A frontiersman poses as a priest to care for orphaned children.
Family is where you find it in the Wild West! Burly drifter John Murphy (Merlin Olsen) becomes the unlikely caretaker of a group of orphaned children growing up in America#s Wild West. Touched by their plight, he poses as a priest with lovely local school teacher Mae Woodward (Katherine Cannon) and his miner buddy (Moses Gunn) assisting with the children. Together this makeshift family gets involved in a series of adventures, encountering unscrupulous businessmen, gamblers, horse rustlers, bank robbers and much more! Created by _Little House on the Prairie’s_ Michael Landon and originally aired from 1981 to 1983, Father Murphy provides quality entertainment for the entire family, touchingly exploring the bonds of family and friendship as tested by the trials of life on the rugged frontier. Two seasons, 34 episodes.
Many of the episodes were filmed at the Old Tucson Studios and theme park just outside Tucson, Arizona. The main village from the show, however, was located at the Big Sky Movie Ranch in Simi Valley, California (the filming location for the famed television series Little House on the Prairie). The village was located approximately 200 yards up the hill from the Ingalls’ farm.
Set in the 1870s.
Starring Merlin Olsen, Katherine Cannon, Timothy Gibbs, Moses Gunn, Lisa Trusel.
Not rated. Billed as family-friendly but be prepared for an Old West filled with all the trappings (bar scenes with bar maids, unsavory types, etc.).