In the episode entitled "Pete Henke" (November 20, 1958), the character Henke, portrayed by Strother Martin, is a violent sharpshooter known for causing trouble. Editor Jefferson Drum challenges Henke to a fistfight in the saloon, but Henke prevails in the third round when he throws something into Drum's eyes and blinds him temporarily. The saloon hostess who gave Henke the blinding substance is later seen at Henke's "medicine show." In the end, the persistent Drum knocks over Henke with a punch. "Pete Henke" also starred Frank Wolff as Sam Creighton and Bert Remsen as Jim Ford.
The series first aired at 7:30 Eastern on Friday opposite repeats of I Love Lucy on CBS and Leave It to Beaver on ABC. For its second round of episodes, it moved to Thursdays in the same 7:30 p.m. time slot. Rebroadcasts were aired during the first half of 1959. Jefferson Drum was produced for Screen Gems by Mark Goodson-Bill Todman Productions (known more for their game show output), and ran for parts of two seasons before it was cancelled.[3]
Cast
Jeff Richards .... Jefferson Drum
Eugene Mazzola (billed as Eugene Martin) .... Joey Drum
Gregg Barton, Virginia Gregg, and Harry Lauter appeared as Yance Meeker, Louise Hammond, and Vince Meeker, respectively, in "The Hanging of Joe Lavett".
Robert Bray and Charles Tannen, as Jack Page and Dandy Case, respectively, in the episode "Obituary"
Andy Clyde played Hepburn in the episode "The Keeney Gang"; L.Q. Jones appeared in the same segment as Burdette.
Mike Connors, as the title guest star in "Simon Pitt", the series finale. Ted de Corsia and Patrice Wymore appear in this episode as Jim Kind and Goldie, respectively.
^McNeil, Alex (1996). Total television: the comprehensive guide to programming from 1948 to the present (4th ed.). New York: Penguin Books. p. 427. ISBN978-0-14-024916-3.