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In the 1960s, Western TV series dominated the airwaves. Classic television westerns of the era included “Bonanza”, “Gunsmoke”, “Maverick”, “The Virginian” and many, many others. Among these venerable titles, however, were several short-lived attempts to cash in on the genre’s popularity. Many of these have become underrated western shows that are still worth watching today. Many did not. Take Custer (originally titled The Legend of Custer), a western series that aired on ABC from September to December 1967. While the mid-20th century wasn’t a progressive cultural utopia, a TV show honoring the legacy of George Armstrong Custer was too much. Doubly so for the Indian Tribal Land Rights Association, which protested the show before it even began its paltry three-month run.
Custer starred Wayne Maunder as Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer. The series follows a cavalry officer in the years following the Civil War, specifically the period between 1868 and 1875 when he was sent as part of the Frontier Wars to fight the native population of the Great Plains. So not the most honorable part of a person’s life.
Predictably, not everyone was excited about the prospect of the show, which, according to writer Brian W. Dippy Custer’s Last Stand: Anatomy of an American Myth. painted Custer as “a hero with a few vices born of overzealousness.” This was evident from the opening credits, which featured a voiceover proudly announcing the eponymous general to triumphant fanfare: “He was demoted and sent to the West to be forgotten. But he was not a man to let the world forget. His name is George Armstrong Custer.” Well, it wasn’t long.
Custer faced backlash before it aired
During the Civil War, George Armstrong Custer led his brigade at the Battle of Gettysburg and cut off Robert E. Lee’s retreat at Appomattox. When the war ended, he became a lieutenant colonel in the army and was sent to fight in the border wars. Custer became most famous and infamous for his actions in the postwar years, which ended with him leading the Army’s 7th Cavalry at the Battle of the Little Bighorn and being killed along with his entire battalion. However, “Custer” never got around to portraying that battle, as a combination of poor ratings and severe backlash scuttled its retelling of the controversial general’s postwar years.
In the issue of September 5, 1967 Ogdensburg Journal noted that Custer was controversial before it aired, “as potential viewers protested that the show was honoring a man many Americans, particularly Native Americans, see as a villain rather than a hero.” Indeed, Hollywood had a history of glamorizing the general, as evidenced based on the true stories of the western They Died in Their Boots. This time, however, the Tribal Indian Land Rights Association wasn’t having it, and it folded before Wayne Maunder’s Custer could leave. Producer Frank Glicksman recalled that he was “getting phone calls — angry calls — even at home.” After that, things didn’t quite calm down.
Glicksman also claimed that pamphlets and letters were “slipped under (his) door” and delivered to the gates of the ABC studios. “I suddenly realized that there was a large Indian lobby that was clearly antagonistic,” he told the Ogdensburg Journal. “They couldn’t see the show because I felt we were portraying Native Americans with dignity and respect.” But the series’ portrayal of indigenous people was not a problem. The fact is that “Custer” essentially glorified a very controversial figure.
Controversy and low ratings forced Custer to withdraw from the fight
“Custer” was never going to be one of the the most successful western television shows of all timebut even its makers must have been shocked at how poorly it performed. It didn’t help that the Indian Tribal Land Rights Association and several other groups decided to shut down the show. As author Vine Deloria, Jr. explains “Custer Died for Your Sins: The Indian Manifesto” several organizations eventually became involved. The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) called the real-life Custer the “Adolf Eichmann” of the 19th century and protested the series along with “other groups.” Meanwhile, Frank Glicksman and other cast members were receiving letters from Civil War students who both hated and admired the idea of the show.
As detailed in Custer Died for Your Sins: An Indian Manifesto, it was Yakima tribe lawyer James Hovis who came up with the tactic to “force each tribe to file an equal amount of time against the local ABC affiliate” because ABC was not subject to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations. According to Deloria Jr., several tribes pursued cases against local affiliates and received airtime to “present the Indian side of Custer’s story during a short run of the show.”
While this undoubtedly made life difficult for ABC, it appears that the series was ultimately canceled due to ratings. As Brian W. Dippy explains in Custer’s Last Stand:
“One beleaguered ABC spokesperson claimed that ‘the program is clearly identified as a fictional series based on a legend.’ But semantic differences could not save Custer from the Nielsen ratings.”
After 17 episodes, Custer was ordered to withdraw from the battlefield. If you’re interested, the show is available to stream for free on Tubi.