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My name is Ann Williams, Since the
passing of my father, Adam Williams, I am the owner/publisher for
the newspaper, The Banner. The Banner stands for "Truth —
Honor — Integrity". My father & I had known Jason McCord for
sometime. Jas was Branded a Coward, but my father and I
believed Jas to be innocent and had stated so in The Banner.
I am here to tell you his story.....
Captain Jason McCord was a West Point graduate and decorated Cavalry
officer in the U. S. Army — the sole survivor of the battle of
Bitter Creek, who was
unjustly
accused of cowardice. Jas was knocked unconscious during an Apache
massacre, when he awoke the entire command had been wiped out.
Later, Jas was court-martialed for cowardice, he was judged to have
deserted the field of battle and was stripped of his rank and
dishonorably discharged from the Army. He was branded a coward and
disgraced in the eyes of the world. He was nicknamed The Coward
of Bitter Creek. Jas knew he was innocent but refused to pin the
blame where it belonged, his commanding officer, General Reed, who
died in the battle.
Now as a civilian, Jas roams the West in search of redemption and
justice, for others and ultimately for himself. His exciting travels
take him into the lives of many others searching for the dream of
the American West. He moves from one job to the next, one town to
the next, Jas is skilled as a surveyor, mapmaker, and engineer,
which led him into encounters and adventures with the people he
meets. He makes friends in the course of his travels, but he also
has many enemies who hated the name Jason McCord for what it
represented. Often these people had a relative or a friend that had
died at Bitter Creek.
From time to time, President Ulysses S. Grant recruits Jas for
daring undercover missions, which he courageously undertakes, but
his disgrace and shame follow him wherever he goes.
* Ann Williams was first introduced in episode #19 Mightier than
the Sword, later in episode #47 Coward Dies Many Times
and the last episode #48 Kellie.
Near the end of the second season, a format change was instituted to
set up a third season. The Bitter Creek plotline was dropped to make
McCord more of a family man - with a steady girlfriend (Ann
Williams), adopted daughter (Kellie) and joining a surveying firm
run by his grandfather.
It was not to be. In spite OK ratings, Branded was honorably
discharged at the end of year two.
*Created by Harry Cohen and produced by
game-show icons Mark Goodson and Bill Todman, Branded ran until
September 4, 1966. The first 16 episodes were broadcast in black and
white; the remaining 32 were shown in color, the producers decided
to air some episodes of the first season in b/w and some in color.
The second season aired entirely in color, you will see Jason McCord
manage to rub shoulders with a number of real-life historical
figures, including George Armstrong Custer, Horace Greeley and P.T.
Barnum.
The theme song Branded was sung by Dominic Frontiere (lyrics
by Alan Alch).
Branded is well worth watching! Great stories and fantastic
co-stars/character actors!
As the Rifleman's rifle was to Lucas McCain, the broken saber was a
symbolic weapon to Jason McCord.
Be sure and stop by
The McCain Ranch
to see Lucas, Mark, Micah and the rest of the townfolks in North
Fork!
"There will always be a place for westerns on television," said
Chuck. "Because they're 'Americana' and you can't throw America out
of America. The Western is the American fairy tale."
If your having trouble viewing some of the pages ~ don't blame it on
the webmaster
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Site Map
around The McCain Ranch
Branded first posted 12/03/06
*No Financial gain is made by this website
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