Sugarfoot

This article is about the television series. For other uses, see Sugarfoot (disambiguation).

Sugarfoot is an American Western television series that aired for 69 episodes on ABC from 1957-1961 on Tuesday nights on a "shared" slot basis – rotating with Cheyenne (first season); Cheyenne and Bronco (both second and fourth seasons); and Bronco (third season). The Warner Bros. production stars Will Hutchins as Tom Brewster, an Easterner who comes to the Oklahoma Territory to become a lawyer. Brewster was a correspondence-school student whose apparent lack of cowboy skills earned him the nickname "Sugarfoot", a designation even below that of a tenderfoot.

Sugarfoot
Will Hutchins as Tom "Sugarfoot" Brewster, 1958.
Also known as	Tenderfoot (UK name)
Genre	Western Legal drama
Created by	Michael Fessier
Written by	Montgomery Pittman (four episodes)
Directed by	Irving J. Moore Leslie H. Martinson Montgomery Pittman (four episodes)
Starring	Will Hutchins
Theme music composer	Mack David and Jay Livingston
Composers	Ray Heindorf Max Steiner
Country of origin	U.S.
Original language	English
No. of seasons	4
No. of episodes	69
Production
Executive producer	William T. Orr
Producers	Harry Tatelman Caroll Case Burt Dunne Arthur W. Silver Oren W. Haglund (production manager) Gordon Bau (make-up)
Production location	California
Editors	James Moore Carl Pingitore Leo H. Shreve James C. Moore Harold Minter Robert B. Warwick Jr. Robert Watts
Camera setup	Single-camera
Running time	50 mins.
Production company	Warner Bros. Television
Release
Original network	ABC
Original release	September 17, 1957 (1957-09-17) – April 17, 1961 (1961-04-17)
Related
The Boy from Oklahoma Maverick Cheyenne Bronco

Hutchins was the only regular on the show. In four episodes, Hutchins also plays the dual role of Abram Thomas, a.k.a. "The Canary Kid", leader of an outlaw gang who is a dead ringer for Brewster. In each of these episodes, Brewster is joined in the fight against The Canary Kid's plans by Christopher Colt—i.e., Wayde Preston crossing over from his role in the simultaneously-produced WB series Colt .45. Towards the very end of the run, Jack Elam was cast in two of the final five episodes as Brewster's occasional sidekick Toothy Thompson, but the series was cancelled shortly thereafter.

Background

Sugarfoot had no relation to the 1951 Randolph Scott Western film Sugarfoot aside from the studio owning the title (and the theme music), but its pilot episode was a remake of a 1954 Western film called The Boy from Oklahoma starring Will Rogers Jr., as Tom Brewster. The pilot and premiere episode, "Brannigan's Boots", was so similar to The Boy from Oklahoma that Sheb Wooley and Slim Pickens reprised their roles from the film.

As played by Rogers in the film, Brewster carried no gun, disliked firearms in general, and vanquished villains with his roping skills (à la Will Rogers) if friendly persuasion failed. Perhaps for practical reasons, the pilot altered the character slightly and made Brewster more like the typical Western hero—reluctant to use guns (or any other kind of violence), but able and willing to do so if necessary. That remained his stance throughout the series, and the title song mentions that Sugarfoot carries a rifle and a law book.

Whenever he enters a saloon, Sugarfoot refuses liquor and orders sarsaparilla "with a dash of cherry". (Sarsaparilla is a drink similar to root beer, both of which are non-alcohol-based.)

Sugarfoot was one of the earliest products of the alliance between ABC and the fledgling Warner Bros. Television Department, chaired by William T. Orr. During the same period, other similar programs appeared, including Maverick, Cheyenne, Bronco, Lawman, and Colt .45. Hutchins appeared as Sugarfoot in crossover episodes of Cheyenne and Maverick, and in an installment of Bronco called "The Yankee Tornado" with Peter Breck as a young Theodore Roosevelt. Jack Kelly appeared as Bart Maverick in the Sugarfoot episode "A Price on His Head". James Garner made an appearance as Bret Maverick at the end of the episode "Misfire."

Cast

Cast of "Brannigan's Boots"

• Will Hutchins as Tom 'Sugarfoot' Brewster
• Merry Anders as Katie Brannigan
• Louis Jean Heydt as Paul Evans
• Dennis Hopper as Billy the Kid
• Arthur Hunnicutt as Pop Purty
• Chubby Johnson as Postmaster Wally Higgins
• Slim Pickens as Shorty
• Ainslie Pryor as Mayor Barney Turlock
• Sheb Wooley as Pete

Cast of The Boy from Oklahoma film (1954)

• Will Rogers Jr. as Sheriff Tom Brewster
• Nancy Olson as Katie Brannigan
• Lon Chaney Jr. as Crazy Charlie
• Anthony Caruso as Mayor Barney Turlock
• Wallace Ford as Postmaster Wally Higgins
• Clem Bevans as Pop Pruty, Justice of the Peace
• Merv Griffin as Steve
• Louis Jean Heydt as Paul Evans
• Sheb Wooley as Pete Martin
• Slim Pickens as Shorty
• Tyler MacDuff as Billy the Kid
• James Griffith as Joe Downey

Guest stars

• Rico Alaniz
• Chris Alcaide
• Roscoe Ates
• Rayford Barnes
• Fred Beir
• Russ Bender
• Charles Bronson
• Joe Brooks
• Ahna Capri
• Albert Carrier
• Ronnie Dapo
• Janet De Gore
• Richard Devon
• Dick Elliott
• Bill Erwin
• Dean Fredericks
• Richard Garland
• James Garner
• Sean Garrison
• Don Gordon
• Kevin Hagen
• Harry Holcombe
• Rodolfo Hoyos Jr.
• Clegg Hoyt
• Gary Hunley
• Douglas Kennedy
• Jess Kirkpatrick
• Nolan Leary
• Dayton Lummis
• Donald May
• Ken Mayer
• Patrick McVey
• James Millhollin
• Ewing Mitchell
• Neyle Morrow
• Jay Novello
• Cathy O'Donnell
• Gregg Palmer
• Michael Pate
• James Philbrook
• John M. Pickard
• Slim Pickens
• Stuart Randall
• Richard Reeves
• Suzanne Storrs
• Kent Taylor
• Kelly Thordsen
• Gary Vinson
• John Vivyan
• Gregory Walcott
• Patrick Waltz
• Efrem Zimbalist Jr.

Episodes

Season 1: 1957–58

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
1	1	"Brannigan's Boots"	Leslie H. Martinson	Teleplay by : Devery Freeman Based on a screenplay by : Frank Davis & Winston Miller Original magazine story by : Michael Fessier	September 17, 1957 (1957-09-17)
2	2	"Reluctant Hero"	Leslie H. Martinson	Story by : S. Omar Barker Teleplay by : Dean Riesner	October 1, 1957 (1957-10-01)
Cade dies in the fire, and Sugarfoot is shot in the attack. Linda takes it upon herself to nurse Sugarfoot back to health. I. Stanford Jolley plays the mysterious "The Nighthawk".
3	3	"The Strange Land"	Leslie H. Martinson	Story by : Louis L'Amour Teleplay by : Russell S. Hughes	October 15, 1957 (1957-10-15)
4	4	"Bunch Quitter"	Leslie H. Martinson	Story by : Dee Linford Teleplay by : Wells Root	October 29, 1957 (1957-10-29)
5	5	"Trail's End"	Leslie H. Martinson	Story by : Norman A. Fox Teleplay by : James O'Hanlon & Michael Fessier	November 12, 1957 (1957-11-12)
Sugarfoot comes upon a former childhood sweetheart, Kathy Larsen (Venetia Stevenson), who is managing a dance hall. Chris Alcaide plays the corrupt Clay Horton, who forces Kathy to marry him so that she cannot testify in court in regard to Horton's crimes. Barbara Stuart portrays Muriel, Kathy's business partner. Gordon Jones plays Sugarfoot's lively friend, Wasco Wolters, who has an interest in Muriel. This episode reveals that Tom Brewster spent his childhood in Vermont before coming to the Oklahoma Territory.
6	6	"Quicksilver"	Franklin Adreon	Story by : James Gunn Teleplay by : Kay Lenard & Jess Carneol	November 26, 1957 (1957-11-26)
Sugarfoot investigates the robbery of a silver mine which prevents the owner from meeting his payroll. The episode features Lane Bradford as the cutthroat Ellis; John Litel as Hank Tatum, the owner of the mine, and Fay Spain as Tatum's daughter, Susie, the girlfriend and eventual wife of the local sheriff. Frank Wilcox plays George Beaumont, an unscrupulous businessman who had been rejected years earlier by Hank Tatum's late wife.
7	7	"Misfire"	Franklin Adreon	Story by : Alan Le May Teleplay by : James O'Hanlon	December 10, 1957 (1957-12-10)
8	8	"The Stallion Trail"	Edward Bernds	Story by : Crane Wilbur Teleplay by : Dean Riesner	December 24, 1957 (1957-12-24)
9	9	"Small War at Custer Junction"	Franklin Adreon	Story by : Jess Carneol & Kay Lenard Teleplay by : James O'Hanlon and Jess Carneol & Kay Lenard	January 7, 1958 (1958-01-07)
10	10	"Bullet Proof"	Franklin Adreon	Fredric M. Frank	January 21, 1958 (1958-01-21)
Sugarfoot tricks a gang into believing that he knows the location of the loot from their last bank robbery. Gregory Walcott plays Peaches' presumed fiance, Duke McKlintock, and Don "Red" Barry is cast as Tanner. Joi Lansing guest stars as the unsavory but attractive "Peaches", who claims to be a belle from Georgia
11	11	"Deadlock"	Franklin Adreon	James O'Hanlon	February 4, 1958 (1958-02-04)
12	12	"Man Wanted"	Franklin Adreon	Sig Herzig	February 18, 1958 (1958-02-18)
13	13	"The Dead Hills"	Franklin Adreon	Story by : Louis L'Amour Teleplay by : Earl Baldwin Adaptation : Paul Gangelin	March 4, 1958 (1958-03-04)
14	14	"A Wreath for Charity Lloyd"	Franklin Adreon	Jackson Gillis	March 18, 1958 (1958-03-18)
15	15	"Hideout"	Montgomery Pittman	Story by : Maurita Pittman Teleplay by : Russell S. Hughes	April 1, 1958 (1958-04-01)
16	16	"Guns for Big Bear"	Franklin Adreon	Story by : Elliot West Teleplay by : Sig Herzig	April 15, 1958 (1958-04-15)
17	17	"Price on His Head"	Richard L. Bare	Story by : Pamela Herbert & Leo Guild Teleplay by : Henry Kuttner & C.L. Moore	April 29, 1958 (1958-04-29)
18	18	"Short Range"	Montgomery Pittman	Story by : James Barnett & Steve Goodman Teleplay by : Montgomery Pittman	May 13, 1958 (1958-05-13)
19	19	"The Bullet and the Cross"	Lee Sholem	Peter R. Brooke	May 27, 1958 (1958-05-27)
20	20	"Mule Team"	Franklin Adreon	Story by : Kenneth Perkins Teleplay by : Sig Herzig	June 10, 1958 (1958-06-10)

Season 2: 1958–59

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
21	1	"Ring of Sand"	Leslie H. Martinson	Raphael Hayes	September 16, 1958 (1958-09-16)
22	2	"Brink of Fear"	Leslie H. Martinson	Harold Medford	September 30, 1958 (1958-09-30)
23	3	"The Wizard"	Joseph Lejtes	C.L. Moore	October 14, 1958 (1958-10-14)
24	4	"The Ghost"	Lee Sholem	C.L. Moore (as Catherine Kuttner)	October 28, 1958 (1958-10-28)
25	5	"The Canary Kid"	Montgomery Pittman	Montgomery Pittman	November 11, 1958 (1958-11-11)
26	6	"The Hunted"	Joseph Lejtes	Peter R. Brooke Based on a story from : True West Magazine	November 25, 1958 (1958-11-25)
27	7	"Yampa Crossing"	Joseph Lejtes	Thomas W. Blackburn	December 9, 1958 (1958-12-09)
28	8	"Devil to Pay"	Lee Sholem	Fredric M. Frank	December 23, 1958 (1958-12-23)
29	9	"The Desperadoes"	Joseph Lejtes	Raphael Hayes	January 6, 1959 (1959-01-06)
30	10	"The Extra Hand"	Lee Sholem	Peter R. Brooke	January 20, 1959 (1959-01-20)
31	11	"The Return of the Canary Kid"	Montgomery Pittman	Montgomery Pittman	February 3, 1959 (1959-02-03)
32	12	"The Mysterious Stranger"	Paul Henreid	Story by : Jack Emanuel Teleplay by : Raphael Hayes	February 17, 1959 (1959-02-17)
Features Adam West (Batman) as Frederick Pulaski
33	13	"The Giant Killer"	Joseph Lejtes	Norman Daniels & Harold Medford	March 3, 1959 (1959-03-03)
34	14	"The Royal Raiders"	Leslie H. Martinson	Peter R. Brooke	March 17, 1959 (1959-03-17)
35	15	"The Mountain"	Joseph Lejtes	C.L. Moore (as Catherine Kuttner)	March 31, 1959 (1959-03-31)
36	16	"The Twister"	Joseph Lejtes	James Gunn & Ellis St. Joseph	April 14, 1959 (1959-04-14)
37	17	"The Vultures"	Joseph Lejtes	Peter R. Brooke & James Gunn	April 28, 1959 (1959-04-28)
38	18	"The Avengers"	Joseph Lejtes	Story by : Jack Emanuel & Montgomery Pittman Teleplay by : Lowell Barrington	May 12, 1959 (1959-05-12)
39	19	"Small Hostage"	Anton Leader	Polly James	May 26, 1959 (1959-05-26)
40	20	"Wolf"	Joseph Lejtes	Story by : Robert Moore Williams Teleplay by : Milton S. Gelman	June 9, 1959 (1959-06-09)

Season 3: 1959–60

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
41	1	"The Trial of the Canary Kid"	Montgomery Pittman	Story by : Montgomery Pittman Teleplay by : C.L. Moore (as Catherine Kuttner)	September 15, 1959 (1959-09-15)
42	2	"The Wild Bunch"	Leslie Goodwins	Dean Riesner	September 29, 1959 (1959-09-29)
43	3	"MacBrewster the Bold"	Leslie Goodwins	Dean Riesner	October 13, 1959 (1959-10-13)
44	4	"The Gitanos"	Leslie Goodwins	Edmund Morris	October 27, 1959 (1959-10-27)
45	5	"The Canary Kid, Inc."	Leslie Goodwins	Samuel Roeca	November 10, 1959 (1959-11-10)
46	6	"Outlaw Island"	Reginald Le Borg	Lowell Barrington	November 24, 1959 (1959-11-24)
47	7	"Apollo with a Gun"	Robert Altman	Warren Douglas	December 8, 1959 (1959-12-08)
48	8	"The Gaucho"	Paul Guilfoyle	Edmund Morris	December 22, 1959 (1959-12-22)
49	9	"Journey to Provision"	James V. Kern	Edmund Morris	January 5, 1960 (1960-01-05)
50	10	"The Highbinder"	Robert Altman	Warren Douglas	January 19, 1960 (1960-01-19)
51	11	"Wolfpack"	Leslie Goodwins	Story by : Dick Nelson Teleplay by : William L. Stuart	February 2, 1960 (1960-02-02)
52	12	"Fernando"	H. Bruce Humberstone	Dean Riesner	February 16, 1960 (1960-02-16)
53	13	"Blackwater Swamp"	Leslie Goodwins	Story by : Jim Barnett Teleplay by : Warren Douglas	March 1, 1960 (1960-03-01)
54	14	"Return to Boot Hill"	Lee Sholem	Warren Douglas	March 15, 1960 (1960-03-15)
55	15	"Vinegarroon"	William J. Hole, Jr.	Warren Douglas	March 29, 1960 (1960-03-29)
56	16	"The Corsican"	William J. Hole, Jr.	Ric Hardman	April 12, 1960 (1960-04-12)
57	17	"Blue Bonnet Stray"	Leslie Goodwins	Warren Douglas	April 26, 1960 (1960-04-26)
58	18	"The Long Dry"	Lew Landers	Story by : Jim Barnett (as Iain MacCormick) Teleplay by : Buckley Angell	May 10, 1960 (1960-05-10)
59	19	"Funeral at Forty Mile"	Leslie Goodwins	Story by : Hugh Benson and Dick Nelson Teleplay by : Dick Nelson	May 24, 1960 (1960-05-24)
60	20	"The Captive Locomotive"	Leslie Goodwins	Irwin Winehouse & A. Sanford Wolfe	June 7, 1960 (1960-06-07)

Season 4: 1960–61

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
61	1	"Shadow Catcher"	Leslie Goodwins	Warren Douglas	September 26, 1960 (1960-09-26)
62	2	"A Noose for Nora"	Lee Sholem	Lester Fuller & Lee Loeb	October 24, 1960 (1960-10-24)
63	3	"Man from Medora"	Leslie Goodwins	Warren Douglas	November 21, 1960 (1960-11-21)
64	4	"Welcome Enemy"	Leslie Goodwins	W. Hermanos	December 26, 1960 (1960-12-26)
65	5	"Toothy Thompson"	Lee Sholem	Howard Browne & Warren Douglas	January 16, 1961 (1961-01-16)
66	6	"Shepherd with a Gun"	Lew Landers	Warren Douglas	February 6, 1961 (1961-02-06)
67	7	"Angel"	Lee Sholem	Warren Douglas	March 6, 1961 (1961-03-06)
68	8	"Stranger in Town"	Lew Landers	Lester Fuller	March 27, 1961 (1961-03-27)
69	9	"Trouble at Sand Springs"	Herbert L. Strock	Leo Gordon	April 17, 1961 (1961-04-17)

Background and production

After several episodes aired in the second season, a disappointed Hutchins complained in a letter to executive director William T. Orr that the scripts were written so that the lead character Sugarfoot was not particularly needed in many of the episodes.^[1]

 

Tommy Rettig with Will Hutchins in Sugarfoot (1958).

Wayde Preston, who played Christopher Colt on the ABC western Colt .45, appeared four times in that same role on Sugarfoot in the episodes dealing with "The Canary Kid," a role also played by Will Hutchins.

Reception

Sugarfoot finished at #24 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1957-1958 season and #21 for 1958-1959.^[2]

Release

Home media

Warner Bros. has released all four seasons on MOD (manufacture on demand) DVD-R's in Region 1 via their Warner Archive Collection.^[3][4][5][6]

In popular culture

• In an episode of Arrested Development titled "Spring Breakout", Sugarfoot is mentioned and the theme song is presented.
• The series debuted in 1958 in the United Kingdom but only in the Midlands area.^[7] In 1960, it was aired nationally in the UK by the BBC,^[8] at which point it was renamed Tenderfoot despite the fact that it kept the theme song which refers to the character as "Sugarfoot". After 1964, the series returned to ITV, this time not just restricted to the Midlands, where it was once again billed under its original name.
• The animated television series King of the Hill features a barbecue restaurant named "Sugarfoot's".^{[citation needed]}

References

1. "Somewhat Forgotten Figure to Some Extent Remembered: Notes on Television Director, Script Writer, and Occasional Actor Montgomery Pittman". brightlightsfilm.com. November 2010. Retrieved January 13, 2014.
2. "TV Ratings". ClassicTVguide.com. Retrieved 2023-05-06.
3. 'The Complete 1st Season' Now Available from Warner Archive 2013-07-18 at the Wayback Machine
4. 'The Complete 2nd Season' Announced: Date, Cost, Autographed Box 2013-10-19 at the Wayback Machine
5. Warner Archive Announces 'The Complete 3rd Season': Date, Cost, Box 2014-06-09 at the Wayback Machine
6. The Last Stories are Upon Us, with 'The Complete 4th Season' 2014-10-28 at the Wayback Machine
7. TV Times, midlands edition, week commencing September 14, 1958.
8. Radio Times, week commencing September 4, 1960.

External links

• Sugarfoot at IMDb
• Roy Huggins' Archive of American Television Interview