Temple Houston
Temple Houston is a 1963–64 NBC television series which has been called "the first attempt . . . to produce an hour-long Western series with the main character being an attorney in the formal sense." It was the only show Jack Webb sold to a network during his ten months as the head of production at Warner Bros. Television. It was also the lone series in which actor Jeffrey Hunter played a regular part.
Insights
Plot Summary
Temple Houston was a short-lived American Western television series that aired on NBC. The show starred Jeffrey Hunter as the titular character, a young, crusading lawyer in the fictional town of Cheyenne, Wyoming during the post-Civil War era. Each episode presented a new legal case that Temple Houston would take on, often defending the underdog or confronting corrupt figures in the developing West.
Critical Reception
Temple Houston received mixed reviews during its brief run. While praised for its competent production values and Jeffrey Hunter's earnest performance, the series struggled to find a consistent audience. It was often seen as a standard Western of its time, lacking a unique element to distinguish itself from other shows in the genre.
What Reviewers Say
- Competent Western storytelling with a focus on legal drama.
- Jeffrey Hunter delivers a likable performance as the heroic lawyer.
- Lacked a distinctive voice to stand out in a crowded genre.
Google audience: Audience reception for Temple Houston is not widely documented, but contemporary reviews suggest it was viewed as a standard, albeit well-produced, Western series that did not generate significant passionate fan bases or widespread critical acclaim.
Fun Fact
The series was canceled after only 26 episodes due to low ratings, making it one of the shorter-lived Westerns of the 1960s.
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