The Malachi Hobart Story

As the Wagon Train moves, Duke (Denny Miller) is out scouting the terrain. Meanwhile, traveling preacher Franchot Tone (as Malachi Hobart) settles down to camp for the night. Duke, afoot due to problems with his saddle, is relieved to encounter Mr. Tone, who shares his food and campfire with the younger man. Tone ministers, "We are all brothers under the sky." In the morning, Tone fixes Duke's saddle. Duke leaves very impressed, and perhaps naively enthralled, with the charismatic preacher.

Before re-joining the Wagon Train, Duke visits feisty old Irene Ryan (as Martha Gresham); and, he learns her boozing husband has drowned. When a sobered-up Wally Brown (as George Gresham) turns up alive, Duke learns the old couple were bilked out of $300.00 by Tone, who is revealed a fraud. Duke decides to find the unholy minister; pretending to be a friend, he invites Tone to join the Wagon Train…

The resulting dramatics may be predictable; but, they are deftly handled, by writer Ken Kolb and the Wagon train crew. Train master Chris Hale (John McIntire) takes a back seat, as the episode focuses on Mr. Miller's attractive "Duke" character. Miller performs well with veteran Tone, who performs marvelously as the bilking preacher. Tone explains, "I tell people what they want to hear. I revive their faith in miracles."

Ms. Ryan and Mr. Brown are noteworthy among the typically fine supporting players. After this appearance, Ryan began her successful episodic career as "Granny" on "The Beverly Hillbillies". Conversely, Brown's career was over; he died shortly before this episode aired. It must have been startling to see his character "come back from the dead"; still, his appearance in "The Malachi Hobart Story" is served by a coincidently reverential tone. The script affirms the characters' (Christian) faith.

****** The Malachi Hobart Story (1/24/62) David Butler ~ Franchot Tone, Denny Miller, John McIntire

Franchot Tone stars in the title role of The Malachi Hobart Story and plays a preacher/conman who gets a bit of comeuppance from Denny Miller as Duke Shannon.

Miller finds Tone while out scouting and he seems a benevolent and kindly preacher. But when they meet next in a town, he's trying to peddle a 'gold finder' and Miller ruins the sale and gets him tossed out of town. In between that Miller has found Irene Ryan who gave Tone her life savings of $300.00 to insure her recently drowned husband Wally Brown a place in heaven. Imagine her surprise and Miller's for that matter when Brown walks in the door, not even wet.

Later on there's an abrupt change in the story from jocularly comic to devoutly religious that really doesn't have a basis. It's too bad that Franchot Tone wasn't given a better story for his guest shot on Wagon Train.