Bonanza is an American Western television series that ran on NBC from September 12, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 432 episodes, Bonanza is NBC's longest-running Western, the … See more

Set and filming
The opening scene for the first season was shot at Lake Hemet, a reservoir in the San Jacinto Mountains, Riverside County, California, and later … See more

Broadcast history and ratings
Initially, Bonanza aired on Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. Eastern, opposite Dick Clark's Saturday Night Beech-Nut Show and John Gunther's High Road See more

In the TV series Maverick episode "Three Queens Full", Bart (Jack Kelly) is blackmailed by Joe Wheelwright (Jim Backus), … See more

The show chronicles the weekly adventures of the Cartwright family, headed by the thrice-widowed patriarch Ben Cartwright (Lorne Greene). He had three sons, each by … See more

Episodes ranged from high drama to broad comedy and addressed issues such as the environment, substance abuse, domestic violence, … See more

Television movies
Bonanza was revived for a series of three made-for-television movies featuring the Cartwrights' children: Bonanza: The Next Generation (1988), Bonanza: The Return (1993) and Bonanza: Under Attack (1995). Michael Landon Jr. See more