Ep 17. The Lady from Baltimore

The Lady from Baltimore is the seventeenth episode of the third season of the classic Western television series Bonanza. This episode centers around a refined and cultured woman from a wealthy Baltimore family who arrives in Virginia City, Nevada, under mysterious circumstances.

The Lady from Baltimore, whose real name is revealed later in the episode to be Penelope Gowen, is played with great poise and elegance by actress Joan Hackett. She seeks out the help of the Cartwright family, who own the Ponderosa Ranch, when it becomes clear that she is being followed and harassed by a group of gunmen.

She is initially hesitant to share too much information about herself, but she gradually opens up to the Cartwrights and reveals that she is in Nevada to retrieve a valuable necklace that belonged to her father and was stolen from her a few years prior. The necklace is said to be worth a significant sum of money and she believes that the men who are after her are also after the necklace.

Penelope is accompanied by her loyal but slightly bumbling servant, Jupiter (played by African-American actor Louis Gossett Jr. in one of his earliest roles). Jupiter adds a touch of humor to the episode but also provides valuable assistance to the Cartwrights in their efforts to protect Penelope from harm.

Throughout the course of the episode, there are a number of tense showdowns between the Cartwrights and the gunmen who are after Penelope. The Cartwrights rally around Penelope and do everything in their power to keep her safe. There are also a few unexpected twists and turns as the plot unfolds and the motivations of various characters become clearer.

As is typical of Bonanza episodes, there are a number of underlying themes that are explored in The Lady from Baltimore. One of the most prominent themes is the tension between the refined and polite manners of Penelope and the rough and tumble world of the American frontier. Penelope struggles to reconcile her upbringing as a well-bred lady with the harsh realities of life in the West, and her interactions with the Cartwrights and other characters highlight the cultural clashes that often occurred during this period of American history.

Another theme that is explored in The Lady from Baltimore is the idea of honor and duty. Penelope is shown to be a woman of great integrity who is willing to do whatever it takes to retrieve her stolen property, even if it means putting herself in harm's way. The Cartwrights, too, are portrayed as honorable men who are willing to risk their own safety to protect someone in need.

Overall, The Lady from Baltimore is a well-crafted episode that showcases the strengths of the Bonanza series. The plot is engaging and suspenseful, the characters are well-drawn and interesting, and the themes explored in the episode are timeless and universal. Fans of classic Westerns and television dramas will find much to enjoy in this episode.