# Lawman (1958)

> A principled marshal and his deputy keep the peace in 1880s Laramie, Wyoming in this classic ABC western.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/12941

## Facts

- Seasons: 4
- Episodes: 156
- Episode runtime: 30 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: western
- Network: ABC
- Cast: John Russell, Peter Brown, Peggie Castle, Don Beddoe, William Henry, Will Wright, Leo Gordon, Iron Eyes Cody
- TMDB rating: 8.1/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051290/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: mild
- Complexity: simple
- Violence: mild
- Tone: earnest, wholesome, hopeful, unhurried

## What critics say

Lawman is remembered as a well-crafted, earnest classic western with steady lead performances and a sincere, character-driven approach to frontier law.

## Synopsis

Lawman (1958-1962) is an American western television series created for ABC and set in 1879 and the 1880s in Laramie, Wyoming. John Russell plays Marshal Dan Troop, a steady frontier lawman, alongside Peter Brown as his deputy Johnny McKay. From season two, Peggie Castle joins as Lily Merrill, owner of the Birdcage Saloon and a romantic interest for Dan. The engine of the show is the daily work of keeping a rough frontier town orderly: cattle disputes, saloon brawls, outlaws drifting through town and the moral choices that come with enforcing the law without a badge's full authority. Each half-hour episode is largely self-contained, so the series is a four-season episodic western rather than one continuing story. Its tone is earnest and unhurried, with a sincere respect for its characters and a sense of hopeful community at its core. Warner Bros. built it alongside Cheyenne, Maverick and Colt .45 during the studio's late-1950s western boom, and fans of Gunsmoke, Cheyenne and Maverick will find the same classic frontier appeal here.

## Shows like Lawman

- [Tales of Wells Fargo (1957)](https://ember.film/tv/12860)
- [Cheyenne (1955)](https://ember.film/tv/893)
- [McCloud (1970)](https://ember.film/tv/9577)
- [Laramie (1959)](https://ember.film/tv/12952)
- [Have Gun, Will Travel (1957)](https://ember.film/tv/10215)
- [Branded (1965)](https://ember.film/tv/12878)
- [Wanted: Dead or Alive (1958)](https://ember.film/tv/12896)
- [The Rebel (1959)](https://ember.film/tv/12903)
- [The Virginian (1962)](https://ember.film/tv/9454)
- [Gunsmoke (1955)](https://ember.film/tv/3534)

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