Two brothers have decided that it is their mission to rid the West of Indians.Two brothers have decided that it is their mission to rid the West of Indians.Two brothers have decided that it is their mission to rid the West of Indians.
Photos
Connie Lamont
- Saloon Girl
- (uncredited)
Fred McDougall
- Barfly
- (uncredited)
Jimmy Noel
- Barfly
- (uncredited)
Max Wagner
- Barfly
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- John Meston(uncredited)
- Norman MacDonnell(uncredited)
- Charles Marquis Warren(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe episode title refers to a series of popular children's books - The Bobbsey Twins - published from 1904 through 1992, written under the pen name Laura Lee Hope. The books chronicled the lives of the Bobbsey family, including two sets of fraternal twins, ages twelve and six. The books were extremely wholesome, and as a result were parodied easily. Soon after publication of the first book, the phrase "Bobbsey Twins" entered the vernacular as "two people who are inseparable, who are often seen together and look alike and act alike."
- GoofsWhen Matt and Doc are talking in the jail, Doc quotes from the Bible. Matt says the verse is from Chronicles and Doc agrees. The verse is really from Psalm 55:21.
Featured review
The Most Vile & Evil Villains
The Bobsy Twins is a snide and sarcastic reference to a sweet and uplifting children's book series called The Bobbsey Twins, that began in 1904, and published 72 books in the series, until 1979. The Bobsy Twins were kids, not killers. Unfortunately, when John Meston wrote them up, they took a deadly turn! John Meston wrote for the "adult" Westerns genre. The philosophy of the "adult" Westerns was that the Old West was harsh, mean, and full of criminals, con-artists, bush-whackers, bandits, road agents, serial killers.
Meston did not romanticize the Old West. He wrote 196 of the early episodes of Gunsmoke, and very few have any happy endings. His last screenplay for Gunsmoke was in 1965. Meston was writing scripts for radio shows and television from 1947 to 1975. Meston was nominated once for an Emmy Award.
This story left a lot untold. Merle and Harvey Finney are brothers who came walking hundreds of miles from Boston. How did they survive such a long journey without any money? It would have been interesting if once they confessed to Marshal Dillon as to their most recent killings, they had added a few more. It would make sense that they had probably been killing people all the way from Boston. This episode feels incomplete without a backstory.
In some ways, this story parallels the murder of the Clutter family by a pair of ex-convicts who traveled four hundred miles to rob them, and kill them. This was headline news in 1959. Later it became the book (and movie) In Cold Blood, by Truman Capote.
Morris Ankrum and Ralph Moody play the psychotic brothers. Morris Ankrum was on hundreds of TV shows and movies (277 credits), many of them Westerns. He was also a Judge on many episodes of Perry Mason. Ralph Moody was another veteran actor. He appeared on Gunsmoke five times, also on many Western TV shows, and five times on Perry Mason.
These two old hands deliver an incredible performance as a couple of maniacs who kill people without batting an eye or missing a step. It is just like warming up coffee for them.
The only upside to this episode is an appearance by Richard Chamberlin, who would go on to be the lead in the Dr. Kildare TV series. Chamberlin also became the first actor to play Jason Bourne (in 1988), and he won Golden Globe Awards for his acting in Dr. Kildare, The Thorn Birds, and Shogun.
Meston did not romanticize the Old West. He wrote 196 of the early episodes of Gunsmoke, and very few have any happy endings. His last screenplay for Gunsmoke was in 1965. Meston was writing scripts for radio shows and television from 1947 to 1975. Meston was nominated once for an Emmy Award.
This story left a lot untold. Merle and Harvey Finney are brothers who came walking hundreds of miles from Boston. How did they survive such a long journey without any money? It would have been interesting if once they confessed to Marshal Dillon as to their most recent killings, they had added a few more. It would make sense that they had probably been killing people all the way from Boston. This episode feels incomplete without a backstory.
In some ways, this story parallels the murder of the Clutter family by a pair of ex-convicts who traveled four hundred miles to rob them, and kill them. This was headline news in 1959. Later it became the book (and movie) In Cold Blood, by Truman Capote.
Morris Ankrum and Ralph Moody play the psychotic brothers. Morris Ankrum was on hundreds of TV shows and movies (277 credits), many of them Westerns. He was also a Judge on many episodes of Perry Mason. Ralph Moody was another veteran actor. He appeared on Gunsmoke five times, also on many Western TV shows, and five times on Perry Mason.
These two old hands deliver an incredible performance as a couple of maniacs who kill people without batting an eye or missing a step. It is just like warming up coffee for them.
The only upside to this episode is an appearance by Richard Chamberlin, who would go on to be the lead in the Dr. Kildare TV series. Chamberlin also became the first actor to play Jason Bourne (in 1988), and he won Golden Globe Awards for his acting in Dr. Kildare, The Thorn Birds, and Shogun.
helpful•145
- Johnny_West
- Apr 13, 2020
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Filming locations
- Stage 5 & Stage 6, Paramount Sunset Lot, 5800 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, California, USA(Dodge City Western Street)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime30 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
- 4:3
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