When producer David Dortort sold NBC on the idea of creating Bonanza he had no idea he was creating a phenomena that would air for an incredible 14 years as a first-run show on U.S. TV be syndicated to virtually every country around the globe and introduce characters who would become beloved by hundreds of millions of fans.Bonanza is more than a TV Western about a man and his three sons working as a family in the rough and violent era of the Old West. It has become a piece of the fabric of American culture. Ben Cartwright and his sons Adam Hoss and Little Joe are familiar names to people who weren't even born when the show first aired and the show's distinctive opening theme is instantly recognized everywhere.Desert JusticeOne of Ben's ranch hands Dave Walker is accused of murdering the wife of Marshall Dowd. After the Cartwrights discover that Dave was beaten while in jail they decide to accompany him to Los Angeles where his trial is to be held.Escape to the PonderosaAdam is bushwhacked by escaped convicts and Ben joins Army Captain Bolton who is tracking them down.The AvengerAdam and Ben are about to be hanged for murder and Hoss and Joe are desperate to get someone to help prove their innocence. A young man named Lassiter comes to town and joins their crusade without explanation.San FranciscoBen Hoss and Joe are in San Francisco on vacation with some of their hands when the hands turn up missing. While searching for them Ben finds himself shanghighed and destined for Hong Kong.
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