Can You Match the Character to the Right Western TV Show?

By: Ian Fortey
Estimated Completion Time
4 min
Can You Match the Character to the Right Western TV Show?
Image: HBO

About This Quiz

"Hopalong Cassidy" is widely regarded as the first Western in television history, and it dates all the way back to 1949. Westerns were also popular in radio shows, comic books and films around this time, so it was a natural fit to put some on television. By the mid-1950s, they had hit their stride and would pretty much dominate the TV landscape for years to come. In time, networks tried to distance themselves from the Western - it grew stale as a genre, and it mostly faded from the world of pop culture. However, every now and then a few still get made, proving it to be one of the heartiest genres of entertainment we have. You just can't keep a good Western down.

With 70 years of Westerns to pick through, there's a nearly endless supply of shows and movies you can watch, if you're in the mood to watch some serious cowboy hat and horse-riding action.

If you fancy yourself to be something of a Western aficionado, then we welcome you to try your hand at this quiz. Let's see just how many popular TV Western shows you can match to some of their main characters. Saddle up, partner!

The Rifleman
ABC
Mark McCain and his dad could be found where?
"The Rifleman"
"Gunsmoke"
"The Son"
"Westworld"
Gunsmoke
CBS
Marshal Matt Dillon was the central character of this show. Do you know it?
"Laramie"
"Yellowstone"
"Gunsmoke"
"Justified"
Have Gun Will Travel
Wiki Commons by CBS Television
The main character of this show was only known by the name Paladin. What was it?
"Justified"
"Godless"
"Deadwood"
"Have Gun - Will Travel"

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Little House on the Prairie
NBC
This show followed the lives of the Ingalls family. Do you remember it?
"Little House on the Prairie"
"Here Come the Brides"
"Zorro"
"Longmire"
Maverick
ABC
Which Western featured characters named Bret, Bart, Beau, Bentley and Brent?
"The Virginian"
"Bonanza"
"Little House on the Prairie"
"Maverick"
Rawhide
CBS
On which show would you find Clint Eastwood playing Rowdy Yates?
"Bonanza"
"Rawhide"
"Gunsmoke"
"Death Valley Days"

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Walker, Texas Ranger
CBS
James Trivette was a lawman on what show?
"Walker, Texas Ranger"
"The Pinkertons"
"The Magnificent Seven"
"Lawman"
The Virginian
Wiki Commons by NBC Television
Do you know which show featured a man named Trampas?
"The Virginian"
"Daniel Boone"
"Justified"
"The Cisco Kid"
The Lone Ranger
Wiki Commons by ABC Television
You know what show featured the legendary sidekick Tonto, right?
"Zorro"
"The Magnificent Seven"
"Gunsmoke"
"The Lone Ranger"

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Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman
CBS
Byron Sully was a main character on this show. Can you name it?
"F Troop"
"Lawman"
"Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman"
"Maverick"
The Big Valley
Wiki Commons by McFadden, Strauss, Eddy & Irwin / ABC
Which show featured Victora Barkley and her family?
"McLeod's Daughters"
"The Virginian"
"The High Chaparral"
"The Big Valley"
Bonanza
NBC
Hoss Cartwright was on a classic Western. Do you remember it?
"Gunsmoke"
"Bonanza"
"Rawhide"
"Longmire"

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Wanted Dead or Alive
CBS
What show would you watch to find bounty hunter Josh Randall?
"Hell on Wheels"
"The Cisco Kid"
"Laramie"
"Wanted: Dead or Alive"
The Wild Wild West
CBS
The lead character in this show had the clever name of Jim West. Do you remember it?
"The Wild Wild West"
"How the West Was Won"
"Westworld"
"The Big Valley"
Kung Fu
Wiki Commons by ABC Television
Kwai Chang Caine was the central character on this show. Do you remember it?
"F Troop"
"The Cisco Kd"
"Kung Fu"
"The Lone Ranger"

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F Troop
ABC
Sergeant Morgan Sylvester O'Rourke comes to us courtesy of what show?
"F Troop"
"Gunsmoke"
"Alias Smith and Jones"
"Lawman"
Wagon Train
Wiki Commons by ABC Television
Charlie Wooster was the name of the cook on this show. Do you know it?
"Wagon Train"
"The Virginian"
"Rawhide"
"Alias Smith and Jones"
The Cisco Kid
Wiki Commons by Butternut Bread / ABC
Pancho was the main character's sidekick on this show. What is it?
"Bat Masterson"
"The Outlaw"
"The Cisco Kid"
"Lonesome Dove"

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The High Chaparral
NBC
What are you watching if you're seeing Big John Cannon?
"The High Chaparral"
"The Magnificent Seven"
"Bat Masterson"
"Rawhide"
Lawman
Wiki Commons by Warner Bros.
Which show featured Marshal Dan Troop?
"Kung Fu"
"The Rebel"
"The Cisco Kid"
"Lawman"
Bat Masterson
Wiki Commons by NBC Television / Herb Ball
This show's main character was named Bartholomew, though he always went by a nickname. What was the show?
"Yellowstone"
"Bat Masterson"
"Justified"
"McLeod's Daughters"

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Legend
UPN
What show should you tune in to if you want to follow the adventures of Ernest Pratt?
"Legend"
"Laramie"
"Have Gun, Will Travel"
"Kung Fu"
The Rebel
Wiki Commons by ABC Television
Johnny Yuma's adventures were chronicled on what show?
"Lancer"
"The High Chaparral"
"The Rebel"
"The Young Riders"
Lonesome Dove
CBS
Which show featured Newt Dobbs as a character?
"Bat Masterson"
"The Magnificent Seven"
"Lonesome Dove"
"Wynonna Earp"

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Laramie
NBC
Do you know which show featured the Sherman brothers?
"Wagon Train"
"Wynonna Earp"
"Laramie"
"The Lone Ranger"
Cheyenne
ABC
Sheriff Bodie was the only recurring character on what show?
"The Virginian"
"Rawhide"
"Laramie"
"Cheyenne"
Firefly
Fox
Captain Mal Reynolds led a ragtag group on what show?
"The Rifleman"
"Bonanza"
"Firefly"
"F Troop"

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Justified
FX
Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens is the main character on what show?
"Tales of Wells Fargo"
"Walker, Texas Ranger"
"The Cisco Kid"
"Justified"
The Son
AMC
Eli McCullough is the central character of what program?
"Rawhide"
"Wagon Train"
"Lonesome Dove"
"The Son"
Death Valley Days
Wiki Commons by Ernest Bachrach
Do you know which show was hosted by a character named The Old Ranger?
"Gunsmoke"
"Death Valley Days"
"Dead Man's Gun"
"Westward Bound"

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Yellowstone
Paramount Network
John Dutton is the head of the family on which show?
"Yellowstone"
"Deadwood"
"The Magnificent Seven"
"Death Valley Days"
Westworld
HBO
On which show are you going to find the villainous Man in Black?
"The Rebel"
"Wagon Train"
"Lawman"
"Westworld"
Hell on Wheels
AMC
Which show introduced audiences to Cullen Bohannon?
"The Magnificent Seven"
"Bat Masterson"
"Godless"
"Hell on Wheels"

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Longmire
Netflix
What should you watch if you want to see the character Henry Standing Bear?
"Longmire"
"The Adventures of Briscoe County, Jr."
"The Big Valley"
"Cheyenne"
Dead Man's Gun
Showtime
The only recurring character on this anthology was the Narrator. Can you guess what show it was?
"Dead Man's Gun"
"Wagon Train"
"Death Valley Days"
"Legend"
The Adventures of Briscoe County, Jr
Fox
Do you know which show featured a character named Socrates Poole?
"Deadwood"
"The Adventures of Briscoe County, Jr."
"Wynonna Earp"
"Hell on Wheels"

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Deadwood
HBO
Al Swearengen was a memorable character from this show. Tell us what it is!
"Godless"
"Hell on Wheels"
"Deadwood"
"Justified"
Wynonna Earp
Syfy / Space
Xavier Dolls was a character on what show?
"Wynonna Earp"
"Bat Masterson"
"F Troop"
"Legend"
Godless
Netflix
Do you know which show featured the outlaw Roy Goode?
"Justified"
"Godless"
"Deadwood"
"Westworld"

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The Magnificent Seven
CBS
Do you know the name of the show that featured Chris Larabee?
"The Pinkertons"
"Laramie"
"Bat Masterson"
"The Magnificent Seven"