Meltdown On The Mesa Chapter One

**Meltdown On The Mesa Chapter One** was the inaugural episode of the weekly *Riders Radio Theater* series, and was the first installment of the 13-part *Meltdown On The Mesa* serial.

## Episode Overview

Riders In The Sky kick-off the first episode with *Back In The Saddle Again*, then taking a moment to promote Deadwood Darline's amazing new product: the Bio-Feedbag. Ranger Doug then introduces the audience to their faithful trail cook Sidemeat, who recounts a dream he had the night before where he visits *Sidekick Heaven*. Another commercial interlude, this time from L. Philo "Larry" Mammoth, hawking the great new Mammoth Radio Pictures album *Call of The Wild* (a collection of Canadian love songs performed by a real Mountie). The Riders return, letting Woody Paul take the lead on Robert Fletcher and Cole Porter's *Don't Fence Me In*. When the song concludes, it's time for an installment in *The Ongoing Saga of The Cowboy Way*: part one of a new story entitled *Meltdown On The Mesa*.

While searching for water, Riders In The Sky have driven the Triple X Ranch herd to the top of Three Mile Mesa, but during the drive, a gunshot rings out and frightens the cattle, causing a stampede and sending them plummeting off the mesa's ridge to the rocks below. When the chaos settles down, who should arrive to greet the disheartened trio but Tumbleweed Valley's public enemies #1 & 2: Slocum and his lackey Charlie. Slocum offers to by the now-worthless Triple X Ranch, but the Riders refuse to sell. As the devious duo ride off, Woody Paul exclaims that he smells smoke, and soon the Riders discover that the Triple X bunkhouse is ablaze. The band rush in to save what few valuables they can, but when they regroup outside, they discover that Sidemeat (who went back in to save his biscuit dough) is nowhere to be seen. Before any of them can react and attempt a rescue, the roof the bunkhouse collapses...

With the serial chapter over, the Riders perform a few verses of Bob Nolan's *Tumbling Tumbleweeds*, and by the song's end it's time to wrap-up this episode of *Riders Radio Theater* with *So Long, Saddle Pals* as Texas Bix Bender reads the credits.

## Credits

### Riders In The Sky

* Ranger Doug (Douglas B. Green) - Vocals, guitar, sound effects
	+ Voice of Sergent Dudley (*Call of The Wild*), Charlie (*The Ongoing Saga of The Cowboy Way*), Walter Brennan, Tonto, and Pancho (*Sidekick Heaven*)
* Too Slim (Fred LaBour) - Vocals, bunkhouse bass, sound effects
	+ Voice of Sidemeat (*Sidekick Heaven*, *The Ongoing Saga of The Cowboy Way*), L. Philo "Larry" Mammoth (*Call of The Wild*), and Slocum (*The Ongoing Saga of The Cowboy Way*)
* Woody Paul (Paul Chrisman) - Vocals, fiddle, sound effects
	+ Voice of unnamed electric guitar player (*Call of The Wild*)

### Crew

* Texas Bix Bender (Steve Arwood) - Announcer, co-writer

### WPLN

* Carl Peterson - Recording engineer
* Tom Knox - Recording engineer
* Brenda Loftis - PR Director
* Judy Liff - Director of Development

## Trivia

* This was Riders In The Sky's 1742 performance.

### Pop Culture References

* Ranger Doug tells Slocum that the Riders have insurance from "the famed Lloyds Of Lubbock". Lloyds Of Lubbock was a fraudulent insurance company featured in a 1973 episode of the television sitcom *The Odd Couple*.
* When the Riders discover the bunkhouse of the Triple X Ranch ablaze, Too Slim shouts that he'll save the Vaughn Monroe poster. Vaughn Monroe was an American singer and "big band" leader, who is perhaps best known for his 1949 recording of *Ghost Riders In The Sky*, which was #1 on the Billboard charts for 22 weeks (and is the song which the cowboy trio had named themselves after).