The Adventures of Jim Bowie

The adventures of frontier hero Jim Bowie are brought to life in this popular children's television series.

Cast:Scott Forbes , William Schallert , John Laing , Joyce Vanderveen , Jack Perry , Paul Playdon , Peter Hansen , Sol Gorss , Phil Schumacher , Peter Mamakos , Kem Dibbs , Ivan Triesault , Minerva Urecal , Maurice Marsac , Richard Hale , Oliver McGowan , Lorna Thayer , Chester Jones

1Season 1

S1.E1 ∙ The Birth of the Blade

Fri, Sep 7, 1956

An encounter with an unfriendly she-bear nearly becomes fatal for Jim Bowie when his rifle misfires. Realizing the need for a simpler and more reliable weapon, he approaches master blacksmith Samuel Black with an idea for a new type of knife.

2Season 1

S1.E2 ∙ The Squatter

Fri, Sep 14, 1956

Jim Bowie persuades Regina Bienbeau, an imperious plantation owner, to allow a squatter and his pregnant wife to remain on her land.

3Season 1

S1.E3 ∙ An Adventure with Audubon

Fri, Sep 21, 1956

Jim Bowie watches with amusement and then with concern as his friend, John James Audubon, is mistaken for the missing son of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.

4Season 1

S1.E4 ∙ Deputy Sheriff

Fri, Sep 28, 1956

Jim volunteers to be a temporary deputy sheriff in order to guard a prisoner. However, he soon begins to suspect that the young man may not in fact be guilty of the crime he's been charged with.

5Season 1

S1.E5 ∙ Trapline

Fri, Oct 5, 1956

Jim begins to suspect that a fur company is trying to drive him out and is killing any Cajun trapper who does business with him.

6Season 1

S1.E6 ∙ Broomstick Wedding

Fri, Oct 12, 1956

A horse trade leads an angry farmer to mistakenly believe that Jim is the man who "dishonored" his daughter, and has to right his wrong by marrying her--even if it's at the point of a shotgun.

7Season 1

S1.E7 ∙ Natchez Trace

Fri, Oct 19, 1956

A group on their way to Natchez ask Jim to protect them against a bandit who preys on travelers headed there.

8Season 1

S1.E8 ∙ Jim Bowie Comes Home

Fri, Oct 26, 1956

The Bowie family seeks to keep their hometown respectable, however, the local saloonkeeper has other ideas and hires a professional knife fighter to challenge Jim to a fight.

9Season 1

S1.E9 ∙ The Ghost of Jean Battoo

Fri, Nov 2, 1956

Jim runs into a group of farmers who are paying protection money to an old woman who threatens to unleash the ghost of an infamous Louisiana pirate against them if they don't pay.

10Season 1

S1.E10 ∙ The Secessionist

Fri, Nov 9, 1956

A friend of Jim's is asked by President Andrew Jackson to dissuade a group of French planters from seceding from the Union.

11Season 1

S1.E11 ∙ Land Jumpers

Fri, Nov 16, 1956

Jim Bowie is riding along the Mississippi when he is bushwhacked by Manion and Kneeland...two settlers who accuse him of being a land grabber and throwing them off their land. They tell him Jim's brother Rezin has been shot and killed. Jim returns home and finds his brother is still alive but Bowie and Bowie Land Office is in trouble. A Frenchman with an old land grant from King Louis XVI has overturned all of their deals and taken the property back. On top of all this, counterfeit money is being distributed in the region and Jim begins to wonder about the validity of the grant.

12Season 1

S1.E12 ∙ The Select Females

Fri, Nov 23, 1956

JIm Bowie is in a hurry on his way to New Orleans to take a lady to the Opera Ball when he comes upon two women who are having trouble with their pony cart. They are Angelique Moreau and Miss Peabody of Miss Peabody's Select Female Academy. They are searching for a young girl who has run off from the school to elope. Her father is planning on making a handsome contribution to the school so they are desperate to find her before she can carry out her plans of marriage. He tries to get back on the way to N.O. but is drawn back to the ladies when he discovers they have been kidnapped as part of an extortion scheme.

13Season 1

S1.E13 ∙ Jim Bowie and His Slave

Fri, Nov 30, 1956

Jim discovers that a former slave he had freed has been captured and enslaved again, and is about to be sold at a slave auction.

14Season 1

S1.E14 ∙ Outlaw Kingdom

Fri, Dec 7, 1956

Jim sets out after a gang of river pirates who have stolen his cargo.

15Season 1

S1.E15 ∙ The Swordsman

Fri, Dec 14, 1956

Jim travels to New Orleans to purchase an estate, but he gets himself in trouble when he's distracted by a beautiful woman.

16Season 1

S1.E16 ∙ The Return of the Alcibiade

Fri, Dec 21, 1956

An expensive gift that Jim bought for his mother for Christmas is stolen, and he sets off after the thief to get it back.

17Season 1

S1.E17 ∙ Monsieur Francois

Fri, Dec 28, 1956

Bowie assists a French boy who has traveled from France to reunite with his aunt who is living in New Orleans. Unbeknownst to Bowie, the boy represents a threat to the aunt's fiancé who plans to marry her for her money.

18Season 1

S1.E18 ∙ A Horse for Old Hickory

Fri, Jan 4, 1957

Jim goes to an auction to bid on a racehorse he wants to give as a present to President Jackson, but he finds out that he's up against another bidder who wants the horse--none other than Sam Houston.

19Season 1

S1.E19 ∙ The Beggar of New Orleans

Fri, Jan 11, 1957

Jim set out to help a former champion fencer who has fallen on hard times and is reduced to begging in the streets.

20Season 1

S1.E20 ∙ Osceola

Fri, Jan 18, 1957

When the army attempts to move the Seminole Indians from their own lands to a tract that is much less desirable, Jim steps in on their behalf.

21Season 1

S1.E21 ∙ Master at Arms

Fri, Jan 25, 1957

Bowie buys a lottery ticket from Jean Dubois a former champion swordsman who is trying to raise money for his daughter's dowry. Dubois notices that Bowie is carrying a large sum of money and unsuccessfully tries to take it from him when Bowie leaves the tavern. Bowie, Houston and Lafitte decide to help Dubois, however, Dubois' future in-laws have other plans for his daughter's dowry.

22Season 1

S1.E22 ∙ Convoy Gold

Fri, Feb 1, 1957

Jim has to get a gold shipment through safely to New Orleans.

23Season 1

S1.E23 ∙ Spanish Intrigue

Fri, Feb 8, 1957

Bowie agrees to sell supplies to Don Carlos Miro. He later discovers that Miro is acting as a purchasing agent for supporters of Simon Bolivar and that opposing supporters of the Spanish king will stop at nothing to block the sale.

24Season 1

S1.E24 ∙ Bayou Tontine

Fri, Feb 15, 1957

Jim is asked by famous naturalist James Audubon to protect a young girl who has just inherited a fortune.

25Season 1

S1.E25 ∙ German George

Fri, Feb 22, 1957

Jim's friend and partner is cheated out of money by a gambler, who then kills him. Jim sets out after the killer.

26Season 1

S1.E26 ∙ An Eye for an Eye

Fri, Mar 1, 1957

In order to head off an Indian uprising, Jim tells a Cherokee princess the tale of John Smith and Pocahontas. Unfortunately his story doesn't have the desired effect, and in fact winds up getting him in even more trouble.

27Season 1

S1.E27 ∙ The Captain's Chimp

Fri, Mar 8, 1957

When Captain Paolo is kidnapped from his hotel room, his frightened chimpanzee ends up in Bowie's room. After a mate from the captain's ship, and later Lafitte, try to buy the chimp, Bowie enlists reporter Tebbs and the captain's daughter in a plan to expose the kidnappers.

28Season 1

S1.E28 ∙ Jackson's Assassination

Fri, Mar 15, 1957

Jim is tricked into aiding a plot to assassinate President Jackson.

29Season 1

S1.E29 ∙ Rezin Bowie, Gambler

Fri, Mar 22, 1957

Jim's brother, unaware that he is being set up, wins big gambling and gets it into his head that he's good enough to go professional.

30Season 1

S1.E30 ∙ Thieves' Market

Fri, Mar 29, 1957

Jim takes a young French friend on a tour of New Orleans' infamous "Thieves Market", where they are attacked and robbed--by thieves.

31Season 1

S1.E31 ∙ The Pearl and the Crown

Fri, Apr 5, 1957

A newspaper publishes a poem about Jim. Irritated, he confronts the editor. Unfortunately for Jim the editor is soon found murdered, and suspicion falls on him.

32Season 1

S1.E32 ∙ The General's Disgrace

Fri, Apr 12, 1957

A rash of holdups leads Jim to suspect that they may be the work of an army general's son who has recently sustained heavy gambling losses.

33Season 1

S1.E33 ∙ The Lottery

Fri, Apr 19, 1957

In order to help an orphanage raise money, Jim organized a lottery. What he doesn't know is that the men he hired to run it have schemed to rig the drawing so that they will win.

34Season 1

S1.E34 ∙ The Intruder

Fri, Apr 26, 1957

A young man is caught burglarizing the home of Jim's friend Francois. However, instead of turning him over to the authorities, Jim decides to help the youth.

35Season 1

S1.E35 ∙ Country Cousin

Fri, May 3, 1957

Jim winds up in trouble with his family when he lets his visiting cousin in on a deal that turns out to be a scam.

36Season 1

S1.E36 ∙ The Bound Girl

Fri, May 10, 1957

An indentured young servant girl from Ireland has been "purchased" by a nasty widower, and Jim sets out to help her out of that potentially dangerous situation.

37Season 1

S1.E37 ∙ The Bounty Hunter

Fri, May 17, 1957

Jim and his newspaper friend unknowingly help a fugitive escape. A bounty hunter, figuring that they're all in on it, goes after them all for the reward--dead or alive.

38Season 1

S1.E38 ∙ Gone to Texas

Fri, May 24, 1957

Hoping to buy land in the Mexican state of Texas, Jim Bowie visits Nacogdoches where he's arrested as a spy, flogged, and sentenced to death.

1Season 2

S2.E1 ∙ Epitaph for an Indian

Fri, Sep 6, 1957

Jim's Indian friend has been killed, and when Jim goes to his home to deliver the news to his father, he finds that his friend's father has also just been shot.

2Season 2

S2.E2 ∙ Flowers for McDonough

Fri, Sep 13, 1957

A canny Scotsman outfoxes Jim in a real-estate deal.

3Season 2

S2.E3 ∙ The Irishman

Fri, Sep 20, 1957

Jim purchases the contract of an indentured servant, but when they stop at an inn, the man tricks the innkeeper into believing that he is the master and Jim is the servant.

4Season 2

S2.E4 ∙ Counterfeit Dixie

Fri, Sep 27, 1957

In order to break up a gang of counterfeiters, Jim asks for help from a former pickpocket and a former horse thief.

5Season 2

S2.E5 ∙ Bullet Metal

Fri, Oct 4, 1957

Jim is interested in buying a lead mine, but runs into a problem: the owner is a pacifist who won't sell the mine if it will be used to make ammunition.

6Season 2

S2.E6 ∙ The Quarantine

Fri, Oct 11, 1957

A desperately needed shipment of smallpox vaccine is stolen, and Jim risks his life to get it back.

7Season 2

S2.E7 ∙ A Fortune for Madame

Fri, Oct 18, 1957

Jim is interested in buying some land, but he discovers that the owners have just been scammed out of it. He sets out to help them get it back.

8Season 2

S2.E8 ∙ House Divided

Fri, Oct 25, 1957

Jim gets shot, and finds himself recovering from his wound in the mansion of a wealthy family. However, one of the young women who is treating him asks him not to identify the person who shot him. Jim sets out to find out why.

9Season 2

S2.E9 ∙ The Whip

Fri, Nov 1, 1957

During negotiations to purchase cotton, Bowie discovers that much of the cotton farm's labor is provided by the local prison comandante who keeps order by the crack of his whip and who is providing the labor in exchange for supposed donations to the church. However, his plan to expose the comandante as a thief takes a dangerous turn.

10Season 2

S2.E10 ∙ The Pearls of Talimeco

Fri, Nov 8, 1957

Bowie and an Indian friend make up a wild story to trick a crooked storekeeper who is cheating Bowie's friend Sam McCullers but their plan backfires. Bowie then enlists Sam's daughter, Rachel, in an attempt to clean up the mess.

11Season 2

S2.E11 ∙ Charivari

Fri, Nov 15, 1957

Jim's suspicions are aroused when an elderly friend dies suddenly on his wedding night.

12Season 2

S2.E12 ∙ Hare and Tortoise

Fri, Nov 22, 1957

Jim discovers a scheme to enrich the owners of a piece of land by getting the state to move its capital there.

13Season 2

S2.E13 ∙ The Bridegroom

Fri, Nov 29, 1957

To try to escape from a pursuing gang of waterfront toughs, Bowie pretends to be a prospective bridegroom for a wealthy French family's daughter.

14Season 2

S2.E14 ∙ The Alligator

Fri, Dec 6, 1957

Bowie investigates the death of a woman who has been frightened to death by a baby alligator hidden in a doll.

15Season 2

S2.E15 ∙ Country Girl

Fri, Dec 13, 1957

Bowie and Rachel are asked separately to lend bribe money to brother and sister aristocrats.

16Season 2

S2.E16 ∙ Mexican Adventure

Fri, Dec 20, 1957

Bowie and Jean Lafitte assist an American diplomat who is being held by Mexican authorities. In turn, the diplomat uses his medical training to help deliver a baby.

17Season 2

S2.E17 ∙ Silk Purse

Fri, Dec 27, 1957

Bowie unexpectedly wins the services of an unrefined young woman from her father in a poker game. He attempts to teach her what it means to be a lady.

18Season 2

S2.E18 ∙ Choctaw Honor

Fri, Jan 3, 1958

Bowie helps a Choctaw Indian who has been accused by the Choctaw tribe of the murder and robbery of a tribal member.

19Season 2

S2.E19 ∙ The Close Shave

Fri, Jan 10, 1958

An anonymous letter writer threatens Bowie's life.

20Season 2

S2.E20 ∙ Pirate on Horseback

Fri, Jan 17, 1958

In search of a stolen necklace, Bowie infiltrates a criminal brotherhood which is bent on taking over the state.

21Season 2

S2.E21 ∙ Curfew Cannon

Fri, Jan 24, 1958

A rich French family entices the Bowie brothers to be their partners in a new bank.

22Season 2

S2.E22 ∙ Home Sweet Home

Fri, Jan 31, 1958

Bowie trusts a gambler to sell tickets to a benefit for actor/songwriter John Howard Payne.

23Season 2

S2.E23 ∙ Deaf Smith

Fri, Feb 7, 1958

Deaf Smith intervenes when Bowie is attacked by bandits.

24Season 2

S2.E24 ∙ Ursula

Fri, Feb 14, 1958

While in San Antonio on business, Bowie accidentally meets his future wife, Ursula.

25Season 2

S2.E25 ∙ Apache Silver

Fri, Feb 21, 1958

While in San Antonio, Bowie obtains a map to a lost Spanish silver mine in Apache territory. However, seeking the mine could jeopardize peaceful relations with the local Lipan Apaches who also act as a buffer against the Comanches.

26Season 2

S2.E26 ∙ A Grave for Jim Bowie

Fri, Feb 28, 1958

John Chapman rescues Bowie following a riverboat explosion. In turn, Bowie saves Chapman from murderers who are looking for a supposed inheritance.

27Season 2

S2.E27 ∙ Up the Creek

Fri, Mar 7, 1958

A family of backwoods grifters capture Bowie and convince him to pay them a dowry in exchange for not marrying the family's daughter. Bowie and his cousin try to recoup the money but their plan goes awry.

28Season 2

S2.E28 ∙ The Lion's Cub

Fri, Mar 14, 1958

Bowie thinks he's pulling a joke on an Englishman who makes an offer to buy his "bear repellent", but the joke backfires and he winds up serving as the man's valet, and two men riding with them have other plans---to obtain the man's gold.

29Season 2

S2.E29 ∙ Horse Thief

Fri, Mar 21, 1958

Bowie purchases a horse from an old friend for Ursula, the daughter of his business partner and future Mrs. Bowie. Unbeknownst to Bowie, his friend has stolen the horse from the wife of the local Lipan Apache chief.

30Season 2

S2.E30 ∙ Jim Bowie, Apache

Fri, Mar 28, 1958

Bowie joins the Lipan Apache tribe. He helps them in their war with the Comanches who are assisted by Bowie's old horse trading friend, Cephas. The Apaches agree to take a blindfolded Bowie to their lost silver mine but Cephas follows them.

31Season 2

S2.E31 ∙ The Brothers

Fri, Apr 4, 1958

Bowie returns to Louisiana to organize an expedition to rediscover and develop the Apache silver mine in Texas. He meets a young army lieutenant, Jeff Davis, who is interested in his plan. However, Jeff's older brother Joe has less adventurous plans for his younger brother.

32Season 2

S2.E32 ∙ Patron of the Art

Fri, Apr 11, 1958

A plantation owner will sell his plantation to Bowie but the price is a rare Venetian painting. The painting's owner is willing to sell but the painting is stolen, held for ransom and, unbeknownst to Bowie, duplicated.

33Season 2

S2.E33 ∙ Bad Medicine

Fri, Apr 18, 1958

Federal government tells Choctaw tribes to move from Mississippi to Arkansas. One tribe refuses because chief's son is sick. As Bowie guides a doctor to examine the boy, they encounter a young couple who are about to deliver a baby.

34Season 2

S2.E34 ∙ A Night in Tennessee

Mon, Apr 28, 1958

While visiting Tennessee, local politicians enlist Bowie's help in defeating Davy Crockett for Congress. Bowie agrees to help them but then refuses their smear tactics. When Bowie threatens to expose their scheme, they take him prisoner.

35Season 2

S2.E35 ∙ Bowie's Baby

Wed, Apr 2, 1958

On the trail, Bowie rescues a sole surviving baby from a burning covered wagon. When the local sheriff refuses to get involved, a tavern owner agrees that she will watch the baby while Bowie tries to find a family willing to adopt.

36Season 2

S2.E36 ∙ The Cave

Fri, May 9, 1958

Bowie tracks a seemingly delusional young bride who is kidnapped following her wedding. He learns that she may have been hypnotized so he sets a trap for the suspected hypnotist.

37Season 2

S2.E37 ∙ Man on the Street

Fri, May 16, 1958

A Creole aristocrat, with substantial land holdings in New Orleans, loses heavily at the crap tables. When he refuses to honor his IOU, Bowie offers him a partnership to develop the land in exchange for canceling the debt.

38Season 2

S2.E38 ∙ The Puma

Fri, May 23, 1958

Reporter Tebbs asks Jess Miller to travel to San Antonio and retrieve $7,000 for Bowie. In route, Miller is mistaken for Bowie, first by bandits whose leader needs his help and then by a corrupt colonel who wants the money and pits the bandit leader against Miller in a fight to the death.