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Annie Oakley TV Series Facts and Trivia


Annie Oakley - Volumes 1-5 (5-DVD) DVD
 

Annie Oakley is an American Western television series which fictionalized the life of famous sharpshooter Annie Oakley. It ran from January 1954 to February 1957 in syndication. ABC showed reruns on Saturday and Sunday daytime from 1959-1960 and from 1964-1965. It ran for three seasons, for a total of 81 black and white episodes, each 25 minutes long.

Synopsis

The show starred Gail Davis in the title role, and co-starred Brad Johnson as Deputy Sheriff Lofty Craig and Jimmy Hawkins, as Annie's brother, Tagg. He had a pinto pony names Pixie in the series.

Guest stars included:

* Chris Alcaide appeared in three 1954 episodes as Paul Dodson in "Annie and the Brass Collar" and "The Cinder Trail" and then as Gil Warren in "Outlaw Mesa".
* Roscoe Ates, twice in 1956 and 1957
* Ron Hagerthy, twice in 1956, as Chuck Hutchins in the title role "The Waco Kid" and as Billy Stryker in "Annie Rings the Bell"
* Tyler McVey appeared in the 1956 episode "Showdown at Diablo" in the role of Senator Ridgeway.

Gail Davis had been discovered by Gene Autry, who cast her in several of his films and then his own series, The Gene Autry Show, in which she played a variety of characters. He then spun her off into her own show.

DVD release

Approximately two dozen episodes are currently available on DVD in North America (including several releases issued through Davis' estate) and elsewhere, although a formal full-series release has yet to happen. Some episodes of the series have lapsed into the public domain in the US and as such are available in several different releases.


Annie Oakley TV Collection, Vol. 1 DVD
 

Comics

A number of American comics were based on the TV series:

* Annie Oakley 1-11 (1948-1956) by Atlas (Marvel) Comics
* Annie Oakley and Tagg 4-18 (1953-1959) by Dell Comics
* Annie Oakley and Tagg 1 (1965) by Gold Key Comics

Many of these issues were later reprinted in black and white by L. Miller and World Distributors Ltd.

Annie Oakley Comic Book Cover