TV Reader's Digest The Last of the Old Time Shooting Sheriffs (1955–1956) Online

I read the story of sheriff Jim Roberts in a Readers Digest in Deleram in South Afghanistan. I was hooked immediately. I searched the internet and read just about everything I could find out about this man and his family. What an amazing true life hero. And hero he was. A man with integrity. A man who was feared by outlaws because of the 'head shot'. A man who was respected by lawful citizens. This was a man with guts. A man not afraid to ride right into the middle of the fight and take the situation in hand. A man who was written of as derelict but proofed everybody wrong. Why didn't Hollywood make a full length movie of this man. If there ever was a true American hero, this is the one.

I was 11 years old when this was broadcast, but I remember this show very well. I was hooked on westerns and this was the first TV Reader's Guide broadcast. When a town needs a city police chief they seek out the best man for the job but they really do not know what they are getting. When the new city marshal arrives; He is not on the bus but rides into town. Immediately, they believe that they have hired a man to old for the job and are trying to get rid of him when the bank is robbed by modern gangsters. After the dust clears, the "old man" has done what was needed and was accepted by the community. I thought they would all be this type and I was so disappointed that the rest did not capture my attention as well as the first episode did. The conflict between a legend of the past and the realities of the present were exceptionally done. The subsequent merging of the those two realities was done very well and has remained with me for over fifty years. I have looked over the years for a re-run of this show, but have never seen one.