# The Hero (1966 TV series)

The Hero is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC on Thursday nights at 9:30 p.m. Eastern from September 8, 1966 to January 5, 1967. It was the first television series for Richard Mulligan.
After reports of possible cancelation of the series surfaced in the fall of 1966, the National Association for Better Broadcasting (NABB) wrote to NBC and to sponsors Lever Brothers Company and R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company asking that it not be canceled. Frank Orme, NABB's executive director, said that ending the series would undermine writers' and producers' efforts to come up with shows "that would reverse the continuing decline in standards of network entertainment programming."

## Premise

The series centers on Sam Garret, the star of a fictional Western television series titled Jed Clayton — U.S. Marshal. In contrast to the Western's success onscreen, Garret is "a clumsy bloke offscreen." An article in The New York Times described the character as "a good-natured family man with 10 thumbs and a fear of horses."
Other characters include Garret's wife, Ruth, and their son, Paul. Fred Gilman and his son, Burton, are the Garrets' neighbors.

## Cast

* Richard Mulligan as Sam Garret
* Mariette Hartley as Ruth Garret
* Bobby Horan as Paul Garret
* Victor French as Fred Gilman
* Marc London as Dewey
* Joey Baio as Burton Gilman

## Episodes

| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
| 1 | "A Night to Remember to Forget" | Robert Ellis Miller | Bill Idelson & Sam Bobrick | September 8, 1966 (1966-09-08) |
| 2 | "The Big Return of Little Eddie" | Unknown | Leonard Stern & Don Hinkley | September 15, 1966 (1966-09-15) |
| 3 | "Pardon Me, But Your Party's Showing" | Unknown | Bill Idelson & Sam Bobrick | September 22, 1966 (1966-09-22) |
| 4 | "Curiosity Killed a Key" | Unknown | Roswell Rogers | September 29, 1966 (1966-09-29) |
| 5 | "Rumble Without a Cause" | Unknown | Ronald Axe & Sydney Zelinka | October 6, 1966 (1966-10-06) |
| 6 | "The Kid's Revenge" | Unknown | Roswell Rogers | October 13, 1966 (1966-10-13) |
| 7 | "The Matchmaker" | Unknown | Bill Idelson & Sam Bobrick | October 20, 1966 (1966-10-20) |
| 8 | "The Day They Shot Sam Garret" | William Wiard | Austin Kalish & Irma Kalish and Leonard Stern | November 3, 1966 (1966-11-03) |
| 9 | "If You Loved Me, You'd Hate Me" | Unknown | Budd Grossman | November 10, 1966 (1966-11-10) |
| 10 | "Universal Language" | Unknown | Roswell Rogers | November 17, 1966 (1966-11-17) |
| 11 | "I Wouldn't Wish It on a Dog" | Unknown | Bill Idelson & Sam Bobrick | November 24, 1966 (1966-11-24) |
| 12 | "The Truth Never Hurts...Much" | Unknown | Martin Ragaway | December 1, 1966 (1966-12-01) |
| 13 | "Who Needs a Friend in Need?" | Unknown | Bill Idelson & Sam Bobrick | December 8, 1966 (1966-12-08) |
| 14 | "I Have a Friend" | William Wiard | Joseph C. Cavella & Carol Cavella | December 15, 1966 (1966-12-15) |
| 15 | "My Favorite Father" | Unknown | Roswell Rogers | December 22, 1966 (1966-12-22) |
| 16 | "The Terribly Talented Trayton Tyler Taylor" | Unknown | Arne Sultan | January 5, 1967 (1967-01-05) |

## Production

Leonard Stern was the series's creator and executive producer. Jay Sandrich was the producer for Talent Associates. Sixteen episodes were filmed in color at Paramount Studios in Hollywood. It was broadcast at 9:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Thursdays.