John Dunning Quote

Producer Norman Macdonnell saw Fort Laramie as a monument to ordinary men who lived in extraordinary times: their enemies were the rugged, uncharted country, the heat, the cold, disease, boredom, and, perhaps last of all, hostile Indians. Men died at Fort Laramie: some died of drowning, some of freezing, some of typhoid and smallpox. But it’s a matter of record, Macdonnell said on the opening, that in all the years the cavalry was stationed at Fort Laramie, only four troopers died of gunshot wounds. The series was less intense, and far less known, than Macdonnell’s major western, Guns-moke: the stories focused as much on atmosphere and mood as on violence and action. The run of 40 shows is complete on tape in excellent quality. The star, Raymond Burr, went from obscurity to national prominence a year later, taking on the title role in TV’s Perry Mason.