To my older brothers, Fess Parker will forever be Davy Crockett. So much has been written about this Baby Boomer phenomenon that it's easy to forget that to a later generation, Fess Parker was more closely allied with another legendary American hero, Daniel Boone. The massive influence of Crockett (based on a relatively scant five TV specials from the 1950s Disney program) on the popular culture, along with Fess Parker's set-in-concrete identification with the role, tends to overshadow the fact that he again found widespread success in the mid-to-late 1960s playing Daniel Boone on television. For six successful seasons (1964 - 1970), Fess Parker appeared, week after week, in one solid, entertaining story after another, for NBC's Daniel Boone. And for years after Daniel Boone's initial run, kids like me who weren't born during the relatively brief Davy Crockett craze -- and who frankly didn't know what any of that was all about -- were running around, singing "Daniel Boone was a man, yes a big man!" at the top of our lungs, after watching Daniel Boone reruns every afternoon.

What struck me almost immediately about Daniel Boone: Season 1 was the sense of fair-mindedness in Parker's portrayal of Boone. It's a decidedly un-P.C. approach to the material that may be a shock to those who have grown up in today's restrictive, locked-down politically correct culture. It's sensible entertainment, for lack of a better word, employing the classic American values of self-determination and self-reliance - regardless of your race or your creed or your religion. Daniel expects nothing more from anyone - Indian, British, settler - than simple respect, and the right to pursue his individual and family life according to his own views. And if they violate that tenant, he tells them so -- fearlessly -- regardless of who they are. Of course, there are many people today who would say that's a ridiculous notion because we weren't equal as a nation during this time. They also say Daniel Boone is a fantasy that freely violates history (historic figures in time lines that don't make sense in the season's story arcs) for the sake of dramatic license. Well, of course it does that - as does almost any other film dealing with a historical figure. If you think you can make a totally objective film or documentary, you're fooling yourself, because the minute you turn the camera on, you already made an editorial decision - just in the direction that you point the camera. This is entertainment, not an historical document, and I reject the elitist critics and writers who wring their hands and bemoan the "masses" being brainwashed into thinking "tripe" like Daniel Boone is factual and historical. TV viewers (then and now) are smarter than that.

All the tech credits for Daniel Boone are top notch, with great writers and directors (one of my favorites, George Marshall, directs the pilot episode, with typical vigor), churning out the equivalent of mini/major motion pictures every week. This kind of Hollywood professionalism is lost now; it's disregarded, considered old-fashioned, and generally dismissed. If having solid characterizations, excellent supporting casts (including this season: Michael Rennie, Leslie Nielson, Walter Pidgeon, Kurt Russell, Claude Akins, Edward Mulhare, Dan Duryea, Jack Elam, Lloyd Nolan, Jay Silverheels, and (!) George Gobel), and veteran Hollywood pros behind the scenes is "old-fashioned," I'll take that pejorative any day. Yes, there are distractions that are inevitable with 1960s television: California locales standing in for Virginia and other eastern locations; Patricia Blair's 1964 hairstyle and makeup, relatively cheap-looking sets. But those are minor distractions that only enhance the nostalgia factor of Daniel Boone: Season 1.

Here are the 28 black and white episodes included in Daniel Boone: Season 1:

DISC ONE:

Ken-Tuk-E
While attempting to build a fort in Kentucky as ordered by General George Washington, Daniel Boone is captured by Indians who are being supplied weapons by the British. His courage and ingenuity help prevent a tragic massacre of the settlers.

Tekawitha McLeod
Cherokee war drums sound when Tekawitha, a white girl raised as a princess, is kidnapped and traded to the Boonesborough settlers for provisions. When Daniel refuses the chief's demand for her return, flaming arrows streak into Boonesborough.

A Short Walk to Salem
Israel (Darby Hinton), the littlest Boone in Boonesborough, is lost in the wilderness when his father tackles a family of pelt-stealers. After being expelled from the fort for their actions, the Ginty Men ambush Daniel and Yadkin. Meanwhile, Israel runs into the woods, soon becoming exhausted and lost.

Lac Duquesne
Flamboyant river pirate Lac Duquesne (Emile Genest) intercepts a huge rifle shipment en route to Boonesborough with plans to incite the Shawnee nation into total war against the Kentucky settlers. Boone, Yadkin and Mingo set out in pursuit and find Duquesne, but are overpowered and left unarmed to face the Shawnee.

DISC TWO:

Pompey
Runaway slave Pompey (Brock Peters) and his bondsman, Caleb Calhoun (Peter Whitney), turn to Daniel for help in obtaining their freedom.

The Choosing
While trying to save her father's life, Jemima Boone (Veronica Cartwright) is forced to shoot a bear for food and medicine. She is suddenly surrounded by a Redcoat major and hostile Indians, who abduct her, leaving Boone to die.

The Family Fluellen
Zerleda Fluellen, a proud and stubborn widow, and her three children face a winter of starvation in the wilderness but are convinced by Daniel to come to Boonesborough. The arrival of a constable from New Salem brings fear and disruption to their lives.

My Brother's Keeper
Ed Ames, in a double role as the Oxford-educated Indian Mingo and his brother, the savage warrior Taramingo, is featured in this tale of frontier revenge. While tracking Mingo, who fled after Yadkin was shot, Daniel discovers look-alike Taramingo, who has made a murderous pledge.

DISC THREE:

Mountain of the Dead
The "ghost" of old soldier Guthrie MacAnders (Kelly Thorsden) and Boone's adversary, distinguished Britisher William Russell (Leslie Nielson) lead Boone on a strange journey to revisit the site an Indian massacre.

The Sound of Wings
Michael Rennie guest stars as Redcoat Major Peter Wellington, who attempts a daring masquerade as Daniel Boone to win Indian allies for the British. In the midst of his deceitful parlay with the Indians, the real Daniel walks into the encampment - dressed as a Redcoat.

The Sisters O'Hannrahan
Daniel inherits trouble when he accidently buys two indentured Irish girls at auction. Rebecca Boone (Patricia Blair) is less than delighted with two new "daughters," but the pioneer bachelors are willing to fight to the man to win the Irish "hellcats."

The Prophet
According to occasional Redcoat informant Amos McAleer (John Russell), a new holy man of the Shawnee tribe is clamoring for the scalps of the Boonesborough settlers. He leads Daniel on a dangerous mission to talk peace with the prophet.

DISC FOUR:

The Courtship of Jericho Jones
A headstrong pioneer youth, Jericho Jones (Robert Logan) leads his beloved Sumah (Anne Helm) away from her Creek tribe, taking refuge in Daniel Boone's home. Despite serious consequences, they refuse to abandon their romance.

The Returning
Pat Hingle guest-stars as a "Mephistopheles in Buckskin" who turns up in Boonesborough. After killing three Cherokee youths on the trail, Will Carey (Hingle) travels to the fort for a warm reunion with boyhood friend, Daniel Boone. When the Cherokees prepare to avenge the killings, Daniel at first cannot bring himself to suspect Carey.

Not in Our Stars
Walter Pidgeon guest-stars as the new Virginia governor (and also Mingo's father) who serves an eviction notice on Boonesborough settlers as the result of a treaty with the Tuscarora Indians which "delivers" Kentucky to the British crown.

The Hostages
Ester Mancour (Madlyn Rhue), a Seneca Indian "goddess," hires Loyalist Captain Butler (Rhodes Reason) to kidnap Boone's wife Rebecca as bait to capture Daniel. To save her, Daniel must betray the settlers or Rebecca will be taken to Quebec to be married to a brave and he will be killed.

DISC FIVE:

The First Stone
Esther Craig (Geraldine Brooks) and her small son William (Kurt Russell) are near collapse in the wilderness when Daniel and Mingo find them and convince them to come to Boonesborough. They recover and are befriended until a whispering campaign brands her as a "strange woman."

A Place of 1,000 Spirits
Written by Indian authority David Humphries Miller, the story is set in isolated wilderness where the Boone family and Mingo encounter Lt. Pitcairn (Macdonald Carey), delirious with fear. Suddenly they are surrounded by a Shawnee war party intent on avenging the death of a n entire tribe, caused by an artillery regiment led by Pitcairn. Toka: Claude Akins; Carata: Ted White.

The Sound of Fear
Dan Duryea stars as Simon Gore, a bounty hunter who is being returned to Virginia for hanging. After his gang kills everyone in the militia convoy except the guide, they move on to invade the Boone cabin. Gore's plans for the Boones change when someone unexpected arrives - his own son, Andy (Peter Duryea).

The Price of Friendship
Hauling trade goods to Salem, Boone finds a boy, Matthew (Kurt Russell), strung up by his feet. Upon freeing him, Dan'l finds himself facing the rifle of Ben Hanks (Lloyd Nolan) and is soon bound to the same tree. He pursues the thieves through a series of narrow escapes.

DISC SIX:

The Quietists
A devout Quaker family refuses to resist their Indian attackers, and won't fight back when everything dear to them - including their only daughter - is threatened. Latawa: Jay Silverheels.

The Devil's Four
Daniel faces a wilderness trek hauling freight from Salem to Boonesborough with four hardened criminals who are determined to escape. Plus - somewhere along the trail, a band of renegades waits to seize the cargo. Clements: Gordon Jump; Simon Bullard: Bruce Cabot.

The Reunion
Itinerant peddler Timothy Patrick Bryan (John McIntire) wanders into Boonesborough, selling his wares and searching for his daughter, Becky, who he believes came to America as a child. When Daniel brings him home to meet Rebecca, she insists that her father is dead.

The Ben Franklin Encounter
Daniel risks his life to save Ben Franklin (Laurie Main) from being hanged by the British as a Revolutionary spy and is taken captive along with French agent Charles Penet (Albert Carrier), Franklin, and Clara Merivale (Anna Lee) by Admiral Lord Clydesdale (Edward Mulhare).

DISC SEVEN:

Four Leaf Clover
Saved from probable death by Daniel and Yadkin when his wagon overturns, an idealistic schoolteacher's blundering triggers a Shawnee attack on Boonesborough. Francis Clover: George Gobel.

Cain's Birthday
In this 2-part drama, Boone seemingly betrays Boonesborough by allowing the menfolk, who are away from the fort processing salt, to be abducted by Indians, leaving only women and children to defend the fort.

DISC EIGHT:

Daughter of the Devil
Marie Bouvier (Pilar Seurat), a beautiful young Cajun girl, is believed to be practicing voodoo by superstitious Boonesborough settlers when a huge black panther begins terrorizing the area.

Doll of Sorrow
Scheming to trade for furs, itinerant tradesman Seth Jennings (Edward Binns) steals a sacred doll from the squaw of an Illinois chieftain, who is mourning the loss of her child. Daniel risks his life to recover the "kidnapped" doll.

The DVD:

The Video:
The fullscreen, 1.37:1 black and white transfers for Daniel Boone look just okay, with often contrasty, somewhat soft images. Of note, Fess Parker, in one of the extras on the disc, reveals that the first season had indeed been shot in Technicolor, but broadcast in black and white.

The Audio:
The sound mix on Daniel Boone: Season 1 is available in a strong Stereo 5.1 Surround mix, as well as an English and Spanish Stereo mix.

The Extras:
There's a wealth of extras on this DVD edition of Daniel Boone: Season 1. First offered is Actors' Comments, with three subjects covered: On Working with Animals, that features Darby Hinton (Israel Boone) and Veronica Cartwright (Jemima Boone); Salmi Tribute, which features the cast reminiscing about first season-only co-star Albert Salmi (Yadkin); and On Color vs. Black & White, which features Fess Parker. Next comes Interviews, featuring short, individual segments on Fess Parker on what it's like being Daniel Boone; What it was like working with Veronica Cartwright; What it was like working with Patricia Blair (almost nothing is said about this actress in any of the extras); and Fess Parker on Life as an Actor, featuring Fess talking about his post-Daniel Boone life. Then, there is a text-based extra that gives the Air Dates for all of the episodes from this season. Finally, there's a Photo Gallery, with no narration or explanation, showing what I assume is a reunion party and launch for the DVD at Fess Parker's winery. The photos are digital snapshots that probably aren't going to be of much interest to the show's fans.

Final Thoughts:
Daniel Boone: Season 1 isn't a history lesson; it's a family entertainment that puts forth the best American values into clean, spirited, action-packed episodes, that give you something to think about, as well - particularly in the times we live in today. Daniel Boone: Season 1 has fast-paced, entertaining stories which represent the best of what used to be considered essential American values: self-reliance, integrity, honesty, courage -- regardless of who the person may be. Recommended.