Voting Station

Death Valley Days

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TV Series

The Resume

    (March 1, 1952-April 24, 1970)
    Hosted by Ronald Reagan
    Aired on NBC
    Based on the radio show of the same name
    Narrated by Merle Haggard
    Produced by Gene Autry
    Premise: Anthology series featuring Western stories and legends set in and around Death Valley, California

Why Death Valley Days might be annoying:

    It is most identified with Ronald Reagan - who only hosted the show for two years.
    Its real main host - Stanley 'The Old Ranger' Andrews - held the job for twelve years (other hosts included Robert Taylor and Dale Robertson).
    The costumes and weapons were often anachronistic.
    Its continuing sponsor was 20 Mule Team Borax, a product formerly mined in Death Valley.
    It was cancelled during the Rural Purge of 1970-71 (its not normally listed with the more famous examples, but its pretty clear that this was the case).

Why Death Valley Days might not be annoying:

    It is one of the longest-running Western programs in broadcast history.
    Its hosts tended to act in episodes in addition to introducing them.
    Episodes were mostly based on actual events and people.
    It was Reagan's final acting job before entering politics.
    It is one of only three television shows to have been hosted by a future U.S. President (the other two being General Electric Theater and The Apprentice).
    Unlike other Anthology programs of its era, its episodes were packaged in the half hour format, as opposed to an hour.
    It is referenced in the 'Born in East LA' song (and the film of the same name) when Cheech Marin fails to identify the President of the United States to border patrol agents ('Uh that guy who was on TV, the guy in the cowboy hat... he used to be on Death Valley Days ... uh, John Wayne!)'

Credit: BoyWiththeGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 5 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 5 Votes: 40.0% Annoying