The Rebel (American TV series)

Did You Know?

• A board game based on the show was released by Ideal in 1961.
• Dell Comics issued four stories based on The Rebel in their Four Color Comics anthology series.
• Two episodes of Seinfeld referenced the first line of The Rebel theme song.

Cast

Nick Adams was the sole regular actor on The Rebel and was involved in the show's design, inception, and writing, alongside producer Andrew J. Fenady. Fenady himself appeared twice, once as General Philip Sheridan in the episode "Johnny Yuma at Appomattox," with George Macready as General Robert E. Lee. John Carradine appeared in two episodes as Elmer Dodson, a newspaper editor who encourages Yuma to keep a journal. John M. Pickard, previously of Boots and Saddles, appeared three times, including as Sheriff Pruett in "Run, Killer, Run." Hal Stalmaster played Skinny in the 1959 episode "Misfits," which also featured Malcolm Cassell as Billy the Kid and Hampton Fancher as "Bull." Leonard Nimoy was cast as Jim Colburn in the 1960 episode "The Hunted." Olive Sturgess guest-starred twice, and in the 1961 episode "The Pit," her real-life six-month-old nephew, Leonard Sturgess, played the baby required in the script.

Series highlights

The third episode, "Yellow Hair," features Yuma captured by Kiowa chief Satanta, played by Rodolfo Acosta, whose adopted white daughter is played by Carol Nugent, Adams' wife. Place names throughout the series place the action in post-Civil War Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona; forts such as Fort Griffin and Fort Concho were actual frontier outposts. In a first-season episode, Yuma encounters rebel CSA soldiers in the mining town of La Paz, Arizona, which was the seat of Yuma County between 1862 and 1870. Johnny Cash sang the theme song each week and also appeared as a frustrated would-be rapist in the 13th episode, "The Death of Gray. In "Vicious Circle," Yuma identifies his Confederate unit as the 3rd Texas, and other episodes show saddlebags stenciled with CSA and a uniform jacket with yellow collar and cuffs, suggesting the 3rd Texas Cavalry. Robert Blake guest stars as a young gunslinger in "He's Only a Boy. The 25th episode, "Fair Game," gained attention in late 2015 as a principal source for Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight. After its original ABC run ended in June 1961, NBC reran the series as a summer replacement from June to September 1962.

Cancellation

Despite commanding a 35% share of the Sunday-evening audience, The Rebel was cancelled after two seasons. ABC had scheduled a third season as part of a new hour-long series titled The Rebel and The Yank, which would have starred Nick Adams and James Drury, but the network passed due to the show's violence and a new counterprogramming format. The series was replaced by a Steve Allen variety show that lasted less than four months.

Theme song

The theme song, "The Rebel" also known as "The Ballad of Johnny Yuma," was composed by Richard Markowitz with lyrics by Andrew J. Fenady. It was recorded by Johnny Cash, though not released as a single until April 1961. Nick Adams also recorded the theme, released on Mercury Records by March 1960. During syndication, the theme was replaced by the DeWolfe Music Library instrumental "Dodge City No. 1."