Posted on 09/01/2025 5:23:56 PM PDT by Morgana
Randy Boone from the popular Western TV show The Virginian has died at age 83.
The North Carolina native passed away on August 28, his wife Lana told to The Hollywood Reporter.
He played guitar-playing ranch hand Randy Benton on the long-running Western The Virginian. The star was on three of its seasons from 1964 until 1966.
His other work included roles on Cimarron Strip, It's a Man's World, The Alfred Hitchcock Hour and The Twilight Zone.
The star was also in films such as 1966's Country Boy and 1973's Terminal Island. Boone's later work included an appearance on Kurt Russell's Western The Quest in 1976, a 1985 guest spot on Highway To Heaven and a role in the 1987 film The Wild Pair, per IMDB.
The Virginian starred James Drury in the title role, along with Doug McClure and Lee J. Cobb. Later the actors John Dehner, Charles Bickford, John McIntire, and Stewart Granger were added.
It originally aired on NBC from 1962 to 1971, for a total of 249 episodes.
The series ran for nine seasons, making it network television's third-longest running Western series, behind Bonanza at 14 seasons and 432 episodes, and Gunsmoke at 20 seasons and 635 episodes.
It was set before Wyoming became a state in 1890, as mentioned several times as Wyoming Territory, although other references set it later, around 1898.
The Virginian was Boone's biggest show.
His passing was marked by tributes from friends who called him 'humble, soft spoken' and a 'great person.'
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
I liked him in The Virginian. The Virginian had a good cast.
RIP
Is he the “Randy Boone” that Hoyt Axton sings about in “Della and the Dealer”?
And the greatest musical score!
Regards,
And the greatest musical score!
Agree
I think he was a descendant of Daniel Boone and a distant relative of Pat Boone.
Yes.
Great song by the way. One of my favorites.
I agree. And the first western series to go to an hour and a half.
Regards-
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