One of the joys of watching BONANZA was that (unlike GUNSMOKE and other major western television shows) it did not take itself very seriously. Every now and then there would be purely comic episodes involving the major characters, usually Hoss and Little Joe, but frequently Ben Cartwright as well. And what made these episodes good was the simplicity of the story line - they tended to be very believable.
Hoss (Dan Blocker) is always a decent sort of guy - he can get mad, but he is fully willing to let bygones be bygones if the opponent changes for the better. But he has a failing. It is not that he is stupid, but he is more prone than this brothers Joe and Adam to fall for certain half-truths or lies if the liar is able to push them properly.
The plot of this wonderful episode is that Hoss finds a group of gypsies (naturally led by Eva Gabor) on Ponderosa land using their resources without asking permission. When he confronts them he does notice that Gabor is quite attractive (something she is very used to in men, and which she is always quick to take advantage of). She gives him a line about the nasty ways of the world, and how she has been persecuted, and she brings up her "second sight" (she reads palms). While he bashfully protests against this, she looks at his palm, and suddenly she is treating Hoss like royalty. It seems his palm says that he has great musical talent. Hoss is astounded - he's never noticed this before (and soon the audience realizes why). Gabor sells him (she doesn't miss a trick) an old violin. Hoss goes back to the Ponderosa to practice.
Soon he has Ben (Lorne Greene), Joe (Michael Landon) and Hop Sing (Victor Sen Yung) in a tizzy. Hoss has a tin ear - he has no sense of melody or harmony. His fingering of the strings is for the birds. He lacks rhythm. Joe and Ben try to set him straight, but he insists it is his destiny to give music to the world. Well, they insist he practice in the fields. He does - and it upsets the ranch hands and the neighbors.
Ben always tries reverse psychiatry in moments like this. He convinces Hoss (who has been practicing) to go into Virginia City with him. There is a new piano teacher in town, and Ben wants Hoss to play for her. Ben figures that Hoss will be told off by this expert to forget about a music career. Unfortunately for Ben the piano teacher is Kathleen Freeman, who takes one look at the broad and wide Hoss and sees a kindred spirit (and a potential boyfriend). Gritting her teeth but never letting on what she really thinks, Ms Freeman hears the maestro play his fiddle, and tells him (much to the dismay and amazement of Ben) that he certainly is original and shows great promise!
This is repeated with variations in the story. Nobody wants to hurt Hoss's feelings, and most tell him (only Ben, Joe, and Hop Sing being independent on this) that he plays very well. Ben even has Hoss set up an evening's musical recitation for the ranch hands. They sit down knowing how bad Hoss is (they have been hearing him all these days screeching his notes out). But the foreman (and I keep thinking the foreman was played by Lyle Bettger, but I might be wrong about this - he is not listed in the credits), warns the men (including Doodles Weaver) that rich people like the Cartwrights are eccentric, and people who work with them have to humor them - so no matter what they really think, applaud like crazy or face the chance of losing your jobs! They too keep painfully straight faces (except for a calm Doodles - he has put cotton in his ears), and then applaud and cheer like mad at the conclusion - much to the amazement of Little Joe and Ben.
It is only when Joe confronts Ms Gabor's gypsy lady that a resolution is brought about - and Hoss drops the violin. But this only leads to the final catastrophic decision he makes regarding his musical career.
A really funny episode, and one that makes one respect people who can play musical instruments.
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