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''The Wild Wild West'' is an American Western,
espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information ( intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tang ...
, and science fiction television series that ran on the CBS television network for four seasons from September 17, 1965, to April 11, 1969. Two
satirical Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming or ...
comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
television film sequels were made with the original cast in 1979 and 1980 and the series was adapted for a
theatrical film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...
in 1999. Developed at a time when the television Western was losing ground to the spy genre, this show was conceived by its creator, Michael Garrison, as "
James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors hav ...
on horseback." Set during the administration of President
Ulysses Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...
(1869–1877), the series followed
Secret Service A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. Fo ...
agents James West (
Robert Conrad Robert Conrad (born Conrad Robert Falk; March 1, 1935 – February 8, 2020) was an American film and television actor, singer, and stuntman. He is best known for his role in the 1965–1969 television series '' The Wild Wild West'', playi ...
) and Artemus Gordon ( Ross Martin) as they solved crimes, protected the President, and foiled the plans of megalomaniacal villains to take over part or all of the United States. The show featured a number of fantasy elements, such as the technologically advanced devices used by the agents and their adversaries. The combination of the
Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwa ...
time-frame and the use of Vernean technology has led several
steampunk Steampunk is a subgenre of science fiction that incorporates retrofuturistic technology and aesthetics inspired by 19th-century industrial steam-powered machinery. Steampunk works are often set in an alternative history of the Victorian ...
web sites to cite the show as a pioneering influence on the genre. This aspect was accentuated even more in the 1999 film adaptation. Despite high ratings, the series was cancelled near the end of its fourth season as a concession to Congress over television violence.


Concept

''The Wild Wild West'' told the story of two
Secret Service A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. Fo ...
agents: the fearless and handsome James West (played by
Robert Conrad Robert Conrad (born Conrad Robert Falk; March 1, 1935 – February 8, 2020) was an American film and television actor, singer, and stuntman. He is best known for his role in the 1965–1969 television series '' The Wild Wild West'', playi ...
), and Artemus Gordon (played by Ross Martin), a brilliant gadgeteer and master of disguise. Their mission was to protect President Ulysses S. Grant and the United States from all manner of dangerous threats. The agents traveled in luxury aboard their own train, the ''Wanderer'', equipped with everything from a stable car to a laboratory. James West had served as an intelligence and cavalry officer in the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...
(1861–1865) on Grant's staff; his "cover", at least in the pilot episode, is that of "a dandy, a high-roller from the East". Thereafter, however, there is no pretense, and his reputation as the foremost Secret Service agent often precedes him. According to the later TV movies, West retires from the Service by 1880 and lives on a ranch in Mexico. When he retires, Gordon, who was a captain in the Civil War, returns to show business as the head of a traveling
Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
players troupe. The show incorporated classic Western elements with an
espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information ( intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tang ...
thriller,
science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...
/
alternate history Alternate history (also alternative history, althist, AH) is a genre of speculative fiction of stories in which one or more historical events occur and are resolved differently than in real life. As conjecture based upon historical fact, alte ...
ideas (in a similar vein to what would later be called
steampunk Steampunk is a subgenre of science fiction that incorporates retrofuturistic technology and aesthetics inspired by 19th-century industrial steam-powered machinery. Steampunk works are often set in an alternative history of the Victorian ...
), in one case horror ("The Night of the Man Eating House") and humor. Episodes were also inspired by
Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wid ...
, H. G. Wells and
Jules Verne Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet, and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the '' Voyages extra ...
. In the tradition of
James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors hav ...
, there were always beautiful women, clever gadgets and delusional arch-enemies with half-insane plots to take over the country or
the world In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...
. The title of each episode begins with "The Night" (except for the first-season episode "Night of the Casual Killer", which omitted the definite article "The"). This followed other idiosyncratic naming conventions established by shows such as '' Rawhide'', where each episode title began with "Incident at" or "Incident of," and '' The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'', where episodes were titled "The (Blank) Affair."


Episodes


Characters


Leads

Before ''The Wild Wild West'', Robert Conrad played private detective Tom Lopaka in ABC's ''
Hawaiian Eye ''Hawaiian Eye'' is an American detective television series that ran from October 1959 to April 1963 on the ABC television network. Premise Private investigator Tracy Steele ( Anthony Eisley) and his half-Hawaiian partner, Tom Lopaka ( Robert ...
'' for four seasons (1959–63). In November 1964, he was making the film ''Young Dillinger'' (1965) with Nick Adams,
Victor Buono Victor Charles Buono (February 3, 1938January 1, 1982) was an American actor, comic, and briefly a recording artist. He was known for playing the villain King Tut in the television series '' Batman'' (1966–1968) and musician Edwin Flagg in '' ...
and John Ashley (all of whom would later guest star on ''The Wild Wild West'') when his agent sent him to CBS to audition for the West role. Conrad claimed to be the 17th actor to test for the part. Others tested included Robert Horton,
Ray Danton Ray Danton (born Raymond Caplan; September 19, 1931 – February 11, 1992) was a radio, film, stage, and television actor, director, and producer whose most famous roles were in the screen biographies '' The Rise and Fall of Legs Diamond'' (196 ...
and James "Skip" Ward. Conrad also claimed that
John Derek John Derek (born Derek Delevan Harris; August 12, 1926 – May 22, 1998) was an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer and photographer.concussion A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include loss of consciousness (LOC); memory loss; headaches; difficulty with thinking, concentration ...
. "A little gymnastics — chandelier work," he later explained. "I didn't chalk up properly and I went 15 feet to the concrete and fractured my skull. I was in intensive care for 72 hours, with a six-inch lineal fracture of the skull and a high temporal concussion." As a result, production of the series ended two weeks early. Conrad spent weeks in the hospital and had a long convalescence slowed by constant dizziness. The episode was eventually completed and aired early during the fourth season, with footage of the fall left in. Conrad later told Percy Shain of the ''Boston Globe'', "I have the whole scene on film. It's a constant reminder to be careful. It also bolstered my determination to make this my last year with the series. Four seasons are enough of this sort of thing."''Boston Globe'', "Wild West Proves Hazardous" September 15, 1968 Thereafter, Conrad was doubled for the dangerous stunts, but still participated in fight scenes. Prior to ''The Wild Wild West,'' Ross Martin co-starred in the CBS series '' Mr. Lucky'' from 1959 to 1960, portraying Mr. Lucky's sidekick, Andamo. The series was created by Blake Edwards, who also cast Martin in his films ''
Experiment in Terror ''Experiment in Terror'' is a 1962 American neo-noir thriller film released by Columbia Pictures. It was directed by Blake Edwards and written by Mildred Gordon and Gordon Gordon based on their 1961 novel ''Operation Terror''. The film stars Gle ...
'' (1962) and ''
The Great Race ''The Great Race'' is a 1965 American Technicolor slapstick comedy film starring Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis, and Natalie Wood, directed by Blake Edwards, written by Arthur A. Ross (from a story by Edwards and Ross), and with music by Henry Manci ...
'' (1964). Martin once called his role as Artemus Gordon "a show-off's showcase" because it allowed him to portray over 100 different characters during the course of the series and perform dozens of different dialects. Martin sketched his ideas for his characterizations and worked with the makeup artists to execute the final look. Martin told Percy Shain of the ''Boston Globe'', "In the three years of the show, I have run a wider gamut than even those acknowledged masters of disguise,
Paul Muni Paul Muni (born Frederich Meshilem Meier Weisenfreund; September 22, 1895– August 25, 1967) was an American stage and film actor who grew up in Chicago. Muni was a five-time Academy Award nominee, with one win. He started his acting career in ...
and Lon Chaney. Sometimes I feel like a one man repertory company. I think I've proven to myself and to the industry that I am the No. 1 character lead in films today." The industry acknowledged Martin's work with an
Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
nomination in 1969. Martin broke his leg in a fourth-season episode, "The Night of the Avaricious Actuary," when he dropped a rifle, stepped on it, and his foot rolled over it. Martin told Percy Shain of the ''Boston Globe,'' "In the scene where I was hurt, my stand-in tried to finish it. When the shell ejected from the rifle, it caught him in the eye and burned it. We still haven't finished that scene. It will have to wait until I can move around again." A few weeks later, after completing "The Night of Fire and Brimstone", Martin suffered a
heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...
on August 17, 1968 (this was exactly two years after the show's creator, Michael Garrison, died). Martin's character was replaced temporarily by other agents played by Charles Aidman (four episodes as Jeremy Pike),
Alan Hale, Jr. Alan Hale Jr. (born Alan Hale MacKahan; (March 8, 1921 - January 2, 1990) was an American actor and restaurateur. He was the son of actor Alan Hale Sr. His television career spanned four decades, but he was best known for his secondary lead role ...
(as Ned Brown) and William Schallert (two episodes as Frank Harper), and West worked solo in two other episodes. Aidman said the producers had promised to rewrite the scripts for his new character, but this simply amounted to scratching out the name "Artemus Gordon" and penciling in "Jeremy Pike" (his character's name). Pat Paulsen (one episode as Agent Bosley Cranston) is frequently thought of as a Martin substitute, but he, in fact, appeared in one of Aidman's episodes and his character would have been present even if Martin had appeared. Martin returned to work in mid-December and appeared in the final three episodes to be filmed.


Villains

The show's most memorable
recurring Recurring means occurring repeatedly and can refer to several different things: Mathematics and finance *Recurring expense, an ongoing (continual) expenditure *Repeating decimal, or recurring decimal, a real number in the decimal numeral syste ...
arch-
villain A villain (also known as a " black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. '' Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a charact ...
was Dr. Miguelito Quixote Loveless, a brilliant but petulant and
megalomania Megalomania is an obsession with power and wealth, and a passion for grand schemes. Megalomania or megalomaniac may also refer to: Psychology * Narcissistic personality disorder * Grandiose delusions * Omnipotence (psychoanalysis), a stage ...
cal dwarf portrayed by Michael Dunn. Initially he had two companions: the towering 7'2" Voltaire, played by Richard Kiel; and the beautiful Antoinette, played by Dunn's real-life singing partner, Phoebe Dorin. Voltaire disappeared without explanation after his third episode, but Kiel returned in a different role in "The Night of the Simian Terror". Antoinette vanished after her sixth episode due to demands by Dunn's jealous real-life wife. According to the television film ''The Wild Wild West Revisited'', Loveless eventually dies in 1880 from ulcers, brought on by the frustration of having his plans consistently foiled by West and Gordon (his son, played by Paul Williams in the TV film, subsequently seeks revenge on the agents). Although several actors appeared in different villainous roles, only one other character had a second encounter with West and Gordon: Count Manzeppi, played flamboyantly by
Victor Buono Victor Charles Buono (February 3, 1938January 1, 1982) was an American actor, comic, and briefly a recording artist. He was known for playing the villain King Tut in the television series '' Batman'' (1966–1968) and musician Edwin Flagg in '' ...
. Manzeppi was a diabolical genius of "black magic" and crime, wholike Dr. Lovelesshad an escape plan at the end. Buono played a different villain in the pilot episode, and also returned in ''More Wild Wild West'' as "Dr. Henry Messenger", a parody of
Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (; ; born Heinz Alfred Kissinger, May 27, 1923) is a German-born American politician, diplomat, and geopolitical consultant who served as United States Secretary of State and National Security Advisor under the presid ...
. Agnes Moorehead won an Emmy for her role as Emma Valentine in "The Night of the Vicious Valentine". Other villains were portrayed by Leslie Nielsen,
Sam Wanamaker Samuel Wanamaker, (born Wattenmacker; June 14, 1919 – December 18, 1993) was an American actor and director who moved to the United Kingdom after becoming fearful of being blacklisted in Hollywood due to his communist views. He is credited a ...
,
Martin Landau Martin James Landau (; June 20, 1928 – July 15, 2017) was an American actor, acting coach, producer, and editorial cartoonist. His career began in the 1950s, with early film appearances including a supporting role in Alfred Hitchcock's ''North ...
, Burgess Meredith,
Boris Karloff William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), better known by his stage name Boris Karloff (), was an English actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film ''Frankenstein'' (1931) (his 82nd film) established ...
, Ida Lupino, Carroll O'Connor, Ricardo Montalban, Robert Duvall, Ramon Novarro, Ed Asner, Jo Van Fleet, William Windom, Delphi Lawrence, Susan Oliver, Anthony Eisley,
H. M. Wynant H. M. Wynant (born Chaim Winant; February 12, 1927) is an American film and television actor. Biography Wynant was born in Detroit, Michigan. He made his feature film debut as an Indian in Samuel Fuller's ''Run of the Arrow'' (1957). In the 1 ...
, Harvey Korman, Yvonne Craig,
Percy Rodrigues Percy Rodriguez (born Percy Rodrigues; June 13, 1918 – September 6, 2007) was a Canadian actor who appeared in many television shows and films from the 1950s to the 1980s. He was of Afro-Portuguese heritage and was born in the Saint-Henri nei ...
, and Robert Loggia. While the show's writers created their fair share of villains, they often started with the nefarious, stylized and sometimes anachronistic inventions of these madmen (or madwomen) and then wrote the episodes around these devices. Henry Sharp, the series' story consultant, would sketch the preliminaries of the designs (eccentrically numbering every sketch "fig. 37"), and give the sketch to a writer, who would build a story around it.


Recurring characters

* Dr. Miguelito Quixote Loveless ( Michael Dunn): Ten episodes. The agents' nemesis. * Colonel Richmond ( Douglas Henderson) Ten episodes. West and Gordon's control officer in the Secret Service. * President Ulysses S. Grant: Seven episodes ( James Gregory in the pilot; Roy Engel thereafter). * Antoinette (Phoebe Dorin): Six appearances. Loveless' female companion, often seen playing a piano or string instrument and singing duet with Loveless. Dorin and Dunn (Loveless) had a real-life nightclub act, "Michael Dunn and Phoebe", in which they sang and exchanged banter. According to Dorin, while filming the episode "The Night of the Murderous Spring", her costume became entangled in the machinery used to pull the boat she and Dunn were in underwater. Dunn did not hesitate to follow her down and help her escape. * Jeremy Pike (Charles Aidman): Four episodes. One of several agents paired with Jim during Artemus' absence in the fourth season. Appears in the final Loveless episode, "The Night of Miguelito's Revenge." * Tennyson (Charles Davis): Three episodes. West's butler/valet during the first season. * Voltaire ( Richard Kiel): Three episodes. Loveless' silent, giant bodyguard (Kiel also played Dimos Buckley in "The Night of the Simian Terror"). * Count Carlos Mario Vincenzo Robespierre Manzeppi (
Victor Buono Victor Charles Buono (February 3, 1938January 1, 1982) was an American actor, comic, and briefly a recording artist. He was known for playing the villain King Tut in the television series '' Batman'' (1966–1968) and musician Edwin Flagg in '' ...
): Two appearances. A master of dark magic and leader of a handpicked teams of assassins. (Buono also played Juan Manolo in "The Night of the Inferno," the first episode, and Henry Messenger in ''More Wild Wild West'', the final production.) * Frank Harper ( William Schallert): Another agent who worked with Jim in the fourth season. He appears in the only two-part episode in the series, "The Night of the Winged Terror". (Schallert appeared in two other episodes as different characters.)


Production


Creation, writing and filming

In 1954, director/producer
Gregory Ratoff Gregory Ratoff (born Grigory Vasilyevich Ratner; russian: Григорий Васильевич Ратнер, tr. ; April 20, c. 1893 – December 14, 1960) was a Russian-born American film director, actor and producer. As an actor, he was bes ...
purchased the film rights to
Ian Fleming Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer who is best known for his postwar ''James Bond'' series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., an ...
's first James Bond novel, '' Casino Royale,'' for $600. CBS, meanwhile, bought the TV rights for $1,000, and on October 21, 1954, the network broadcast an hour-long adaptation on its ''Climax!'' series, with Barry Nelson playing American agent "Jimmy Bond" and Peter Lorre playing the villain, Le Chiffre. CBS also approached Fleming about developing a Bond TV series. Fleming later contributed ideas to NBC's ''The Man From U.N.C.L.E.'' In 1955, Ratoff and Michael Garrison formed a production company to make a ''Casino Royale'' film, with Ratoff set to direct and
20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...
set to distribute. Production stalled when Ratoff and Garrison could not obtain financing. In 1960, Hedda Hopper reported that Ratoff's film would star
Peter Finch Frederick George Peter Ingle Finch (28 September 191614 January 1977) was an English-Australian actor of theatre, film and radio. Born in London, he emigrated to Australia as a teenager and was raised in Sydney, where he worked in vaudeville ...
as Bond. But Ratoff died that December and his widow sold the film rights to producer
Charles K. Feldman Charles K. Feldman (April 26, 1905 – May 25, 1968) was a Hollywood attorney, film producer and talent agent who founded the Famous Artists talent agency. According to one obituary, Feldman disdained publicity. "Feldman was an enigma to Holly ...
for $75,000. Feldman and director
Howard Hawks Howard Winchester Hawks (May 30, 1896December 26, 1977) was an American film director, producer and screenwriter of the classic Hollywood era. Critic Leonard Maltin called him "the greatest American director who is not a household name." A ...
were interested in making ''Casino Royale'' with
Cary Grant Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English-American actor. He was known for his Mid-Atlantic accent, debonair demeanor, light-hearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing. He was one of ...
as Bond. Eventually Feldman was offered $500,000 and a percentage of the profits to let Harry Saltzman and Cubby Broccoli make the film with Sean Connery. Feldman turned them down, and eventually produced the spoof '' Casino Royale'' in 1967. By then, Garrison and CBS had brought James Bond to television in a unique way. The series' pilot episode, "The Night of the Inferno", was filmed in December 1964. It was produced by Garrison and, according to Robert Conrad, cost $685,000. The episode was scripted by Gilbert Ralston, who had written for numerous episodic TV series in the 1950s and 1960s. (Western novelist and screenwriter
Clair Huffaker Clair Huffaker (September 26, 1926 – April 3, 1990) was an American screenwriter and author of westerns and other fiction, many of which were turned into films. Biography Born in Magna, Utah, Huffaker wrote of his childhood in ''One Time I ...
also worked on the concept.) In a later deposition, Ralston explained that he was approached by Michael Garrison, who "said he had an idea for a series, good commercial idea, and wanted to know if I could glue the idea of a western hero and a James Bond type together in the same show."''The New York Times'', July 8, 1999 Ralston said he then created the
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...
characters, the format, the story outline and nine drafts of the pilot script that was the basis for the television series. It was his idea, for example, to have a secret agent named Jim West who would perform secret missions for President
Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union A ...
. Ralston later sued Warner Bros. over the 1999 theatrical film '' Wild Wild West'', which was based on the series. As indicated by
Robert Conrad Robert Conrad (born Conrad Robert Falk; March 1, 1935 – February 8, 2020) was an American film and television actor, singer, and stuntman. He is best known for his role in the 1965–1969 television series '' The Wild Wild West'', playi ...
on his DVD commentary, the show went through several producers in its first season. This was apparently due to conflicts between the network and Garrison, who had no experience producing for television and had trouble staying on budget. At first, Ben Brady was named producer, but he was shifted to '' Rawhide'', which had its own crisis when star Eric Fleming quit at the end of the 1964–65 season. ''Rawhide'' lasted another 13 episodes before it was cancelled by CBS. The network then hired
Collier Young Collier Hudson Young (August 19, 1908 – December 25, 1980) was an American film producer and writer, who worked on many films in the 1950s, before becoming a television producer for such shows as NBC's '' Ironside'' and CBS's '' The Wild, Wil ...
. In an interview, Young said he saw the series as '' The Rogues'' set in 1870 (''The Rogues'', which he had produced, was about con men who swindled swindlers, much like the 1970s series ''
Switch In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can disconnect or connect the conducting path in an electrical circuit, interrupting the electric current or diverting it from one conductor to another. The most common type of ...
''). Young also claimed to have added the wry second "Wild" to the series title, which had been simply "The Wild West" in its early stages of production. Young's episodes (2–4) featured a butler named Tennyson who traveled with West and Gordon, but since the episodes were not broadcast in production order, the character popped up at different times during the first season. Conrad was not sorry to see Young go: "I don't mind. All that guy did creatively was put the second 'wild' in the title. CBS did the right thing." Young's replacement, Fred Freiberger, returned the series to its original concept. It was on his watch that writer
John Kneubuhl John Alexander Kneubuhl (July 2, 1920 – February 20, 1992) was an American Samoan screenwriter, playwright and Polynesian historian. He wrote for American television series such as '' The Fugitive'', ''Gunsmoke'', ''The Wild Wild West'', ''Star ...
, inspired by a magazine article about Michael Dunn, created the arch-villain Dr. Miguelito Quixote Loveless. Phoebe Dorin, who played Loveless' assistant, Antoinette, recalled: "Michael Garrison came to see urnightclub act when he was in New York. Garrison said to himself, 'Michael Dunn would make the most extraordinary villain. People have never seen anything like him before, and he's a fabulous little actor and he's funny as hell.' And, Garrison felt, if Michael Dunn sang on every show, with the girl, it would be an extraordinary running villain. He came backstage and he told us who he was and he said he was going to do a television show called ''The Wild Wild West'' and we would be called. We thought, 'Yeah, yeah, we've heard all that before.' But he did call us and the show was a fantastic success. And that's how it started, because he saw the nightclub act." Loveless was introduced in "The Night the Wizard Shook The Earth," the show's sixth produced, but third televised episode. The character became an immediate hit and Dunn was contracted to appear in four episodes per season. Because of health problems, however, Dunn only appeared in 10 episodes instead of 16. After 10 episodes (5–14), Freiberger and executive producer Michael Garrison were, according to ''Variety'', "unceremoniously dumped," reputedly due to a behind-the-scenes power struggle. Garrison was replaced by Phillip Leacock, the executive producer of ''
Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centers on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central chara ...
'', and Freiberger was supplanted by John Mantley, an associate producer on ''Gunsmoke''. The exchange stunned both cast and crew. Garrison, who owned 40% of ''The Wild Wild West'', knew nothing about the changes and had not been consulted. He turned the matter over to his attorneys. Freiberger said, "I was fired for accomplishing what I had been hired to do. I was hired to pull the show together when it was in chaos."''Variety'', November 10, 1965 "'Gunsmoke' in CBS' 'Wild West' Conrad said, "I was totally shocked by it. Let's face it, the show is healthy. I think Fred Freiberger is totally correct in his concept of the show. It's an administrative change, for what reason I don't know." Mantley produced seven (15–21) episodes, then returned to his former position on ''Gunsmoke'' and
Gene L. Coon Eugene Lee Coon (January 7, 1924 – July 8, 1973) was an American screenwriter, television producer and novelist. He is best remembered for his work on the original ''Star Trek'' as a screenwriter, story editor, and showrunner from the mid ...
took over as associate producer. By then, Garrison's conflict with CBS was resolved and he returned to the executive producer role. Coon left after six episodes (22–27) to write ''First to Fight'' (1967), a Warner Bros. film about the Marines. Garrison produced the last episode of season 1 and the initial episodes of season 2. Garrison's return was much to the relief of Ross Martin, who once revealed that he was so disenchanted during the first season that he tried to quit three times. He explained that Garrison "saw the show as a Bond spoof laid in 1870, and we all knew where we stood. Each new producer tried to put his stamp on the show and I had a terrible struggle. I fought them line by line in every script. They knew they couldn't change the James West role very much, but it was open season on Artemus Gordon because they had never seen anything like him before." On August 17, 1966, however, during production of the new season's ninth episode, "The Night of the Ready-Made Corpse", Garrison fell down a flight of stairs in his home, fractured his skull and died. CBS assigned Bruce Lansbury, brother of actress
Angela Lansbury Dame Angela Brigid Lansbury (October 16, 1925 – October 11, 2022) was an Irish-British and American film, stage, and television actress. Her career spanned eight decades, much of it in the United States, and her work received a great deal ...
, to produce the show for the remainder of its run. In the early 1960s Lansbury had been in charge of daytime shows at CBS Television City in Hollywood, then vice president of programming in New York. When he was tapped for ''The Wild Wild West'', Lansbury was working with his twin brother,
Edgar Edgar is a commonly used English given name, from an Anglo-Saxon name ''Eadgar'' (composed of '' ead'' "rich, prosperous" and '' gar'' "spear"). Like most Anglo-Saxon names, it fell out of use by the later medieval period; it was, however, r ...
, producing legitimate theater on Broadway. The first season's episodes were filmed in black and white and they were darker in tone.
Cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the photographing or recording of a film, television production, music video or other live action piece. The cinematographer is the ch ...
Ted Voightlander was nominated for an
Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
for his work on one of these episodes, "The Night of the Howling Light." Subsequent seasons were filmed in color and the show became noticeably campier. ''The Wild Wild West'' was filmed at
CBS Studio Center Radford Studio Center, alternatively CBS Studio Center, is a television and film studio located in the Studio City district of Los Angeles in the San Fernando Valley. The lot has 18 sound stages from , of office space, and 223 dressing rooms. ...
on Radford Avenue in
Studio City Studio City is a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California, in the southeast San Fernando Valley, just west of the Cahuenga Pass. It is named after the studio lot that was established in the area by film producer Mack Sennett in 1927, ...
in the San Fernando Valley. The 70-acre lot was formerly the home of
Republic Studios Republic Pictures Corporation (currently held under Melange Pictures, LLC) was an American motion picture production-distribution corporation in operation from 1935 to 1967, that was based in Los Angeles. It had studio facilities in Studio City an ...
, which specialized in low-budget films, including Westerns starring
Roy Rogers Roy Rogers (born Leonard Franklin Slye; November 5, 1911 – July 6, 1998) was an American singer, actor, and television host. Following early work under his given name, first as co-founder of the Sons of the Pioneers and then acting, the rebra ...
and
Gene Autry Orvon Grover "Gene" Autry (September 29, 1907 – October 2, 1998), nicknamed the Singing Cowboy, was an American singer, songwriter, actor, musician, rodeo performer, and baseball owner who gained fame largely by singing in a crooning s ...
and Saturday morning serials (which ''The Wild Wild West'' appropriately echoed). CBS had a wall-to-wall lease on the lot starting in May 1963 and produced ''
Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centers on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central chara ...
'' and '' Rawhide'' there, as well as ''
Gilligan's Island ''Gilligan's Island'' is an American sitcom created and produced by Sherwood Schwartz. The show's ensemble cast features Bob Denver, Alan Hale Jr., Jim Backus, Natalie Schafer, Tina Louise, Russell Johnson and Dawn Wells. It aired for th ...
''. The network bought the lot from Republic in February 1967 for $9.5 million. Beginning in 1971, MTM Enterprises (headed by actress
Mary Tyler Moore Mary Tyler Moore (December 29, 1936 – January 25, 2017) was an American actress, producer, and social advocate. She is best known for her roles on '' The Dick Van Dyke Show'' (1961–1966) and '' The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (1970–1977), whi ...
and her then-husband Grant Tinker) became the Studio Center's primary tenant. In the mid-1980s the Western streets and sets were replaced with new sound stages and urban facades, including the New York streets seen in ''Seinfeld''. In 1995, the lagoon set that was originally constructed for ''Gilligan's Island'' was paved over to create a parking lot. Among iconic locations used for filming were
Bronson Canyon Bronson Canyon, or Bronson Caves, is a section of Griffith Park in Los Angeles that has become known as a filming location for many films and television series, especially Westerns and science fiction, from the early days of motion pictures to th ...
("Night of the Returning Dead" S02 E05) and Vasquez Rocks ("Night of the Cadre" S02 E26). The TV movies used Old Tucson Studios and Apacheland Studios in Tucson, Arizona and Gold Canyon, Arizona respectively.


Train

For the pilot episode, "The Night of the Inferno", the producers used Sierra Railroad No. 3, a
4-6-0 A 4-6-0 steam locomotive, under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives by wheel arrangement, has four leading wheels on two axles in a leading bogie and six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles with the ...
locomotive that was, fittingly, an
anachronism An anachronism (from the Greek , 'against' and , 'time') is a chronological inconsistency in some arrangement, especially a juxtaposition of people, events, objects, language terms and customs from different time periods. The most common ty ...
: Sierra No. 3 was built in 1891, 15 to 20 years after the series was set. Footage of this train, with a 5 replacing the 3 on its number plate, was shot in
Jamestown, California Jamestown is a census-designated place (CDP) in Tuolumne County, California, United States. The population was 3,433 at the 2010 census, up from 3,017 at the 2000 census. Formerly a California Gold Rush town, Jamestown is now a California His ...
. Best known for its role as the Hooterville Cannonball in the CBS series ''
Petticoat Junction ''Petticoat Junction'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from September 1963 to April 1970. The series takes place at the Shady Rest Hotel, which is run by Kate Bradley; her three daughters Billie Jo, Bobbie Jo, and ...
'', Sierra No. 3 probably appeared in more films and TV shows than any other locomotive in history. It was built by the
Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works was a 19th-century manufacturer of railroad steam locomotives based in Paterson, in Passaic County, New Jersey, in the United States. It built more than six thousand steam locomotives for railroads around the ...
in
Paterson, New Jersey Paterson ( ) is the largest city in and the county seat of Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.4-4-0 4-4-0 is a locomotive type with a classification that uses the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives by wheel arrangement and represents the arrangement: four leading wheels on two axles (usually in a leading bogie), four ...
named the Inyo, was built in 1875 by the
Baldwin Locomotive Works The Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW) was an American manufacturer of railroad locomotives from 1825 to 1951. Originally located in Philadelphia, it moved to nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania, in the early 20th century. The company was for decades ...
in Philadelphia. Originally a wood-burner, the
Inyo Inyo may refer to: Places California * Inyo County, California * Inyo National Forest, USA * The Inyo Mountains * The Mono–Inyo Craters Other uses * Japanese for yin and yang Yin and yang ( and ) is a Chinese philosophical concep ...
was converted to oil in 1910. The Inyo, as well as the express car and the passenger car, originally served the
Virginia and Truckee Railroad The Virginia and Truckee Railroad is a privately owned heritage railroad, headquartered in Virginia City, Nevada. Its private and publicly owned route is long. When first constructed in the 19th century, it was a commercial freight railroad ...
in Nevada. They were among the V&T cars sold to Paramount Pictures in 1937–38. The Inyo appears in numerous films including ''
High, Wide, and Handsome ''High, Wide and Handsome'' is a 1937 American musical Western film starring Irene Dunne, Randolph Scott, Alan Hale, Sr., Charles Bickford and Dorothy Lamour. The film was directed by Rouben Mamoulian and written by Oscar Hammerstein II and G ...
'' (1938), ''
Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pac ...
'' (1939), the
Marx Brothers The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act that was successful in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in motion pictures from 1905 to 1949. Five of the Marx Brothers' thirteen feature films were selected by the American Film Institute (AFI) ...
' '' Go West'' (1940), ''
Meet Me in St. Louis ''Meet Me in St. Louis'' is a 1944 American Christmas film, Christmas musical film made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Divided into a series of seasonal vignettes, starting with Summer 1903, it relates the story of a year in the life of the Smith famil ...
'' (1944), '' Red River'' (1948),
Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
's ''
The Great Locomotive Chase ''The Great Locomotive Chase'' is a 1956 American adventure western film produced by Walt Disney Productions, based on the Great Locomotive Chase that occurred in 1862 during the American Civil War. Filmed in CinemaScope and in color, the fi ...
'' (1956) and ''
McLintock! :''See also McClintock (disambiguation)'' ''McLintock!'' is a 1963 American Western comedy film, starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara, directed by Andrew V. McLaglen. The film co-stars Wayne's son Patrick Wayne, Stefanie Powers, Jack Kr ...
'' (1963). For ''The Wild Wild West'', Inyo's original number plate was temporarily changed from No. 22 to No. 8 so that footage of the train could be flopped horizontally without the number appearing reversed. Footage of the Inyo in motion and idling was shot around
Menifee, California Menifee is a city in Riverside County, California, United States, and part of the Los Angeles Combined Statistical Area. The city is centrally located in Southern California in the Menifee Valley. It is almost north of Temecula and just n ...
, and reused in virtually every episode. Stock footage of Sierra No. 3 occasionally resurfaced as well. These trains were used only for exterior shots. The luxurious interior of the passenger car was constructed on Stage 6 at
CBS Studio Center Radford Studio Center, alternatively CBS Studio Center, is a television and film studio located in the Studio City district of Los Angeles in the San Fernando Valley. The lot has 18 sound stages from , of office space, and 223 dressing rooms. ...
. Designed by art director Albert Heschong, the set reportedly cost $35,000 in 1965 (over $290,000 in 2021 dollars). The interior was redesigned with lighter wood when the show switched to color for the 1966–67 season. The train interior was also used in at least one episode of ''
Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centers on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central chara ...
'' ("Death Train," aired January 27, 1967) and in at least two episodes of ''
The Big Valley ''The Big Valley'' is an American Western drama television series that originally aired from September 15, 1965, to May 19, 1969 on ABC. The series is set on the fictional Barkley Ranch in Stockton, California, from 1884 to 1888. The one-hour ...
'' ("Last Train to the Fair," aired April 27, 1966, and "Days of Wrath," aired January 8, 1968). All three series were filmed at CBS Studio Center and shared other exterior and interior sets. Additionally, the train interior was used for an episode of ''
Get Smart ''Get Smart'' is an American comedy television series parodying the secret agent genre that had become widely popular in the first half of the 1960s, with the release of the ''James Bond'' films. It was created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, an ...
'' ("The King Lives?", aired January 6, 1968) and the short-lived '' Barbary Coast'' ("Funny Money," aired September 8, 1975). After her run on ''The Wild Wild West'', the Inyo participated in the
Golden Spike The golden spike (also known as The Last Spike) is the ceremonial 17.6- karat gold final spike driven by Leland Stanford to join the rails of the first transcontinental railroad across the United States connecting the Central Pacific Railroad ...
Centennial at Promontory, Utah, in 1969. The following year it appeared as a replica of the Central Pacific's "Jupiter" locomotive at the Golden Spike National Historical Site. The State of Nevada purchased the Inyo in 1974; it was restored to 1895 vintage, including a wider smoke stack and a new pilot (cow catcher) without a drop coupler. The Inyo is still operational and displayed at the
Nevada State Railroad Museum The Nevada State Railroad Museum, located in Carson City, Nevada, preserves the railroad heritage of Nevada, including locomotives and cars of the famous Virginia and Truckee Railroad. Much of the museum equipment was obtained from various Ho ...
in Carson City. The express car (No. 21) and passenger car (No. 4) are also at the museum. Another veteran V&T locomotive, the Reno (built in 1872 by Baldwin), was used in the two ''Wild Wild West'' TV movies. The Reno, which resembles the Inyo, is located at
Old Tucson Studios Old Tucson (formerly Old Tucson Studios) is an American movie studio and theme park just west of Tucson, Arizona, adjacent to the Tucson Mountains and close to the western portion of Saguaro National Park. Built in 1939 for the movie '' Arizona ...
. The 1999 '' Wild Wild West'' film adaptation used the Baltimore & Ohio 4–4–0 No. 25, one of the oldest operating steam locomotives in the U.S. Built in 1856 at the
Mason Machine Works The Mason Machine Works was a machinery manufacturing company located in Taunton, Massachusetts, between 1845 and 1944. The company became famous for an early invention by its creator, William Mason, the self-acting mule, first patented in 1840 ...
in
Taunton, Massachusetts Taunton is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the seat of Bristol County. Taunton is situated on the Taunton River which winds its way through the city on its way to Mount Hope Bay, to the south. At the 2020 cen ...
, it was later renamed The
William Mason William, Willie, or Willy Mason may refer to: Arts and entertainment *William Mason (poet) (1724–1797), English poet, editor and gardener *William Mason (architect) (1810–1897), New Zealand architect *William Mason (composer) (1829–1908), Ame ...
in honor of its manufacturer. For its role as "The Wanderer" in the film, the engine was sent to the steam shops at the
Strasburg Rail Road The Strasburg Rail Road is a heritage railroad and the oldest continuously operating standard-gauge railroad in the western hemisphere, as well as the oldest public utility in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Chartered in 1832, the Strasburg Ra ...
for restoration and repainting. The locomotive is brought out for the B&O Train Museum in Baltimore's "Steam Days". Both the Inyo and The William Mason appeared in the
Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
film ''
The Great Locomotive Chase ''The Great Locomotive Chase'' is a 1956 American adventure western film produced by Walt Disney Productions, based on the Great Locomotive Chase that occurred in 1862 during the American Civil War. Filmed in CinemaScope and in color, the fi ...
'' (1956).


Gadgets

''The Wild Wild West'' featured numerous, often anachronistic, gadgets. Some were recurring devices, such as West's sleeve gun or a breakaway
Derringer A derringer is a small handgun that is neither a revolver nor a semi/ fully automatic pistol. It is not to be confused with mini-revolvers or pocket pistols, although some later derringers were manufactured with the pepperbox configuration. ...
hidden in his left and right boot heels. Others appeared in only a single episode. Most of these gadgets are concealed in West's garments: *
Sleeve gun A sleeve ( ang, slīef, a word allied to '' slip'', cf. Dutch ) is the part of a garment that covers the arm, or through which the arm passes or slips. The sleeve is a characteristic of fashion seen in almost every country and time period, ac ...
(a Remington Double Derringer), featured in many episodes as an unexpected
concealed carry Concealed carry, or carrying a concealed weapon (CCW), is the practice of carrying a weapon (usually a sidearm such as a handgun), either in proximity to or on one's person or in public places in a manner that hides or conceals the weapon's pr ...
alternative to his openly carried full-sized revolver. In some episodes, the ejecting arm of the device dispensed other useful gadgets, such as a tiny squirt can containing acid ("The Night of Montezuma's Hordes"), iron climbing-claws, a knife ("The Night of the Watery Death"), a pulley ("The Night of the Bubbling Death") and various blades. * A breakaway Remington Derringer. Usually the frame (grip and trigger mechanism) was located in one hollowed-out boot heel, while the double-barrel assembly was located in the other heel; the two pieces snapped together and locked. Bullets were dispensed from a secret compartment in his belt buckle, or the chambers were pre-loaded. * A breakaway blowtorch, hidden in the hollowed-out boot heels. ("The Night of the Raven") * Lock pick or passkey concealed under the lapel of the Bolero-style jacket. ("The Night of the Avaricious Actuary") *
Throwing knife A throwing knife is a knife that is specially designed and weighted so that it can be thrown effectively. They are a distinct category from ordinary knives. Throwing knives are used by many cultures around the world, and as such different tact ...
concealed in a pocket inside the back of the jacket. * Various explosive devices (i.e. smoke bombs, impact flares ("The Night of the Avaricious Actuary"), gas grenades, anti-lock key ("The Night of the Golden Cobra"; "The Night of the Simian Terror"), explosive putty ("The Night of the Returning Dead"; "The Night of the Egyptian Queen"; "The Night of the Spanish Curse"), acid-dissolving steel ball ("The Night of Montezuma's Hordes"; "The Night of the Tycoons"), wood-burning chemical ("The Night of the Deadly Plague"), impact explosive ("The Night of the Vipers"), etc.) carried in his jacket pockets, belt buckle, coat buttons, hat, a secret compartment in his holster and the hollowed-out heels of one or both boots. Various lengths and types of fuses were sewn into the hem of his jacket or the waistband of his pants. * A grappling hook attachment for his rifle. ("The Night of Montezuma's Hordes") * A grappling hook mechanism with a
piton A piton (; also called ''pin'' or ''peg'') in climbing is a metal spike (usually steel) that is driven into a crack or seam in the climbing surface using a climbing hammer, and which acts as an anchor for protecting the climber against the ...
. ("The Night of the Juggernaut") * A grappling hook/spindle combination silent pistol. ("The Night of the Camera") * A glass cutter. ("The Night of the Camera") * A flat metal barbed climbing-spike (piton) with an attached cord, cable or wire. The piton fit the muzzle of either his Derringer or revolver and was fired into a wooden beam or wall. West would then use a
pulley A pulley is a wheel on an axle or shaft that is designed to support movement and change of direction of a taut cable or belt, or transfer of power between the shaft and cable or belt. In the case of a pulley supported by a frame or shell that ...
with a handle to
zip-line A zip-line, zip line, zip-wire, flying fox, or death slide is a pulley suspended on a cable, usually made of stainless steel, mounted on a slope. It is designed to enable cargo or a person propelled by gravity to travel from the top to the bo ...
above obstacles. The equipment was usually carried in his jacket's many inside pockets. ("The Night of the Bubbling Death"; "The Night of the Headless Woman"; "The Night of the Fugitives") * A set of a six-shooter pistol and Winchester Carbine decorated with metal stubs. ("The Night of the Inferno"; "The Night of Montezuma's Hordes"; "The Night of the Cut-Throats") * A small, hand-held motor-driven winch. When used in conjunction with the piton and wire, the winch could either hoist him upwards, to a building's roof for instance, or lower him into a pit. ("The Night of the Bubbling Death"; "The Night of the Headless Woman"; "The Night of the Fugitives"; "The Night of the Camera"; "The Night of the Tycoons") * A thin, telescopic probing rod (similar to a long modern-day car antenna). When extended fully, West could probe approximately 10 feet around him. He used this to probe and trigger traps in the Secret Service training room depicted in "The Night of the Janus". * A spring-loaded, swing-out knife blade (
switchblade A switchblade (aka switch knife, automatic knife, pushbutton knife, ejector knife, flick knife, Stiletto, flick blade, or spring knife (Sprenger,Benson, Ragnar (1989). ''Switchblade: The Ace of Blades''. Paladin Press. pp. 1–14. . The sw ...
) beneath the toe-box of his boot. ("The Night of the Glowing Corpse"; "The Night of the Flying Pie Plate"; "The Night of the Watery Death"; "The Night of the Amnesiac") * A glass cutter with a suction cup. A cutting arm rotated to score the glass in a complete circle and the suction cup was used to remove the cut piece. ("The Night of the Camera") * A thin but strong wire, coiled and fitted in the inner lining of the crown of his hat; the wire had multiple uses and was even capable of sawing through a steel bar. * A battery-powered (or spring-driven) electric drill that, in one episode, was roughly the size of a large avocado and used to assist West's escape from a metal cage. * West's saddle horn was booby-trapped with a dynamite bullet shell. ("The Night of the Returning Dead") * A kit bag which, when opened, inflated a big balloon to shock and disorient enemies for a few seconds. ("The Night of Fire and Brimstone") * Bulletproof vest. ("The Night of the Thousand Eyes"; "The Night of the Cadre"; "The Night of the Glowing Corpse"; "The Night Dr. Loveless Died"; "The Night of the Arrow") * Tear gas/smoke bombs. ("The Night of the Dancing Death") * Package of burnable material capable of burning through locks or the bottom of man-sized birdcages. ("The Night of the Simian Terror"; "The Night of the Gruesome Games") * A small windup noise buzzer/maker. ("The Night of the Fugitives"; "The Night of the Sabatinii Curse") * A put together wind-up lifter. ("The Night of Miguelito's Revenge") Aboard the train: * A remote control under a revolving table that automatically locked the door of the rail car. ("The Night of the Inferno") Similarly, a concealed panel above the revolving table that would either display a blackboard ("The Night of Miguelito's Revenge") or a map of the United States ("The Night of the Vicious Valentine"), but also concealed several pistols mounted on the panel. ("The Night of the Brain") Depending on the episode, a pistol ("The Night of the Arrow"; "The Night of the Egyptian Queen") or a shotgun (''The Wild Wild West Revisited'') would be hidden under the revolving table top. One episode showed that, after the statue on the revolving table-top was turned upside down, it would unlock a secret panel concealing a small wall safe. ("The Night of the Tartar"). * A metal knight statue on the desk that struck a bell when a hidden alarm triggered it after the train window was broken. ("The Night of the Egyptian Queen") * A Chinese box that made a whistling sound like a firework — a "present" From Dr. Loveless. ("The Night Dr. Loveless Died") * An early warning system on the back door of the rail car which activated the rail car's parlor lights. ("The Night of the Arrow) * A mobile telegraph set concealed in a false book set on the desk. ("The Night of the Bubbling death", "The Night of the Brain") * A "Victorian" record player (an anachronism since this was invented nearly 10 years later – 1888). * Two pistols on a wooden swivel-stand on desk, activated and controlled by a knob on the fireplace. ("The Night of the Bubbling Death") * The fireplace concealed a secret escape door and an emergency flare signal; it also had concealed side panels for chemicals and a primitive phone mouthpiece for communication with the engine ("The Night of the Brain") and a case of fake jewels ("The Night of the Egyptian Queen"). At least one episode showed a pistol concealed behind a side shelf door panel. ("The Night of the Feathered Fury") On either side of the fireplace were Decorative lion heads that spew out knockout gas when triggered. ("The Night of the Big Blackmail") On the fireplace is hung a souvenir Aztec goddess mask. ("The Night of Montezuma's Hordes") * Several pistols, rifles, shotguns and other assorted weaponry were mounted on a concealed pull-down panel on the laboratory section of the train. A sliding closet located in the same area contained clothes and other useful paraphernalia. ("The Night of the Inferno") * A small mirrored ball that hung over the desk and could be used to induce hypnotic suggestions to amiable young women. ("The Night of the Tartar") * Overhead billiard scoring wire and beads that connected to signal lamps on the back of the railroad car (to turn the lights off as needed). ("The Night of the Inferno") * Cages for two
carrier pigeon The homing pigeon, also called the mail pigeon or messenger pigeon, is a variety of domestic pigeons (''Columba livia domestica'') derived from the wild rock dove, selectively bred for its ability to find its way home over extremely long distan ...
s (named Henry and Henrietta). In the pilot episode, the cages were located above the door in the same room where West usually dressed and equipped himself. In subsequent episodes, the carrier pigeons were usually located in a compartment above the fireplace. In one episode, a carrier pigeon is carried within a valise. ("The Night of the Colonel's Ghost") * A pet cat named Denver ("The Night of the Big Blackmail") * A toy train set along with life-sized cutouts of West's and Gordon's heads. ("The Night of the Big Blackmail") * A wooden model of an armored
tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful ...
(based on the tank in "The Night of the Doomsday Formula"). ("The Night of the Colonel's Ghost") * A surprise joke snake in the cigar humidor. ("The Night of the Iron Fist") * A life-size dummy of Artemus Gordon. ("The Night Dr. Loveless Died") * A Bunsen burner in the laboratory car that, when turned up, activates an outside distress flare. ("The Night of the Falcon") * A miniature piano. ("The Night of the Cut-throats"; "The Night of the Janus") * A ventriloquist's dummy used by Artemus Gordon to throw his voice. ("The Night of the Shedwick Curse") * An "unwanted" souvenir book called ''Encyclopedia of Party Games''. ("The Night of Gruesome Games") * A pair of candlesticks. ("The Night of the Egyptian Queens") * A typewriter. ("The Night of the camera") Other gadgets: * Elastic wire in a watch. ("The Night of the Poisonous Posey") * An exploding pocket watch. * Exploding billiard balls (the cue ball in the series' pilot episode, but sometimes other balls as well). ("The Night of the Inferno" (pilot episode); "The Night of the camera") * Cue stick with a rapier hidden inside. ("The Night of the Inferno" (pilot episode)) * Cue stick that fires bullets. ("The Night of the Inferno" (pilot episode)) * Stagecoach with two ejector seats (one inside and one outside the coach (a nod to James Bond's 007 Aston Martin) and a hook to immobilize killers. ("The Night the Wizard Shook the Earth") * A chemical compound invented by Artemus Gordon that could support a man's weight for between 20 seconds to one minute. ("The Night of the Glowing Corpse"; "The Night of the Big Blackmail") * An explosive compound invented by Artemus Gordon that goes off when exposed to heat. ("The Night of the Juggernaut") * An anti-lock explosive. ("The Night of the Golden Cobra"; "The Night of the Kraken") * A telegraph mechanism in a cane. * A lock pick in a cane. ("The Night of the Shedwick Curse") * A blow torch disguised as a cigar. * A miniature blowtorch. ("The Night of the Turncoat") * A miniature grenade. ("The Night of the Doomsday Formula") * A miniature record player that plays realistic gunshots ("The Night of Fire and Brimstone") or music ("The Night of the Doomsday Formula"). * A combination flare and whistle. ("The Night of the Doomsday Formula") * Clockwork-powered lock-picking device key opener for locks. ("The Night of the Cadre"; "The Night of the Arrow"; "The Night of the Headless Woman"; "The Night of the Vipers") * Rubber mask disguises (similar to ''
Mission Impossible ''Mission: Impossible'' is a multimedia franchise based on a fictional secret espionage agency known as the Impossible Missions Force (IMF). The 1966 TV series ran for seven seasons and was revived in 1988 for two seasons. It inspired a serie ...
'') for both agents ("The Night of the Brian") and villains ("The Night of the Pelican"). * A net-throwing bazooka. ("The Night of the Big Blast") * A cane that doubles as a mortar. ("The Night of the Bottomless Pit") * Diving helmet. ("The Night of the Kraken") * Gas mask with a five-minute air supply. ("The Night of the Glowing Corpse") * Gas mask. ("The Night of the Flying Pie Plate") * Knockout gas in a cane. ("The Night of the Burning Diamond") * Knockout gas in a ball. ("The Night of the Brain") * Knockout gas in a box ("The Night of the Pelican") * Knockout gas in a balloon. ("The Night of the Cadre"; "The Night Dr. Loveless Died"; "The Night of the Kraken") * Knockout gas in a clay pipe. ("The Night of the Deadly Bubble"; "The Night of the Headless Woman") * Knockout gas in glass dejohns. ("The Night of the Cadre") * Knockout gas water in a seltzer bottle. ("The Night of the Feathered Fury") * A revolver bullet/flare to illuminate a dark cave or call for help. ("The Night of the Returning Dead"; "The Night of the Arrow") * A magnetized coin that explodes when exposed to heat. ("The Night of the Watery Death") * A cigar that, when thrown to the ground, produces shock and smoke effects. ("The Night of the Colonel's Ghost") * Shock/stun smoke pellets. ("The Night of the Vipers") * Wine bottle/smoke/shock grenades. ("The Night of the Bubbling Death") * Wine bottle/joke snake. ("The Night of the Bubbling Death") * Wine bottle/smoke. ("The Night of the Bubbling Death") * Escape basket. ("The Night of the Bubbling Death") * Hammer/jimmy kit concealed in jacket. ("The Night of the Bubbling Death") * Smoke screen escape packet. ("The Night of the Bubbling Death") * Smoke screen in a
prop A prop, formally known as (theatrical) property, is an object used on stage or screen by actors during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinc ...
human skull. ("The Night of the Underground Terror") * Burning strips to destroy metal bars. ("The Night of the Undead"; "The Night of the Simian Terror") * Trick wagon. ("The Night of the Cadre"; "The Night of the Fugitives") * A mechanical wind up butterfly/bomb. ("The Night of Miguelito's Revenge") * A mechanical snake. ("The Night of the Spanish Curse") * A mechanical wind-up bomb ("The Night of the Spanish Curse") The villains often used equally creative gadgets, including: * A device to trigger earthquakes. ("The Night of the Human Trigger") *
Brainwashing Brainwashing (also known as mind control, menticide, coercive persuasion, thought control, thought reform, and forced re-education) is the concept that the human mind can be altered or controlled by certain psychological techniques. Brainwashin ...
techniques using intense light and sound. ("The Night of the Steel Assassin"; "The Night of the Howling Light") * A
cyborg A cyborg ()—a portmanteau of ''cybernetic'' and ''organism''—is a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.
. ("The Night of the Steel Assassin") * Androids. ("The Night of Miguelito's Revenge") * A flamethrower cannon. ("The Night of the Flaming Ghost") * An early
flamethrower A flamethrower is a ranged incendiary device designed to project a controllable jet of fire. First deployed by the Byzantine Empire in the 7th century AD, flamethrowers saw use in modern times during World War I, and more widely in World ...
. ("The Night of the Circus of Death") * Life-size steam-powered puppets. ("The Night of the Puppeteer") * Jars that preserved disembodied human brains to draw upon their knowledge and psychic force. ("The Night of the Druid's Blood") * Chemical-treated clothing that burned its victims. ("The Night of the Druid's Blood") * A germ that paralyzes its victims for 48 hours. ("The Night of the Sudden Plague") * An explosive powerful enough to destroy city blocks. ("The Night the Wizard Shook the Earth") * A metal cage connected to a lightning rod. ("The Night of a Thousand Eyes") * The Juggernaut: a steam-powered, wedge-shaped
tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful ...
with a battering ram. ("The Night of the Juggernaut") * A potion, made from liquefied diamonds, which enabled a man to move so fast as to be invisible. ("The Night of the Burning Diamond") * An LSD-like hallucinogen, capable of driving men into fits of killing madness. ("The Night of the Murderous Spring") * A cathode-ray tube (television), plus prototypes of the airplane, the automobile and penicillin. ("The Night the Wizard Shook the Earth") * A torpedo disguised as a dragon capable of homing on a radio signal. ("The Night of the Watery Death") * A force field that disintegrates anything that comes in contact with it. ("The Night of the Watery Death") * A drug capable of shrinking a man down to a height of six inches. ("The Night of the Raven") * An
exoskeleton An exoskeleton (from Greek ''éxō'' "outer" and ''skeletós'' "skeleton") is an external skeleton that supports and protects an animal's body, in contrast to an internal skeleton ( endoskeleton) in for example, a human. In usage, some of the ...
suit of armor. ("The Night of the Green Terror") * A device that triggers tidal waves. ("The Night of the Deadly Bubble") * Automatic barred doors. ("The Night of the Deadly Bubble"; "The Night of the Undead", "The Night of the Fugitives") * A potion that turns humans into zombies. ("The Night of the Undead") * A sonic device that allowed paintings to be used as portals to other dimensions. ("The Night of the Surreal McCoy") * Crystals that, when surgically implanted inside the brain and shattered by a high-pitched noise, caused the subject to turn into a criminal. ("The Night of the Cadre"; "The Night of the Winged Terror — Part I"; "The Night of the Winged Terror — Part II") * A giant falcon-shaped cannon, capable of devastating a small town with a single shot. ("The Night of the Falcon") * A giant
tuning fork A tuning fork is an acoustic resonator in the form of a two-pronged fork with the prongs ( tines) formed from a U-shaped bar of elastic metal (usually steel). It resonates at a specific constant pitch when set vibrating by striking it agains ...
that created destructive sound waves. ("The Night of the Avaricious Actuary") * A recording phonograph. ("The Night of the Avaricious Actuary") * A locomotive modified with a large battering ram to collide with oncoming trains and derail them. ("The Night of the Deadly Bed") * Re-animated human corpses (similar to the
Frankenstein Monster Frankenstein's monster or Frankenstein's creature, often referred to as simply "Frankenstein", is a fictional character who first appeared in Mary Shelley's 1818 novel '' Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus''. Shelley's title thus compare ...
) turned into human bombs. ("The Night of the Big Blast") * Dungeons. ("The Night of Montezuma's Hordes"; "The Night of the Spanish Curse") * A pair of revolving blades. ("The Night of the Big Blackmail") * A steam-powered piston used to block entrance to safes. ("The Night of the Big Blackmail") * A pair of large metal hands with a deadly electric field. ("The Night of the Eccentrics") * A large, live-action periscope for spying. ("The Night of the Eccentrics") * A flying "pie plate" (a balloon filled with flares). ("The Night of the Flying Pie Plate") * Knockout gas in a door knocker ("The Night of the Headless Woman") * Knockout gas masks. ("The Night of the Flying Pie Plate"; The Night of the Egyptian Queen) * Knockout gas pistols. ("The Night of the Flying Pie Plate"; The Night of the Egyptian Queen) * Knockout drug pistol. ("The Night of the Feathered Fury") * Stagecoaches with knockout gas tubes. ("The Night of the Masks"; "The Night of the Diva") * Bomb gavel. ("The Night of the Poisonous Posey") * Poison-tipped diamond. ("The Night of the Poisonous Posey") * Revolving gun organ pipes. ("The Night of the Poisonous Posey") * A robotic suit of medieval armor. ("The Night of the Green Terror") * Explosive glass bulbs. ("The Night of the Green Terror") * Explosive mace head. ("The Night of the Green Terror") * Balloon-borne powder that sets forest fires. ("The Night of the Green Terror") * A computer-dating machine. ("The Night of the Vicious Valentine") * A drug that renders its victims immobile for five minutes. ("The Night of the Braine") * A backwards-firing pistol. ("The Night of the Brain"; "The Night of the Bogus Bandits"; "The Night of the Winged Terror – Part 1") * An ejection chair-seat. ("The Night of the Brain"; "The Night of the Hangman") * Doubles of world leaders. ("The Night of the Brain"; ''The Wild Wild West Revisited'') * Steam-powered wheelchair with rockets and impaling spikes. ("The Night of the Brain") * A magnetic sea mine. ("The Night of the Kraken") * An undersea fortress. ('"The Night of the Deadly Bubble"; "The Night of the Kraken") * Copies of the White House rooms. ("The Night of the Brain"; The Night of the Big Blackmail") * Windows with sliding bars/barriers. ("The Night of the Raven"; "The Night of the Colonels Ghost"; "The Night of the Fugitives") * Swinging axe pendulum. ("The Night of the Deadly Blossom") * A combination flare and whistle. ("The Night Dr. Loveless Died") * 2 wireless remote controlled rockets The Night of the Steel Assassian"* Anti-ship rockets. ("The Night of the Deadly Blossom"; "The Night of the Pelican") * A circus cannon that can be used as an escape vehicle. ("The Night of Miguelito's Revenge") * Phosgene gas. ("The Night of the Shedwick Curse"; "The Night Dr. Loveless Died") * Booby-trapped knife/chair. ("The Night of the Tottering Tontine"; "The Night of the Falcon") * Armored wagon with cannon. ("The Night of the Vipers") * Heavy iron artificial leg(s). ("The Night of the Glowing Corpse"; "The Night of the Bottomless Pit") * A booby-trapped bed. ("The Night of the Inferno'; "The Night of the Shedwick Curse") * A revolving wall/bed. ("The Night of the Shedwick Curse") * An anti-aging serum that instead turns those who are injected with it 50 years older. ("The Night of the Shedwick Curse") * Large bird cages/prisoner cages. ("The Night of the Feathered Fury"; "The Night of Miguelito's Revenge"; "The Night of the Simian Terror"; "The Night of the Gruesome Games"; "The Night of the Diva") * Grenades. ("The Night of the Pelican") * Miniature rockets. ("The Night of the Brian"; The Night of the Gruesome Games") * Miniature grenades. ("The Night of the Falcon"; "The Night of the Feathered Fury"; "The Night of the Tycoons") * Bulletproof armor. ("The Night of the Spanish Curse") * An amplified drum. ("The Night of the Spanish Curse") * A $600.00 man and woman whose strength has been increased 1,000% via robotic pulley implants (''The Wild West Revisited'', a spoof of the popular ''
The Six Million Dollar Man ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' is an American science fiction and action television series, running from 1973 to 1978, about a former astronaut, USAF Colonel Steve Austin, portrayed by Lee Majors. After a NASA test flight accident, Austin ...
'' and '' The Bionic Woman'' TV series)


Theme music

The main
title theme Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at som ...
was written by Richard Markowitz, who previously composed the theme for the TV series '' The Rebel''. He was brought in after the producers rejected two attempts by film composer
Dimitri Tiomkin Dimitri Zinovievich Tiomkin (, ; May 10, 1894 – November 11, 1979) was a Russian-born American film composer and conductor. Classically trained in St. Petersburg, Russia before the Bolshevik Revolution, he moved to Berlin and then New York Ci ...
. In an interview by Susan Kesler (for her book ''The Wild Wild West: The Series'') included in the first season DVD boxed set, Markowitz recalled that the original Tiomkin theme "was very, kind of, traditional, it just seemed wrong." Markowitz explained his own approach: "By combining jazz with Americana, I think that's what nailed it. That took it away from the serious kind of thing that Tiomkin was trying to do...What I did essentially was write two themes: the rhythmic, contemporary theme, Fender bass and brushes, that vamp, for the cartoon effects and for West's getting himself out of trouble, and the heraldic western outdoor theme over that, so that the two worked together." Session musicians who played on the theme were
Tommy Morgan Thomas Morgan Edwards (December 4, 1932 – June 23, 2022) was an American harmonicist and session musician, who had been active since the 1950s. He was considered one of the most heard harmonica players in the world, playing in over 500 fea ...
(harmonica);
Bud Shank Clifford Everett "Bud" Shank Jr. (May 27, 1926 – April 2, 2009) was an American alto saxophonist and flautist. He rose to prominence in the early 1950s playing lead alto and flute in Stan Kenton's Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra and thro ...
,
Ronnie Lang Ronnie Lang (sometimes spelled Ronny; born July 24, 1929) is an American jazz alto saxophonist. His professional début was with Hoagy Carmichael's Teenagers. He also played with Earle Spencer (1946), Ike Carpenter, and Skinnay Ennis (1947). L ...
,
Plas Johnson Plas John Johnson Jr. (born July 21, 1931) is an American soul-jazz and hard bop tenor saxophonist, probably most widely known as the tenor saxophone soloist on Henry Mancini’s "The Pink Panther Theme". He also performs on alto and baritone sa ...
and Gene Cipriano (woodwinds); Vince DeRosa and Henry Sigismonti (French horns); Uan Rasey, Ollie Mitchell and
Tony Terran Anthony Terran (May 30, 1926 – March 20, 2017) was an American trumpet player and session musician. He was part of the Wrecking Crew, a group of largely uncredited session musicians in Los Angeles, California, who helped famous artists record ...
(trumpets); Dick Nash, Lloyd Ulyate, Chauncey Welsch and Kenny Shroyer (trombones); Tommy Tedesco and
Bill Pitman William Keith Pitman (February 12, 1920 – August 11, 2022) was an American guitarist and session musician. As a first-call studio musician working in Los Angeles, Pitman played on some of the most celebrated and influential records of the ro ...
(guitars);
Carol Kaye Carol Kaye (née Smith, born March 24, 1935) is an American musician. She is one of the most prolific recorded bass guitarists in rock and pop music, playing on an estimated 10,000 recordings in a career spanning over 50 years. Kaye began pla ...
(Fender bass);
Joe Porcaro Joseph Thomas Porcaro (April 29, 1930 – July 6, 2020) was an American jazz drummer. Biography Personal life The Porcaro family is, on the paternal side, originally from San Luca, an Aspromonte village in the province of Reggio Calabria. Joe ...
(brushes) and Gene Estes,
Larry Bunker Lawrence Benjamin Bunker (November 4, 1928 – March 8, 2005) was an American jazz drummer, vibraphonist, and percussionist. A member of the Bill Evans Trio in the mid-1960s, he also played timpani with the Los Angeles Philharmonic orchestra. ...
and
Emil Richards Emil Richards (born Emilio Joseph Radocchia; September 2, 1932 – December 13, 2019) was an American vibraphonist and percussionist. Biography Musician Richards began playing the xylophone aged six. In High School, he performed with the Hartf ...
(timpani, percussion). Markowitz, however, was never credited for his theme in any episode; it is believed that this was due to legal difficulties between CBS and Tiomkin over the rejection of the latter's work. Markowitz did receive "music composed and conducted by" credits for episodes he had scored (such as "The Night of the Bars of Hell" and "The Night of the Raven") or where he supplied the majority of tracked-in cues (such as "The Night of the Grand Emir" and "The Night of the Gypsy Peril"). He finally received "theme by" credit on both of the TV movies, which were scored by Jeff Alexander rather than Markowitz (few personnel from the series were involved with the TV movies).


Graphics

The animated
title sequence A title sequence (also called an opening sequence or intro) is the method by which films or television programmes present their title and key production and cast members, utilizing conceptual visuals and sound (often a opening theme song with vi ...
was another unique element of the series. Created by Michael Garrison Productions and DePatie-Freleng Enterprises, it was directed by Isadore "Friz" Freleng and animated by Ken Mundie, who designed the titles for the film ''
The Great Race ''The Great Race'' is a 1965 American Technicolor slapstick comedy film starring Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis, and Natalie Wood, directed by Blake Edwards, written by Arthur A. Ross (from a story by Edwards and Ross), and with music by Henry Manci ...
'' and the TV series ''
Secret Agent Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...
,'' ''
I Spy I spy is a guessing game where one player (the ''spy'' or ''it'') chooses an object within sight and announces to the other players that "I spy with my little eye something beginning with...", naming the first letter of the object. Other players a ...
'', '' Rawhide'' and ''
Death Valley Days ''Death Valley Days'' is an American old-time radio and television anthology series featuring true accounts of the American Old West, particularly the Death Valley country of southeastern California. Created in 1930 by Ruth Woodman, the program ...
''. The screen was divided into four corner panels abutting a narrow central panel that contained a cartoon "hero". The hero looked more like a traditional cowboy than either West or Gordon, and from each corner panel encountered cliché western characters and situations that never appeared in the show. In the three seasons shot in color, the overall backdrop was an abstracted wash of the
flag of the United States The national flag of the United States of America, often referred to as the ''American flag'' or the ''U.S. flag'', consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the c ...
, with the upper left panel colored blue and the others containing horizontal red stripes. The original animation sequence is: * The hero strikes a match, lights a cigar, and begins walking in profile to the right. * Behind the hero, in the lower left panel, a robber backs out of a bank; the hero subdues him with a karate chop to the back. * In the upper right panel, a cardsharp tries to pull an ace of spades from his boot, but the hero draws his gun and the cardsharp drops the ace. * In the upper left panel, a gunman points a six-shooter at the hero, who drops his gun and puts his hands up. The hero shoots the gunman with his sleeve
Derringer A derringer is a small handgun that is neither a revolver nor a semi/ fully automatic pistol. It is not to be confused with mini-revolvers or pocket pistols, although some later derringers were manufactured with the pepperbox configuration. ...
; the gunman's hand falls limp. The hero then quickly retrieves his own gun and puts it back in his holster. * A woman in the lower right panel taps the hero on the hat with her
parasol An umbrella or parasol is a folding canopy (building), canopy supported by wooden or metal ribs that is usually mounted on a wooden, metal, or plastic pole. It is designed to protect a person against rain or sunburn, sunlight. The term ''umbr ...
. He pulls her close and kisses her. She draws a knife but, mesmerized by his kiss, turns away and slumps against the side of the frame. He tips his hat and walks away with his back to the camera. There were two versions of this vignette; this one appears during the first season. When the show switched to color, the hero knocked the woman down with a right cross to the jaw. This variant also appears in the original pilot episode (included on the DVD release) when the series was titled ''The Wild West''. Despite this, James West never hit a woman in any episode, although he grappled with many. The closest he came was when he slammed a door against the shotgun-holding evil Countess Zorana in "The Night of the Iron Fist". In "The Night of the Running Death", he slugged a woman named Miss Tyler, but "she" was a man in drag (actor T. C. Jones). The original animation, with the hero winning the woman over with a kiss, was a more accurate representation of West's methods than the right cross. Ironically, it is another example of the emphasis on violence of the show. * The hero walks away into the distance and the camera zooms into his panel. The title ''The Wild Wild West'' appears. The camera then swish pans to an illustration of the train, with Conrad's and Martin's names on the ends of different cars. This
teaser Teaser may refer to: * One who teases * Teaser (animal), a male livestock animal (typically a bull) whose penis has been amputated, "''gomer''" Film exhibition, broadcasting, advertising * Teaser (trailer), a short film used to advertise an ...
part of the show was incorporated into
The History Channel History (formerly The History Channel from January 1, 1995 to February 15, 2008, stylized as HISTORY) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by A&E Networks, a joint venture between Hearst Communications and the Disney ...
's ''Wild West Tech'' (2003–05). Each episode had four acts. At the end of each act, the scene, usually a cliffhanger moment, would freeze, and a sketch or photograph of the scene replaced the cartoon art in one of the corner panels. The style of freeze-frame art changed over the course of the series. In all first-season episodes other than the pilot, the panels were live-action stills made to evoke 19th-century engravings. In season 2 (the first in color) the scenes dissolved to tinted stills; from "The Night of the Flying Pie Plate" on, however, the panels were home to
Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the relationsh ...
-like serigraphs of the freeze-frames. The end credits were displayed over each episode's unique mosaic of scenes. In the final season, however, a generic design was used under the end credits. Curiously, in this design, the bank robber is unconscious, the cardsharp has no card and the lady is on the ground, but the six-shooter in the upper left-hand panel has returned. The freeze-frame graphics were shot at a facility called Format Animation. The pilot is the only episode in which the center panel of the hero is replaced by a sketch of the final scene of an act; he is replaced by the villainous General Cassinello (
Nehemiah Persoff Nehemiah Persoff (August 2, 1919 – April 5, 2022) was an American character actor and painter. He appeared in more than 200 television series, films, and theatre productions and also performed as a voice artist in a career spanning 55 years, be ...
) at the end of the third act. During the first season, the series title ''The Wild Wild West'' was set in the
font In metal typesetting, a font is a particular size, weight and style of a typeface. Each font is a matched set of type, with a piece (a " sort") for each glyph. A typeface consists of a range of such fonts that shared an overall design. In mo ...
Barnum, which resembles the newer font P. T. Barnum. In subsequent seasons, the title appeared in a hand-drawn version of the font Dolphin (which resembles newer fonts called Zebrawood, Circus and Rodeo Clown). Robert Conrad's name was also set in this font. Ross Martin's name was set in the font Bracelet (which resembles newer fonts named Tuscan Ornate and Romantiques). All episode titles, writer and director credits, guest cast and crew credits were set in Barnum. During commercial breaks, the title "The Wild Wild West" also appeared in Barnum.


Dates given in the series

The series is generally set during the presidency of Ulysses S. Grant from 1869 to 1877; occasional episodes indicate a more precise date: * "The Night of the Glowing Corpse" is set during the Franco-Prussian War of July 19, 1870 – May 10, 1871. * "The Night of the Eccentrics" takes place four years after the execution in 1867 of Emperor
Maximilian I of Mexico Maximilian I (german: Ferdinand Maximilian Josef Maria von Habsburg-Lothringen, link=no, es, Fernando Maximiliano José María de Habsburgo-Lorena, link=no; 6 July 1832 – 19 June 1867) was an Austrian archduke who reigned as the only Emperor ...
, i.e. 1871. This is supported by a reference to President Benito Juárez, who stepped down in 1872. * In "The Night of the Eccentrics", Count Manzeppi hums "
Ride of the Valkyries The "Ride of the Valkyries" (german: Walkürenritt Ritt der Walküren, links=no) refers to the beginning of act 3 of '' Die Walküre'', the second of the four operas constituting Richard Wagner's '' Der Ring des Nibelungen''. As a separate pie ...
" which was first performed on June 26, 1870. * "The Night of the Man Eating House" states that Liston Day has been in solitary confinement for 30 years and later that he was arrested April 23, 1836. This would put it around 1866, three years before the Grant presidency began. * In "The Night of the Brain", Artemus Gordon shows James West a newspaper dated July 12, 1872. West states, "July 12, that's an interesting date, but it happens to be tomorrow." After the events described happen, they again get tomorrow's newspaper and we see the date: July 14, 1872. * "The Night of the Lord of Limbo" takes place seven years after the end of the Civil War, making it 1872. * "The Night of the Tartar" takes place five years after the 1867 purchase of Alaska .e., 1872* "The Night of the Whirring Death" opens with the caption ''San Francisco 1874''. * "The Night of the Returning Death" is set 13 years after the start of the Civil War .e., 1874* In "The Night of the Flaming Ghost", West says, "If the real John Brown had lived he'd be almost 75 years old by now." Brown was born May 9, 1800. * In "The Night of the Arrow", a cavalry officer resigns his commission as of April 6, 1874. * In "The Night of the Avaricious Actuary", the heading of a letter shown on screen is dated 1875. * In "The Night of the Underground Terror", the sadistic commandant of a
prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, corre ...
camp is said to have escaped justice for 10 years, presumably from the end of the war in 1865. * In "The Night of the Samurai," Baron Saigo says Admiral Perry took the sword over 30 years earlier. Assuming the date of Perry's first visit to Japan (July 8, 1853), that would mean the episode takes place after 1883, or some six years after the end of the Grant presidency. * In "The Night that Terror Stalked the Town", Loveless has a
headstone A headstone, tombstone, or gravestone is a stele or marker, usually stone, that is placed over a grave. It is traditional for burials in the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim religions, among others. In most cases, it has the deceased's name, ...
prepared for West, showing his birthdate as July 2, 1842. * In "The Night of the Kraken", there is an assassination attempt on Admiral David Farragut, who died in 1870.


Cancellation

Some episodes were considered violent for their time and that, rather than low ratings, ultimately was the series' downfall. In addition to gunplay, there were usually two fight sequences per episode. These were choreographed by
Whitey Hughes Whitey can refer to: People * Whitey Alperman (1879–1942), MLB player * Richie Ashburn (1927–1997), MLB player and broadcaster * Whitey Bimstein (1897–1969), boxer and boxing trainer * Whitey Bulger (1929–2018), crime boss of organized ...
and Conrad and performed by Conrad and a stock company of
stuntmen A stunt performer, often called a stuntman or stuntwoman and occasionally stuntperson or stunt-person, is a trained professional who performs daring acts, often as a career. Stunt performers usually appear in films or on television, as opposed ...
, including
Red West Robert Gene "Red" West (March 8, 1936 – July 18, 2017) was an American actor, film stuntman and songwriter. He was known for being a close confidant and bodyguard for rock and roll singer Elvis Presley. Upon his firing, West wrote the cont ...
,
Dick Cangey Richard Melvin Cangey (July 9, 1933 – October 29, 2003) was an American stunt performer and actor. Early life Cangey was born in Mahoningtown, Pennsylvania. After graduating from New Castle High School in 1951, he moved to nearby Cleveland, Oh ...
and Bob Herron (who doubled for Ross Martin). After Conrad suffered a concussion falling from a chandelier in "The Night of the Fugitives," the network insisted that he defer to a stunt double (his chair on the set was newly inscribed: "Robert Conrad, ex-stuntman, retired by CBS, Jan. 24, 1968"). " en I came back for the fourth season, I was limited to what I could do for insurance reasons," Conrad explained. "So I agreed and gradually I did all the fights but couldn't do anything five feet off the ground and of course that went out the window." He was doubled by Jimmy George. Often, George would start a stunt, such as a high fall or a dive through a window, then land behind boxes or off-camera where Conrad was hidden and waiting to seamlessly complete the action. This common stunt technique, known by filmmakers as "the Texas Switch", was often used by Ross Martin and his double, Bob Herron. It was hazardous work. Hughes recalled, "We had a lot of crashes. We used to say, 'Roll the cameras and call the ambulances!'" Conrad recalled in 1994, "The injuries started at the top. Robert Conrad: 6-inch fracture of the skull, high temporal concussion, partial paralysis. Ross Martin: broken leg. A broken skull for Red West. Broken leg for Jimmy George. Broken arm for Jack Skelly. And Michael Dunn: head injury and a spinal sprain. He did his own stunts. And on and on." As a result of the April 1968
assassination of Martin Luther King Martin Luther King Jr., an African-American clergyman and civil rights leader, was fatally shot at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968, at 6:01 p.m. Central Time Zone, CST. He was rushed to St. Joseph's Hospital ( ...
and the June 1968
assassination of Robert F. Kennedy On June 5, 1968, Robert F. Kennedy was shot by Sirhan Sirhan shortly after midnight at the Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles. He was pronounced dead at 1:44 a.m. PDT the following day. Kennedy was a senator from New York and a candidate ...
, President
Johnson Johnson is a surname of Anglo-Norman origin meaning "Son of John". It is the second most common in the United States and 154th most common in the world. As a common family name in Scotland, Johnson is occasionally a variation of ''Johnston'', a ...
created the National Commission on the Causes and Prevention of Violence. One of the questions it tackled was if violence on television, including graphic news coverage of the Vietnam War, was a contributing factor to violence in American society. The television networks, anticipating these allegations, moved to curtail violence on their entertainment programs before the September start of the 1968–69 television season. Television reporter Cynthia Lowrey, in an article published in August 1968, wrote that ''The Wild Wild West'' "is one of the action series being watched by network censors for scenes of excessive violence, even if the violence is all in fun." However, despite a CBS mandate to tone down the mayhem, "The Night of the Egyptian Queen" (aired November 15, 1968) contains perhaps the series' most ferocious barroom brawl. A later memo attached to the shooting script of "The Night of Miguelito's Revenge" (aired December 13, 1968) reads: "Note to Directors: The producer respectfully asks that no violent acts be shot which are not depicted in the script or discussed beforehand. Most particularly stay away from gratuitous ad-libs, such as slaps, pointing of firearms or other weapons at characters (especially in close quarters), kicks and the use of furniture and other objects in fight scenes." Strict limits were placed on the number of so-called "acts of violence" in the last episodes of the season (and thus the series). James West rarely wears a gun in these episodes and rather than the usual fisticuffs, fight sequences involved tossing, tackling or body blocking the villains. In December 1968, executives from ABC, CBS and NBC appeared before the President's Commission. The most caustic of the commissioners, Rep.
Hale Boggs Thomas Hale Boggs Sr. (February 15, 1914 – disappeared October 16, 1972; declared dead December 29, 1972) was an American Democratic politician and a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New Orleans, Louisiana. He was the House ma ...
(D-Louisiana), decried what he called "the Saturday morning theme of children's cartoon shows" that permit "the good guy to do anything in the name of justice." He also indicted CBS for featuring sadism in its primetime programing (''The Wild Wild West'' was subsequently identified as one example). The Congressman did, however, commend CBS for a 25% decline in violence programming in prime time compared to the other two networks. Three months later, in March 1969, Sen.
John O. Pastore John Orlando Pastore (March 17, 1907July 15, 2000) was an American lawyer and politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a United States Senator from Rhode Island from 1950 to 1976 and as the 61st governor of Rhode Island from 19 ...
(D-Rhode Island) called the same network presidents before his Senate communications subcommittee for a public scolding on the same subject. At Pastore's insistence, the networks promised tighter industry self-censorship and the Surgeon General began a $1 million study on the effects of television. Congress's concern was shared by the public: in a nationwide poll, 67.5% of 1,554 Americans agreed with the hypothesis that TV and movie violence prompted violence in real life. Additionally, the
National Association for Better Broadcasting The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) is a trade association and lobby group representing the interests of commercial and non-commercial over-the-air radio and television broadcasters in the United States. The NAB represents more tha ...
(NABB), in a report eventually issued in November 1969, rated ''The Wild Wild West'' "as one of the most violent series on television." After being excoriated by the two committees, networks scrambled to expunge violence from their programming. ''The Wild Wild West'' received its cancellation notice in mid-February, even before Pastore's committee convened. Producer Bruce Lansbury always claimed that "It was a sacrificial lamb … It went off with a 32 or 33 share which in those days was virtually break-even but it always won its time period." This is confirmed by an article by Associated Press reporter Joseph Mohbat: "Shows like ABC's 'Outcasts' and NBC's 'Outsider', which depended heavily on violence, were scrapped. CBS killed 'The Wild, Wild West' despite high ratings because of criticism. It was seen by the network as a gesture of good intentions." The networks played it safe thereafter: of the 22 new television shows that debuted in the fall of 1969, not one was a Western or detective drama; 14 were comedy or variety series. Conrad denounced Pastore for many years, but in other interviews he admitted that it probably was time to cancel the series because he felt that he and the stuntmen were pushing their luck. He also believed the role had hurt his craft. "In so many roles I was a tough guy and I never advanced much," Conrad explained. "''Wild Wild West'' was action adventure. I jumped off roofs and spent all my time with the stuntmen instead of other actors. I thought that's what the role demanded. That role had no dimension other than what it was—a caricature of a performance. It was a comic strip character." The series was shown in the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
on the ITV network starting May 5, 1968. It was reasonably popular, but has not been seen on British terrestrial television since the early 1980s.


Syndication

In the summer of 1970, CBS reran several episodes of ''The Wild Wild West'' on Mondays at 10 p.m. as a summer replacement for ''
The Carol Burnett Show ''The Carol Burnett Show'' is an American variety/sketch comedy television show that originally ran on CBS from September 11, 1967, to March 29, 1978, for 279 episodes, and again with nine episodes in fall 1991. It starred Carol Burnett, Har ...
''. These episodes were "The Night of the Bleak Island" (aired July 6); "The Night of the Big Blackmail" (July 13); "The Night of the Kraken" (July 20); "The Night of the Diva" (July 27); "The Night of the Simian Terror" (August 3); "The Night of the Bubbling Death" (August 11); "The Night of the Returning Dead" (August 17); "The Night of the Falcon" (August 24); "The Night of the Underground Terror" (August 31); and "The Night of the Sedgewick Curse" (September 7). Curiously, none of these featured the most frequent and popular villain, Dr. Loveless. TV critic Lawrence Laurent wrote, "The return of ''Wild Wild West'' even for a summer re-run isn't surprising. CBS-TV was never really very eager to cancel this series, since over a four-year run that began in 1965 the ''Wild Wild West'' had been a solid winner in the ratings. Cancellation came mainly because CBS officials were concerned about the criticism over televised violence and to a lesser degree because Robert Conrad had grown slightly weary of the role of James West. Ever since last fall's ratings started rolling in, CBS has wished that it had kept ''Wild Wild West''. None of the replacements have done nearly as well and, as a result, all of the Friday programs suffered." That fall, CBS put the program into
syndication Syndication may refer to: * Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system * Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips * Web syndication, ...
, giving it new life on local stations across the country. This further antagonized the anti-violence lobby, since the program was now broadcast weekdays and often after school. One group,
The Foundation to Improve Television ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
(FIT), filed a suit on November 12, 1970, to prevent WTOP in Washington, D.C., from airing ''The Wild Wild West'' weekday afternoons at 4 pm. The suit was brought in Washington, D.C., specifically to gain government and media attention. The suit said the series "contains fictionalized violence and horror harmful to the mental health and well-being of minor children", and should not air before 9 pm. WTOP's vice president and general manager, John R. Corporan, was quoted as saying, "Since programs directed specifically at children are broadcast in the late afternoon by three other TV stations, it is our purpose to counter-program with programming not directed specifically at children." U.S. District Court Judge
John J. Sirica John Joseph Sirica (March 19, 1904 – August 14, 1992) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, where he became famous for his role in the trials stemming from the Watergate scandal. ...
, who later presided over the trial of the
Watergate The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Richard Nixon from 1972 to 1974 that led to Nixon's resignation. The scandal stemmed from the Nixon administration's continu ...
burglars and ordered U.S. President
Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
to turn over White House recordings, dismissed the lawsuit in January 1971, referring FIT to take their complaint to the FCC. FIT appealed, but a year and a half later the U.S. Court of Appeals upheld the district court decision dismissing the suit on the grounds that FIT had not exhausted the administrative remedies available to them. By then, WTOP had stopped broadcasting the series altogether. At that time, the show was in reruns on about 57 other local stations across the country, including WOR in New York and
WFLD WFLD (channel 32) is a television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, airing programming from the Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside Gary, Indiana–licensed MyNetworkTV ...
in Chicago. In October 1973, the Los Angeles-based
National Association for Better Broadcasting The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) is a trade association and lobby group representing the interests of commercial and non-commercial over-the-air radio and television broadcasters in the United States. The NAB represents more tha ...
(NABB) reached a landmark agreement with
KTTV KTTV (channel 11) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship of the Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside MyNetworkTV ou ...
, a local station, to purge 42 violent cartoon programs, including ''
Mighty Mouse Mighty Mouse is an American animated anthropomorphic superhero mouse character created by the Terrytoons studio for 20th Century Fox. The character was originally called Super Mouse, and made his debut in the 1942 short ''The Mouse of Tomorro ...
'', ''
Magilla Gorilla Magilla Gorilla is a fictional gorilla and the star of '' The Magilla Gorilla Show'' by Hanna-Barbera that aired from 1963 to 1965. Character description Magilla Gorilla (voiced by Allan Melvin) is a fun-loving yet trouble-prone anthropomorphic g ...
'', ''
Speed Racer ''Speed Racer'', also known as , is a Japanese media franchise about Auto racing, automobile racing. ''Mach GoGoGo'' was originally serialized in print in Shueisha's 1966 ''Shōnen Book''. It was released in tankōbon book form by Sun W ...
'' and ''
Gigantor is a 1963 anime adaptation of ''Tetsujin 28-go'', a manga by Mitsuteru Yokoyama released in 1956. It debuted on US television in January 1966. As with ''Speed Racer'', the characters' original names were altered and the original series' viol ...
''. Additionally, the NABB cited 81 syndicated live-action shows that "may have a detrimental influence on some children who are exposed to such programming without parental guidance or perspective" when they are telecast before 8:30 p.m. This list included ''The Wild Wild West'', '' The Avengers'', ''
Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on March 30, 1939. I ...
'', '' The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'', ''
Roy Rogers Roy Rogers (born Leonard Franklin Slye; November 5, 1911 – July 6, 1998) was an American singer, actor, and television host. Following early work under his given name, first as co-founder of the Sons of the Pioneers and then acting, the rebra ...
'', '' Wanted: Dead or Alive'' and ''
The Lone Ranger The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture. He first appeared in 1933 in ...
''. In Los Angeles, such shows opened with a cautionary announcement: "Parents — we wish to advise that because of violence or other possible harmful elements, certain portions of the following program may not be suitable for young children." The NABB hoped to use the cartoon ban and warning announcement as a model for similar agreements with other local stations. By then, ''The Wild Wild West'' was running on 99 local stations. Its ongoing popularity throughout the 1970s prompted two television movie sequels, ''The Wild Wild West Revisited'' (1979) and ''More Wild Wild West'' (1980) (see above). By the spring of 1985, the original series was still carried on 74 local stations. In the late 1980s, the series was still seen on local stations in Boston, Hartford, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Los Angeles, among other cities. Significantly, WGN (Chicago), which carried the show at 10 a.m. on Sundays, became available nationally through cable television. In 1994 ''The Wild Wild West'' began running on Saturdays at 10 a.m. on
Turner Network Television TNT (originally an abbreviation for Turner Network Television) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the Warner Bros. Discovery Networks unit of Warner Bros. Discovery that launched on October 3, 1988. TNT's original purpose ...
(TNT), which preferred the color episodes to the black and white ones. The series was dropped from WGN soon after.
Hallmark Channel The Hallmark Channel is an American television channel owned by Crown Media Holdings, Inc., which in turn is owned by Hallmark Cards, Inc. The channel's programming is primarily targeted at families, and features a mix of television movies a ...
aired the series in 2005 as part of its slate of Saturday afternoon Westerns, but dropped it after only a few weeks. While the series became scarce on television, each season was released on DVD, beginning with season 1 in 2006 and concluding with the final season early in 2008 (see below). In 2014, it was announced that the series was being prepped for Blu-ray. In 2006 the series began running weekdays and/or weekends on
MeTV MeTV, an acronym for Memorable Entertainment Television, is an American broadcast television network owned by Weigel Broadcasting. Marketed as "The Definitive Destination for Classic TV", the network airs a variety of classic television program ...
, then Sundays on the Heroes and Icons digital channel. In 2016, ''The Wild Wild West'' returned to
MeTV MeTV, an acronym for Memorable Entertainment Television, is an American broadcast television network owned by Weigel Broadcasting. Marketed as "The Definitive Destination for Classic TV", the network airs a variety of classic television program ...
on Saturday afternoons. On January 1, 2018, MeTV began running the series weekday afternoons again, starting with second season (color) episodes. It also airs in the United Kingdom (as of 2015) on the
Horror Channel Legend (formerly Horror Channel, and Zone Horror) is a British free-to-air television channel specialising in sci-fi, fantasy, thriller, action and cult series. It is broadcast in the UK and Ireland. The channel is known for its horror movies dur ...
on Sky channel 319, Virgin channel 149,
Freeview Freeview may refer to: *Freeview (Australia), the marketing name for the digital terrestrial television platform in Australia *Freeview (New Zealand), a digital satellite and digital terrestrial television platform in New Zealand *Freeview (UK), a ...
channel 70 and
Freesat Freesat is a British free-to-air satellite television service, first formed as a joint venture between the BBC and ITV plc and now owned by Digital UK. The service was formed as a memorandum in 2007 and has been marketed since 6 May 2008. Free ...
channel 138.


Television films

Conrad and Martin reunited for two
satirical Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming or ...
comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
television film sequels, ''The Wild Wild West Revisited'' (broadcast May 9, 1979) and ''More Wild Wild West'' (broadcast October 7, 1980).''Revisited'' introduced Paul Williams as Miguelito Loveless Jr., the son of the agents' nemesis. Loveless planned to substitute clones for the crowned heads of Europe and the President of the United States. This plot is similar to the second-season episode "The Night of the Brain", which featured a different villain. Most of the exteriors were filmed at
Old Tucson Studios Old Tucson (formerly Old Tucson Studios) is an American movie studio and theme park just west of Tucson, Arizona, adjacent to the Tucson Mountains and close to the western portion of Saguaro National Park. Built in 1939 for the movie '' Arizona ...
where there are Western sets and a functioning steam train and tracks. Interiors were shot at CBS Studio Center. Ross Martin said, "We worked on a lot of the same sets at the studio, including the interiors of the old train. We used the same guns and gimmicks and wardrobes with the waistlines let out a little bit. The script, unlike the old shows, is played strictly for comedy. It calls for us to be ten years older than when we were last seen. There are a lot more laughs than adventure." ''More Wild Wild West'' was initially conceived as a rematch between the agents and Miguelito Jr., but Williams was on tour and unavailable for the film; his character was changed to Albert Paradine II and played by Jonathan Winters. This explains why the story begins with various clones of Paradine being murdered; the first film ends with word that Loveless had cloned himself five times. Paradine planned world conquest using a formula for invisibility, recalling the first-season episode "The Night of the Burning Diamond". Both TV films were campier than the TV series, although Conrad and Martin played their roles straight. Both films were directed by veteran comedy Western director
Burt Kennedy Burton Raphael Kennedy (September 3, 1922 – February 15, 2001) was an American screenwriter and director known mainly for directing Westerns. Budd Boetticher called him "the best Western writer ever." Biography Kennedy was born in 1922 i ...
and written by William Bowers (in the latter case with Tony Kayden, from a story by Bowers); neither Kennedy nor Bowers had worked on the original series. ''The Wild Wild West Revisited'' takes the agents to a town called Wagon Gap. This was a nod to the
Abbott and Costello Abbott may refer to: People * Abbott (surname) *Abbott Handerson Thayer (1849–1921), American painter and naturalist * Abbott and Costello, famous American vaudeville act Places Argentina * Abbott, Buenos Aires United States * Abbott, Arkansas ...
film, ''
The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap ''The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap'' is a 1947 black-and-white comedy Western film directed by Charles Barton and starring the comedy team of Abbott and Costello. It was released on October 8 and distributed by Universal-International. Plot Che ...
'' (1947), which was based on a treatment by Bowers and D. D. Beauchamp of a short story by Beauchamp. Conrad once revealed that CBS intended to do yearly TV revivals of ''The Wild Wild West.'' ''Variety,'' in its review of the first TV movie, concurred: "A couple of more movies in this vein, sensibly spaced, could work in the future." Ross Martin's death in 1981, however, put an end to the idea. Conrad was later quoted in
Cinefantastique ''Cinefantastique'' is an American horror, fantasy, and science fiction film magazine. History The magazine originally started as a mimeographed fanzine in 1967, then relaunched as a glossy, offset printed quarterly in 1970 by publisher/editor ...
about these films: "We all got along fine with each other when we did these, but I wasn't happy with them only because CBS imposed a lot of restrictions on us. They never came up to the level of what we had done before."


Home video

The first season of ''The Wild Wild West'' was released on DVD in North America on June 6, 2006, by
CBS Home Entertainment CBS Home Entertainment (formerly CBS Video Enterprises, Inc., MGM/CBS Home Video, CBS/Fox Video and CBS Video, currently branded as CBS DVD for DVD releases and CBS Blu-ray for Blu-ray releases) is a home entertainment company owned by Paramoun ...
(distributed by
Paramount Home Entertainment Paramount Home Entertainment (formerly Paramount Home Media Distribution, and originally Paramount Home Video) is the home video distribution arm of Paramount Pictures, a division of Paramount Global. The division oversees PPC's home entertainme ...
). Although it was touted as a special 40th anniversary edition, it appeared 41 years after the show's 1965 debut. Robert Conrad recorded audio introductions for all 28 first-season episodes, plus a commentary track for the pilot. The set also featured audio interviews by Susan Kesler (for her book, ''The Wild Wild West: The Series''), and 1970s era footage of Conrad and Martin on a daytime talk show. The second season was released on DVD on March 20, 2007; the third season was released on November 20, 2007; and the fourth and final season was released on March 18, 2008. None of the later season sets contained bonus material. A 27-disc complete series set was released on November 4, 2008. It contains all 104 episodes of the series, as well as both reunion telefilms. On May 12, 2015,
CBS Home Entertainment CBS Home Entertainment (formerly CBS Video Enterprises, Inc., MGM/CBS Home Video, CBS/Fox Video and CBS Video, currently branded as CBS DVD for DVD releases and CBS Blu-ray for Blu-ray releases) is a home entertainment company owned by Paramoun ...
released a repackaged version of the complete series set, at a lower price, but did not include the bonus disc that was part of the original complete series set. On June 13, 2016, the bonus disc was released as a standalone item. In France, where the series (known locally as ''Les Mystères de l'Ouest'') was a big hit, all four seasons were released in a DVD boxed set before their U.S. release. The French set, released by TF1 Video, includes many of the extras on the U.S. season 1 set and many others. "The Night of the Inferno" is presented twiceas a regular episode in English with Conrad's audio commentary, and in a French-dubbed version. All of the episodes are presented in English with French subtitles and several episode titles differ in translation from the original English titles. For example, "The Night of the Gypsy Peril", "The Night of the Simian Terror" and "The Night of Jack O'Diamonds" respectively translate as "The Night of the White Elephant", "The Night of the Beast" and "The Night of the Thoroughbred". Both TV movies are included as extras, but only in French-dubbed versions. The set also features a 1999 interview with Robert Conrad at the Mirande Country Music Festival in France.


Theatrical film adaptation

Warner Bros. optioned the film rights to ''The Wild Wild West'' in 1992.
Mel Gibson Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson (born January 3, 1956) is an American actor, film director, and producer. He is best known for his action hero roles, particularly his breakout role as Max Rockatansky in the first three films of the post-apoca ...
was cast as James West, with
Richard Donner Richard Donner (born Richard Donald Schwartzberg; April 24, 1930 – July 5, 2021) was an American filmmaker whose notable works included some of the most financially-successful films during the New Hollywood era. According to film historian ...
set to direct from a screenplay by Shane Black (Donner had directed three episodes of the original series). In 1997, as the film was still being developed with other directors, writers and stars, Gilbert Ralston, who wrote the TV pilot, sued Warner Bros. over the upcoming feature film based on the series he helped create. Ralston died in 1999 before his suit was settled; however, Warner Bros. paid his family between $600,000 and $1.5 million. In 1999, a theatrical feature-length film co-produced and directed by
Barry Sonnenfeld Barry Sonnenfeld (born April 1, 1953) is an American filmmaker and television director. He originally worked as a cinematographer for the Coen brothers before directing films such as ''The Addams Family'' (1991) and its sequel '' Addams Family V ...
was released as ''Wild Wild West'' (without the definite article used in the series title). Loosely based on the original series, the film re-imagined James West as a Black man (played by
Will Smith Willard Carroll Smith II (born September 25, 1968), also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor and rapper. He began his acting career starring as a fictionalized version of himself on the NBC sitcom '' The Fresh ...
), and Artemus Gordon (played by
Kevin Kline Kevin Delaney Kline (born October 24, 1947) is an American actor. He is the recipient of an Academy Award and three Tony Awards. In addition, he has received nominations for two British Academy Film Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and five ...
) was portrayed as egotistical and bitterly competitive with West. Significant changes were also made to Dr. Loveless (played by
Kenneth Branagh Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh (; born 10 December 1960) is a British actor and filmmaker. Branagh trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and has served as its president since 2015. He has won an Academy Award, four BAFTAs (plus ...
). No longer a dwarf, he was portrayed as a legless double amputee confined to a steam-powered
wheelchair A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, used when walking is difficult or impossible due to illness, injury, problems related to old age, or disability. These can include spinal cord injuries ( paraplegia, hemiplegia, and quadriplegia), ce ...
(similar to that employed by the villain in the episode "The Night of the Brain"). Loveless, whose first name was changed from Miguelito to Arliss, was a bitter Southerner who sought revenge on the North after the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...
. Robert Conrad was reportedly offered a cameo as President Grant, but turned it down when the producers wanted him to read for the part. He was outspoken in his criticism of the film, which was now a comedic showcase for Will Smith with little in common with the original series. He was not opposed to casting a Black actor as Jim West: "The African-American casting of that role is probable and should not be an issue," Conrad said. "I think the casting of (Will) Smith is the issue. I appreciate his popularity. However, I'd prefer an actor with more athletic prowess. He's a good comedian but just not my choice to play my role. Best would be a Wesley Snipes body with a Denzel Washington head." Conrad was also offended by the racial overtones of the film. "There is a reference in it to a racial slur," Conrad said. "I hope it's not in the final version. I said, 'Why are we going in this direction. Why not just play James West black without explaining it?' He also criticized the casting of Branagh as a double amputee, rather than a little-person actor, in the role of Loveless. "Michael Dunn did such a great job playing Dr. Loveless, and he was by far the best villain on the show," Conrad said. "There are so many talented dwarfs but they wanted Kenneth Branagh." In a ''
New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com. It was established ...
'' interview (July 3, 1999), Conrad stated that he disliked the film and that contractually he was owed a share of money on merchandising that he was not paid. He also had a long-standing feud with producer
Jon Peters John Peters (born June 2, 1945) is an American film producer and former hairdresser. Early life Peters was born on June 2, 1945 in Van Nuys, California. Peters is of Cherokee (father) and Italian (mother) descent. While growing up in a rough ne ...
. "He was dating my 17-year-old daughter," Conrad explained, "saying he was divorced when he wasn’t." Conrad later took special delight in accepting the
Golden Raspberry Awards The Golden Raspberry Awards (also known as the Razzies and Razzie Awards) is a parody award show honoring the worst of cinematic under-achievements. Co-founded by UCLA film graduates and film industry veterans John J. B. Wilson and Mo Murphy, ...
for the film in 1999. It was awarded Worst Picture, Worst Director, Worst Screenplay, Worst Original Song (for the song "
Wild Wild West ''Wild Wild West'' is a 1999 American steampunk Western film co-produced and directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and written by S. S. Wilson and Brent Maddock alongside Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman, from a story penned by brothers Jim and John ...
" by Smith) and Worst Screen Couple. In 2009, Will Smith apologized publicly to Conrad while doing promotion for ''
Seven Pounds ''Seven Pounds'' is a 2008 American drama film directed by Gabriele Muccino starring actor Will Smith as a man who sets out to change the lives of seven people. Rosario Dawson, Woody Harrelson, and Barry Pepper also star. The film was released in ...
'':


In other media

The series spawned several merchandising spin-offs, including a seven-issue
comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...
series by
Gold Key Comics Gold Key Comics was originally an imprint of American company Western Publishing, created for comic books distributed to newsstands. Also known as Whitman Comics, Gold Key operated this way from 1962 to 1984. Currently, Gold Key Comics is owned b ...
, and a
paperback A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) books are bound with cardboard covered with cloth, ...
novel,
Richard Wormser Richard Edward Wormser (February 2, 1908 in New York City, New York – July, in Tumacaciori, Arizona) was an American writer of pulp fiction, detective fiction, screenplays, and Westerns, some of it written using the pseudonym of Ed Frien ...
's ''The Wild Wild West'', published in 1966 by Signet (), which adapted the episode "The Night of the Double-Edged Knife".


Books

In 1988, Arnett Press published ''The Wild Wild West: The Series'' by Susan E. Kesler (), a thorough production history and episode guide. In 1998, Berkeley Books published three novels by author Robert Vaughan ''The Wild Wild West'' (), ''The Night of the Death Train'' (), and ''The Night of the Assassin'' (). In 2019, Epic Press published a new novel by Joseph Covino, Jr, paying tribute to the series with a novel faithful in both style and spirit, ''Night of the Nobility Cult: A Wild, Wild Western''.


Comics

In 1990,
Millennium Publications Millennium Publications was an American independent comic book publishing company founded by Mark Ellis, Melissa Martin and Paul Davis. Initially known as a publisher of licensed properties, Millennium adapted works by Arthur Conan Doyle, Lester ...
produced a four-issue comic book miniseries ("The Night of the Iron Tyrants") scripted by Mark Ellis with art by
Darryl Banks Darryl Banks is an American comic book artist. He worked on one of the first painted comic books, ''Cyberpunk'', and teamed with the writer Mark Ellis to revamp the long-running '' The Justice Machine'' series for two publishers, Innovation and ...
. A sequel to the TV series, it involved Dr. Loveless in a conspiracy to assassinate President Grant and the President of Brazil and put the
Knights of the Golden Circle The Knights of the Golden Circle (KGC) was a secret society founded in 1854 by American George W. L. Bickley, the objective of which was to create a new country, known as the Golden Circle ( es, Círculo Dorado), where slavery would be legal. T ...
into power. The characters of Voltaire and Antoinette were prominent here, despite their respective early departures from Dr. Loveless' side in the original series. A review from the Mile High Comics site states: "This mini-series perfectly captures the fun mixture of western and spy action that marked the ground-breaking 1960s TV series." The storyline of the comics miniseries was optioned for motion picture development. In the 75th volume of the French comic book series ''
Lucky Luke ''Lucky Luke'' is a Western '' bande dessinée'' series created by Belgian cartoonist Morris in 1946. Morris wrote and drew the series single-handedly until 1955, after which he started collaborating with French writer René Goscinny. Their ...
'' (''L'Homme de Washington''), published in 2008, both James West and Artemus Gordon have a minor guest appearance, albeit the names have been changed to "James East" and "Artémius Gin".


Television

When Robert Conrad hosted ''
Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves ...
'' on NBC (January 23, 1982), he appeared in a parody of ''The Wild Wild West''. President Lincoln states his famous quip that, if General U.S. Grant is a drunk, he should send whatever he is drinking to his other, less successful generals. Lincoln dispatches West and Gordon (Joe Piscopo) to find out what Grant drinks. They discover that Grant is held captive by Velvet Jones (Eddie Murphy).


Soundtrack album

On July 11, 2017, La-La Land Records released a limited edition 4-disc set of music from the series, featuring Richard Markowitz's theme, episode scores by Markowitz, Robert Drasnin, Dave Grusin, Richard Shores, Harry Geller, Walter Scharf, Jack Pleis and Fred Steiner and Dimitri Tiomkin's unused theme music.


Contemporary merchandise

As with many television series, ''The Wild Wild West'' had several merchandise tie-ins during its run. These are listed below.


Proposed revivals

On October 5, 2010, ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular ...
'' reported that Ron Moore and Naren Shankar were developing a remake of ''The Wild Wild West'' for television, but the project apparently stalled. In December 2013, Moore told ''Wired'' that "''Wild Wild West'' and ''
Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...
'' were two of my great loves. I watched both in syndication in the '70s. ''Wild Wild West'' was really interesting, that combination of genres—a Western and secret agent, and they dabbled in the occult and paranormal. I really wanted to do a new version for CBS. I still think it's a great property. Someday I hope to go back to it." A
pastiche A pastiche is a work of visual art, literature, theatre, music, or architecture that imitates the style or character of the work of one or more other artists. Unlike parody, pastiche pays homage to the work it imitates, rather than mocking i ...
webseries titled ''Back to the Wild Wild West'' began production in November 2011, but apparently has been stalled.


See also

*
Weird West Weird West (aka Weird Western) is a term used for the hybrid genres of fantasy Western, horror Western and science fiction Western. The term originated with DC's '' Weird Western Tales'' in 1972, but the idea is older as the genres have been ...
* '' The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.''


References


External links

*
List of Episodes (Televised and Produced Order)



Fan site for ''The Wild Wild West''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wild Wild West, The 1960s Western (genre) television series 1965 American television series debuts 1969 American television series endings American action adventure television series American action comedy television series American action television series Black-and-white American television shows CBS original programming American comedy television films Cultural depictions of Ulysses S. Grant English-language television shows Espionage television series Science fiction Westerns Steampunk television series Television series by CBS Studios Television series set in the 1860s Television series set in the 1870s Television shows adapted into films Western (genre) television series featuring gimmick weapons