Overview
This series was groundbreaking in that it was the first television Western set in the days when the Old West was fading, the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century. Critics dubbed the series "Dragnet meets John Wayne", as the scripts balanced authentic investigative methods of 1900 with action and adventure.
Hec Ramsey starred Richard Boone as Hector "Hec" Ramsey, who had been a gunfighter/lawman, but had developed a strong interest in the then-emerging field of forensics. He still carried a firearm, but had traded his low-slung "gunfighter" rig for a Single Action Army-type revolver with a short barrel, carried in a Cavalry draw holster. However, his most important "weapons" were now fingerprinting equipment, magnifying lenses, scales, and other equipment which allowed him to determine the real perpetrators of crimes with greater accuracy than had previously been possible.
Ramsey, having recently become expert with his new equipment, accepts the position of deputy police chief in the fictional town of New Prospect, Oklahoma. Arriving in town, he learns that the chief of police, Oliver B. Stamp (Rick Lenz), is a very young, very inexperienced lawman who needs lots of help—fortunately, Stamp knows it, and after some initial friction, the two men develop a strong working relationship.
A colorful local doctor, Amos Coogan (Harry Morgan, who accompanied Webb during the 1967-1970 version of Dragnet and appeared on the 1971 Mark VII show The D.A.), also frequently became involved.
Despite good ratings, Hec Ramsey was canceled after two seasons following unresolvable disagreements between Boone and Universal Studios. Douglas Benton and Harold Jack Bloom were the producers; Jack Webb was executive producer.
During the show's run, there was speculation that Hec Ramsey was actually an aged version of actor Boone's earlier character, Paladin from the long running CBS western Have Gun, Will Travel -- but this was never confirmed, and no references in the shows as broadcast explicitly tie the two characters together.
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