User reviews

I got this after dad died, and we loved Jack Elam. Don't care for the other 3 guys but i love Elam. I got the complete series thru movies unlimited. Gorgeous Joseph Ruskin was in one, Chris Alcaide, George Macready came thru as an SOB as always. Angel Eyes Van Cleef was in one, and gorgeous Allen Jaffe, Robert Wilke, Kevin Hagen, Stanford Jolley, and Tom Gilson. Tom Gilson was taken from us too early, murdered by his wifey in early 60's. And old Robert e Lee Ewell, what's his name; James Anderson? He looked bad when he shot his guns off in the church. He died too young too. So people found that offensive? Who banned it the same mothers who picketed outside of silent night deadly night? Come on, the spaghettis were coming out soon and the stupid production code was soon to be dropped. There was no call to ban this. Was a very good series, sorry Dad didn't see it before he died. He would have loved it.

I've always loved westerns. Some shows I can remember well from the late 60s, while other earlier shows are just vague and fond memories, or forgotten over the decades. I couldn't recall what category The Dakotas came under - forgotten or never seen - but as Jack Elam was a long time favourite actor of mine I decided to get a couple of episodes on DVD. I was stunned. The episodes were gripping, atmospheric, hard-edged. Jack Elam was brilliant in it. I'd have to say that I never saw the series in the 60s, as it's not one easily forgotten. I have since acquired all the episodes and am still watching them. There hasn't been an episode that has disappointed me yet. What a shame there were only 20 of them. What a shame.

Jack Elam's best role ever. Deputy J.D. Smith DID NOT take crap from anyone or any thing. When he sensed things were about to get tough, he shot old women, kids, dogs, cats, horses, tree stumps, preachers, shadows and, now and then, an outlaw. If an outlaw in the Dakota Territory had to make a choice between being captured by hostile Indians or facing J.D. Smith he might flip a coin, if he was really brave. If he was not really brave he'd run towards the hostile Indians. If this series had had Amanda Blake and Glenn Strange it might have run as long as Gunsmoke. Given the propensity of producers of "western" TV shows during this period of having a "good guy" or well meaning but troubled "good guy" in the leading role, (Jim Bowie, Sugerfoot, Johnny Yuma) this western series stood out bold enough to make a pablum fed audience, weaned on formula plots, really uncomfortable. It exhibits a whole new definition of "ahead of it's time."

I was 14 when the Dakotas was first broadcast and for me it was love at 1st sight with JD Smith...aka Jack Elam. As far as I'm concerned he made the show and I will try to find DVD's of the show and try to relive the young girls dreams.

The characters were awesome and the story line was excellent. I didn't know until now why the show was canceled. Adults back in those days...they had no clue of what was to come.

Jack Elam's persona and his acting skills brought the show to the forefront of the western era. I recall as a teen actually sending away for an autographed picture of Jack Elam. Imagine my surprise when I got one and a thank you from the studio for requesting one. Except for the price of a stamp it was free.

Kathi

Well said, patmyhill. I agree with all your points. Jack Elam was simply one of the best western actors of all time. It's so sad that public reaction to the Sanctuary at Crystal Springs episode shot such a fine series dead in the dust. The Dakotas makes other TV oaters like Gunsmoke and Bonanza look like soap operas. The episodes I've seen take me right back to '63. It's the only time I ever remember people on the bus talking in hushed tones about the episode shown the previous evening. As I recall, the blokes were delighted and a little shocked at the shootout, but I can't remember which episode they were discussing.

Does anyone know if the twentieth episode, Black Gold, is available on DVD or videotape? What a treat it would be to catch this missing segment. If only it had gone on to become the long-running series it deserved to be. Long live JD Smith!

Well what does one say, others have said it all! Like the other contributors I saw The Dakotas in my mid teens, thought it was the best western to date, and, of course it was the great Jack Elam that made the show! J D Smith could have been a good feature film story. Oh if only Peckinpah had used Jack Elam more (in Pat Garrett & ...) and earlier - imagine Jack partnering Warren Oates, especially in The Wild Bunch as the Gorch brothers.

But to details. Now, in Oct 2007 I have realised an old ambition and got hold of all 20 episodes that were shown. Look on ebay if you want them.

A little research shows there is a fair bit of misinformation around, but Wikipedia is a good start, together with this site and Classic TV Archive.

21 episodes were made in all, the last, number 20, Black Gold was not transmitted in the US. The first, number 0, A Man Called Ragan was first shown in the US in 1962 as part of Cheyenne.

But what about the UK? I'm sure it was on Sat night, 8 or 9pm and that the series started with number 0, possibly retitled as The Dakotas. So all the web info appears to relate to the US. I recall complaints in the UK about the violence, but was the series terminated early in the UK as well? Or was it all shown. what happened in the UK, was it bought, leased/rented/syndicated or is there a copy, maybe of the full set lying in a vault somewhere? 16mm versions of some episodes are available on US ebay, suggesting that is how Warners distributed it. So is there a Warner Bros archive? So you guys in the UK try and remember when you saw it, it might be traceable. You guys in the US, what about it? These 16mm versions came from somewhere. The thought of a full set of high quality print DVDs is tantalising.

This series is probably the greatest memorial and testament to one of the west's finest character actors, so for Jack's sake...........

Westerns have been popular on film since Edward S. Porter produced "The Great Train Robbery" in 1903, and on TV since Clayton Moore starred in "The Lone Ranger" in 1949.

On television they have always been compulsive viewing for children and adults all over the World. The sight of one's favourite cowboy charging around on his trustee steed, shooting his gun, and beating up bad guys have enthralled cinema goers and television viewers of all ages - boys and girls, grown up men and women alike.

There are few basic plots for most Western stories: Bad guys rob a town bank - sheriff chases after them; bad guy comes into town to seek vengeance on the man who put him in prison - sheriff chases him off; small farmers terrorised by ruthless land owners - sheriff protects the farmers; bad guys try to spring their boss out of jail - sheriff stops them; sheriff escorts gang boss to prison - bad guys try to stop him.

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, television script writers seemed run out of story lines and television Westerns became like soap operas, love stories, comic yarns and morality tales - not quite what the hard-line Western viewer wanted to see.

In 1962, "The Dakotas" changed all that. It brought the business of "good guys" chasing after "bad guys" back to the small screen. It was the first intelligently written and sensibly produced Western ever to be seen on British Television - the Brits loved it.

I remember my parents allowing me to stay up late on a Saturday night to watch it, and it was the most talked about TV series at my school. The adventures of Frank Ragan, J.D. Smith, Del Stark and Vance Porter thrilled many children and adults alike. Everyone was saying: "Did you see 'The Dakotas' on Saturday night?". Even the teachers were saying that.

It is a pity that the series ended so abruptly, because I am sure it would have continued to enthral lovers of good Westerns for many years on.

I was 8 years old when this was on. I don't remember too much about this show other than Jack Elam as J.D. Smith. I thought his character was real cool. He wasn't physically handsome like the other "good guys" on television at the time but the way that he portrayed his character and the way he walked made this 8 year old boy take notice. I just watched an episode that I have on tape and realize that this was a well-made western. Too bad that it didn't last longer.

Of all the Westerns on TV during the early 1960s "The Dakotas", produced by Warner Brothers, was by far the very top of the top shelf. The hour long western drama was hard hitting, likely a bit too early for its time, but one true TV Western fans wished was not taken off the air so quickly.

I agree with the vast majority of reviewers, Western TV & motion picture veteran gunman & bad guy, Jack Elam, really made this TV western show one I really looked forward watching, after homework of course. The rest of the cast was equally fine, attempting to maintain the Dakota territorial law any way they could. The show had numerous familiar favourite guest Western stars who appeared, making for great Western TV entertainment. The show's musical score was wonderful! I shall always fondly remember "The Dakotas"!

As an adolescent when this show debuted, I immediately fell in love with the character J.D. Smith, so adeptly played by Jack Elam. In the pilot ("A Man Called Ragan"), he was a gunfighter called in by Del Stark's stepfather to kill Frank Ragan, the Federal Marshal. Realizing that Ragan might have more to offer him than his boss, he decides to join the marshal's team (including young Del Stark and town constable Vance Porter) and begin bringing justice to the Dakota Territory. J.D. Smith is somewhat uneasy in his new role as a deputy, using wry humor as a means to temper his natural tendency to dispense his own brand of 'justice' to those who cross him or otherwise bully the downtrodden. Having seen some of the episodes recently, the stories are good, albeit some a bit preachy, but Jack Elam is absolutely delightful to watch. This character "made" the show and was clearly the forerunner to The Man With No Name and Dirty Harry, and nobody could have done it better than Jack Elam!

_The Dakotas_ was very good. Its ratings were not good, as I recall. Another of my recollections is that it faced stiff competition in its time slot. It was also launched as the "adult western" craze was receding. Some of the scripts were thought-provoking. Jack Elam was terrific. I suspect it could be run today in Fance and be a hit with intellectuals at least, owing to its penchant for ambiguity and ambivalence. Not your standard western, n'est-ce pas!

I have just watched 15 episodes of The Dakotas, This is a group of men that the public was not ready for. These guys were awesome. The episode that started their demise "Sanctuary at Crystal Springs" where the TV public wrote in and complained to take it off the air. This was due to the shooting that JD and Dale did inside of the "Church" That was going too far said the public. But, remember the priest in his remarks to Dale in the Church. "Nothing goes on in here unless God permitted it to happen". 1963 TV public, God led them there for what reason I do not know, but he did. This should have been the longest running western in the 60's As a boy, age 9 in 63' I was not happy when it went off the air. So I have spent the last few years searching for those episodes, I have 5 more to locate.

Being born in 1940, by the time we got a tv it was the US western series that were being shown and I loved em all--'Maverick'--'Sugarfoot' and my special favourites 'Bronco' and 'Cheyenne', which I still remember with fondness, but it was this series that really impressed me, as I seem to recall it had a harder edge to it. Having only recently discovered imdb.com I was stunned but pleased to note that 3 of the above series are still available on video but was so disappointed that this series wasn't ---- how could you go wrong with anything in which the wonderful Jack Elam appeared. I still maintain that 'Support your local Sheriff/Gunfighter are two of the best films ever made. Oh for a time machine and a video!! God bless America for all the enjoyment you've given me over the years.