Wells Fargo on NBC

Jim Hardie was a Wells Fargo agent who was good with a gun, and also at helping colleagues with their problems. Airing in the heyday of TV Westerns, the show was an immediate hit when it premiered in 1957, ranking third in the Nielsens (behind `Gunsmoke' and Danny Thomas). It began as a half-hour program and later expanded to an hour. Among the notable guest stars: a young Jack Nicholson in a 1961 episode, `The Washburn Girl.'