Black Saddle

- Season 1

(1959)

Gunfighter-turned-lawyer Clay Culhane's first case takes him to Latigo, New Mexico. When he gets to town he discovers that it is run by a vindictive, vengeful and powerful rancher.

A family argument that ends in a fight results in a man being charged with murder. He asks Clay to represent him.

An old friend of Clay's gets in touch with him, and tells him that he's lost his ranch to a crooked foreman. He asks Clay's help in getting it back.

Wealthy Ben Dawes sent for a mail-order bride, but instead of being married and happy he wound up married and dead. His brother hires Clay to check out Ben's new "wife", who is about to inherit all of Ben's considerable estate.

Pretty Joan Starkey comes to town looking to hire Clay to find her missing husband.

Roy Tagger is released from prison after serving many years for a murder he says he didn't commit. He asks Clay for help in clearing his name.

Young Wayne Robinson and his friends "celebrate" his birthday by going to the saloon for his first glass of whiskey., and winds up in a fight at the saloon because a loudmouth ridicules his religious beliefs. When Wayne's uncle--a fanatically religious man who has forbidden Wayne from drinking or going near the saloon--finds out what happened, he gives Wayne a public whipping in the middle of town. Later the loudmouth who started the brawl is found murdered, and Gib arrests Wayne for it. Clay doesn't believe Wayne did it and sets out to clear him before he's hanged ...

Culhane is hired to fight the extradition of Juan Martinez whom murderous lawmen in the employ of the current regime turn up in Latigo with papers to arrest and return the Mexican revolutionary to return to his homeland.

A former lawman who is now a ex-convict comes into town with his sick wife to get treatment for her. Marshal Scott tells them both to leave town and is about to force the issue, but Clay begs him to wait until the woman is better before forcing them out of town.

Clay agrees to take on the case of Bill Steele, one of a trio being held in jail by Marshal Scott on robbery charges. But Steele has his own reason for wanting Clay as his lawyer.

Grat Mowery, a notorious gunfighter, is dying and asks Clay's help in writing his will, as he has a considerable sum of money to leave to his heirs. Culhana has no idea, however, that Mowery's "estate" consists of money stolen in a bank robbery in Durango.

A crotchety old recluse hires Clay to get an injunction against trespassers coming onto his property. In the process of doing that, Clay is astounded to run into a famous general who was supposed to have died heroically in battle, but is now very much alive.

Young Dick Banks is fascinated by guns, despite his father's opposition to them. Clay, seeing that the boy's growing interest in guns parallels his own start as a professional gunfighter, takes the boy under his wing.

Lon Jessup has been a trustworthy citizen in Latigo for many years, but now he was being tried for bank robbery and murder. Clay's able to get him off, but is surprised when his wife comes into town claiming Lon lied in court and tried to kill her when she wanted a divorce.

A man who never came home from the Civil War and was declared legally dead suddenly shows up back in town. He finds that his wife has remarried and is in possession of everything he owns. He hires Clay to locate a particular legal document that will restore to him both his possessions and his wife.

Clay comes upon two men engaged in a terrific brawl. After he separates them, he learns that each claims he is a lawman and that the other is a notorious outlaw who is his prisoner. Later, in town, he learns that one of the men is Nora's brother-in-law.

Neal Adams, an old friend of Clay's, shows up injured and pursued by a bounty hunter for a crime Neal says he didn't commit. He asks Clay for help in proving him innocent of the crime before the bounty hunter finds him and kills him.

Brand rides into town and kills a man he says was trying to kill him. Clay and Nora both say he killed in self-defense, so he's let off but ordered out of town by sundown - six o'clock. Clay proceeds to try to talk Marshal Scott out of having a showdown with him because he knows the Marshal is too slow. But the Marshal is stubborn and orders Clay to stay out of his business. But when Brand stats treating others unkindly.

Trouble erupts between two women and a greedy gambler.

Frank Vardon, a disgruntled teller at the Latigo Bank, gets together with his friend Roy Corey and plans a fake hold-up of the bank, in which Roy will be the bank robber and Frank will hand over all the money. At the last minute, however, Frank backs out, and when Roy insists on going through with the plan, Frank pulls out a gun and fires at him. Wounded, Roy stumbles outside where he sees Clay and shoots at him, forcing Clay to fire back. As he lay dying, Roy exposes his and Frank's scheme. Marshal Scott arrests Frank, but Clay decides to defend him.