Favorite TV sidekick

[David LaPell]

There are lots of heroes on TV, but there were lots of sidekicks. Which was your favorite? I always liked Festus from Gunsmoke, there was just something about him that I liked.

 

[Mule88]

Gotta be Barney Fife, Andys trusty deputy!

 

[Gunslinger808]

Kato from the Green Hornet.

 

[Pete99004]

Tonto from the Lone Ranger

 

[DeathGrip]

Ninety Nine

 

[310Pilot]

Festus? Shucks, he was alright, but not as good as Chester (played by Dennis Weaver), who he replaced. I can still hear "Mr. Dillon, Mr. Dillon!" There were a lot of other great ones, Barney Fife certainly ranks at the top, Tonto was outstanding, Jimmy was a good sidekick for Superman, Penny for Sky King, Pat Buttram for Roy Rogers, "Frog" for Gene Autry, Pancho for the Cisco Kid (Oh Pancho, Oh Cisco), Dr. Alexi Zarkhov for Flash Gordon (although calling him a siedekick may be stretching it a bit). In a way, I suppose, Clint Eastwood got his start as a sidekick of sorts as Rowdy Yates, sidekick to Gil Favor, the trail boss in Rawhide. Of course, the penultimate "sidekick" award MUST go to Gabby Hayes, who practically defined the genre!

 

[ogilvyspecial]

Chester Goode is definitely one of my favorites.

 

[RonJ]

Jingles! Wild Bill's sidekick.

Hey Wild Bill, wait for me.

 

[redlevel]

Chester Goode.

 

[krautski]

Dale, Bullet & Trigger.....

Whoops! I forgot Pat Butram and Nellybell....

 

[Chipmunk6]

+1 for Gabby Hayes
Chipmunk6

 

[nipster]

Hawk from Spenser for hire

Spock from Star Trek

 

[cougar14]

Long ago before Hawaii 5-0, Jack Lord starred in a weekly show in which he was a rodeo bronc rider. There was a clown, played by Warren Oates, my favorite character of all times. Does anyone remember the show, and Warren's character's name? Also Dano from 5-0.

 

[JcMack]

Ethel from "I love Lucy"

 

[nipster]

Long ago before Hawaii 5-0, Jack Lord starred in a weekly show in which he was a rodeo bronc rider. There was a clown, played by Warren Oates, my favorite character of all times. Does anyone remember the show, and Warren's character's name? Also Dano from 5-0.

Stoney Burke was the name of the show. Warren Oates' character was named Ves Painter

Also had Bruce Dern in it

 

[Ptarmigan]

I see after I typed this that the subject is great TV sidekicks. These are movie roles. Well, phooey, here it is anyway.

I believe my favorite sidekick is not a particular character, but a particular man. That would be Walter Brennan, who has been a memorable wingman for some of the biggest names ever throughout the years. Off the top of my head, he played partner Groot to John Wayne in Red River. He was also the Duke's sidekick as jailer Stumpy in Rio Bravo. And my favorite of Brennan's roles as tag along friend was as the drunk Eddie to fishing boat captain Humphrey Bogart in To Have and Have Not. An outstanding role and ode to loyalty.

 

[vytoland]

i have two..................

al st john, aka......fuzzy q jones, sidekick to buster crabbe & lash larue

leo carrillo, aka.....pancho, sidekick to cisco kid

 

[310Pilot]

Walter Brennan was a great actor. He also had a couple of TV roles, including playing Grandpa on "The Real McCoys," really a co-star, but kind of a sidekick to "Little Luke." The same two actors effectively traded roles in a subsequent TV series called "The Executives," in which Walter Brennan was a high-powered executive, and the actor who played Little Luke was his assistant and the company pilot (the company airplane was a Cessna 320 Skyknight - to me, the real star of the show).

 

[smithnframe]

How about the boy wonder Robin!

 

[DeathGrip]

Ed Norton.