The Alaskans

Always remember seeing this series when I was very young. Remember it as being very entertaining and probably informative. It was my first memory of Roger Moore whom I loved and Dorothy Provine. If the subject of old t.v. shows comes up in conversation I always mention this one, yet no one is familiar with it. I wish someone would bring it back in syndication so I can enjoy it, hopefully, as an adult. I recall finding it very different and exciting because it had such an unusual location.Feel certain it took place in the early days of Alaskan history.

I remember "The Alaskans" as not just another western but a celebration that Alaska had just been made a state back then in 1959. The show took place during the Gold Rush of the 1890's. Roger Moore played Silky as a guy who was tough enough to take everything rugged Alaska could throw at him and still be calm, cheerful, smooth, and charming. Dorothy Provine played Rocky as a woman smart enough and tough enough to run a saloon and enticing enough to attract every man in town as a customer. Hence, her saloon became a kind of focal point for both the openings and the conclusions of the episodes. By 1960 Hawaii was the new state, so the novelty of Alaska had kind of worn off. So Dorothy Provine moved her saloon to "The Roaring Twenties" TV series.

Dorothy Provine sparkled. Great chemistry with everyone. Lots of guest stars for such a short lived show. Loved it!

Today, when a friend told me he was going to visit Alaska this summer, the memory of viewing a promotional clip for a TV show, featuring a blonde female singer singing "It's a Hot Night in Alaska," came to me. I told him I thought the singer was Dorothy Provine, and guessed it came from her show The Roaring Twenties.

After reading her wikipedia biography, and seeing that she starred in this TV show as a singer, it makes more sense that what I saw was a promotional clip for this show. Can anyone tell me if I'm right?

When I saw the obit for Dorothy Provine in my local paper I immediately thought of "The Alaskans", Dorothy with fur collars, and that theme song. The lengthy obit had no mention of it! So, I go to IMDb to verify my memories. I would have been ten years old and it certainly made an impression on me. It really "stood out" from all the cowboy and Indian shows and family sitcoms of that era. Funny how I didn't remember Roger Moore in it...his careen certainly eclipsed Dorothy Provine's. I read that she was married for 42 years and that, in it's self, is a triumph for Hollywood. Now, I have a renewed interest a half century later and will attempt to rent some of her movies.