Venerable movie star Glenn Ford (Torpedo Run) made a brief leap into television for this one-season drama on CBS - a hybrid contemporary western-police drama that debuted in late September 1971. The action unfurled in picturesque Madrid County, California, where dependable sheriff Sam Cade (Ford) reigned. Four additional officers supported Sam in the line of duty: the weathered and seasoned deputy J.J. Jackson (Edgar Buchanan), plus three less-experienced deputies - Arlo Pritchard (Taylor Lacher), Rudy Davillo (Victor Campos) and Pete (Peter Ford, Glenn's son). The sheriff's office benefited from the presence of a Native American female police dispatcher. Actress Sandra Ego (as Joannie Little Bird) initially occupied the role, but producers replaced her with Betty Ann Carr (as Betty Ann Sundown) early in the course of the run. Cade and co. spent episodes pursuing criminals and wielding the long arm of the law in Madrid. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, this failed to connect with viewers, and following a single scheduling shift in the late summer of 1972 that did nothing to boost ratings, the program folded in early September of that year, not quite twelve months after it premiered.
by Nathan Southern
synopsis
