Scripted series · NBC
Bonanza
America's Favorite TV Western
Who's in it
Cast
The principal ensemble across the run of the series.
Lorne Greene
Ben Cartwright
431 eps
Pernell Roberts
Adam Cartwright
202 eps
Dan Blocker
Hoss Cartwright
415 eps
Michael Landon
Joe Cartwright
431 eps
David Canary
Candy Canaday
56 eps
Tim Matheson
Griff King
16 eps
Mitch Vogel
Jamie Hunter Cartwright
71 eps
Guy Williams
Will Cartwright
5 eps
DeForest Kelley
Tully
4 eps
Katie Sweet
Peggy Dayton
4 eps
Mariette Hartley
Lola Fairmont
4 eps
Kathie Browne
Laura Dayton
6 eps
Dub Taylor
Luke Calhoun
6 eps
Claude Akins
Marshal Emmett Dowd
4 eps
Victor Sen Yung
Hop Sing
90 eps
Morgan Woodward
Jess Waddell
7 eps
Strother Martin
Joad Bruder
5 eps
Ray Teal
Roy Coffee
86 eps
Bing Russell
Deputy Clem Foster
42 eps
Rudy Doucette
Townsman (uncredited)
15 eps
Ford Rainey
Col. Tyson
8 eps
Jack Gordon
Townsman (uncredited)
59 eps
Anna Navarro
Serafina O'Riley
4 eps
Albert Salmi
Marcus Alley
4 eps
Victor French
Jesse Potter
4 eps
Irene Tedrow
Winifred Mahan
4 eps
Russ Conway
Dave Hart
4 eps
Adam Williams
Hardesty
4 eps
John George
Townsman (uncredited)
5 eps
Dorothy Neumann
Ouisey McFadden
4 eps
Herschel Graham
Party Guest (uncredited)
8 eps
Charles Maxwell
Shenandoah
9 eps
Percy Helton
Bleeker
4 eps
Lou Frizzell
Dusty Rhodes
8 eps
Ron Nyman
Townsman (uncredited)
6 eps
Dabbs Greer
Judge
6 eps
Chick Chandler
Judge Butler
6 eps
Robert J. Wilke
Marshal Hollister
5 eps
Robert Adler
Stage Driver
6 eps
Ted Gehring
Jim Fischer
4 eps
The Nutevio profile
TV DNA
How Bonanza actually feels to watch, measured on the traits our editors track across every series.
Signature profile
Bonanza reads strongest on Character Depth, Emotional Weight and Bingeability.
How fully written and psychologically layered the ensemble is.
How much the series is designed to affect you.
How hard it is to stop after one episode.
Visual ambition — scale, craft and set-piece filmmaking.
The sustained pressure the series keeps you under.
The scale, internal logic and texture of the world.
How often the series is genuinely funny, by design.
How much each hour depends on the one before it.
How often an episode ends on a hook you can't ignore.
The story
What it's about
The High-Sierra adventures of Ben Cartwright and his sons as they run and defend their ranch while helping the surrounding community.
The run
Seasons
14 seasons · 431 episodes.
Season 1 · Complete
Season 1
195932 episodes
7.3IMDb
Season 2 · Complete
Season 2
196034 episodes
5.5IMDb
Season 3 · Complete
Season 3
196134 episodes
8.0IMDb
Season 4 · Complete
Season 4
196234 episodes
Season 5 · Complete
Season 5
196334 episodes
4.5IMDb
Season 6 · Complete
Season 6
196434 episodes
Season 7 · Complete
Season 7
196533 episodes
Season 8 · Complete
Season 8
196634 episodes
8.0IMDb
Season 9 · Complete
Season 9
196734 episodes
Season 10 · Complete
Season 10
196830 episodes
Season 11 · Complete
Season 11
196928 episodes
10.0IMDb
Season 12 · Complete
Season12
197028 episodes
Season 13 · Complete
Season 13
197126 episodes
Season 14 · Complete
Season 14
197216 episodes
Behind the series
Created by
Showrunners, creators, executive producers and the writers who set the voice of the series.
- Photo unavailable
David Dortort
Showrunner
Fred Freiberger
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Steve McNeil
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Ed Adamson
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Fred Hamilton
Writer
Michael Landon
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Robert Vincent Wright
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Peter Packer
Writer
- Photo unavailable
John Furia, Jr.
Writer
Leo Gordon
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Robert E. Thompson
Writer
Warren Douglas
Writer
- Photo unavailable
Larry Markes
Writer
The craft
Key Crew
Directing, writing, production, camera, music and editing.
Executive production
- David DortortProducer
Writing
- Fred FreibergerWriter
- Steve McNeilWriter
- Ed AdamsonWriter
- Fred HamiltonWriter
- Michael LandonWriter
- David DortortWriter
Direction
- Richard C. SarafianDirector
- William WitneyDirector
- Robert AltmanDirector
- Michael LandonDirector
- Christian NybyDirector
- Lewis AllenDirector
Cinematography
- Lester ShorrDirector of Photography
- Bert GlennonDirector of Photography
- Haskell B. BoggsDirector of Photography
Music
- David RoseOriginal Music Composer
Where to watch
Streaming
Availability verified against regional listings.
- Amazon VideoBuy
- fuboTVStreaming
- PhiloStreaming
- Pure FlixStreaming
- FlixFlingRent
- FlixFlingStreaming
- FlixFlingBuy
- Best Westerns Ever Amazon ChannelStreaming
- Great American Pure Flix Amazon ChannelStreaming
- Shout! Factory Amazon ChannelStreaming
- Cineverse Amazon ChannelStreaming
If you liked this
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Where to go from here
Watch Next
Our editors' suggestion for the show you should start tonight — and why.
Yellowstone
2018
Another masterpiece of long-form storytelling, chosen to follow this one.
The Mentalist
2008
Watch this next if you like protagonists you can't quite defend.
Teach You a Lesson
2026
Need something lighter afterwards? Start here.
House of the Dragon
2022
Continue the epic fantasy journey with another world worth getting lost in.
Smallville
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Another invented world built with the same seriousness — start at episode one.
Vikings
2013
Another study of who holds the room — and who pays for it.
Never stop watching
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