
Old Sheba Full Episode – Bonanza, Season #06, Episode #10
Old Sheba introduces a scruffy circus elephant gifted to the Cartwrights as compensation for Hoss’s brief stint as a big-top performer. Despite Ben and Adam’s insistence on returning the pachyderm, Hoss and Joe are determined to care for Old Sheba themselves. However, their efforts quickly prove challenging. William Demarest stars as Tweedy, Henry Kulky as Bearcat, and Clegg Hoyt as Barney. Originally aired on November 22, 1964, this comedic episode was penned by Alex Sharp.
Delve into the narrative and captivating “Old Sheba” trivia, or sit back and enjoy the full episode below.
Table of Contents
Watch the Full Episode of Old Sheba
Watch the Full Episode of Old Sheba:
Main Cast
Old Sheba, the tenth episode of Bonanza’s sixth season, featured some of the program’s recurring and supporting cast members. The cast of the episode includes the following:
- Lorne Greene as Ben Cartwright
- Pernell Roberts as Adam Cartwright
- Dan Blocker as Eric ‘Hoss’ Cartwright
- Michael Landon as Joseph ‘Little Joe’ Cartwright
- William Demarest as Angus Tweedy
- Henry Kulky as Bearcat Sampson
- Ray Teal as Sheriff Roy Coffee
- Phil Chambers as Anderson
- John Barton as Wrestling Match Spectator (uncredited)
- Nick Borgani as Townsman (uncredited)
- John Bose as Townsman (uncredited)
- John Breen as Wrestling Match Spectator (uncredited)
- Gene Coogan as Townsman (uncredited)
- Al Haskell as Townsman (uncredited)
- Clegg Hoyt as Barney (uncredited)
- Michael Jeffers as Wrestling Match Spectator (uncredited)
- Richard LaMarr as Townsman (uncredited)
- Bob LaWandt as Townsman With Sheriff (uncredited)
- Martha Manor as Townswoman (uncredited)
- Bob Miles (uncredited)
- Modoc Modoc as Old Sheba (uncredited)
- Ernesto Molinari as Townsman (uncredited)
- Rex Moore as Wrestling Match Spectator (uncredited)
- Cosmo Sardo as Wrestling Match Spectator (uncredited)
- Cap Somers as Wrestling Match Spectator (uncredited)
- Chalky Williams as Wrestling Match Spectator (uncredited)
Full Story Line for Old Sheba
After Hoss unintentionally injures traveling circus wrestler Bearcat Sampson during an exhibition match, he and his manager, Little Joe, agree for Hoss to fill in for Bearcat until he recovers. However, the circus owner mismanages Hoss’s earnings, resulting in the Cartwrights receiving an unforeseen form of compensation: Old Sheba, the circus elephant.
Full Script and Dialogue of Old Sheba
JOE: That's it. [GRUNTING] Ready. Down now. [SIGHS] Twenty-four, well done, Hoss. That's it. Unh, Joe, this old wagon's getting mighty heavy. JOE: Heh, You gotta suffer a little bit to be champion. [SIGHS] You sure we're going about this the right way, Joe? JOE: Of course, I am positive, please. Let me do the thinking. All right, 25. How about it now? Come on! [GRUNTS] That's it. That's it! Good. Very good. All right. Let her down easy. Easy. Unh! Oh! Oh, I told you to be careful. You know I've got a bad back. - Oh, I'm sorry, Joe. - Oh, that's all right. I'll be all right in a minute. [HOSS PANTING] I'm bushed. Well, that was three more than yesterday. You're in shape. Joe, you don't reckon we're going off on the deep end with this whole idea. - You're not getting scared, are you? - No. I ain't scared. That bunch you got me picking up everything, pushing and pulling everything on the ranch, I'm gonna be so pooped I can't get into Virginia City. Hoss, that's called conditioning, conditioning. Yeah. And we've gone along with it this far, haven't we? With this training program. All right, just trust me a little bit more. Yeah. I'll let you do the managing, Joe, but it seems to me like I'm doing all the work. [CHUCKLES] Hoss. Hoss, I'm giving you half of my winnings, aren't I? - Oh, yeah. Yeah. Thanks, Joe. - That's all right. All right, you ready for the thumping exercises? Let's have at it. Okay. You ready, Hoss? All right. Ah, let's do something different, your head's in shape. - We'll work on the body. - All right. All set? All right. Unh. You're getting there. You're, heh, getting there. You all set, brother? Whoa! Hoss, you're there. You are there. What's going on here? Oh, hi, Pa. I'm in training. You're in training? - In training for what? - Oh, I, uh... Well, tell him, manager. Well, you know that circus that's coming in town in a few days, Pa? Yeah. They have a wrestler in the circus. His name is, uh, Bearcat Sampson. - Mm-hm. - Well, they will give $100 to any man who can pin this Bearcat Sampson in five minutes. Heh, and you're the one who's gonna do it. We sure are. Hoss, heh, heaven knows you're as sturdy as a Missouri Mule, but this Bearcat Sampson, or whatever his name is, he's a professional wrestler. He makes his living at it. Pa, Pa, Hoss is in shape. Look at him. This Bearcat won't stand a chance with him. You can't knock him off his feet. Hoss, this man knows every trick in the book. Now, do you really think you're ready for him? Well, I don't know, Pa, but I sure hate to think about all this training we've been going through to just going to waste. Well, if you wanna get your lumps, don't let me stop you. JOE: Thanks, Pa. Don't worry. We'll be careful. Oh, ahem. I'll, uh... I'll straighten all them out, Pa. - Start straightening right now. - Yes, sir. They'll be good as new by breakfast. I want you two to do me a favor. - Sure, Pa. - Oh, sure, Pa. Now, when Mr. Ramsey from the railway company comes over this afternoon to discuss putting that spur across a piece of our property? - Yeah. - Yeah. Sure. What do you want? Will you two stay out of sight? I don't want him to think that whatever your problem is, is hereditary. [SIGHS] TWEEDY: See Bearcat Sampson take on all challengers. That's it, dear, cut right in there and I'll start right away. Hurry, hurry, hurry! See Bearcat Sampson take on all challengers! Come on. Get in here, folks. Come on. All right. Go ahead. As you folks know, the Tweedy Circus is prepared to pay $100 to any man who can throw and pin Bearcat Sampson in a five-minute fall. Oh, Bearcat. [CROWD BOOING] [BEARCAT YELLS] Hey, Joe, he does look professional to me. Who, him? He's all brains and no brawn, you'll murder him. He's never run into anything like you before. - You reckon? - Heh, we'll pin him. We'll flatten him. We'll literally rip him limb from limb. We? Where are you getting that we stuff? Wait a minute, you think you'd be sitting here right now if it wasn't for me? I reckon you're right, Joe. Thanks. What are brothers for? And for a try at the $100 today, we got, uh, Hoss Cartwright. [CROWD CHEERING] [MAN WHISTLES] Oh, God love him, but I think that Missouri Mule-like brother of mine is about to be had. Oh, he looks in pretty good condition to me. Well, you're not forgetting that he's being managed by Little Joe. Yeah, I know, but, just the same, I'll bet you your next month's wages on Hoss. Well, now, I don't like betting against my own kin, but money is money. You're on. And now, folks, the big contest will begin. Bearcat, come here. MAN: Come on. - Cartwright, come on. - This is it. [CROWD CHEERING] JOE: Blind him with foot work, Hoss. Now, you both know the rules. Understand? You pin old Bearcat in five minutes and the $100 is yours. Let's go. [SHOUTS] - Go! JOE: Go on, Hoss. [CROWD CHEERING] [CROWD BOOING] Come on, Hoss. Get him. Get up. Get over to him. Give it to him. [CROWD BOOING] [HOSS SCREAMS] [ALL CHEERING AND APPLAUDING] [MAN WHISTLES] [ALL CHEERING] Come on, Hoss. Squeeze him, squeeze him, unh. [BEARCAT GROANING] I'm gonna get a month's free wages out of you. He hasn't won yet. All right. Pin him. Hoss, stop squeezing and pin him. Hoss, the time's running out. Pin him! Time. Time! [CROWD BOOING] Well, that extra month's pay is sure gonna come in handy, ahem. Hoss hadn't froze at the handle, he'd had pinned Bearcat easily. There's no doubt about it. He's a big, strong boy, but gotta play by the rules, Pa. The rules. Well, you keep up the smart talk, boy, I'll give you some rules to follow. Oh, my ribs. I think they're busted. I'm sorry, Mr. Bearcat. I guess I just got carried away or something. You got carried away, all right. Didn't you hear Mr. Tweedy say you had to pin him, pin him to the ground? You mean we ain't gonna get that 100? You heard the rules. All my managing wasted. [SIGHS] I sure feel bad about this, Mr. Tweedy. You feel bad? How do you think he feels? We better get him to a doctor. Come on, let's give him a hand. [BEARCAT GROANING] Sure hope I didn't bust none of old Bearcat's ribs. You sure knocked us out of a $100 by squeezing him so long. [DOOR OPENS] You did it, Hoss Cartwright. Cracked four of Bearcat's ribs. We sure didn't do it intentionally, Mr. Tweedy. That ain't the point. First, I lost all my wild animals at Carson City and now, Bearcat's liable to be laid up two, maybe three weeks, and outside of Old Sheba, I haven't got any other attraction for the Tweedy Circus. Who's Old Sheba? A lop-eared elephant who pulls the circus wagon. I sure am sorry, Mr. Tweedy. Feeling sorry ain't gonna keep the Tweedy Circus from going under - or feed Bearcat's wife and five kids. - Five kids? With a wife. I sure wish there was something I could do. Well, now, son, there just might be now. How could you even think of doing a thing like that? Well, uh, Pa, all we did was promise Mr. Tweedy that I'd take Bearcat's place just for three weeks just till he got back on his feet again. Mr. Tweedy's in real, real, bad straights. Oh, he's in real, real bad straights. What about me? I need you here. We've got to supply the ties for that railroad contract I signed with Ramsey. Uh, if we'd have known about that, Pa, then we never would've signed that contract with Mr. Tweedy. You signed a contract with Tweedy? Oh, yes, sir. Bearcat's five little kids were involved, Pa. - Oh. HOSS: And a wife. I think you better let them go. Give them a chance to see the cold, cruel world. You stay out of this, Adam. So your contract with Tweedy is more important than my contract with Ramsey? Is he paying you as much as I am? [CHUCKLES] I'm glad you asked that. You see, Pa, me and Little Joe are gonna split $25 for every wrestling match. Twenty-five dollars after every wrestling match. Win or lose? - Huh? - I don't... Little Joe, what? Well, you know, you gotta win them. You make sure that Tweedy pays you for the ones that you might win. Now, look, we've been with you for three and a half weeks now, Angus. Bearcat's fine. He can go back into the ring. We've made our final tally. You owe us $400. Boys, as I look back, uh, I think I was a little hasty in making our deal. Meaning what? Well, expenses are high nowadays, mighty high and, well, the truth is I'm flat broke. That couldn't be because of those high-stake poker games you get into in every single town we hit, could it? - Now, see here, Cartwright... - Now, you see here, Mr. Tweedy. Little Joe's right and you know it. Every penny we've made for you just goes in one hand right out the other in dang poker games you play. Yeah. - Well, I won a few hands too. - Fine, that's fine. Then all you gotta do is pay us the 400 honest American dollars you owe us, right now. Our money, Mr. Tweedy. But you boys don't understand. There's children involved and a little mother. Now, listen, Tweedy, Hoss and I were honest with you. We were real, real honest with you. And all we want is the $400 you owe us right now. Now, now, violence will get you nothing. I'll pay you some way. [DOOR OPENS] - Hey, Pa. - Pa, how are you? - Well, the lost souls return. - Hey, heh. - Well, it's good to see you. - Good to see you. - Adam, how you doing? - BEN: Heh. Yes, sir, were back and me and little Joe ain't above saying, - it's nice to be aboard again. - Pa, we are educated. BEN: Well, it's sure good to have you back. Amen. One more week with that slave-driving father of ours and I'd have been ready to take up wrestling myself. [ALL LAUGH] Your older brother's learned a little appreciation while you boys have been gone. Break up the team and it gets a little tougher. - Right. - Huh? Well, Hoss, you won them all, didn't you? Oh, Pa, I'm just lucky. Lucky heck, Pa, it was fantastic, really. Nobody could dent him, one right after the other, pinned them all. Now, Joe, don't get carried away. I was... Hoss, it must have been good. Look at all the money you made. Well, Little Joe wrote about the $400. Yeah, but you told us once, Pa, a little bit of a 100 percent is better than nothing at all. A sad story is about to begin. Now, we didn't come empty-handed, if that's what you're getting at. You don't have to worry about that. Well, is there something we should worry about? Well, no, just that we decided not to take the cold cash. We thought it'd be better if we took it out in livestock instead. Oh, well. Sometimes that's very good business. You boys have a good eye for good-blooded stock. But where is it? I'd like to see it. Well, it's, uh, it's out in the barn. BEN: Well, let's have a look. Well, come on, let's go. I've been looking enough at railroad ties, anything else is bound to look good. Even something the Tweedy stuck you with, tsk. If I wrestled like you manage, I'd be in a hospital. Well, how many times have I told you, don't worry? Many. Many, many, many, HOSS: Hey, Pa, wait. Wait a minute, Pa, just hold on. Wait a minute. JOE: Pa. We just wanna say we know we should have taken the money. Oh, no, look, Little Joe, you know what I always said, a good head of stock is worth its weight in gold in this part of the country. We got a real bonanza in there, heh, Pa. Look, Pa, there's something you gotta understand. - See, me and Little Joe... - No, look, Hoss, like I said before, I trust your judgment. Now let me see this animal that you took instead of cash. Yes, sir. [BOTH CHUCKLE] [TRUMPETING] Look, Pa, Old Sheba is as tame as a plow horse right after a hard-day's work in the field. This is what Tweedy gave you for hard cash? Well, he was broke, Pa. What do you think you're gonna do with an elephant? Well, hey, Pa, maybe we can... Maybe we can train her to plow, heh. You got to admit there's a lot of livestock there. I just don't believe it. I really don't believe it. I don't believe that two reasonably intelligent young men could leave home for a couple of weeks and come back with an elephant. [CHUCKLES] But, Pa, she's tame. Well, she can, she can, she can... She is tame. Let me show you what she can do, Pa. Really. - She is tame. - Come on, Sheba. JOE: Sheba, come on. HOSS: Come on, Sheba. Yeah. JOE: Come on. HOSS: Come on, Sheba. Come on. - Come on. Sheba. - Wait till you see, Pa. HOSS: Come on, Sheba. Down, Sheba. JOE: Down, Sheba. HOSS: All the way down, Sheba. All the way. JOE: That's it. That's it. Up, Sheba. HOSS: Come on, Sheba. Come on. [SHEBA TRUMPETS] HOSS: Whoa, Sheba. Down, Sheba. JOE: Down, Sheba. Good, old elephant. Up, Sheba. Up, Sheba. [SHEBA TRUMPETS] Get rid of her. But she's so tame. Then you won't have any trouble getting rid of her. What's the matter, Pa? Don't you like her? Joseph, that peanut burner will... It will spook the livestock. Come winter, she'll eat us out of house and home. And there's a touch of fall in the air. Oh, boy, Tweedy really slickered you fellas pretty good. Now, you take that elephant back and get the hard cash. Pa, we, uh... We can't do that. Oh, you can't, huh? And why not? Because we signed a paper saying we take the elephant instead of the cash. Now, look, I want that elephant out of here by the time I get back from town. Is that understood? I gotta go and wire Ramsey, find out when he wants the ties delivered so we can start floating them down Snake Creek. Well, I got the ties cut, but getting them off the mountain, I'm afraid it's gonna be a job for the, uh, lost souls here. Yeah. Adam's done more than his share. Pa, you know I was just thinking since you're gonna go into town anyway, I thought maybe you might just talk to Angus Tweedy about taking Old Sheba back. And we could go in with you and watch you negotiate the way only you can negotiate, Pa. We can learn something. Yeah, I guess you would learn something. You learn how to negotiate those ties down Snake Creek. Adam, you show them the way. I'll show them the way, but I've touched my last railroad tie. Are you gonna talk to Mr. Tweedy for us? [BEN CLEARS THROAT] Please? Hoss, - now tell me the truth. - Mm-hm. That elephant, is she real gentle like you say? She sure is, Pa. She's as gentle as an old hound dog. Give me that. He's the greatest. That stage is more than a half hour away... [SHEBA TRUMPETS] Lookie yonder. Starting your own circus, Ben? Raising a mighty mean stock at Ponderosa. [PEOPLE LAUGHING] [SHEBA TRUMPETS THEN HORSE NEIGHS] No, I'd never believe that in the wide world if I didn't see it myself. All right. Go, hey, hey. Down. Down. Down. Down. All the way down. All right, Sheba, up, up, up. Roy, is Tweedy still in town? Yeah. He's pitching his tent right down the street there. Oh, good. Mr. Tweedy is gonna convert this animal here into hard cash. - Good. - Come on, Sheba. Come on, Sheba. I remember one time you unloaded Sheba three times, only to have her back when the new owner couldn't afford her feed bill. Yes, sir, Tweedy, you sure get them coming and going. Now, you see here, Bearcat. Don't look now, but here comes part of your family. Sheba, come here. You hold. Hold it. - Ah. - Sheba, my Old Sheba. You don't know how much I've missed you, old girl. I'm, uh, Ben Cartwright. How do you do, Mr. Cartwright? Have the boys been taking good care of Old Sheba? Well, if you mean by that has she been eating good, you might say that they've been taking extra good care of her. I've missed the old gal something fierce. Well, I'm glad to hear that because you know I think she's missed you too. So why don't you give me the money that you owe my sons and you can get Sheba back and you can both be happy with each other. Oh, I'd love to, Mr. Cartwright, but I'm flat broke. I'm sure the boys told you I had a couple of losing poker hands and... But, Mr. Tweedy, how much cold cash could you raise right now, to take Sheba off my hands. Well, uh, fond as I am of Old Sheba, she ain't getting any younger Mr. Tweedy, - and with feed so high, I... - How much? Mr. Cartwright, the way I figure it, Old Sheba would be much happier living a life of ease out on your ranch. Here at the circus, she really works for her food. No, sir, Mr. Cartwright, I couldn't deny Old Sheba this chance to live out her days without a care. You really have a heart of gold, don't you, Mr. Tweedy? Well, who do you think you're trying to flimflam this time, my sons again? Now, if you think an elephant never forgets... Come on, Sheba. Come on. Oh... Sheba. Now go to sleep, Sheba. [SHEBA GRUNTING] You stay, Sheba. Anderson, owning Sheba would bring customers to your store from miles around from all over the countryside just to see her. - Not interested, Ben. - Now, Mr. Anderson. Just think of this. You get a painted canvas and you put it over Sheba and on the canvas, along the side, are the words "Anderson Mercantile," and you parade her all over the countryside, advertising your store. - Hmm, no. No, not interested. - Mr. Anderson, I'll sell her cheap. How much? Four hundred dollars. Four hundred dollars? I've been thinking in the terms of $50 or $60. Now you say 400. [SCRAPING] [CROWD CHUCKLING] Hey, stop her, Ben. Sheba! Come on now, get, get, get out. Get out of there, Sheba. [CROWD LAUGHING] [LAUGHING] - I'm sorry, Mr. Anderson. - You should be, heh. You just bought a sack of peanuts. Ben, I got a complaint about you and that elephant. - Complaint, what for? - For just about scaring to death that horse and rider on the street here yesterday. Well, I got just as much right on the street as that cowboy. Now, Ben, I ain't gonna argue that legal point with you, but you're just gonna have to get rid of that elephant. I know, I know, Roy. You wanna pay cash for those peanuts or shall I put it on your bill? Put it on my bill. [BOTH CHUCKLE] All right, come on, Sheba. Now let's go. Sheba, come on! One word from him and she does as she pleases. [BOTH LAUGH] All right. All right. But just as soon as that darn elephant has finished eating those peanuts, you, Roy Coffee are coming with me officially to call on Mr. Angus Tweedy. Yes, sir! My deal with the Cartwright boys was all fair and square, sheriff. They signed that paper. And I say that you knew this would happen all along. Sir, you make me out as a conniving scoundrel. Oh, you bet, in spades. Sheriff, has this man any legal claim against me? Nope, none at all. Ben, I'm afraid he's got the winning hand. [SHEBA TRUMPETS] Yeah. Yeah, I guess you do have the winning hand, Mr. Tweedy. - Take her, she's yours. - Take her? I told you yesterday, I didn't want her. She's getting old, remember? All right, Tweedy, how much do you want to take Sheba back? Well, uh, I reckon, uh, about $200 might change my mind. Two hundred dollars, did you hear him say $200, Roy? Just turn it into hard cash. What? That's plain blackmail. That's what it is. Just ordinary, plain blackmail. Heh, Ben, it all depends on which end you're on, heh. Roy, if I didn't know better, I swear you were in cahoots with him. - I'm just trying to be impartial, Ben. - Impartial? Roy, I campaigned for you in your last election. That was the last election. Wait the minute, Ben, I'm just trying to do my duty. I ain't gonna pay nobody no $200 to take this bag of pachyderm off my hands. ROY: Well, I don't know about that, but I do know this, I want that pachyderm either chained up or out of Virginia City by sundown. Do you understand? [SHEBA TRUMPETS] [JOE SIGHS] My, oh, my... - Sure, it's been a pretty day, ain't it? - Yeah. Hey, wonder how Pa's making out. [BOTH LAUGHING] I'll bet you he's turned old Tweedy away with loose. Yeah. Sure wish I had some of Pa's good business sense. Yeah, Pa and I have an awful lot in common in that area. You know what I was thinking too? I wouldn't be a bit surprised that maybe Pa gets a little more than the $400, a little extra profit. Look, Joe, if he just gets us our 400 back and breaks it even, - I'll be satisfied. - Yeah. Yeah. Amen. Of course, you never can tell. Yeah, never can tell. HOSS: You just can't stand to see me and Little Joe make a few extra dollars, can you? Apparently, Pa can't either. [SHEBA TRUMPETS] BEN: Whoa, whoa. Whoa-ah! Whoa. Sheba, down, Sheba. All the way down, Sheba. Rise, Sheba, rise. HOSS: Hey, Pa, what's the deal? Mr. Tweedy gonna come out here to pick up Old Sheba? Nope. However you did talk to Mr. Tweedy like you promised, didn't you? Yup. You made plans to have Mr. Tweedy pick Sheba up later. Nope. Wait, she finally got to you, didn't she, Pa? You kind of like her now, don't you? Decide to keep her, huh? Ahem, well, I decided that since, uh, since she was really your problem, I wouldn't wanna weaken your character by not allowing you to shoulder your own responsibility. That's one way out. What did you say? I say you're right, they'll have to go all out. But, Pa, you promised us, you'd do the negotiating. We were counting you, Pa. You'd get us more than the $400. Now, look, look. I've got more important things to do than negotiate with a larcenous old man and a gluttonous elephant. And incidentally, nobody votes for Roy Coffee in the next election. Now about the ties. Ramsey wants them delivered to the spur in a week. Yeah, Pa, about them ties... Adam, did you show the boys where you cut them? I sure did. They're all roughed out and stacked. Good. And you can start floating them down in the morning. We can't. Joseph, I've had two very tough days. - And I'm in no mood... ADAM: Pa, Little Joe is telling the plain truth for a change. And what's that? Oh, uh, Pa, the creek run dry. Creek's gone dry? Yup. It did. Oh. Uh... The gods have turned against me. All right. Look, first thing in the morning... First thing in the morning, we'll put on our thinking caps and we'll try to figure out some way of getting those blasted logs down off that mountain. - I'll get right at it, Pa. - Yes, sir, good idea, Pa, I'll set the alarm clock extra early in the morning, jump right up and get right to thinking. That reminds me of a thing. I want an around the clock centric duty on that elephant while she's here at the ranch. - Start in the morning? - Around the clock, Hoss. What for? She's tame. She's tame, all right. She's also sneaky. If you want me to figure out how to get those logs off the mountain, I've gotta get some sleep. Joseph, just keep your eye on her! [HOSS SNORING] Darn it, Sheba. That ain't funny. You ain't nothing but a nuisance. Just like Pa said, you're sneaky too. [TRUMPETS] It's time for Little Joe to relieve me. I'm gonna get him. You stay right here and don't you move. You stay right here and I'll be back, you hear? Stay. You stay here. You stay there now, Sheba. You got it? You stay there. [SHEBA TRUMPETING] Stop it. Sheba, Sheba! Look, I mean it, now you stop it, you hear? Stop it. Stop it. [BANGING ON DOOR] Sheba. Sheba. I don't know why you're so dang squirrely, I'm just going up there to wake up Little Joe. You've really done it now. Whoa, Sheba. No, no, Sheba. Whoa. Sheba, no, no, Sheba! Whoa, whoa, whoa! Sheba, whoa, whoa! Sheba, whoa! [MUTTERING] You ain't following in the house, would you? Yup, you would at that. Call Little Joe from out here now. You stay, Sheba, stay. Joe! Oh, Sheba. Hey, Joe! JOE: Hey, why are you breaking the windows in the house? Pa's gonna really get angry at you. I thought you was up there asleep. Sleeping, you kidding? I'm up there thinking. I'm worn out. But I think I finally came up with an idea. Yeah? What is it? Now, here's what we're gonna do. We're... We're gonna... Like I told your pa, $200 and I take Old Sheba off your hands. Two hundred dollars? No wonder Pa was in such a state when he come home yesterday, Joe. Well, make up your mind, boys. Bearcat and me are moving today. Then how are you gonna get along without Old Sheba? Easy, son. Made me enough at poker last night to buy us a real fine mule. Don't need Old Sheba no-how. Only used her to haul the wagon and attract attention, I can make just as much off Bearcat without her. - Is that right? - That's right, son. So put up or shut up. You know, Hoss, it's just like Pa said, live and learn. - Yeah. - Yup. Take the bad with the good. Yep. Or if you can't lick them, join them, right? [BOTH CHUCKLE] What do you mean by that? Just like my brother Hoss said, you see, Mr. Tweedy, we've been thinking very seriously about going into circus business ourselves. - What? - Well, why not? We got everything you've got and more. That Old Sheba here to pull the wagon. Got brother Hoss here to wrestle all comers. You can't do that. Oh, can and will, Mr. Tweedy. Town-for-town. Same towns you're in. HOSS: We see, Mr. Tweedy, we got a little angle all figured out of our own. We'll come over and I'll wrestle the Bearcat. - And after I whoop him, - Heh. Then we'll invite all of your customers over to our tent and I'll take on all the challengers. Ha-ha-ha. You can't. Oh, live and learn, Mr. Tweedy. Put up or shut up. Yeah, gotta take the bad with the good. All right. Even steven, I take Old Sheba back. Period. Just a minute, there's also a matter of $400 you owe us. - With interest. - And not a cent less. I ain't got a penny. Paid all my poker winnings for the mule. BOTH: We'll take the mule. - Sold. She's up at Barney's stable. Come on, Hoss. Sheba, sure wish we could've afforded you. Hoss, one appetite like yours is enough for any family. Huh, first time I've seen you took. Took, ha-ha. I got Old Sheba back, ain't I? I got Hoss to work for us for nothing, didn't I? All it cost me was a spavined mule I won in a poker game. The man ain't been born that can take Angus Tweedy. It takes real managerial brains to get along nowadays, you know? Yeah, I reckon. Wait till Pa hears about the deal we just pulled off. [BOTH LAUGH] Yeah, all right. We did sort of pin old Angus to the mat, didn't we? Oh, we did that. You know, something else I was wondering? I'm just wondering what a real fine mule will fetch right now. I don't know, Joe. But he's gotta be pretty valuable. You know, Angus ain't one to be took. [CHUCKLES] Hey, Pa! Oh, Hoss, I'm worn out. Yeah, that was a long ride for you, Joe. JOE: Hello, Adam. - Uh-huh. Well, where have you fellas been? - Pa, wait till you hear. - One, one thing at a time. I have come up with the solution to our problem. Yeah, I just wanna tell you about Old Sheba. Exactly, Old Sheba. Now, we need a physical force to bring those ties down off the mountain, right? Now, the creek's dried up, so that physical force is gone, right? Now, there's no road up there, lots of rocks. So we daren't use horses for fear of breaking legs, right? Now, what other physical force do we have on the Ponderosa right here and now? - Hoss? BEN: Oh, no, no, come on, think now. Try to figure out how to use one problem to solve another problem. Well, what other problem do we have? - Old Sheba? - Exactly, Old Sheba. You know, I remember seeing pictures once of elephants in India. They're hauling whole trees. That's exactly right, Adam. So you put a harness on Sheba, put a sled behind her and she'll haul those ties down from that mountain as pretty as you please. Pa? Come on, get Sheba out of the barn, let's get going. But, Pa, uh... Well, what, what? Well, heh... Speak right up, little manager. Speak right up. You see, Hoss and I took Old Sheba into town and, uh... And slickered Mr. Tweedy into taking her back pretty as you please, heh. We slickered him, heh. You what? Oh, we didn't come back empty handed. No, it is, uh... Look, that. You traded that magnificent elephant, that royal pachyderm for that mule? It was the only thing of real value he had, Pa. - She only... - Quiet! For weeks I labored to negotiate a deal with the railway company to put a spur crack on our property. For weeks I worked to negotiate a contract to sell timber for those railway ties. And for those same weeks, you two were gallivanting around the country wrestling your time away. You are through playing around. Those ties are up on the mountain. They have to be at the spur line in one week. One week. Yeah, one week, that's what he said. [HOSS GRUNTING] [HOSS GROANS] Hey, Hoss, we're home. [GROANING] I ain't never been so bone tired in my life. Yeah, I'm pretty tuckered out myself. Well? We did it, Pa. We did it. Every single one of those ties is off the mountain and at the spur. I knew I could do it if I put my mind to it. Your mind. Well, I must say, I never thought you could do it. He did a real good job. Pa, it's an unbeatable combination, brains and brute strength. Well, ahem, Little Joe, in all fairness to your brain power, if it hadn't been for, uh, Hoss' muscle power, those ties would still be up on top of that mountain. But without my conditioning, he wouldn't have had the muscles to pull the ties off the mountain. [THUNDER RUMBLING] [ADAM CHUCKLING] Oh, it must be raining a deluge up on that mountain. Oh, Snake Creek will be running in a matter of minutes. [CHUCKLES] We can't win them all, Hoss, heh. Did you hear that? Snake Creek's got water in it. It's gonna be flooding. It's gonna be full, Joe. There's water in Snake Creek. Water. Yahoo! There's water in Snake Creek. That's what we've been waiting for, Hoss. - Yeah? - Water in Snake Creek. You know what that means? That now you can enter the annual Snake Creek canoe contest. A thousand dollars. A thousand dollars. Thousand dollars, wow. And all you need is a good manager. - And a big, big canoe. - Yeah. A thousand dollars, wow. Now, here's what I'm gonna do for you. Yeah.
Behind the Scenes of Old Sheba
Henry Kulky, known for his portrayal of ‘Bearcat Sampson,’ was a professional wrestler in real life, competing under the ring name “Bomber Kulkavich.”
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Bonanza offers delightful, family-friendly entertainment suitable for solo viewing or sharing with loved ones. Old Sheba marks the 178th episode out of 430. Produced by NBC, Bonanza aired on their network from September 1959 to January 1973, enjoying a remarkable 14-season run.
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