OUTCASTS, THE: HUNG FOR A LAMB (TV)
Summary
One in this western series about two heroes, one white and one African-American, who form an uneasy partnership as they travel around the Wild West.
Earl laments his and Jemal’s constantly struggling finances and longs for “something different.” They spy a gambler accosting one of the girls at a saloon before being thrown out; Earl takes a fancy to the girl, named Polly. Outside the saloon, Polly is threatened by a stranger with an injured shoulder who asks for her help in getting across the border in exchange for a large payment. He asks her to get Earl alone and tell him to make a deal with him, Stan Sutton, who robbed a bank the previous week. Polly goes back in and flirts with Earl, convincing Jemal to excuse himself. She tells him about Sutton, and Earl recognizes his name although he expresses antipathy towards him since Sutton stole his horse several years ago. Polly schemes to have Earl learn the location of Sutton’s stolen money, hoping to either ask for half of it or possibly take it all by force. Earl refuses her offer, unwilling to murder anyone for the money.
The next morning, the sheriff and two deputies burst into Earl’s room and search through it, interrogating him about Sutton. They are under the impression that Earl knows the location of the money stolen in the bank robbery, although he does not. The sheriff informs Earl that he arrested Sutton this morning and has asked to speak with Earl specifically. Earl does not wish to do so, but the sheriff threatens him into doing so. Earl finds Sutton in his cell, and Sutton blames Earl for his arrest. Sutton has somehow convinced everyone that Earl knows where the money is, and takes satisfaction in the notion that he will be constantly pursued by law enforcement looking to find the cache. The sheriff interrogates Earl as Earl tries to convince him that he has no knowledge of the stolen money’s location. He manages to placate him for the time being, but the sheriff orders him to remain within the city limits until the matter is fully settled.
He discovers that Polly is the one who turned in Sutton via slipping a hand-written note beneath the sheriff’s door. She claims that Earl’s refusal to cooperate and Sutton’s unwillingness to divulge the location of the stolen money forced her hand in the hopes that he might allow her access to the money to help him get out of prison. He again insists that he does not know the location of the money, but Polly does not believe him. Two thugs try to shake Earl down for protection money, but he rebuffs them. A shopkeeper attempts to convince him to invest in a freight wagon as a business venture, but Earl again insists that he has no access to Sutton’s stolen money. He speaks to Jemal about the matter, and both of them are approached by a local named Carl Jenner. Jenner admits to supplying Sutton with the initial funding for his bank robbery and says he made a deal to receive half of the stolen money. He also says that he is the one who shot Sutton when he showed up without the money. He tries to make some sort of deal with Earl and Jemal, although they are skeptical of his motives and tell him to get out.
Earl goes to confront Sutton in his cell again, trying to get him to tell the truth. However, Sutton proves to be uncooperative and reinforces the suspicion that Earl knows where the money is. Jemal rides out in search of jobs, but is followed by armed men trying to shoot him. They corner him and interrogate him about the location of the money, and he truthfully explains that he has no idea where it is hidden. They do not believe him and try to beat a confession out of him. When that fails they threaten to hang him, but he is rescued by Polly. She tends to his wounds and asks him about the money as well, receiving the same answer. Earl and Jemal reconvene and talk about their experiences. Earl decides to speak to Polly and determine where the money is hidden, hoping to put an end to the entire situation. However, Polly is not forthcoming with help.
Jemal and Earl decide that the only course of action is to break Sutton out of prison and allow him to head for wherever he hid the money, hoping to follow him there. That night, Jemal visits the sheriff and claims that Earl has decided to confess, but that he is afraid to leave his hotel room without the sheriff's presence. He creates a diversion, allowing him to secretly swipe the key to Sutton’s cell from the sheriff’s pocket. Once inside he frees Sutton in exchange for receiving half of the stolen money. The two of them make to ride out of town, and Earl and Jemal make it seem as though Jemal is suddenly shot and dies in order to fool Sutton, who rides on. They shadow Sutton as he rides off on the trail, and he eventually stops at a ghost town. There he finds Polly ransacking an old barber shop. He wants nothing to do with her and sends her off, although she stays near him and offers to partner with him. Earl and Jemal arrive and hold Sutton at gunpoint, much to Polly’s relief. Sutton attempts to attack them but Jemal shoots and kills him in defense.
Suddenly Jenner and his men arrive and initiate a gunfight with Earl and Jemal, continuing even after Earl informs him that Sutton is dead. During the fracas, Polly accidentally stumbles across the money, hidden within an old couch in the barber shop. She helps herself to the money as Earl and Jemal fight off Jenner and his men. Earl decides to end the matter by taking the money from Polly and throwing it out onto the street, offering it to Jenner. However, Jenner believes it is a trap and does not advance until they have also thrown out their guns. They run up and have Jemal and Polly come out of the building, but they find that Earl has used the opportunity to sneak around and threaten them with a rifle from a nearby balcony. Ultimately they recover the stolen money and are rewarded with a small percentage of it from the bank for its return. Satisfied with this, they ride off to their next adventure, accompanied for a time by Polly, who has sweet-talked her way out of her short prison sentence. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: ABC
- DATE: November 30, 1999 9:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:51:37
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 123444
- GENRE: Drama, western
- SUBJECT HEADING: African-American Collection - Drama; TV - Drama, western
- SERIES RUN: ABC - TV series, 1968-1969
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Hugh Benson … Executive Producer, Developed by
- Jon Epstein … Producer
- Louis H. Goldstein … Associate Producer
- Larry Rosen … Associate Producer
- Robert Sparr … Director
- Leon Tokatyan … Created by
- Ben Brady … Created by
- Harold Jack Bloom … Writer
- Paul Sawtell … Music by
- Don Murray … Cast, Earl Corey
- Otis Young … Cast, Jemal David
- Tammy Grimes … Cast, Polly
- Mike Road … Cast, Stan Sutton
- Kevin Hagen … Cast, The Sheriff
- John Zaremba … Cast, Rensen
- Ed Peck … Cast, Jenner
- Orville Sherman … Cast, Bowsley
- Mickey Simpson … Cast, Miner
- Med Flory … Cast, Hawkins
- Frank Babich … Cast, Timmons
- Hal Baylor … Cast, Saddletramp