Ep 3. Death Deals the Hand

Cheyenne is a classic TV show from the 1950s that follows the adventures of Cheyenne Bodie, a cowboy drifter played by Clint Walker, in the Old West. In season 2 episode 3, titled "Death Deals the Hand," Cheyenne finds himself in the middle of a deadly plot involving a mining company, a gambling den, and a mysterious woman.

The episode starts with Cheyenne arriving in the town of Coulterville, where he witnesses a stagecoach robbery. He chases the robbers on horseback and manages to recover the stolen money, but he also gets a glimpse of the mastermind behind the heist: a man named Ed Carmody.

Cheyenne learns that Carmody is a powerful businessman who controls the local mining company and the nearby town of Esperanza, where he owns a saloon and a casino. Cheyenne suspects that Carmody is using the gambling den to launder the stolen money and decides to investigate further.

He visits the saloon and casino and strikes up a conversation with the owner, a beautiful woman named Julie Dexter. Julie is charming and flirtatious, but Cheyenne senses that there's more to her than meets the eye. He learns that she's been working for Carmody for a year and seems to be under his control.

Cheyenne also meets a group of miners who have been cheated by Carmody's company. They tell him how the company has been paying them less than promised and forcing them to buy supplies at inflated prices from the company store. Cheyenne decides to take up their cause and confronts Carmody about it.

The confrontation doesn't go well, and Cheyenne ends up getting arrested for assault. He spends the night in jail but is released the next day thanks to Julie, who offers to vouch for him. Cheyenne realizes that Julie is not the enemy but a potential ally in his fight against Carmody.

He comes up with a plan to expose Carmody's illegal activities and enlists the help of the miners, Julie, and a local sheriff who is also fed up with Carmody's corruption. They start gathering evidence and devising a scheme to trap Carmody.

The plan involves a high-stakes poker game at the casino, where Cheyenne will pretend to be a wealthy gambler and try to win back the stolen money from Carmody. The miners will also participate in the game and cause a distraction while Cheyenne switches the marked cards with a deck provided by Julie.

The game is tense and suspenseful, with high stakes and sharp exchanges between Cheyenne and Carmody. But eventually, Cheyenne outsmarts Carmody and exposes his cheating. The miners and the sheriff storm the casino and arrest Carmody, who is finally brought to justice.

As the episode ends, Cheyenne rides off into the sunset, leaving Coulterville and its problems behind. "Death Deals the Hand" is a thrilling adventure that showcases the iconic character of Cheyenne Bodie and his sense of justice in the Wild West.