''Bret Maverick'' is an American

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

television series that starred

James Garner James Garner (born James Scott Bumgarner; April 7, 1928 – July 19, 2014) was an American actor. He played leading roles in more than 50 theatrical films, including ''The Great Escape (film), The Great Escape'' (1963) with Steve McQueen; Paddy ...

in the title role, a professional

poker Poker is a family of comparing card games in which players wager over which hand is best according to that specific game's rules. It is played worldwide, however in some places the rules may vary. While the earliest known form of the game wa ...

player in the

Old West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...

. The series aired on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

from December 1, 1981 to May 4, 1982. It is a sequel series to the 1957-1962 ABC series ''

Maverick Maverick, Maveric or Maverik may refer to: History * Maverick (animal), an unbranded range animal, derived from U.S. cattleman Samuel Maverick Aviation * AEA Maverick, an Australian single-seat sportsplane design * General Aviation Design Bure ...

'', as well the short-lived 1979 TV series ''

Young Maverick ''Young Maverick'' is a 1979 television series and a sequel to the 1957–1962 series ''Maverick'', which had starred James Garner as roving gambler Bret Maverick. Charles Frank played Ben Maverick, the son of Bret's first cousin Beau Maverick, m ...

'', and that series' pilot, the 1978 TV movie ''

The New Maverick ''The New Maverick'' is a 1978 American Western television film based on the 1957–1962 series ''Maverick'' starring James Garner as Bret Maverick. ''The New Maverick'' stars Garner as Bret Maverick, Charles Frank as newcomer cousin Ben Mave ...

'', all of which starred Garner in the same role (though he appeared only briefly in ''Young Maverick''). In the two previous series, Bret Maverick had been a solitary

rounder Rounder(s) or The Rounder(s) may refer to: Film and television * ''The Rounders'' (1914 film), a comedy short * ''The Rounder'' (1930 film), a comedy short * ''The Rounders'' (1965 film), a western comedy * ''Rounders'' (film), a 1998 poker f ...

who travels from

riverboat A riverboat is a watercraft designed for inland navigation on lakes, rivers, and artificial waterways. They are generally equipped and outfitted as work boats in one of the carrying trades, for freight or people transport, including luxury un ...

to saloon looking for high-stakes games. In this series, Maverick has settled down in Sweetwater,

Arizona Territory The Territory of Arizona (also known as Arizona Territory) was a territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863, until February 14, 1912, when the remaining extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the state o ...

, where he owns a ranch (The Lazy Ace) and is co-owner of the town's saloon (The Red Ox). However, he is still always on the lookout for his next big score, and continues to gamble and practice various con games whenever the chance arises. The series was developed by

Gordon Dawson Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Clan Gordon, ...

, and produced by Garner's company Cherokee Productions (mistakenly dubbed "Comanche Productions" on the end credits) in association with

Warner Bros. Television Warner Bros. Television Studios (operating under the name Warner Bros. Television; formerly known as Warner Bros. Television Division) is an American television production and distribution studio of the Warner Bros. Television Group division of ...

Series overview

Almost two decades after the original ''Maverick'' series, and a few years after his appearance in the 1978 TV movie ''

'', Bret Maverick has put down roots in the frontier community of Sweetwater, Arizona Territory where he's now the silent partner of the Red Ox saloon that he won in a card game. Maverick's still a gambler, and is not above running various con games to help make the money he needs to keep his businesses afloat. Because of this, he is viewed with suspicion by many of the town's more prominent citizens, especially the town's newly appointed sheriff. Bret's business partner is Tom Guthrie (

Ed Bruce William Edwin Bruce Jr. (December 29, 1939 – January 8, 2021) was an American country music songwriter, singer, and actor. He was known for writing the 1975 song "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys" and recording the 1982 co ...

), the town's former sheriff and co-owner of the Red Ox Saloon. (Actor Ed Bruce, a noted country singer, also co-wrote and performed the show's theme song.) Bret's penchant for organizing cons and money-making schemes of questionable legality means that he and ex-sheriff Guthrie are often at odds with each other, although they still remain friends. Also seen as series regulars are Richard Hamilton as Cy Whitaker, the aging but feisty foreman of Maverick's ranch;

Ramon Bieri Ramon Arens Bieri (June 16, 1929 – May 27, 2001) was an American actor who starred in many films and TV shows. Television work Bieri starred as the title character in the NBC sitcom ''Joe's World'', from December 1979 to July 1980, playing ...

as prosperous local banker Elijah Crow;

Darleen Carr Darleen Carr (born Darlene Farnon) is an American actress, singer, and voice-over artist. She is also known as Darlene Carr or Darleen Drake. She has two sisters, both actresses ( Shannon Farnon and Charmian Carr). Early years Carr was born i ...

as Mary Lou "M.L." Springer, the fetching owner, editor, and photographer of the local newspaper; David Knell as Rodney Catlow. M.L.'s young assistant; and John Shearin as Mitchell Dowd, the town's arrogant and ineffectual sheriff. Also seen frequently are three actors who were carry-overs from Garner's previous series ''

The Rockford Files ''The Rockford Files'' is an American detective drama television series starring James Garner that aired on the NBC network from September 13, 1974 to January 10, 1980, and remains in syndication. Garner portrays Los Angeles private investiga ...

''.

Stuart Margolin Stuart Margolin (January 31, 1940 – December 12, 2022) was an American film, theater, and television actor and director who won two Emmy Awards for playing Evelyn "Angel" Martin on the 1970s television series ''The Rockford Files''. In 1973, h ...

("Angel" on ''The Rockford Files'') appears in a recurring role as crooked Native American Philo Sandeen; frequent ''Rockford Files'' bit player

Jack Garner Jack Garner (born Jack Edward Bumgarner; September 19, 1926 – September 13, 2011) was an American actor. He was the elder brother of James Garner. Early life and career Garner was born in Norman, Oklahoma, the son of Mildred Scott (née Meek) ...

(James' brother) plays the role of Jack, the Red Ox's bespectacled bartender; and Luis Delgado (James Garner's longtime stand-in, and "Officer Billings" on ''Rockford'') plays Red Ox employee Shifty Delgrado. Semi-regulars included Tommy Bush as the inept but friendly Deputy Sturgess, and

Marj Dusay Marjorie Ellen Mahoney Dusay (; née Mahoney; February 20, 1936 – January 28, 2020) was an American actress known for her roles on American soap operas. She was especially known for her role as Alexandra Spaulding on ''Guiding Light'', a role ...

as Kate Hanrahan, the town's local madam.

U.S. television ratings

Cancellation and aftermath

A ratings bomb, the show was canceled by

at the end of the first season, airing only eighteen episodes. Writer/producer Roy Huggins, original creator of the title character but otherwise unconnected with this series despite Garner's request that he come aboard mid-season, speculated that one reason the new show didn't quite work was that Maverick, traditionally a drifter, had settled down in one place. Also, several costumes and hairstyles, particularly of series regular Darleen Carr, reflected the style of the 1980s and not the old west in which the show was set. Jack Kelly, who had alternated the lead with Garner and later

Roger Moore Sir Roger George Moore (14 October 192723 May 2017) was an English actor. He was the third actor to portray fictional British secret agent James Bond in the Eon Productions film series, playing the character in seven feature films between 1 ...

in the original 1957–62 ''Maverick'' series, had been slated to return as Bret's brother Bart Maverick in the second season, and briefly appeared at the very end of the only season. A number of scripts for the following season had been written and presented to Kelly, according to subsequent interviews; Bart was going to look after the saloon in Arizona while Bret ranged across the West, thereby making this series closer in conception and tone to the original ''Maverick''. The series' final episode also included a number of other changes to the series set-up: notably, Tom Guthrie was re-elected as sheriff, and sold his interest in the Red Ox to Kate Hanrahan, who immediately reinvented the establishment as an upscale brothel. As well, Mitchell Dowd was appointed to a government position as an inspector of bars and hotels throughout the Arizona territory, where he promised to remain a thorn in Maverick's side. The 2-hour first episode was eventually trimmed and repackaged as a

TV movie A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

for rerunning on local stations under the title '' Bret Maverick: The Lazy Ace''. Additionally the series' only two-part episode was similarly repackaged as '' Bret Maverick: Faith, Hope and Clarity''. NBC took the unusual step of rerunning the episodes two additional times - in the summer of 1988 to help provide 'new' programming during a writers strike, and in the summer of 1994 to play off publicity surrounding the

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 ...

movie remake of the original ''

'' series also featuring Garner. As a tribute to the character featured on this television series and on ''Maverick'', on April 21, 2006, a ten-foot bronze statue of James Garner as Bret Maverick was unveiled in Garner's hometown of

Norman, Oklahoma Norman () is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, with a population of 128,097 as of 2021. It is the largest city and the county seat of Cleveland County, and the second-largest city in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, be ...

, with Garner present at the ceremony.

Regular cast

as Bret Maverick *

as Tom Guthrie *

as Elijah Crow * John Shearin as Mitchel Dowd * David Knell as Rodney Catlow * Richard Hamilton as Cy Whittaker *

as Philo Sandeen *

as Mary Lou Springer *

as Jack the bartender *

Tommy Bush Thomas Curtis Bush (February 6, 1928 – February 4, 2003) was an American actor. He was born in Orange County, California. He frequently worked with Sam Peckinpah, appearing in '' The Getaway'', ''The Killer Elite'' and ''Convoy''. Other films he ...

as Deputy Sturgess

Episode list

DVD release

On April 22, 2014, Warner Bros. released ''Bret Maverick: The Complete Series'' on DVD in Region 1 for the very first time, via their

Warner Archive Collection The Warner Archive Collection is a home video division for releasing classic and cult films from Warner Bros.' library. It started as a manufactured-on-demand (MOD) DVD series by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on March 23, 2009, with the inten ...

. This is a manufacture-on-demand release, available exclusively through Warner's online store and only in the United States.

Syndication

The series has rerun on

Encore Westerns Starz Encore is an American premium television channel owned by Starz Inc. a subsidiary of Lions Gate Entertainment and headquartered at the Meridian International Business Center complex in Meridian, Colorado, United States. Launched as Encore ...

since fall 2008. On December 30, 2018, U.S. TV network

getTV getTV is an American digital multicast television network owned by the Sony Pictures Television Networks subsidiary of Sony Pictures Television. Originally formatted as a movie-oriented service, the network has since transitioned into a genera ...

started rerunning the series. Currently, it airs on getTV on the weekends.

References

External links

*
James Garner Interview on the ''Charlie Rose Show''
{{Maverick 1981 American television series debuts 1982 American television series endings English-language television shows

NBC original programming Television series by Warner Bros. Television Studios 1980s Western (genre) television series Television shows set in Arizona Maverick (TV series)