I agree that the yelling is more for comic relief.

But, this ep was all about the romance...

 

 

 

 

 

 

2 hours ago, Oxgirl said:

 

Oh, so she actually died at the end of the ep then?  I don't know why she had to be mean to him then, if she knew she was going to die anyway, why not leave him with happy memories of her.

 

She told Ben she was giving Joe back to him.  I believe Julia was trying to make it easier on Joe by being mean so he would't feel her loss as greatly. 

 

 

Carson Now in their Nevada Lore series gives this background:

By Kelsey Penrose

 

Juliette “Julia” Bulette was born in England in 1832 and quickly became the proprietor of the most lavish and prosperous brothel in Virginia City. She was beloved by all, and became an honorary member of the Virginia Engine Company Number 1 fire brigade.  However, her life came to an end when she was murdered by a French jewel thief, baker and drifter John Millain, and the town turned itself inside out to see that justice was done.

 

In the beginnings of the boom, there was an influx of miners into the area looking to get their hands on the Comstock Lode, but women hadn’t begun to make the move yet. Which made Julia Bulette a highly sought after commodity.

 

She was described as being tall, beautiful and refined, with a quick-witted and humorous personality.

 

She lived and worked out of a small rented cottage near the corners of D and Union streets in the entertainment district.

 

She was wildly popular with the mining men of the city. One described her as being a “caressed Sun Mountain with a gentle touch of splendor.”

 

She once turned her Palace into a hospital after several hundred men became severely ill from drinking contaminated water, and she nursed them herself. She also raised funds for the Union during the Civil War.

 

She became an honorary member of the Virginia Engine Number 1 fire brigade and on the 4th of July she was elected as the Queen of the Independence Day Parade, and she road on a fire truck through town wearing a fireman’s hat and carrying a brass fire trumpet filled with roses.

 

She often donated large sums for new equipment, and would personally help work the water pump during Virginia City’s many, many fires.

During several flu epidemics, which were common due to the over-crowding and tent cities that made up a majority of the town in the early days, she created and doled out soup lines and helped nurse the sick back to health.

 

On the morning of January 20, 1867, Julia was found murdered in her home.

 

Her friend and neighbor, Gertrude Holmes, came to visit and bring her breakfast, and walked in to a terrible scene.  Julia had been strangled, struck with a pistol, and bludgeoned with a piece of firewood.

 

Despite the fact that she was a well-loved madam, she did not own many expensive possessions. Her cottage was decorated tastefully, but she didn’t own lavish jewels or have any money to her name. In fact, at the time of her death, she was in a good amount of debt.

 

Even still, several of her possessions, including costume jewelry, fancy dresses, and two rolls of silk fabric (she was also an accomplished seamstress, as many women in the City were during those days), were missing.  The members of the city were shocked and horrified by the brutality of the killing, and an immediate search began to find her killer.

 

The very next day, her funeral was held at the firehouse. Sleet came down in torrents upon the mourners, and yet, the entire town came to pay their respects to their fallen lady of the evening.  Reverend William Martin gave a eulogy that was well-received and deemed to be “most appropriate for the occasion.”

 

In her obituary published in the Virginia City Territorial Enterprise (of which Mark Twain wrote for), she was described as “being of a very kind-hearted, liberal, benevolent and charitable disposition. Few of her class had more true friends.”

 

Her fellow firefighters bought a silver-handled mahogany casket, and the Metropolitan Brass Band led 60 members of the fire department on foot during the procession. Sixteen carriages of mourners accompanied them as well to the Flowery Hill Cemetery.

 

Though she was a Catholic, and was given a Catholic funeral, she was not allowed to be buried in consecrated ground, and so she was buried on a solitary hill with a simple plank of wood that said “Julia.”

 

The town covered itself in black, and for the first time since Lincoln was assassinated, all saloons closed up shop out of respect.

 

There are two accounts of how her murderer, drifter John Millian, was captured.

 

The first says that several months later, a prostitute by the name of Martha Camp was woken by someone in her room. She then saw John Millian coming towards her with a weapon and screamed, causing him to flee.  However, a few days later, she saw the same man on the street. His given name was Jean Marie Villain, but everyone knew him as John Millian, a French baker and drifter.  He was then arrested and a search of his things uncovered many of Julia’s possessions.

 

The second account is that a seamstress was looking over two pieces of elegant silk fabric she had purchased a few months before from the baker for a low price, when she heard two men discussing Julia’s murder and the fact that no one had caught the killer.  When she heard them say that two pieces of silk fabric had been stolen, her blood ran cold and she immediately went to the police. They arrested Millian, and searched his belongings, finding many of Julia’s possessions.

 

Whichever account is true, the ending of the stories remains the same.  Millian confessed to the crime once presented with the evidence of Julia’s belongings, but retracted the statement soon after his trial began.  Millian’s attorney argued that she was killed by two other men, and that the baker was simply asked to store the possessions until they returned. He could not, however, tell them the names of the actual killers and had no witnesses to corroborate his claims.

 

On April 24, 1868, John Millian was taken to the gallows a mile outside of town. Crowding around the gallows, 4,000 spectators, including Mark Twain himself, gathered to watch his execution, coming in from all of the surrounding towns and territories.

 

Julia’s final resting place on the side of Flowery Hill has since been lost to time, but her name remains in the minds of the Old West, and the legacy of Virginia City.

 

 

Thanks for posting the article, Cheaux.  I knew a little about Julia's history but had not read that one.

Wow, I had never heard those accounts of Jean Millain's capture, nor the fact that Mark Twain was present for the hanging. 

 

23 hours ago, BluewindFarm said:

 

And as Adam is picking Joe up from the floor, I love how limp Michael Landon is; like a limp noodle.    So many actors attempt to 'help' the actor who is attempting to pick them up during similar scenes and it really shows that they're not unconscious.

 

I can't decide if he bends his right leg up and stands up on it to help them, or if that just happens, cant understand why his knee bends up. 

20 hours ago, indiana said:

Agree with you. And it's why I consider the show like ambiguous, especially the look of Ben on his adult sons in certain episodes. Ben considering his sons like boys is very disturbing for me. You cannot accept, as parent, that your young son has a behavior of an adult (drink, poker game, in love mature women), and in another time treating him (them) like teenagers, it's totally incoherent.

I know generally Bonanza fans don't like my vision, sorry about that, but it's my opinion, and it doesn't mean I don't like these nice characters.

 

I agree.  I love the show but hate it when Ben treats adults sons like little boys - sending them to bed etc.

I have a soft spot for this episode--the brothers interactions and much-overlooked JAM when the Cartwrights are told Julia was murdered.

 

 

The most intriguing thing about this episode for me is the hints of Ben's relationship with Julia.  Did he turn to her for comfort in the wake of Marie's death?  Why did he break things off?  Did he still care for her?  If he did, it's a tad weird that he'd be happy to have her as his daughter-in-law.  

 

David Dortort again seamlessly wove the Cartwrights into Virginia City's real history, even though the real Julia Bulette's death occurred much later than in this episode.  

I agree with Patina that this is a great example of VC history woven into the show.  Timelines were often fudged but most people wouldn't know or care. It was a bit of a risk IMO, especially so early in the series, to tarnish Little Joe's reputation with a madam, no matter how golden her heart may have been.  Hard to go back and portray him as a boy.  But then, maybe that's more of a fanfic tendency.  One thing seems clear from this episode -- the Cartwrights were not Puritans. 

 

Patina's "Reputation" gently probes Ben's relationship with Julia.  A recommended read.  

 

14 hours ago, patina said:

The most intriguing thing about this episode for me is the hints of Ben's relationship with Julia.  Did he turn to her for comfort in the wake of Marie's death?  Why did he break things off?  Did he still care for her?  If he did, it's a tad weird that he'd be happy to have her as his daughter-in-law.  

 

Personally, I never got the impression that Ben's knew Julia before meeting her after she arrived in VC.  It hard to know where Ben could have know her from previously, and especially when Maria died.  Julia came West to 'cash in' on the California Gold Rush, which didn't begin until 1848 [in fact she came to California in the early 1850's], whilst Marie would have died a year before in 1847.  For me, Ben knew her simply because, in the Ep, she was being portrayed as a prominent citizen of the newly built VC, and their relationship didn't extend beyond that.  

 

 

As for the inconsistencies and the treating the boys like children sometimes and not other times  ... I’m convinced it’s completely episode based. If they thought for the plot they needed it, they would do it. If they thought for the plot Ben treated his sons like men, they would do it. It was sixties TV ... there *was* very little consistency and or story arc — think the sixties ‘big red reset button’.  I think they must have written the episodes completely independently of each other ...

4 minutes ago, PSW said:

As for the inconsistencies and the treating the boys like children sometimes and not other times  ... I’m convinced it’s completely episode based. If they thought for the plot they needed it, they would do it. If they thought for the plot Ben treated his sons like men, they would do it. It was sixties TV ... there *was* very little consistency and or story arc — think the sixties ‘big red reset button’.  I think they must have written the episodes completely independently of each other ...

 

So true and totally agree.  I'm sure I saw a 60s show once where a character died one week and come back the next    

16 minutes ago, Bakerj said:

 

So true and totally agree.  I'm sure I saw a 60s show once where a character died one week and come back the next    

 

Yeah, and I saw an old ep of a series once where the character had hurt one arm and then later on in the show it was the other arm that was bandaged!  You'd think the actor at least would have remember and said, hold on, wasn't it the other arm I hurt! 

2 hours ago, Oxgirl said:

 

Yeah, and I saw an old ep of a series once where the character had hurt one arm and then later on in the show it was the other arm that was bandaged!  You'd think the actor at least would have remember and said, hold on, wasn't it the other arm I hurt! 

 

Then again, it’s not just TV ... ACD couldn’t even remember where Dr Watson was supposed to have been shot while in Afghanistan. In one book it was the shoulder, in the next it was the leg. Which leads most fans to just assume it was both ...  I think that back before TV and recordings and such it probably wasn’t such a big deal because people were depending more on their memories, which aren’t  quite as infallible as a recording. Even in the 60s I don’t think it quite occurred to them that these would be recorded and rewatched ... 

 

Oh wait. This thread is supposed to be about The Julia Bulette Story, you say? Oh ... I do think this ep was a good showcase of the fact that age wasn’t a big deal for Joe — if he saw something he liked, he went for it regardless!

Two  things weird in this episode in my view is that Joe (at 17 ish) has been in San Francisco for two months conducting business all by himself.   AND Adam says it's about time they show Joe the inside of Julia's Palace.   Does anyone else find this odd?

6 hours ago, Cheaux said:

Two  things weird in this episode in my view is that Joe (at 17 ish) has been in San Francisco for two months conducting business all by himself.   AND Adam says it's about time they show Joe the inside of Julia's Palace.   Does anyone else find this odd?

 

Yep, I thought those things too. 

7 hours ago, Cheaux said:

Two  things weird in this episode in my view is that Joe (at 17 ish) has been in San Francisco for two months conducting business all by himself.   AND Adam says it's about time they show Joe the inside of Julia's Palace.   Does anyone else find this odd?

Seems Joe would have discovered Julia’s Palace on his own. But the question does bring up additional questions. When did Adam and Hoss discover Julia’s Palace? Did each go in of his own accord?  On a dare? What was Ben’s reaction?

 

There are a couple of odd throwaway lines in a scene at the ranch house after Joe has moved in with Julia. Ben says to Adam, “You must be enjoying this.” Adam says something like defending Julia is doing the kid a lot of good. Ben’s reply is something like Joe should defend someone else. 

@Patina, do you think Ben had broken up a romance with an unsuitable girl and Adam? 

 

I think Ben was okay with His boys going to Julia's as long as they were discreet and  subtle. Litt Joe has the discretion and subtlety of a whoopee cushion in church!

 

If Ben had made an ultimatum to Joe between coming home with him or staying with Joe, what would Ben's baby boy have chosen?

On 2/7/2020 at 8:51 AM, Bakerj said:

One of the highlights of S1 for me, which showcases what an accomplished young actor Michael Landon was.  It has many great scenes.  The fight with Jean Millain (mentioned above) being one.  

 

The scene where Ben confronts Joe over Julia is wonderful, and when Joe brings us his mother it's very tense.

 

 

Despite the age difference, the relationship between Julia and Joe is believable.  You don't doubt for one minute that Joe is attracted to her. 

 

 

 

 

Oh, my goodness, YES!!! 

to me Jean Millian was cute as well.

 I read somewhere, can't remember where, that many 0f the ladies of Virginia City wanted to shake Millain's hand after the murder. Also, there is some question of  how much Millain understood about the charges as French was his first language, how much English he understood is questionable, and there was no interpreter for Millain.

He was framed for Julia's murder.

On 2/7/2020 at 12:03 PM, jfclover said:

 

Do you watch what you say when you're angry?  Ben's mad at all his sons and wants them out of the room.

Besides none of them are acting as adults. Hoss and Adam seem to be wanting to hear Joe being bawled out by their father. If I remember correctly Adam even moved his chair to get a better look.  

On 7/11/2022 at 11:46 PM, Dana said:

@Patina, do you think Ben had broken up a romance with an unsuitable girl and Adam? 

 

I think Ben was okay with His boys going to Julia's as long as they were discreet and  subtle. Litt Joe has the discretion and subtlety of a whoopee cushion in church!

 

If Ben had made an ultimatum to Joe between coming home with him or staying with Joe, what would Ben's baby boy have chosen?

He probably would have chosen staying with Julia. Hormones were running high. 

I like this episode as a whole, even though it isn't my favorite. Ben is trying to protect his youngest son from damaging his reputation, as well as his own, by extension. By the end of the episode, Ben sees that Joe needs to make his own choices, and when he fights Joe, this only divides his family.