The Gambler (TV movie series)
Encyclopedia
The Gambler is a series of American TV movies starring Kenny Rogers
as Brady Hawkes, a fictional old-west gambler. The character was inspired by Rogers' hit song The Gambler
. There are five movies in the series. The first four are directed by Dick Lowry
while the last was directed by Jack Bender
. The movies are:
Kenny Rogers stars as Brady Hawkes, the titular gambler, who embarks on a journey to meet Jeremiah (Ronnie Scribner
), the young son he never knew after Jeremiah sends him a letter. Along the way, Brady meets Billy Montana (Bruce Boxleitner
) and the two become friends. Billy (while trying to help Brady in his quest) fancies himself as a professional poker
player on his own. Although Billy makes mistakes along the way (some of these include: trying to find a way to cheat or do some smooth talking), Brady makes sure that he stays on good behavior during a train ride to Yuma,CA. The duo help Jennie Reed (Lee Purcell
), a prostitute who has trouble with a train baron. At the end, Brady's son's stepfather (Clu Gulager
) is confronted.
Billy Montana, Brady, and his son Jeremiah are traveling to a gambling event in San Francisco when they encounter the vicious McCourt gang. The McCourt gang force the train to stop and they take Jeremiah hostage and demand a $1 million ransom. Brady and Billy are determined to get Jeremiah back as well as the $1 million ransom which belonged to the train boss. Brady and Billy find help in their mission and meet a female bounty hunter played by Linda Evans as Kate Muldoon. Kate is the fastest female gun in the west. They form a posse together in a race to save Jeremiah.
In this installment, Brady Hawkes and Billy Montana help protect some Sioux Indians from the government and some cattle thieves
.
starring Kenny Rogers
and Reba McEntire
. Rogers reprises his "Gambler" character, Brady Hawkes ("...know when to fold 'em...") in the fourth installment of the series. The film originally aired on NBC
on November 3, 1991. It was nominated for a Costume Design Emmy.
It's 1906 and professional gambling will be outlawed in just three weeks. Therefore, Burgundy Jones(McEntire) has just that long to get Brady Hawkes safely to San Francisco for the last poker tournament, with a very special mystery player.
The film features Rogers' character running across a galaxy of old TV western characters played by the original actors, including Gene Barry
as Bat Masterson
, Hugh O'Brian
as Wyatt Earp
, Jack Kelly
as Bart Maverick
, Clint Walker
as Cheyenne Bodie, David Carradine
as Kung Fu
s Caine
, Chuck Connors
as The Rifleman
, Brian Keith
as The Westerner
, James Drury
and Doug McClure
from The Virginian
, Paul Brinegar
from Rawhide
, and Reba Mcentire
as Burgundy Jones. Remarkably, Jack Kelly's dialogue consists almost entirely of repeating that it's not a poker game without a Maverick in attendance over and over several times with minor variations.
The characters are attending a poker game said to be in honor of "the late Mr. Paladin" from Have Gun - Will Travel. Paladin had died. The game was played at the hotel Paladin lived at. The game's dealer is "Hey Girl", Paladin's friend. As each veteran video hero appears, a few bars from his original series' theme
momentarily plays in the background, reminiscent of a doorbell. Everyone in the film, including President Theodore Roosevelt
(Claude Akins
), seems openly thrilled to encounter Brady Hawkes.
The Gambler Returns was directed by Dick Lowry
and inspired by the song "The Gambler
" written by Don Schlitz.
About 16 years later Reba McEntire and Christopher Rich would star together in her hit television series, Reba
.
Brady Hawks' son, Jeremiah gets involved with outlaws Butch Cassidy
and The Sundance Kid. Brady tries to save him before he winds up in jail or dead.
told Jimmy Fallon
on his TV show, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
, that he was asked if he would want to be in another Gambler movie. He began by saying that he had a bad knee and thought it would be hard for him but continued and said that the first scene in the movie would be a shootout
. Supposedly he would get shot in the shoulder and knee so as to cover his physical disabilities.
based on The Gambler can be found in most Las Vegas
casinos
. It was manufactured by International Game Technology
.
Kenny Rogers
Kenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur...
as Brady Hawkes, a fictional old-west gambler. The character was inspired by Rogers' hit song The Gambler
The Gambler (song)
"The Gambler" is the title of a song written by Don Schlitz and recorded by American country music artist Kenny Rogers. It was released in November 1978 as the title track from his album The Gambler which won him the Grammy award for best male country vocal performance in 1980. Bobby Bare had...
. There are five movies in the series. The first four are directed by Dick Lowry
Dick Lowry
Dick Lowry is an American director and film producer.-Productions:*1980: Kenny Rogers as The Gambler *1983: Kenny Rogers as The Gambler: The Adventure Continues *1983: Smokey and the Bandit Part 3...
while the last was directed by Jack Bender
Jack Bender
Jack Bender is an American television and film director, actor, television producer and also a screenwriter. Bender was an executive producer and lead director on the ABC television series, Lost. He directed the series finale of Lost. Bender has also directed on other popular shows such as The...
. The movies are:
- Kenny Rogers as The Gambler (1980) (TV)
- Kenny Rogers as The Gambler: The Adventure Continues (1983) (TV)
- Kenny Rogers as The Gambler, Part III: The Legend Continues (1987) (TV)
- The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw (1991) (TV)
- Gambler V: Playing for Keeps (1994) (TV)
Kenny Rogers as The Gambler (1980)
Kenny Rogers as The Gambler debuted on April 8, 1980. It was a ratings and critical success that has spawned four sequels. The show won a Best Edited Television Special Eddie Award and garnered two Emmy nominations (for cinematography and editing of a limited series).Kenny Rogers stars as Brady Hawkes, the titular gambler, who embarks on a journey to meet Jeremiah (Ronnie Scribner
Ronnie Scribner
Ronnie Scribner is an American actor. A professional child actor and model since the age of 11, Scribner is best known for his iconic role as the child vampire, Ralphie Glick in the 1979 CBS mini-series Salem's Lot...
), the young son he never knew after Jeremiah sends him a letter. Along the way, Brady meets Billy Montana (Bruce Boxleitner
Bruce Boxleitner
Bruce William Boxleitner is an American actor, and science fiction and suspense writer. He is known for his leading roles in the television series How the West Was Won, Bring 'Em Back Alive, Scarecrow and Mrs. King , and Babylon 5...
) and the two become friends. Billy (while trying to help Brady in his quest) fancies himself as a professional poker
Poker
Poker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
player on his own. Although Billy makes mistakes along the way (some of these include: trying to find a way to cheat or do some smooth talking), Brady makes sure that he stays on good behavior during a train ride to Yuma,CA. The duo help Jennie Reed (Lee Purcell
Lee Purcell
Lee Purcell is an American actress and writer-producer who has starred in films including Mr. Majestyk, Big Wednesday, Stir Crazy, and Valley Girl. She has also appeared in numerous television and stage productions.-Early life:Purcell was born at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point in North...
), a prostitute who has trouble with a train baron. At the end, Brady's son's stepfather (Clu Gulager
Clu Gulager
Clu Gulager is an American television and film actor. He is particularly noted for his co-starring role as William H. Bonney in the 1960–62 NBC TV series The Tall Man and for his role in the later NBC series The Virginian...
) is confronted.
Kenny Rogers as The Gambler: The Adventure Continues (1983)
Kenny Rogers again stars as Brady Hawkes in Kenny Rogers as The Gambler: The Adventure Continues which premiered on November 28 and 29, 1983. The show was an even bigger ratings success than the first and was nominated for two Emmy Awards (sound editing and sound mixing of a limited series).Billy Montana, Brady, and his son Jeremiah are traveling to a gambling event in San Francisco when they encounter the vicious McCourt gang. The McCourt gang force the train to stop and they take Jeremiah hostage and demand a $1 million ransom. Brady and Billy are determined to get Jeremiah back as well as the $1 million ransom which belonged to the train boss. Brady and Billy find help in their mission and meet a female bounty hunter played by Linda Evans as Kate Muldoon. Kate is the fastest female gun in the west. They form a posse together in a race to save Jeremiah.
Kenny Rogers as The Gambler, Part III: The Legend Continues (1987)
Kenny Rogers as The Gambler, Part III: The Legend Continues was broadcast on November 22, 1987.In this installment, Brady Hawkes and Billy Montana help protect some Sioux Indians from the government and some cattle thieves
Cattle raiding
Cattle raiding is the act of stealing cattle.In Australia, such stealing is often referred to as duffing, and the person as a duffer...
.
The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw (1991)
The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw is a 1991 television movieTelevision movie
A television film is a feature film that is a television program produced for and originally distributed by a television network, in contrast to...
starring Kenny Rogers
Kenny Rogers
Kenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur...
and Reba McEntire
Reba McEntire
Reba Nell McEntire is an American country music artist and actress. She began her career in the music industry as a high school student singing in the Kiowa High School band , on local radio shows with her siblings, and at rodeos. As a solo act, she was invited to perform at a rodeo in Oklahoma...
. Rogers reprises his "Gambler" character, Brady Hawkes ("...know when to fold 'em...") in the fourth installment of the series. The film originally aired on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
on November 3, 1991. It was nominated for a Costume Design Emmy.
It's 1906 and professional gambling will be outlawed in just three weeks. Therefore, Burgundy Jones(McEntire) has just that long to get Brady Hawkes safely to San Francisco for the last poker tournament, with a very special mystery player.
The film features Rogers' character running across a galaxy of old TV western characters played by the original actors, including Gene Barry
Gene Barry
Gene Barry was an American stage, screen, and television actor. Barry is best remembered for his leading roles in the films The Atomic City and The War of The Worlds and for his portrayal of the title character in the TV series Bat Masterson, among many roles.-Personal life:Barry was born...
as Bat Masterson
Bat Masterson (TV series)
Bat Masterson is an American Western television series which showed a fictionalized account of the life of real-life marshal/gambler/dandy Bat Masterson. The title character was played by Gene Barry and the half-hour black and white shows ran on NBC from 1958 to 1961...
, Hugh O'Brian
Hugh O'Brian
Hugh O'Brian is an American actor, known for his starring role in the ABC television series The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp .-Early years and career:...
as Wyatt Earp
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp is a Western television series loosely based on the adventures of frontier marshal Wyatt Earp. The half-hour black and white series ran on ABC-TV from 1955 to 1961 and featured Hugh O'Brian as Earp. An off-camera barbershop quartet sang the theme song and hummed...
, Jack Kelly
Jack Kelly (actor)
Jack Kelly was an American film and television actor most noted for the role of "Bart Maverick" in the TV series Maverick, which ran on ABC from 1957 to 1962...
as Bart Maverick
Maverick (TV series)
Maverick is a western television series with comedic overtones created by Roy Huggins. The show ran from September 22, 1957 to July 8, 1962 on ABC and stars James Garner as Bret Maverick, a cagey, articulate cardsharp. Eight episodes into the first season, he was joined by Jack Kelly as his brother...
, Clint Walker
Clint Walker
Norman Eugene Walker, known as Clint Walker , is an American actor best known for his cowboy role as "Cheyenne Bodie" in the TV Western series, Cheyenne.-Life and career:...
as Cheyenne Bodie, David Carradine
David Carradine
David Carradine was an American actor and martial artist, best known for his role as a warrior monk, Kwai Chang Caine, in the 1970s television series, Kung Fu, which later had a 1990s sequel series, Kung Fu: The Legend Continues...
as Kung Fu
Kung Fu (TV series)
Kung Fu is an American television series that starred David Carradine. It was created by Ed Spielman, directed and produced by Jerry Thorpe, and developed by Herman Miller, who was also a writer for, and co-producer of, the series...
s Caine
Kwai Chang Caine
Kwai Chang Caine [虔官昌 or 拐杖棍 Qián Guānchāng] is a fictional television character in the 1972–1975 western television series, Kung Fu. He has been portrayed by David Carradine as an adult, Keith Carradine as a younger Caine and Radames Pera the child Caine and Stephen Manley as the youngest...
, Chuck Connors
Chuck Connors
Chuck Connors was an American actor, writer, and professional basketball and baseball player. His best known role from his forty-year film career was Lucas McCain in the 1960s ABC hit Western series The Rifleman....
as The Rifleman
The Rifleman
The Rifleman is an American Western television program that starred Chuck Connors as homesteader Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son, Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory. The show, filmed in black-and-white with a half hour running time, ran...
, Brian Keith
Brian Keith
Brian Keith was an American film, television, and stage actor who in his four decade-long career gained recognition for his work in movies such as the 1961 Disney family film The Parent Trap, the 1966 comedy The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming, and the 1975 adventure saga The Wind and...
as The Westerner
The Westerner (TV series)
The Westerner is a 1960 Four Star Television Western series on NBC created by Sam Peckinpah. The series stars Brian Keith as Dave Blassingame and features John Dehner as semi-regular Burgundy Smith...
, James Drury
James Drury
James Child Drury, Jr. is an American actor probably best known for his success in playing the title role in the 90-minute weekly Western television series The Virginian, broadcast on NBC from 1962-1971...
and Doug McClure
Doug McClure
Douglas Osborne "Doug" McClure was an American actor whose career in film and television extended from the 1950s to the 1990s...
from The Virginian
The Virginian (TV series)
The Virginian is an American Western television series starring James Drury and Doug McClure, which aired on NBC from 1962 to 1971 for a total of 249 episodes. Filmed in color, The Virginian became television's first 90-minute western series...
, Paul Brinegar
Paul Brinegar
Paul Brinegar was an American character actor.Brinegar made over 100 appearances between 1946 and 1994, appearing in many western films, and played the barman in Clint Eastwood's High Plains Drifter in 1973...
from Rawhide
Rawhide (TV series)
Rawhide is an American Western series that aired for eight seasons on the CBS network on Friday nights, from January 9, 1959 to September 3, 1965, before moving to Tuesday nights from September 14, 1965 until January 4, 1966, with a total of 217 black-and-white episodes...
, and Reba Mcentire
as Burgundy Jones. Remarkably, Jack Kelly's dialogue consists almost entirely of repeating that it's not a poker game without a Maverick in attendance over and over several times with minor variations.
The characters are attending a poker game said to be in honor of "the late Mr. Paladin" from Have Gun - Will Travel. Paladin had died. The game was played at the hotel Paladin lived at. The game's dealer is "Hey Girl", Paladin's friend. As each veteran video hero appears, a few bars from his original series' theme
Theme music
Theme music is a piece that is often written specifically for a radio program, television program, video game or movie, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits...
momentarily plays in the background, reminiscent of a doorbell. Everyone in the film, including President Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
(Claude Akins
Claude Akins
Claude Marion Akins was an American actor with a long career on stage, screen and television.Powerful in appearance and voice, Akins could be counted on to play the clever tough guy, on the side of good or bad, in movies and television. He is best remembered as Sheriff Lobo in the 1970s TV series...
), seems openly thrilled to encounter Brady Hawkes.
The Gambler Returns was directed by Dick Lowry
Dick Lowry
Dick Lowry is an American director and film producer.-Productions:*1980: Kenny Rogers as The Gambler *1983: Kenny Rogers as The Gambler: The Adventure Continues *1983: Smokey and the Bandit Part 3...
and inspired by the song "The Gambler
The Gambler (song)
"The Gambler" is the title of a song written by Don Schlitz and recorded by American country music artist Kenny Rogers. It was released in November 1978 as the title track from his album The Gambler which won him the Grammy award for best male country vocal performance in 1980. Bobby Bare had...
" written by Don Schlitz.
About 16 years later Reba McEntire and Christopher Rich would star together in her hit television series, Reba
Reba (TV series)
Reba is an American sitcom starring Reba McEntire, which ran from 2001 to 2007. For the show's first five seasons, it ran on The WB, with the show transitioning to The CW in its last year.-Synopsis:...
.
Gambler V: Playing for Keeps (1994)
Gambler V: Playing for Keeps is the fifth installment of The Gambler series and the first not directed by Dick Lowry, with Jack Bender taking the helm. The movie premiered on Oct 2, 1994.Brady Hawks' son, Jeremiah gets involved with outlaws Butch Cassidy
Butch Cassidy
Robert LeRoy Parker , better known as Butch Cassidy, was a notorious American train robber, bank robber, and leader of the Wild Bunch Gang in the American Old West...
and The Sundance Kid. Brady tries to save him before he winds up in jail or dead.
Gambler VI Rumors
On March 15, 2011 Kenny RogersKenny Rogers
Kenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur...
told Jimmy Fallon
Jimmy Fallon
James Thomas "Jimmy" Fallon, Jr. is an American actor, comedian, singer, musician and television host. He currently hosts Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, a late-night talk show that airs Monday through Friday on NBC...
on his TV show, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon on NBC. The show premiered on March 2, 2009, as the third incarnation of the Late Night franchise originated by David Letterman....
, that he was asked if he would want to be in another Gambler movie. He began by saying that he had a bad knee and thought it would be hard for him but continued and said that the first scene in the movie would be a shootout
Shootout
A shootout is a gun battle between armed groups. A shootout often, but not necessarily, pits law enforcement against criminal elements; it could also involve two groups outside of law enforcement, such as rival gangs. A shootout in a military context A shootout is a gun battle between armed groups....
. Supposedly he would get shot in the shoulder and knee so as to cover his physical disabilities.
Slot Machine
A video slot machineSlot machine
A slot machine , informally fruit machine , the slots , poker machine or "pokies" or simply slot is a casino gambling machine with three or more reels which spin when a button is pushed...
based on The Gambler can be found in most Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
casinos
Casino
In modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types of gambling activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships or other tourist attractions...
. It was manufactured by International Game Technology
International Game Technology
International Game Technology is a Nevada based company specializing in the design, development, manufacturing, sales and distribution of gaming machines and network system products internationally, as well as online and mobile gaming solutions for regulated markets. The company's main offices are...
.