By Lee Pfeiffer
BearManor Media specializes in niche-themed books relating to TV and film. One of their latest releases is as niche as you can get: an entire volume dedicated to Henry Fonda's little-remembered TV series The Deputy which ran between 1959-1961. Author Glenn A. Mosley has done yeoman work in researching the series, which was one of a seemingly endless parade of Western-themed TV shows that flooded the tube in the 50s and 60s. Mosley's book- rather cumbersomely titled Henry Fonda and the Deputy- The Film and Stage Star and His TV Western - also has a foreword by Fonda's co-star Read Morgan and a prologue by Christian Nyby II, the son of one of the show's late directors who recalls being on the set. He also gets insights from Norman Lear, who co-created the series. For Mosley, this project was clearly a labor of love and he provides a full episode guide with air dates and cast and credits. Additionally, there is an extensive bibliography and a list of web sites relevant to the show as well as many rare photos. I confess to never having seen The Deputy but it's made clear from this book that the show was one of the most intelligent Western series of the period. Fonda took a lot of flack at the time on two fronts. First, industry big shots warned him that appearing on TV would diminish his stature as a major film star. Second, Fonda limited his involvement in the show to mostly introductions and brief guest-starring appearances which didn't sit well with fans or critics who felt the Fonda name was being used strictly as a cheap marketing tool. The intriguing tales about the show in this book inspire me to put it on my "must view" list.
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