The Gray Ghost is an American Civil War television series that debuted in syndication in 1957. The show is based upon the true story of Major John Singleton Mosby.[1]
The Gray Ghost stars Tod Andrews as Mosby, Phil Chambers as Lieutenant St. Clair,[2] and Sherwood Price in five episodes as General J.E.B. Stuart, also known for his cavalry skills. Recurring characters on the program were Donald Foster as Braddock, Jean Willes as Ansonia, Ralph Clanton as a general, Dick Jones as Ned Underwood, Otto Aldis as Mueller and John Banner as Major Heros von Borcke.[citation needed]
Gray Ghost was cancelled after one season of thirty-nine half-hour episodes. High production costs may have made[weasel words] the program too expensive to continue.
Lindsley Parsons created and produced The Gray Ghost,[1] and Frank McDonald directed it. Jack DeWitt and Warren Douglas were writers. CBS Film Sales was the distributor.[3] The book Gray Ghosts and Rebel Raiders by Virgil Cavington Jones formed the basis for the series, and Jones was technical advisor.[2]
The trade publication Variety said, "National sponsors reportedly ran scared" of the program "because of the integration issue and the concomitant rise in sectional feelings."[3] (The reference book The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows 1946-Present says, "The series was originally intended for the CBS-TV network, but three times potential sponsors backed out."[2]) Therefore the show was syndicated. The magazine's review of the premiere episode described it as "a romantic horse opera in a Civil War setting" that would be unlikely to "cause any rise in sectional feeling."[3]
Ray Bailey adapted the series into a comic strip.[4]