An alcoholic rancher, drinking away his bitterness, makes live unbearable for his wife and children. Hoss helps reform his friend while bringing happiness and stability to his family.

A Dream to Dream

Lorne Greene

Dan Blocker

Michael Landon

In Defense of Honor

Commitment at Angelus

Renegade Indians have been on the rampage attacking settlers and raising havoc in the West.  Joe and Hoss have gone to warn the settlers when Joe is shot with an arrow.  Hoss tries to remove the arrow, but the shaft breaks and it is imbedded in Joe's shoulder, leaving Joe gravely wounded.  Hoss desperately searches for help and comes upon a wagon train with an odd assortment of people.  There are two women, a thief, a dying doctor, and a coward on the wagon train.

Second Chance

Ben, Hoss and Little Joe help the Virginia City militia escort a renegade Indian, who believes he is the Almighty, through hostile Indian territory to prison.

Sense of Duty

A band of Mexican kidnaps Little Joe for a $25,000 ransom. A group of cowboys plan to rescue Joe, kill him and claim the gold for themselves.

The Conquistadors

Candy is arrested for committing murder in the town of Olympus.  He is accused of killing Jed Wheelock, the son of wealthy A. Z. Wheelock.  He insists on finding his son's killer but he wants a fair trial for Candy.  Joe accompanies Candy to make sure things go smoothly, but when Joe is accused of killing a witness who claims he saw Candy kill Jed, Joe is locked up for murder with Candy, and it is up to Hoss to find the killer.

Judgment at Olympus

A sadistic outlaw named Dibbs along with his gang, take siege of the Ponderosa, holding Joe, Hoss, and Candy prisoners.  Their foreman, Donny Buckler, has stashed $60,000 dollars and Dibbs will stop at nothing short of murder to get his hands on it.

Night of Reckoning

While at the bank in Sandust, Little Joe and the bank's secretary witness an armed robbery. During a subsequent gunfight, the main culprit kills the banker, but is quickly brought to justice. Joe, Hoss and Candy agree to be witnesses but must avoid being killed in the meantime.

False Witness

Most people consider Mark Cole a coward, but he does not hesitate to step forward when his brother attempts to break a horse by torturing it.

The Gentle Ones

Driving horses to Utah, the Cartwrights and Candy discover only two people left in a town wiped out by rampaging Paiute Indians.  Together, Mary Burns and Josh Tanner must travel through hostile territory, along with the Cartwrights and Candy.

Desperate Passage

A young girl's ownership of a beloved stallion is jeopardized by the "big plans" of her scheming father.

The Sure Thing

A career robber who claims to be a lumber man, and his gang plan to use Ben's new freight paddleboat to haul a $1 million currency shipment to San Francisco.

Showdown at Tahoe

Ben's old friend has stolen money from corrupt politicians in New York and plans to invest in Nevada.

Six Black Horses

An injured rancher, who has enlisted the aid of the Cartwrights to buy back one of his horses after his farm is foreclosed, must avoid getting killed by his ruthless uncle, who will stop at nothing to gain full control of the ranch.

Check Rein

An anguished Hoss discovers that his testimony helped hang an innocent man accused of murder. As he struggles to bring the real killer to justice, Hoss must also combat the cowardice of another witness and the jury foreman, an influential banker.

Justice Deferred

Hoss wants to buy a mine thought to be worthless and orders a fancy invention to prove it isn't and becomes the local laughingstock in town

The Gold Detector

A man, recently released from prison for bank robbery, is accused of robbing the same Virginia City bank and gunning down a teller. The Cartwrights try to protect the accused man from a posse that intends to lynch him before his trial.

The Trackers

Trick photography is employed to help a killer beat a murder rap, to prove he was not there at the time of the murder he committed.  However, the camera also proves to be his undermining.

A Girl Named George

The ranchers are once again losing stock to rustlers and not everyone agrees with range detective Marcus Alley's preventive methods.

The Thirteenth Man

A cruel, sadistic, alcoholic and racist rancher named Aaron Gore stalks the wife of Ben's friend, whom he has hired as a horse trainer. The woman is a glowingly beautiful Sioux who befriends Mr. Gore's son, whom he regularly beats up. Mr. Gore uses some incredibly vicious means to ensure she regrets ever having anything to do with his son.

The Burning Sky

When a young woman inherits her late father's salt mine, a greedy rancher wants to buy all the salt for himself. Ben, standing for the smaller ranchers who cannot afford to pay the heiress' prices, bids against the wealthy rancher to get a fair price for all.

The Price of Salt

A band of outlaws enact a scheme to rob the Ponderosa, by tricking Hoss and Little Joe away from the ranch and leaving a wounded Ben alone at home.

Blood Tie

Hoss stands alone in refusing to convict Johnny Mule, a ""slow"" ranch hand who is accused of robbing and murdering his boss. So when Johnny Mule - fearing he'll be lynched, regardless of the verdict - escapes from jail during jury deliberations, it's Hoss who takes the heat.

The Crime of Johnny Mule

In order to ruin the plans of a corrupt politician, Ben allows everyone to think that an attempt on his life was successful.

The Late Ben Cartwright

Candy falls in love with a beautiful young woman, unaware that the man claiming to be her cousin is a bounty hunter who is not only harassing her but has framed her for murder and robbery.

Star Crossed

The Ponderosa ranch hands are at Riverbend during a cattle drive.  While there, Candy meets an old friend, Lilah Holden, working in a saloon.  When the cattle drive is ready to move on, Candy resigns to stay and help Lilah.  It is not long before Ben, Hoss, and Joe are involved.

Trouble Town

When a horse steps on Candy's hand out on the trail, he and Joe go to Angelus to find a doctor.  When they arrive, Joe sees his friend, Steve Regan, an Angelus miner.  Steve tells Joe that the miners have gone on strike at his suggestion; the timber supports in the tunnels are rotting away.  Joe offers him a day's wages to help him drive the wild horses, since Candy's hand is injured.

Davey - a orphaned Yute that Ben helped raise and has worked as a ranch hand on the Ponderosa - falls in love with one of his own. A fellow Yute's jealousy over the blossoming relationship, and later his murder jeopardize a treaty between the white man (which Ben has helped negotiate) and the Yutes.

While the others are away, Ben and Candy are lured by an old friend of Ben's to go somewhere.  The ""friend"" traps them in a deep pit.  He comes back to give them food, but how long will he be feeling ""generous""?

To Die in Darkness

Hoss is accused of stabbing a man to death, and his only hope of acquittal is a once great trial lawyer who is now a hopeless drunk.

The Bottle Fighter

Eddie McKay, the son of a robber and murderer who Hoss killed several years ago in a shootout, returns to Virginia City to make a good start. Hoss wants to help reform Eddie and help him get over his bitter feelings for the Cartwrights, but it's an uphill battle. Not helping matters, a rancher who wants Eddie to help him steal from the Ponderosa.

The Arrival of Eddie

Joe and Candy sell a herd to the Farrell Brothers in Arizona, but are paid a worthless bank draft.  The widow of the man one of the brothers killed helps them get their money back, and the brothers' hatred for each other is their undoing.

The Stronghold

Joe reluctantly takes a job as a substitute teacher and must contend with two older students who have no use for an education.

Pride of a Man

An untalented gypsy girl tries to get the Cartwrights to finance her career as an opera singer.

A Severe Case of Matrimony

Hoss and Joe rival for the affections of visiting entertainer Mademoiselle Denise, though she is more concerned for her little dog, Andre, than anything else.

Stage Door Johnnies

The High-Sierra adventures of Ben Cartwright and his sons as they run and defend their ranch while helping the surrounding community.

A Dream to Dream

Seasons14

Season 9 Episodes34

Cast3

Discussion

Episode Summary