| Annie Oakley |
 |
| Syndicated |
| 1954 - 1957 |
| Drama |
| 30 Minutes |
Set in Diablo County, Arizona in the early
1900s, the series followed the exploits of
frontier female sharpshooter, Annie Oakley (played by Gail
Davis) as she maintained peace in the town of Diablo.
Annie was assisted by her younger brother
Tagg Oakley (Jimmy Hawkins), and town Deputy Sheriff Lofty Craig (Brad Johnson)
who was Annie's suitor.
Annie's uncle Luke MacTavish (Kenneth
MacDonald) was the seldom-seen sheriff of
Diablo. He had taken in Annie and her brother
when their parents died.
Annie and Tagg loved animals. Tagg kept a pet
frog named Hector and a rabbit named Mr. Hoppity
on a game preserve called" Annie's Ark."
Lofty, Annie and
her brother, Tagg
Other citizens in the town of Diablo
included:
- Roscoe Ates as Curley Dawes, the telegraph operator
- Trudy as Shelley Fabaras
- Fess Parker as Tom Conrad, editor of the Diablo Courier
- Stanley Andrews as Cher Osgood, the editor of the Diablo
Bugle (the papers new name after Tom Conrad left the series)
- William Fawcett as Tom Jennings, the postal clerk
- Isa Ashdown as Elroy
- Judy Nugent as Penny, Lofty's niece
- Sally Fraser as Gloria Marshall,, Diablo General Store owner
- Stanley Andrews as George Lacey, the Diablo Hotel owner
- Miss Curtis as Mary Ellen Kay
- Nan Leslie as Alias 'Annie Oakley', Annie's outlaw double
- Helen Lacey as Jacqueline Park
- Priscilla Bishop as Nita Talbot
- Nancy Hale as Bess Murdock/Kathleen Scott
- Nancy Hale as Deborah Scott, a schoolteacher
- Wendy Drew as Mary Farnsworth, a schoolteacher
- Virginia Lee as Marge Hardy . a schoolteacher
- Bob Woodward as the stagecoach driver
- Larry Reeves as Pete
Annie rode a horse named Target (and later
Daisy); Tagg (who
likes hardrock candy) rode Pixie; and Deputy
Sheriff Lofty rode Forest.
Annie Oakley and
Target the Horse
During her stay in Diablo, Annie had to deal
with many situation, including:
- Corrupt ranchers and land grabbers
- Robbery of a gold ore shipment
- Aid an ex-convict framed for a gold
robbery
- Help a former Texas gunman lead a peaceful
life
- Assist a tribe of peaceful Hopi Indians
- Investigate poisoned water holes
- Rescue a crippled rodeo stuntman from
outlaws
- Aids an wanted outlaw with amnesia
wandering in the desert
- Pursues a man wanted for the murder of a
sheriff
- Forced to arrest The Waco Kid, her
childhood sweetheart
Memorabilia
TRIVIA NOTE:
Produced by Gene Autry's Flying "A" Productions, the series
was the first to star a woman in a lead role. Gail Davis - a
skilled rider and trick shot - was discovered by Gene Autry who used
her in a number of his own western productions before giving Davis
her own series. The life of Annie Oakley (1859-1926) inspired
the Broadway play Annie Get Your Gun.
Upon the death of the real Annie Oakley, humorist Will Rogers
wrote:
"Annie Oakley, one of the finest and truest of
American women was not only the greatest rifle
short for a woman that ever lived but I doubt if
her character could be matched outside of some
saint. She was a remarkable woman, kind hearted,
most thoughtful and a wonderful Christian woman.
Whenever I think of Annie Oakley, I stop and say
to myself: "It's what you are and not what you
are in, that makes you.'"
Billy Gray (of Father Knows Best fame) played the role of
Tagg Oakley in the series unaired pilot.
Obituaries: Gail Davis: 03/15/1997; Brad Johnson:
04/04/1981;
Bob Woodward: 02/07/1972.
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