Following service in the US Civil War, tightly-attired Roger Davis (as Stephen Foster Moody) arrives in a small western town. After playing cards with poker-faced winner Wally Cox (as Ira Greebe), Mr. Davis hits the trail. He happens upon $38,040 in saddlebags and decides to return it to Mr. Cox in Kingsberg, Colorado. But nobody in town remembers Cox. Likewise handsome Pete Duel (as Honest John Smith) rode into town with Davis, after the wheel on his coach broke; he becomes involved with the mystery. Pretty girlfriend Joan Hackett (as Clementine Hale) hooks up with Mr. Duel, then Davis; she is looking for a man with money. Local lawman Walter Brennan (as Matt Fenley) isn't sure who to trust...
This ABC Tuesday "Movie of the Week" was a hit with viewers. It was re-vamped to more closely resemble the popular film "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (1969) and became the series "Alias Smith and Jones" (1971-1973). That starred Duel and Ben Murphy. Two aliases in this story are "Aaron Grimes" and "John Closkey". The "Doctor Mudd" character played by Thomas Bellin is likely intended to be the physician associated with John Wilkes Booth and the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln...
"The Young Country" also served to "introduce" Davis to the public, after resurgence in popularity as a regular on ABC's daytime serial "Dark Shadows" (where he appeared 1968-1970). In fact, Davis was already a veteran of two nighttime series. It is interesting to see Davis is the leading man, with Duel clearly secondary. Probably, Davis did not want to commit to the series spin-off, initially, due to his feature film career prospects. He joined "Alias" after Duel's sad suicide. Writer/director Roy Huggins does well with early scenes, featuring Davis on a train and good western sets. The ending could have been improved with a re-appearance from Mr. Brennan. He is owed some money for listening to Davis' jail cell singing.
***** The Young Country (3/17/70) Roy Huggins ~ Roger Davis, Pete Duel, Joan Hackett, Walter Brennan
This ABC Tuesday "Movie of the Week" was a hit with viewers. It was re-vamped to more closely resemble the popular film "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (1969) and became the series "Alias Smith and Jones" (1971-1973). That starred Duel and Ben Murphy. Two aliases in this story are "Aaron Grimes" and "John Closkey". The "Doctor Mudd" character played by Thomas Bellin is likely intended to be the physician associated with John Wilkes Booth and the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln...
"The Young Country" also served to "introduce" Davis to the public, after resurgence in popularity as a regular on ABC's daytime serial "Dark Shadows" (where he appeared 1968-1970). In fact, Davis was already a veteran of two nighttime series. It is interesting to see Davis is the leading man, with Duel clearly secondary. Probably, Davis did not want to commit to the series spin-off, initially, due to his feature film career prospects. He joined "Alias" after Duel's sad suicide. Writer/director Roy Huggins does well with early scenes, featuring Davis on a train and good western sets. The ending could have been improved with a re-appearance from Mr. Brennan. He is owed some money for listening to Davis' jail cell singing.
***** The Young Country (3/17/70) Roy Huggins ~ Roger Davis, Pete Duel, Joan Hackett, Walter Brennan