Best of the West

1981 - 1982

Pilot

10th September 1981

Episode 1

Sam arrives in town intending to run the general store, then runs into all kinds of trouble after turning down the protection racket.

The Prisoner

17th September 1981

Episode 2

Sam must face a prisoner's outlaw brothers after the sheriff who was taking him in becomes ill on his way through town.

The Calico Kid Returns

1st October 1981

Episode 3

The Square Deal Saloon's new cook is the Calico Kid; he has sworn to never again kill anything he can't eat.

They're Hanging Parker Tillman (1)

15th October 1981

Episode 4

Sam goes out on a limb and manages to save Tillman from a lynch mob, but at the trial, his mixed-up testimony has him back at the end of a rope.

They're Hanging Parker Tillman (2)

22nd October 1981

Episode 5

Sam infiltrates an outlaw band to try to prove Tillman is innocent of cattle rustling.

The New Marshal

29th October 1981

Episode 6

Sam loses his badge in a special election to Tillman's squeaky-clean candidate.

Daniel's First Love

5th November 1981

Episode 7

Daniel is as surprised as anyone when a few innocent kisses lead to a shotgun wedding.

Laney in Love

12th November 1981

Episode 8

Laney is smitten with a smoothie who bids high for her at a social—but he turns out to be a low-down heel.

The Reunion

8th October 1981

Episode 9

Elvira's die-hard Confederate father (Andy Griffith) stays at the Square Deal Saloon while he is in town. His wife is trying to patch things up with their daughter; she married a Yankee!

The Railroad

19th November 1981

Episode 10

Sam and Tillman try hard to convince the railroad to come to Copper Creek.

The New Jail

26th November 1981

Episode 11

Sam's image as a lawman quickly loses its edge after he manages to shoot himself in the leg; the jail collapsing around him doesn't help.

A Man, a Woman, and a Horse

17th December 1981

Episode 12

Sam doesn't pay attention to signs of discontent from Elvira until the day he comes home to finds her packed to leave.

Frog's First Gunfight

7th January 1982

Episode 13

Frog meets a woman who was recently jilted by her beau, but neither realizes he wants her back.

The Calico Kid Goes to School

14th January 1982

Episode 14

The reformed Calico Kid decides he wants to be a United States Marshal. But he lacks one qualification: a third-grade education.

Tillman Held for Ransom

21st January 1982

Episode 15

Tillman has been kidnapped and the kidnappers are demanding a ransom, but the Copper Creek citizens have no intention of paying up.

Mail Order Bride

28th January 1982

Episode 16

Doc's mail-order bride has a vivid personality with a past to match it.

The Cave-In

12th February 1982

Episode 17

Elvira and her stepson explore an abandoned outlaw cave, unaware that it is booby-trapped to collapse.

Daniel Fights a Bully

19th February 1982

Episode 18

Daniel's refusal to fight a relentless bully leads to Sam having to fight the bully's father.

The Pretty Prisoner

26th February 1982

Episode 19

Sam is handcuffed to his prisoner—a flirtatious female outlaw—for an overnight journey.

Elvira's Old Beau

Episode 20

Elvira's former fiance' comes to town, intent on taking her away with him.

Sam's Life Is Threatened

Episode 21

Sam receives an anonymous threatening note.

The Funeral

Episode 22

Sam and Tillman try to foil a holdup by holding a funeral for Frog; the coffin contains the $20,000 the thieves are after.

Top Cast

Joel Higgins•Carlene Watkins•Meeno Peluce

An unwitting city slicker is made the marshal of a lawless town in this absurdist Western that pokes gentle but clever fun at the genre's stock plots and characters. Best of the West is an American sitcom that aired on ABC from September 1981 through August 1982.

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Production Companies

Full Cast

Joel Higgins Image

Joel Higgins

Sam Best

Carlene Watkins Image

Carlene Watkins

Elvira Best

Meeno Peluce Image

Meeno Peluce

Daniel Best

Valri Bromfield Image

Valri Bromfield

Laney Gibbs

Tracey Walter Image

Tracey Walter

Frog Rothchild Jr.

Tom Ewell Image

Tom Ewell

Jerome Kullens

Leonard Frey Image

Leonard Frey

Parker Tillman

Christopher Lloyd Image

Christopher Lloyd

The Calico Kid

Full Crew

Ed. Weinberger

Producer

Stan Daniels Image

Stan Daniels

Producer

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