Bonanza (1959)
Bonanza is a 1959 western series created by David Dortort. It stars Lorne Greene, Michael Landon and Dan Blocker.
On the Ponderosa ranch near Virginia City, Nevada, the widowed Ben Cartwright and his grown sons run their land and stand up for the community around them. Set in the 1860s in the wide country bordering Lake Tahoe, most episodes turn less on gunfights than on a moral choice: how to treat a stranger, when to bend the law, what family loyalty is worth. Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Dan Blocker, and Michael Landon anchored the original cast. Running fourteen seasons and 431 episodes on NBC, it became one of the longest-running Westerns in American television.
Quick answers
What is Bonanza about?
On the Ponderosa ranch near Virginia City, Nevada, the widowed Ben Cartwright and his grown sons run their land and stand up for the community around them. Set in the 1860s in the wide country bordering Lake Tahoe, most episodes turn less on gunfights than on a moral choice: how to treat a stranger, when to bend the law, what family loyalty is worth. Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, Dan Blocker, and Michael Landon anchored the original cast. Running fourteen seasons and 431 episodes on NBC, it became one of the longest-running Westerns in American television.
When was Bonanza released?
Bonanza was released on 12 September 1959.
How many episodes does Bonanza have?
Bonanza has 431 episodes across 14 seasons.
Who made Bonanza?
Bonanza was created by David Dortort.
Where can I watch Bonanza?
Bonanza is available on Philo, Prime Video, Shout! Factory TV (Via Amazon Prime, fuboTV, Cineverse and Fawesome.
Where to watch Bonanza
Stream: Philo, Prime Video, Shout! Factory TV (Via Amazon Prime, fuboTV
Watch free: Cineverse, Fawesome, Hoopla, Plex, Shout! Factory TV, The Roku Channel, Tubi TV, Xumo Play
Rent: FlixFling
Buy: Amazon
Cast
- Lorne Greene as Ben Cartwright
- Michael Landon as Joe Cartwright
- Dan Blocker as Hoss Cartwright
- Pernell Roberts as Adam Cartwright
- Victor Sen Yung as Hop Sing
- Ray Teal as Roy Coffee
- Mitch Vogel as Jamie Hunter Cartwright
- Jack Gordon as Townsman (uncredited)
- David Canary as Candy Canaday
- Bing Russell as Deputy Clem Foster
- Troy Melton as Gunman (uncredited)
- Cosmo Sardo as Bartender (uncredited)
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A few thoughts on Bonanza
Frontier life sits at the center of Little House on the Prairie, another portrait of a family making a home on hard American land. Red Dead Redemption 2 trades the ranch for the outlaw trail but shares the same dusty landscapes, moral weight, and reverence for a fading West.
Classic TV Westerns built on moral choices
Bonanza cared less about gunfights than about how a person treats a stranger or bends the law. These golden-age Westerns share that conscience: sturdy heroes, frontier towns, and episodes that turn on doing right more than shooting fast. Comfort viewing from television's long love affair with the Old West.
Frontier families making a life on hard land
On the Ponderosa, Bonanza is really about a widowed father and his sons holding a family and a ranch together. These stories share that homestead spirit: relatives working the land, standing by their community, and facing hardship without losing each other. Warm, values-first drama rooted in place.
Lawmen, outlaws and rough frontier justice
Bonanza's Cartwrights often stood between the law and the wild country around Virginia City. These titles chase that same tension across a manhunt drama, a modern ranger, and one sprawling outlaw's open range. Follow the pursuit of justice where the rules are still being written, well beyond the classic Western.