How many of you Lassie fans remember the CBS series Gentle Ben, starring Dennis Weaver, Clint Howard, and Beth Brickell? It ran originally for 2 seasons between 1967 and 1969, 56 or 58 episodes (source discrepancy). Ben was Mark's (Clint's) black bear.

I used to really enjoy watching it -- likely in syndication in the early 1970s. Maybe one of the retro networks can air it, like they've done with Flipper in the past.

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Back in 2013 and 2014, CBS released both seasons of Gentle Ben on DVD. It fits right in with other animal/adventure shows of the 60's like Daktari and Flipper. I would just prefer that the episodes be a full hour instead of just a half hour, half hour episodes don't leave a lot of room for story development. Episodes of Flipper are also only a half hour although some of them are multi part shows stretched over 2 or 3 episodes. Episodes of Daktari run for a full hour. The half hour format works fine for sitcoms, but for action/adventure shows I believe a full hour is preferred for better story development.

For fans of the series (and Dennis Weaver fans):

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