Friday, March 11, 2011

Robert Horton



In the late 50's and early 60's Robert Horton was one of my favorite tv cowboys and if an episode of WAGON TRAIN came on that didn't say "Tonight Starring Robert Horton" I wouldn't bother watching it and you can imagine my dismay when he left the series to "branch out on his own." Watching him in the opening credits, posted above, and hearing him sing the main theme to A MAN CALLED SHENANDOAH almost always brings tears to my eyes. His vocals are impeccable and the background scenes remind me of one of my favorite spaghetti westerns....Sergio Corbucci's classic THE GREAT SILENCE which was filmed a few years later. I had the fortune of meeting Robert at the 2004 Golden Boots...the year he received his Golden Boot (way too late) and was delighted that he signed one of my old TV Guides with a picture of him from Wagon Train on the cover. Very nice man. Very friendly man... but I, to me, felt a sense of sadness about him and I feel this even more when I hear him sing A MAN CALLED SHENANDOAH. Needless to say when he left WAGON TRAIN, a mistake on hind sight, the series, to me, died with his departure. To the "Powers That Be" out there...."SHENANDOAH" is crying for a dvd release.

2 comments:

Tom B. said...

I was never a big Wagon Train fan. I don't know what was on opposite of it when it was frist on TV. I think I saw most of the episodes in reruns when it was called Wagon Master. Robert Horton was fine and Robert Fuller was an excellent replacement. Watching the series now on Encore Westerns Fuller was the best of the lead players. Bond was to crotchety for me. Always seemed to have a chip on his shoulder.

John Crummett said...

When I was a kid we, unfortunately, never got Robert Fuller's series LARAMIE and, sadly, to this day I have yet to see an episode, and I was in college when he starred on WAGON TRAIN. Don't get me wrong...I really like Fuller. He's one of my favorite western stars and I will watch almost anything he's in regardless of the genre...I just didn't get to see him in best known (tv series) roles. Robert starred in one of my favorite biker flicks...THE HARD RIDE with Tony Russell.