The twelfth season of the American Western television series Bonanza premiered on NBC on September 13, 1970, with the final episode airing April 11, 1971. The series was developed and produced by David Dortort. Season twelve starred Lorne Greene, Dan Blocker, and Michael Landon. The season consisted of 28 episodes of a series total 431 hour-long episodes, the entirety of which was produced in color. Season twelve was aired on Sundays at 9:00 p.m. It finished the season at #9 in the Nielsen ratings, behind #5 Gunsmoke.
Synopsis
Bonanza is set around the Ponderosa Ranch near Virginia City, Nevada and chronicles the weekly adventures of the Cartwright family, consisting of Ben Cartwright (Lorne Greene) and his three sons (each by a different wife), Adam (Pernell Roberts), Eric "Hoss" (Dan Blocker), and Joseph (Michael Landon). Veteran actor Victor Sen Yung played the ranch cook, Hop Sing. In 1964, Pernell Roberts began expressing a desire to leave the series, and so prospective replacements were introduced via Barry Coe as Little Joe's wayward maternal half-brother Clay, and Guy Williams as Ben's nephew Will Cartwright. However, Roberts was persuaded to complete his contract, and remained through season six. The characters of Clay and Will were discontinued. In the ninth season, David Canary was added to the cast as ranch hand/foreman Candy Canady. After four years with the series, Canary left due to a contract dispute. In the twelfth season, Mitch Vogel joined the cast as Jamie Hunter, a teenage orphan who is adopted by Ben Cartwright.
Cast and characters
Main cast Lorne Greene as Ben Cartwright Dan Blocker as Eric "Hoss" Cartwright Michael Landon as Joseph "Little Joe" Cartwright Mitch Vogel as Jamie Hunter Cartwright
Recurring Victor Sen Yung as Hop Sing Ray Teal as Sheriff Roy Coffee Bing Russell as Deputy Clem Foster Lou Frizzell as Dusty Rhodes
Guest cast
Episodes
Release Season twelve aired on Sundays from 9:00pm10:00pm on NBC.
Reception Season twelve finished the season at #9 in the Nielsen ratings, behind #5 Gunsmoke.
Awards and nominations Award Year Category Nominee(s) / Work Result Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards 1971 Outstanding Achievement in Music Composition—For a Series or a Single Program of a Series (First Year of Music's Use Only) David Rose (for "The Love Child") Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography for Entertainment Programming—For a Series or a Single Program of a Series Ted Voigtlander (for "The Love Child")
References Footnotes
Bibliography
External links
Bonanza season 12 at TV Guide