# Guestward, Ho!

Guestward, Ho! is an American sitcom that aired on the ABC network from September 29, 1960, through September 21, 1961. It was based on the book of the same title by New Mexico dude ranch operator Barbara Hooton and Patrick Dennis.

## Overview

The premise revolves around a New York City family, the Hootens, who tire of the urban lifestyle and relocate to operate a dude ranch in New Mexico. Having bought the place unseen, they find it needs considerably more work than they were led to believe. The Hootens befriend the Native American "Hawkeye" whose "trading post" was the only source of supplies in the vicinity. Hawkeye, played by J. Carrol Naish, was a rather cynical native who sold indigenous-looking trinkets mass-produced in Asia, and who frequently read The Wall Street Journal, seemingly in search of a way to purchase the country and return it to its "rightful owners". Jeanette Nolan guest starred as Mrs. Winslow in the 1961 episode "Hawkeye's First Love".
Earle Hodgins appeared in at least three episodes as the 67-year-old ranch wrangler named "Lonesome". In the episode "Lonesome's Gal", ZaSu Pitts, formerly of The Gale Storm Show, played his romantic interest. Jody McCrea, whose Wichita Town, an NBC western series in which he starred with his father, Joel McCrea, ended in 1960, was cast as an Indian, "Danny Brave Eagle", in the 1961 episode entitled "The Wrestler".
The second episode was entitled "You Can't Go Home Again", borrowing from Thomas Wolfe's novel, You Can't Go Home Again. The series finale was "No Place Like Home".

## Cast

Characters in Guestward Ho! and Actors Who Portrayed Them :
| Character | Actor |
| Babs Hooten | Joanne Dru |
| Hawkeye | J. Carrol Naish |
| Bill Hooten | Mark Miller |
| Brook Hooten | Flip Mark |
| Lonesome | Earle Hodgins |
| Pink Cloud | Jolene Brand |
| Rocky | Tony Montenaro Jr. |

## Background

The trade publication Billboard reported in December 1957 that CBS was negotiating with Jeanne Crain to be the lead in an adaptation of Guestward, Ho! A February 1958 Billboard article still had Crain set for the lead in the program being developed for the 1958-1959 season.
Guestward, Ho! initially began at CBS in 1958, with Vivian Vance and Leif Erickson as the Hootens, an older childless couple. Desilu had developed the pilot specifically for Vance, who had portrayed Ethel Mertz on the hit CBS/Desilu sitcom I Love Lucy from 1951 to 1957, and its later followup specials. Vance had rejected doing an I Love Lucy spin-off focusing on Ethel and Fred Mertz, in favor of doing the Guestward, Ho! pilot. Upon viewing the pilot, CBS executives felt that Vance had become so typecast in her Ethel Mertz role that she was unconvincing playing a leading character in her own situation comedy. One executive allegedly said "I kept waiting for Lucy to come in" after viewing the pilot. Hence, CBS rejected the series.
Desilu eventually retooled the pilot, with Joanne Dru and Mark Miller as the Hootens, now a younger couple (with Babs being a former model). Flip Mark was cast as their son, Brook Hooten, a character created in the retooling. ABC bought this pilot, and slated it for its Thursday evening schedule with The Donna Reed Show. Ralston-Purina served as the primary sponsor, with 7 Up as an alternate sponsor.

## Episodes

| No. | Title | Original release date |
| 1 | "The Hootens Buy a Ranch" | September 29, 1960 (1960-09-29) |
| 2 | "You Can't Go Home Again" | October 6, 1960 (1960-10-06) |
| 3 | "The Lost Tribe" | October 20, 1960 (1960-10-20) |
| 4 | "Babs Meets Phyllis Brady" | October 27, 1960 (1960-10-27) |
| 5 | "Babs and the Cow" | November 3, 1960 (1960-11-03) |
| 6 | "The Hootens Fire Lonesome" | November 10, 1960 (1960-11-10) |
| 7 | "Babs' Mother" | November 17, 1960 (1960-11-17) |
| 8 | "The Thanksgiving Story" | November 24, 1960 (1960-11-24) |
| 9 | "Babs' Vanity" | December 1, 1960 (1960-12-01) |
| 10 | "Babs and the Lion" | December 8, 1960 (1960-12-08) |
| 11 | "The Matchmaker" | December 15, 1960 (1960-12-15) |
| 12 | "The Christmas Spirit" | December 22, 1960 (1960-12-22) |
| 13 | "The Model Mother" | December 29, 1960 (1960-12-29) |
| 14 | "Injun Bill" | January 5, 1961 (1961-01-05) |
| 15 | "The Social Director" | January 12, 1961 (1961-01-12) |
| 16 | "Frontier Week" | January 19, 1961 (1961-01-19) |
| 17 | "Too Many Cooks" | January 26, 1961 (1961-01-26) |
| 18 | "Dimples Goes Hollywood" | February 2, 1961 (1961-02-02) |
| 19 | "No Vacancy" | February 9, 1961 (1961-02-09) |
| 20 | "Manhattan Merry-Go-Round" | February 16, 1961 (1961-02-16) |
| 21 | "Bill, the Candidate" | February 23, 1961 (1961-02-23) |
| 22 | "Babs, the Guest" | March 2, 1961 (1961-03-02) |
| 23 | "Hawkeye's First Love" | March 9, 1961 (1961-03-09) |
| 24 | "Hawkeye, the Mother" | March 16, 1961 (1961-03-16) |
| 25 | "Hawkeye's Stadium" | March 23, 1961 (1961-03-23) |
| 26 | "The Honorary Indian" | March 30, 1961 (1961-03-30) |
| 27 | "The Hootens Build a Barbecue" | April 6, 1961 (1961-04-06) |
| 28 | "Hooten's Statue" | April 13, 1961 (1961-04-13) |
| 29 | "Two Guests From the Past" | April 20, 1961 (1961-04-20) |
| 30 | "Bill, the Fireman" | April 27, 1961 (1961-04-27) |
| 31 | "Babs, the Manager" | May 4, 1961 (1961-05-04) |
| 32 | "Lonesome's Gal" | May 11, 1961 (1961-05-11) |
| 33 | "The Wrestler" | May 18, 1961 (1961-05-18) |
| 34 | "The Hootens Versus Hawkeye" | May 25, 1961 (1961-05-25) |
| 35 | "The Hooten's Second Car" | June 1, 1961 (1961-06-01) |
| 36 | "The Wild West Show" | June 8, 1961 (1961-06-08) |
| 37 | "The Beatniks" | June 15, 1961 (1961-06-15) |
| 38 | "No Place Like Home" | June 22, 1961 (1961-06-22) |

## Production

Guestward, Ho! was broadcast on Thursdays from 7:30 to 8 p.m. Eastern Time. Ralston Purina and 7 Up were the sponsors. David Heilweil was the producer.
It ran opposite Outlaws on NBC, and later in the season, against fellow Desilu program The Ann Sothern Show on CBS. ABC ultimately canceled the series following one season, replaced with The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet in its timeslot.

## Critical response

A review of the premiere episode in The New York Times called it "an example of Hollywood formula film TV at its best and brightest." The review said that Dru, Miller, and Mark portrayed their characters "airily", and it concluded with "By dint of its high polish it achieved an entertainment level well above that reached by most of its rivals."