Yancy Derringer

I remember the show vividly; it was rerun on NBC afternoons later in the '60's. I live close to New Orleans, locale of the show, and met Mr. Mahoney at a rodeo the summer after the show ended. He was very friendly, let me hold his derringer, which was maybe not wise to do, told me where he bought it, etc. He stayed until the last autograph hound left. What really made the show was his athleticism with stunts, fights, falls, jumps, etc. One show had him trying to open a large box with his back to Pahoo; he made a gesture with his hand, keeping it up in the air shoulder height, and X Brands threw a large knife to Mr. Mahoney who caught it without looking. I read later that they thought it up as a gag, and decided to try it. It went on the first take. He became a stepfather to Sally Field, who seems to have had difficulties with him in that role, but he was really one of a kind in film. Later he had a stroke while horseback in "Kung Fu"; Burt Reynolds made a film about stunt men in the mid seventies with Brian Keith and Sally Field, the name of which I cannot remember, but it was a homage to stunt guys; Brian Keith's character had a stroke in the movie, reminding me of Mr. Mahoney; later, I read that Burt Reynolds said this was a bow to Mr. Mahoney. I was only 12, and got a kick out of the constant westerns at the time, but he gave it a distinctive feel. In TV Guide, he called it a "Southern". What was also interesting was his ensemble which came to include Mickey Morton, Lee Paul, Kelly Thorsen, etc. He was 6-4, and these guys topped him! Frances Bergen, Francine in the role, was wife of Edgar Bergen, whose daughter was Candice Bergen.