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Best Western TV Series of 1965 Ranked

The highest-rated Western TV series and premier television shows broadcast in 1965.

#1. The Wild Wild West (1965–)

★ 7.5/10 85 votes

The Wild Wild West is an American television series. Developed at a time when the television western was losing ground to the spy genre, this show was conceived by its creator, Michael Garrison, as "James Bond on horseback." Set during the administration of President Ulysses Grant, the series followed Secret Service agents James West and Artemus Gordon as they solved crimes, protected the President, and foiled the plans of megalomaniacal villains to take over all or part of the United States. The show also featured a number of fantasy elements, such as the technologically advanced devices used by the agents and their adversaries. The combination of the Victorian era time-frame and the use of Verne-esque style technology have inspired some to give the show credit for the origins of the steam punk subculture.

#2. A Man Called Shenandoah (1965–)

★ 6.9/10 7 votes

A Man Called Shenandoah is an American Western series that aired Monday evenings on ABC-TV from September 13, 1965 to September 5, 1966. It was produced by MGM Television. Some of the location work for the 34 half-hour black and white episodes were filmed in California's High Sierras and Mojave Desert. When reruns aired on Turner Network Television in the 1990s, Only 29 of the 34 episodes were rebroadcast. The missing 5 did not survive. The series starred Robert Horton, who had costarred on Wagon Train from 1957 to 1962. He left that series, vowing to never do another television western, but agreed to star in A Man Called Shenandoah because he felt the show would be a great opportunity for him as an actor.

#3. Branded (1965–)

★ 6.8/10 18 votes

Branded is an American Western series which aired on NBC from 1965 through 1966, sponsored by Procter & Gamble in its Sunday night 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time period, and starred Chuck Connors as Jason McCord, a United States Army Cavalry captain who had been drummed out of the service following an unjust accusation of cowardice.

#4. Laredo (1965–)

★ 6.4/10 14 votes

Laredo is an American Western television series that aired on NBC from September 16, 1965, to April 7, 1967. Laredo stars Neville Brand, William Smith, Peter Brown, and Philip Carey as Texas Rangers. It is set on the Mexican border about Laredo, Texas. The program was produced by Universal Television. The pilot episode of Laredo aired on NBC's The Virginian under the title, "We've Lost a Train". It was released theatrically in 1969 under the title Backtrack. Three episodes from the first season of the series were edited into the 1968 feature film Three Guns for Texas.

#5. F Troop (1965–)

★ 6.3/10 31 votes

F Troop is a satirical American television sitcom that originally aired for two seasons on ABC-TV. It debuted in the United States on September 14, 1965 and concluded its run on April 6, 1967 with a total of 65 episodes. The first season of 34 episodes was filmed in black-and-white, but the show switched to color for its second season.

#6. The Loner (1965–)

★ 6.3/10 4 votes

The Loner is an American western series that ran for less than one season on CBS from 1965 to 1966, under the alternate sponsorship of Philip Morris and Procter & Gamble.

#7. The Big Valley (1965–)

★ 6.2/10 59 votes

The Big Valley is an American western television series which ran on ABC from September 15, 1965, to May 19, 1969. The show stars Barbara Stanwyck, as the widow of a wealthy nineteenth century California rancher. It was created by A.I. Bezzerides and Louis F. Edelman, and produced by Levy-Gardner-Laven for Four Star Television.

#8. The Legend of Jesse James (1965–)

★ 5.8/10 5 votes

The Legend of Jesse James is an American western series starring Christopher Jones in the tile role of notorious outlaw Jesse James. The series aired on ABC from September 13, 1965, to May 9, 1966. Allen Case joined Jones as Jesse's brother, Frank James.