encounter At Elephant Butte, was postponed to this date, there is significant evidence that this episode aired instead, including existence of a complete copy of the episode containing a handoff from series star Jason Evers to musician “Tennessee” Ernie Ford, whose prime-time variety show, The Ford Show, had briefly been replaced by Wrangler as a summer replacement series, affording Ford and his show’s crew time for a break. Wrangler, the first western shot and edited on videotape using facilities at Los Angeles TV station KTLA, is never repeated again, though at least partial copies of each episode remain archived at UCLA, thanks to KTLA donating a large amount of vintage videotapes to the school’s library for archival preservation.