From 1967-68 Cimarron Strip produced 23 episodes for CBS-TV. Stuart Whitman had the starring role of Jim Crown, a U.S. Marshal tasked with enforcing the law in a wild stretch of land situated between the Kansas and Indian Territories in the 1880s.

Christopher Knopf Created Cimarron Strip TV Western

Cimarron Strip was created by Christopher Knopf, who had previously honed his writing skills on such TV Western fare as The Restless Gun, Wanted: Dead or Alive, Trackdown, The Rifleman, The Rebel and The Big Valley.

Writing was a natural pursuit for Knopf, whose uncle was publisher Alfred A. Knopf.

Producers, Writers, Directors, Music

Philip Leacock served as executive producer, with Bernard McEveety, Douglas Benton and Leonard Freeman as producers.

Cimarron Strip writers included Jack Curtis, Ellis Marcus, Harold Swanton, Calvin Clements and Harlan Ellison.

Directors on the show included Sam Wanamker, Vincent McEveety, Gunnar Hellstrom, Boris Sagal, Charles R. Rondeau and Herschel Daugherty.

Cimarron Strip's memorable theme song was created by Maurice Jarre.

Cimarron Strip Cast

Stuart Whitman (born 2/1/26) starred as Marshal Jim Crown. Making his film debut in When Worlds Collide (1951), Whitman became one of Hollywood's wealthiest actors, accumulating a net worth in excess of $100 million via savvy investments in real estate, securities, cattle and thoroughbred horses.

Other series regulars were Percy Herbert as boisterous Scotsman Angus MacGregor, Randy Boone as newspaper reporter/photographer Francis Wilde, and Jill Townsend as Dulcey "Biscuit" Coopersmith, the owner of Cimarron City's Wayfarers Inn.

Filming Locations, Crown's Holster Rig Prop

Cimarron Strip was filmed at Republic Studios/CBS Studio Center in Los Angeles. Western locales utilized included Bishop and Lone Pine, California; Tucson, Arizona; and Kanab, Utah.

One of the show's main props was Marshal Crown's Arvo Ojala-made holster rig, which housed his nickel-plated .44 Colt revolver.

Stuart Whitman, a former amateur boxer, insisted on doing many of his own stunts. In order to keep limber, he worked out on a set of parallel bars stored just out of camera range.

Cimarron Strip Debuts

Cimarron Strip made its debut on September 7, 1967, with the episode "Journey to a Hanging." In this premiere, Crown and posse pursue an outlaw gang headed by Ace Coffin (Henry Silva), with a mysterious lawman known as "Screamer" (John Saxon) along for the ride.

Cimarron Strip produced an additional 22 episodes encompassing a variety of themes. Among the fare: "The Battleground" (range war), "The Battle of Bloody Stones" (cowboy/Indian feud), "Fool's Gold" (Army payroll heist) and "The Blue Moon Train" (prison train escape).

Knife in the Darkness

Recognized as one of Cimarron Strip's best episodes was "Knife in the Darkness" (1/25/68), a murder mystery penned by the prolific Harlan Ellison. In fog-shrouded Cimarron City, Crown investigates the murders of two women whose mutilated bodies bear the unmistakable hallmark of England's Jack the Ripper.

TV Guide Review

TV Guide's Cleveland Amory reviewed Cimarron Strip on October 7, 1967. "The only difference between this show and the 4084 other Westerns you have seen over the past 44 years is that it lasts an hour and a half, and by the end of the first episode they have killed everything in sight except (a) the hero and (b) the time."

Cimarron Strip Guest Stars

Cimarron Strip featured a bevy of talented guest stars. Among the chosen were Jon Voight, Robert Duvall, Darren McGavin, Richard Boone, Simon Oakland, Tuesday Weld, David Carradine, Joseph Cotten, Suzanne Pleshette, Slim Pickens and Leslie Nielsen.

Cimarron Strip Canceled

Cimarron Strip was seen on Thursday nights from 7:30-9 PM (ET). The network competition: Batman, The Flying Nun and Bewtiched on ABC and Daniel Boone and Ironside on NBC.

Canceled because of low ratings, Cimarron Strip exited the airwaves on September 19, 1968.

Eight episodes of Cimarron Strip were rebroadcast in the summer of 1971, after which Hawaii Five-O moved into the vacated time slot.

Cimarron Strip DVD

All 23 episodes of Cimarron Strip are available on DVD.

TV Guide Sources

• Fall Preview (9/9/67)
• Cimarron Strip review (10/7/67)
• "Stuart Whitman's 'Marshal Plan'" (11/4/67)
• "Bright as a Summer's Day" Jill Townsend photo spread (6/29/68).