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» » Le grand Chaparral Our Lady of Guadalupe (1967–1971)

Short summary

Each year the priest Padre Sanchez collects funds to help pay to return a religious statue that was taken long ago from the church. He tells the faithful how the statue has been traced back to the US. After the most recent collection a local man Gillis attempts to steal the money collected over time but finds the chest full of iron. Sanchez confronts him but Gillis realizes the priest has spent the money collected in previous years. Sanchez says he used it for the poor. Victoria asks Sanchez to come to the ranch where Big John tells Sanchez he will make up the 8000 pesos needed to return the icon. Sanchez goes to New Orleans where he has a fake made. Upon hearing he is returning but worried about its safety, Buck and Manolito meet Sanchez to escort him. Along the way Gillis sees them. He has his girlfriend Mavis ask for a ride to a nearby town to help him and his partner Maitlan steal the icon. Between the respect shown her by Manolito and her desire to change her life, Mavis changes ...

User reviews


  • comment
    • Author: Androwyn
    An episode back from the era where prime time television tried to be moral, and in trying to be, actually often exemplified values that are in great need.

    This episode features a moral lesson that money is an object. And as with all objects, it isn't the object that is good or bad, but instead what people do with it that determines its morality.

    Throughout the episode the priest is torn apart inside by what he knows. A truth that on its surface seems horrible to him, but in truth is nothing more than a man using resources in a way to help the most people in the best way possible.

    Objects are shown to be important only to the extent that they come to represent actions that are good. Some characters in this episode are shown as trapped in a material world, while others are torn because even though they strive for something beyond the material, think of themselves as failures because they are unable to go far enough beyond it.

    At the end of the episode, the fuller truth is revealed, and people are left to consider that good deeds are what count, and objects only really have value to the extent that people use them as a moral foundation to do good. And in that profound lesson, those in this episode torn by internal questions, realize that instead, they have done the best for others that they could.

    If only modern entertainment would even try to explain this -- such a moral lesson remains more necessary today than ever.
  • Episode cast overview:
    Leif Erickson Leif Erickson - Big John Cannon
    Cameron Mitchell Cameron Mitchell - Buck Cannon
    Mark Slade Mark Slade - Billy Blue Cannon
    Henry Darrow Henry Darrow - Manolito Montoya
    Linda Cristal Linda Cristal - Victoria Cannon
    Ricardo Montalban Ricardo Montalban - Padre Eduardo Sanchez
    Jan Shepard Jan Shepard - Mavis
    Bill Fletcher Bill Fletcher - Gillis
    Mike De Anda Mike De Anda - Garcia
    Norbert Schiller Norbert Schiller - Peletier
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