A Pleasant Southern Surprise
(Another great read from Dr Clyde Wilson over at Reckonin’. Sadly, Nick Adams was gone way before his time and at the height of his popularity. I always liked his brass topped California-style holster. Slick, simple, understated, yet highly functional - DD)
Sometimes something good happens when you aren’t expecting it. I have discovered, quite by accident, a 1959-1961 television show, “The Rebel,” which I have been streaming with pleasure for several weeks. The show is a wonderful contrast to the ignorant, vile, and dishonest portrayals of Confederates that have appeared in the “entertainment” media in recent decades.
“The Rebel” reminds us that hate-Dixie was not always the prevailing case in American popular culture. In better times all the major Hollywood stars played admirable Confederates in the movies: John Wayne, Ronald Reagan, Gary Cooper, Martin Sheen, Allan Ladd, Charlton Heston, William Holden, Victor Mature, Henry Fonda, Tyrone Power, Clint Eastwood, and many more I could mention. And I am not even counting the Southern-born like Randolph Scott, Joseph Cotten, or Audie Murphy.
“The Rebel” ran for 2 seasons with 76 half-hour episodes. The main character is an ex-Confederate roaming the wide West. He is still in Confederate clothes, which are probably among the few clothes that he has, and thus is recognizable by friend or foe wherever he goes. He is satisfied that the war is over but has no apologies for his proud service in the Confederate army.
He is a good man. He always helps out people in trouble and only kills Yankees and Indians when it is unavoidable. He keeps a diary of…