The Restless Gun is an American western television series that appeared on NBC between 1957 and 1959, with John Payne in the role of Vint Bonner, a wandering cowboy in the era after the American Civil War. A skilled gunfighter, Bonner is an idealistic person who prefers peaceful resolutions of conflict wherever possible. He is gregarious, intelligent, and public-spirited. The half-hour black-and-white program aired seventy-eight episodes. Jeanne Bates appeared in varying roles with Payne in five episodes of The Restless Gun. The Restless Gun theme song begins: "I ride with the wind, my eyes on the sun, and my hand on my restless gun..." The song composer is probably Paul Dunlap, credited as the primary series composer, but could have been contributed to by either of the two other series composers, Dave Kahn and Stanley Wilson, also. Two versions are currently posted on YouTube, but neither posting lists any composer or performance credits.
The Restless Gun (Season 1)
Duel at Lockwood (Episode 1)
Writer: David Dortort
Air date: 1957-09-23
Overview: Vint Bonner meets an elderly woman who asks him to do something about her grandson. The young man has already killed two men and vowed to add Vint Bonner to the list.
Trail to Sunset (Episode 2)
Air date: 1957-09-30
Overview: After promising a seriously wounded outlaw that he will get him to town alive to stand trial, Bonner meets five men, including a doctor, who want to bring the man in. But then Bonner learns that the five have just taken part in a lynching, and he becomes concerned that they will do the same with this prisoner.
Revenge at Harness Creek (Episode 3)
Writer: Malvin Wald
Air date: 1957-10-07
Runtime: 30 min
Overview: When the man's hotheaded younger brother is killed in self defense, Vint fears that his sheriff friend is too bent on revenge to bring the man who killed him back alive.
Rink (Episode 4)
Air date: 1957-10-14
Overview: On the trail, Bonner meets a young boy who is looking to join his father. Bonner brings the boy to town, where the bank is robbed, and the sheriff kills one of the robbers---the boy's father.
Jenny (Episode 5)
Air date: 1957-10-21
Overview: Bonner finds a wounded man on the road, and brings him to the house of a an embittered woman who lives alone. He promises her he won't tell about the man at her place, but he later learns that the man is a wanted outlaw.
The Shooting of Jett King (Episode 6)
Air date: 1957-10-28
Jody (Episode 7)
Air date: 1957-11-04
General Gilford's Widow (Episode 8)
Air date: 1957-11-11
The New Sheriff (Episode 9)
Writer: Dean Riesner
Air date: 1957-11-18
Man and Boy (Episode 10)
Air date: 1957-11-25
Cheyenne Express (Episode 11)
Air date: 1957-12-02
Thicker Than Water (Episode 12)
Air date: 1957-12-09
Silver Threads (Episode 13)
Writer: Marion Hargrove
Air date: 1957-12-16
The Child (Episode 14)
Air date: 1957-12-23
The Gold Buckle (Episode 15)
Air date: 1957-12-30
Runtime: 30 min
Overview: Bonner and two strangers trail a pair of killers. Kit: Roy Roberts. Lex: Claude Akins. Bonner: John Payne. Emily: Madge Blake.
The Coward (Episode 16)
Air date: 1958-01-06
Friend in Need (Episode 17)
Air date: 1958-01-13
Strange Family in Town (Episode 18)
Air date: 1958-01-20
Overview: A Quaker family encounters prejudice, hostility, and harassment from the residents of the closest town, who mistake their pacifism for cowardice. They also encounter it from the rancher Bonner has come to do business with, though the man's wife feels differently.
Hang and Be Damned (Episode 19)
Air date: 1958-01-27
Quiet City (Episode 20)
Air date: 1958-02-03
Hornitas Town (Episode 21)
Air date: 1958-02-10
Imposter For A Day (Episode 22)
Air date: 1958-02-17
A Pressing Engagement (Episode 23)
Air date: 1958-02-24
The Woman from Sacramento (Episode 24)
Air date: 1958-03-03
Sheriff Billy (Episode 25)
Air date: 1958-03-10
The Hand is Quicker (Episode 26)
Air date: 1958-03-17
The Suffragette (Episode 27)
Air date: 1958-03-24
Overview: Emma Birch has organized the women of the town into a determined suffragette group; the men rebel and attempt to put the women in their place. Bonner becomes the reluctant mediator between the two groups.
The Whip (Episode 28)
Air date: 1958-03-31
The Crisis at Easter Creek (Episode 29)
Air date: 1958-04-07
Aunt Emma (Episode 30)
Air date: 1958-04-14
Overview: Vint Bonner is wounded while trying to track down the Drake brothers. His elderly aunt nurses him back to health and tries to prevent him from going back after the Drakes when he has recovered.
The Outlander (Episode 31)
Air date: 1958-04-21
Overview: Vint arrives in Prairie City, Kansas to visit friends and find that it has been taken over by a band of renegade Civil War veterans from Texas. They are lead by a man called Colonel Bromley.
The Battle of Tower Rock (Episode 32)
Air date: 1958-04-28
The Torn Flag (Episode 33)
Air date: 1958-05-05
Hiram Grover's Strike (Episode 34)
Air date: 1958-05-12
The Gold Star (Episode 35)
Air date: 1958-05-19
More Than Kin (Episode 36)
Air date: 1958-05-26
The Manhunters (Episode 37)
Air date: 1958-06-02
The Peddler (Episode 38)
Air date: 1958-06-09
Gratitude (Episode 39)
Air date: 1958-06-16
