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Series · 1957–1959Ended

The Restless Gun

4.4·2 seasons·76 episodes·30 min avg.·United States of America

The Restless Gun is an American western television series that appeared on NBC between 1957 and 1959, with John Payne in the role of Vint Bonner, a wandering cowboy in the era after the American Civil War. A skilled gunfighter, Bonner is an idealistic person who prefers peaceful resolutions of conflict wherever possible. He is gregarious, intelligent, and public-spirited. The half-hour black-and-white program aired seventy-eight episodes. Jeanne Bates appeared in varying roles with Payne in five episodes of The Restless Gun. The Restless Gun theme song begins: "I ride with the wind, my eyes on the sun, and my hand on my restless gun..." The song composer is probably Paul Dunlap, credited as the primary series composer, but could have been contributed to by either of the two other series composers, Dave Kahn and Stanley Wilson, also. Two versions are currently posted on YouTube, but neither posting lists any composer or performance credits.

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01
Duel at Lockwood
Duel at LockwoodUp next
Sep 23, 1957

Vint Bonner meets an elderly woman who asks him to do something about her grandson. The young man has already killed two men and vowed to add Vint Bonner to the list.

02
Trail to Sunset
Trail to Sunset
Sep 30, 1957

After promising a seriously wounded outlaw that he will get him to town alive to stand trial, Bonner meets five men, including a doctor, who want to bring the man in. But then Bonner learns that the five have just taken part in a lynching, and he becomes concerned that they will do the same with this prisoner.

03
Revenge at Harness Creek
Revenge at Harness Creek
Oct 7, 1957

When the man's hotheaded younger brother is killed in self defense, Vint fears that his sheriff friend is too bent on revenge to bring the man who killed him back alive.

04
Rink
Rink
Oct 14, 1957

On the trail, Bonner meets a young boy who is looking to join his father. Bonner brings the boy to town, where the bank is robbed, and the sheriff kills one of the robbers---the boy's father.

05
Jenny
Jenny
Oct 21, 1957

Bonner finds a wounded man on the road, and brings him to the house of a an embittered woman who lives alone. He promises her he won't tell about the man at her place, but he later learns that the man is a wanted outlaw.

06
The Shooting of Jett King
The Shooting of Jett King
Oct 28, 1957
07
Jody
Jody
Nov 4, 1957
08
General Gilford's Widow
General Gilford's Widow
Nov 11, 1957
09
The New Sheriff
The New Sheriff
Nov 18, 1957
10
Man and Boy
Man and Boy
Nov 25, 1957
11
Cheyenne Express
Cheyenne Express
Dec 2, 1957
12
Thicker Than Water
Thicker Than Water
Dec 9, 1957
13
Silver Threads
Silver Threads
Dec 16, 1957
14
The Child
The Child
Dec 23, 1957
15
The Gold Buckle
The Gold Buckle
Dec 30, 1957

Bonner and two strangers trail a pair of killers. Kit: Roy Roberts. Lex: Claude Akins. Bonner: John Payne. Emily: Madge Blake.

16
The Coward
The Coward
Jan 6, 1958
17
Friend in Need
Friend in Need
Jan 13, 1958
18
Strange Family in Town
Strange Family in Town
Jan 20, 1958

A Quaker family encounters prejudice, hostility, and harassment from the residents of the closest town, who mistake their pacifism for cowardice. They also encounter it from the rancher Bonner has come to do business with, though the man's wife feels differently.

19
Hang and Be Damned
Hang and Be Damned
Jan 27, 1958
20
Quiet City
Quiet City
Feb 3, 1958
21
Hornitas Town
Hornitas Town
Feb 10, 1958
22
Imposter For A Day
Imposter For A Day
Feb 17, 1958
23
A Pressing Engagement
A Pressing Engagement
Feb 24, 1958
24
The Woman from Sacramento
The Woman from Sacramento
Mar 3, 1958
25
Sheriff Billy
Sheriff Billy
Mar 10, 1958
26
The Hand is Quicker
The Hand is Quicker
Mar 17, 1958
27
The Suffragette
The Suffragette
Mar 24, 1958

Emma Birch has organized the women of the town into a determined suffragette group; the men rebel and attempt to put the women in their place. Bonner becomes the reluctant mediator between the two groups.

28
The Whip
The Whip
Mar 31, 1958
29
The Crisis at Easter Creek
The Crisis at Easter Creek
Apr 7, 1958
30
Aunt Emma
Aunt Emma
Apr 14, 1958

Vint Bonner is wounded while trying to track down the Drake brothers. His elderly aunt nurses him back to health and tries to prevent him from going back after the Drakes when he has recovered.

31
The Outlander
The Outlander
Apr 21, 1958

Vint arrives in Prairie City, Kansas to visit friends and find that it has been taken over by a band of renegade Civil War veterans from Texas. They are lead by a man called Colonel Bromley.

32
The Battle of Tower Rock
The Battle of Tower Rock
Apr 28, 1958
33
The Torn Flag
The Torn Flag
May 5, 1958
34
Hiram Grover's Strike
Hiram Grover's Strike
May 12, 1958
35
The Gold Star
The Gold Star
May 19, 1958
36
More Than Kin
More Than Kin
May 26, 1958
37
The Manhunters
The Manhunters
Jun 2, 1958
38
The Peddler
The Peddler
Jun 9, 1958
39
Gratitude
Gratitude
Jun 16, 1958

Cast

1 credited
John Payne
Vint Bonner

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