Robert Horton said he knew his wife loved him when she told him to quit ''Wagon Train''

Horton knew instantly that his wife was one for him.

The Everett Collection

Not to get all mushy on you, but how can you tell if someone is "The One"? How do you know that the person you're in love with is actually the person that you'd be willing to spend the rest of your life hanging out with? It's a tough question to answer in a few simple words, and many people have spent their entire lives searching for the answer, only to come up with their hands empty.

By the time Wagon Train actor Robert Horton married his wife, Marilynn in 1960, he had already been acting in the series for about two years. In an interview with the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, Horton was offered a five-year contract on Wagon Train, where after the allotted time, he would be invited to renew the contract and stay on the show. Faced with a difficult decision, Horton turned to his wife for advice.

He said, "One night I went home and asked Marilynn what she thought about my quitting the series, and she said 'I think you should.' Those words were music to the actor's ears, who continued, "That's when I knew she really loved me."

While the series provided a consistent source of income, Marilynn knew that if her husband stayed on the series, he wouldn't get to explore any other acting opportunities."

Horton acknowledged, "Sure, money's nice. It makes it easier to meet your responsibilities." But he also countered, "Your sights keep growing as you learn more and more about your profession. And unless you're lazy, which I'm not, you want to try and do more and more things."

The couple loved each other so much, in fact, that they later began working as a duo act. Horton said of the experience, "The only difference I notice is that Marilynn and I have a certain ease with each other that you might not have with a costar you had just met for the first time. In that case, I think it's an asset for us."


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23 Comments

Binkie 6 months ago
I love watching Wagon Train and Raw Hide. My day just doesn't seem to go as well if I miss any. My children asked me why I have a color TV. . .My answer is because I can't buy a black and white one!
fmetell 6 months ago
I would like you to broadcast season 7.
Mannixishot 6 months ago
I like Robert Horton and like watching Wagon Train. And for those tossing suggestions out for things they'd like to see. I think I'll go in the opposite direction. I like the fact MeTV doesn't change its schedule around that much. I come in from work late and love watching Alfred Hitchcock, Mannix, and The Fugitive. I imagine a lot of you people are the same way, just exchange out the time of day and the shows you enjoy watching.
Binkie Mannixishot 6 months ago
Same here!!
JJ614 6 months ago
The original reason Horton was said to leave WT was that as a singer, he wanted to do Broadway and use his musical talents. He never had the drive to play ONLY cowboys, as Robert Fuller always did.
JJ614 7 months ago
Please show Wagon Train Season 7 in your rotation. Just take out one Rifleman episode for those days since S7 is 90 minutes. Best part is it's in color and has Robert Fuller's first year on WT.
Sooner 7 months ago
I liked him, but I don't remember him doing much after leaving.
JJ614 Sooner 7 months ago
IMDB has an extensive list of everything he did after leaving WT. Plus "Horton performed for many years in theaters and nightclubs all over America, and in Australia as a singer (sometimes with his wife, the former Marilynn Bradley). In 1963, producer David Merrick hired him as the male lead in the musical version of N. Richard Nash's play The Rainmaker (titled 110 in the Shade), The musical, with a score by Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt, ran for 330 performances on Broadway.
MaryMitch JJ614 7 months ago
That sounds a lot like Pernell Roberts, who famously left Bonanza (he played Adam) after 6 years. Bonanza continued to be a hit, and everyone thought he had made a terrible mistake. But if you look at his IMDB profile, he worked pretty much constantly as well as having the time for theater roles.
boomerdragon61 Sooner 6 months ago
One of my earliest TV memories was a creature feature called The Green Slime. It was a Japanese monster movie taking place on a space station. Late 60s I believe. Robert Horton was the lead! I have no idea why I remember this particular movie but I wish Sven could find it. Anyone else remember it?
JamesB 7 months ago
I liked Robert Horton in the short-lived "A Man Called Shenandoah". It was apparently a typical victim of competition, but perhaps also audience tastes (1965-1966) for ensemble Westerns such as "Bonanza" and "Gunsmoke" and "The Big Valley" (which opened in 1965 as well). Some interesting trivia about Shenandoah is at http://www.westernclippings.com/remember/mancalledshenandoah_doyouremember.shtml
Wiseguy70005 7 months ago
Always thought that drawing of Robert Horton in the credits looked more like James MacArthur from Hawaii Five-0.
Wubbywubby 7 months ago
I really like wagon train too, but I love the big valley I turn in on every Saturday at noon my favorites, Perry, Mason, Matlock, and in the heat of the night that encompasses my mornings with my coffee
Wac1 7 months ago
Please leave Wagon Train on! It is amazing to see what these people went through going west.

I am with another person who said to replace The Big Valley. Perhaps add Lawman and The Restless Gun!
ajmcclung Wac1 10 days ago
There are still places (I think I saw this in southern Wyoming, it's been a while) where you can still see the wagon wheel ruts of the Oregon Trail.
Hard to believe they are still visible after 140+ years
What a crazy, dangerous adventure the way West must have been!
Ajax 7 months ago
Would like to see episodes of Bronco and Sugarfoot once in awhile besides the same old same old westerns.
Cougar90 Ajax 7 months ago
Adding some other westerns would be a good idea. The Guns of Will Sonnett. Bordertown. Laramie. Daniel Boone. There are westerns on INSP and since they also air Gunsmoke and Bonanza maybe the folks at Me-tv can work on adding them to the schedule.
JJ614 Cougar90 6 months ago
There are SO MANY westerns to choose from for us to enjoy. SOME are on METV+
AgingDisgracefully 7 months ago
If only he met someone who loved him enough to tell him to quit acting...
Kmfzzy 7 months ago
Don't take wagon train anywhere!! I Love that show!! Big Valley or Bonanza can go if any must lol.
Andybandit 7 months ago
I don't mean to be mean but wagon train was my least favorite western. I wish MeTv would change it with another show.
cperrynaples 7 months ago
Many think Horton's departure killed Wagon Train at NBC! It remains the only series canceled at #1 as opposed to shows that ended of their own accord {i.e. TAGS]! WT went to ABC while The Virginian ran on NBC, both in the same time slot!
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