Cowboy G-Men

(IMO) - "Cowboy G-Men" (from 1952) is a vintage TV Western that had both its fair share of good moments, as well as its not-so-good moments, too.

This show chronicles the adventures of Pat Gallagher and Stoney Crockett who are trusted government agents with a mission to bring peace and justice to the West.

Pat and Stoney travel far and wide, facing all kinds of danger and outlaws gunning to stop them.

A previous reviewer pointed out that G-Men was not a term used in the old West during the time period in which the program was set. No kidding. They did have U.S. Marshals hired by the government to rule territories that had not officially been set up. In the Golden Age of B westerns, there was a series called the "Rough Riders" which co-starred veteran Westerns stars Buck Jones, Tim McCoy and Raymond Hatton. However the term "Rough Riders" did not gain popularity until Teddy Roosevelt organized a group of cowboys and wranglers to charge up San Juan Hill. No doubt the word G-Men because kids of the Fifties were familiar with it. There were at least three radio programs dealing with the FBI at that time. Gang Busters, F.B.I. in Peace and War and This is Your F.B.I, Russell Hayden was already known to kids as one of Hoppy's sidekicks in the movies and Jackie Coogan was known to adults who recall his childhood movies. In fact, anytime Coogan's name is mentioned, I first think of Cowboy G-Men and Stoney Crockett before I think of Uncle Festus.

Someone was not too up on his American history in the creation of this show which had G-Men, the slang term for FBI agents out there in boots and chaps in the old west. The Federal Bureau Of Investigation was not founded until the Theodore Roosevelt Administration under Attorney General Charles J. Bonaparte. And yes, he was one of THE Bonapartes. That would be the 20th Century.

In fact the Department of Justice was created in the Grant Administration, an achievement not often credited to that beleaguered president. But it had no investigative arm operating out of Washington. Such investigations they did do were under the supervision of whatever US Attorneys the jurisdiction fell.

So basically what I'm saying is that Cowboy G-Men had no basis in fact whatsoever. But as a little kid of five when this show premiered, these things didn't prevent me from enjoying the adventures of Russell Hayden and Jackie Coogan every week. Phil Arnold was in about 60% of the shows and his scenes with Jackie Coogan were definite comic relief.

Not the best quality westerns, but enjoyable nonetheless.