Scripts for Ft. Laramie

Cordially,
Victor Padilla

If the address doesn't work, I used Yahoo search and just typed in Fort Laramie radio scripts

Good Luck

I'm sorry, I don't have any scripts in hand, but I wanted to let you know that it was my Uncle, Jack Moyles, who played Major Daggett in the series. Now, why are you writing a research paper on this show in particular?? I'm glad you like the show as much as I do - sure, I'm somewhat partial due to my Uncle's involvement, but it was without question about the finest radio dramatic series of its era and genre. Even better then Gunsmoke, in my opinion. With established and accomplished radio and movie stars such as Raymond Burr, Vic Perrin and Jack Moyles, it was a successful and much-appreciated radio series.

Now, I have a few episodes of Fort Laramie on CD, and I can create, write and print a typical script for you, (I'm familiar with the format), complete with all the sound effects notations and music direction, and space for Station Identification, etc. etc. -- A full episode would take at least a week, and that would cost you big time, but if all you want is an excerpt or two, I'd do it for nothing as long as you credit me and my uncle. When is your paper due?

I actually need the full scripts, but that's because it would be easier for me to refer to them, mark them up, etc. I have a lead on where to find them, and will probably go to MD and copy them, but thanks for the offer. As a grad student on a stipend, I don't think I could afford you!

I do agree with you that it was the best of the radio Westerns (though there are episodes of "Gunsmoke," such as "The Queue" that I just find enjoyable & interesting from a cultural standpoint) much more nuanced and complex; I'm still trying to find out what the audience numbers were like.

I'm always concerned when some grad student firms up their conclusion before completing their research.

You tell us: "I argue that the show is part of a (re)telling of the West from the point of view of the 1950s; in effect, as the nation is building military installations (in a sense, another "fort") on another "frontier," in order to confront the Soviets... I'll look at issues such as the way women and Native Americans, along with the settlers and non officers of the cavalry are portrayed.....the last half of the show was written by a woman, and will look at whether there's a noticeable change in the show's thematic coverage."

Hopefully, when you listen to the shows and read the scripts, you'll discover this series was never about military might or suppression of Native Americans or women. The officers, the enlisted, the civilians, the women, the Native Americans are all portrayed with both strengths and weaknesses. Morality and evil can appear in any of the show's characters, all of whom are true, representative, and much like the best and worst of us today. The scripts were great before Hite became the major writer.....and then they were even better.

May I suggest you take a peek at my article on this series; you'll find it at:

www.otrsite.com/articles/artjf001.html

Respectfully,

Jack French

However, I also don't think that one cannot attempt a cultural placing of mass media in particular historical settings. As part of the nation's entertainment/education for decades, radio played a major role, in much the same way the printed page did before, and in much the same way scholars in the future will look back at the Internet (and have done for TV and film). It's not, at least not to my mind, doing the series a "disservice" to look at whether or not larger issues at the time affected or played into what was portrayed; it may not, but that's what research will reveal.

"I'm writing what is in effect an MA thesis for my PhD program at Northwestern, where I argue that the show is part of a (re)telling of the West from the point of view of the 1950s; in effect, as the nation is building military installations (in a sense, another "fort") on another "frontier," in order to confront the Soviets, there is the questioning of what happened the first time around when the nation also faced "hostile" nations."

Interesting theory, but to put FORT LARAMIE into the context of a Cold War parable does the series a disservice.

FORT LARAMIE was among the very small genre of radio series that were called Realistic or Adult Westerns. GUNSMOKE was the patriarch and FORT LARAMIE was one of its progeny.

The creative driving forces behind these series were director/writer Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. They didn't try to sugarcoat the uglier aspects of our country's Westward expansion. Macdonnell, Meston, Hite and the other writers associated with these series used actual historical occurrences as backdrops to tell the day-to-day stories of the people of the West. Historical accuracy was important to Macdonnell and Meston, but even more important was multi-faceted character development. Their characters were not one-dimensional; they were individuals who had their own personal strengths and weaknesses. Even the lead characters were not without human flaws. No one group had the corner on virtue or wickedness.

You can't understand FORT LARAMIE without attempting to gain insight into what Macdonnell and Meston wanted to do with the Adult Western. I hope you have listened to the five-hour radio documentary, "The Story of GUNSMOKE." The documentary contains insightful interviews with Macdonnell and Meston.

There are also several good newspaper interviews with Macdonnell and Meston in which they tell what they tried to do with the adult Western. There are also some interviews with Kathleen Hite.

As a former soldier, I have been studying the history of U.S. Army during our country's Westward expansion for nearly 30 years. I have walked many Western battlefields and read many journals of those who were involved in that expansion. Not just the journals of the famous and infamous, but also those of the people whose names aren't recorded in the history books.

As a part of my studies, I made a trip to Wichita State University, where the bulk of the FORT LARAMIE scripts reside, to read the scripts of Kathleen Hite. I have also made an intensive study of GUNSMOKE. Three of Hite's FORT LARAMIE scripts were later adapted for GUNSMOKE. An unaired FORT LARAMIE script was also adapted for GUNSMOKE.

While it was obvious to me that the writers had an excellent understanding of what life was like in the American West of the 1970's, it was their flesh and blood characters that made the stories come alive.

Signing off for now,

Ste