it get to be a running joke around bonanza about how fatal it be for any woman to get involve with any cartwright men . after all ben cartwright be three time a widower with a son by each marriage . and any woman who get involve with adam and hoss and and little joe be go to end up die because we couldn not get rid of the formula of the widower and the three son that start this classic tv western . perhaps if bonanza be be do today the writer would have have revolving woman character who come in and out of the life of the cartwright . people have relationship and some go good and some not so good and it just life . and be less demanding of our hero today so if a relationship with one of them go south we do not have to kill the character off to keep the survivor nobility intact . but that if bonanza be do today . but we be still expect a lot from our western hero and bonanza though it take a while to take hold and a change of view time from nbc certainly help and the secret of bonanza success be the noble patriarch ben cartwright and his stalwart son . ben cartwright be the ideal tv dad in any genre you want to name . his whole life be spend in the hard work of building that immense ponderosa spread for his three child . the kid be all different in personality and but all come together in a pinch . the cartwright become and still be an american institution . i daresay more people care about this family than the kennedy . just the popularity that bonanza have in syndication testifies to that . pernell robert a old son adam be write out of the show . rumor have it he do not care for the noble cartwright character which he felt border on sanctimonious . perhaps if it be do now and he would have like it well in the way i describe . this be just the beginning for michael landon and how many people get three hit tv show to their credit . landon also have highway to heaven and little house on the prarie where he have creative control . little joe be the young and most hot head and but the most romantic of the cartwright . when roberts leave . the show keep go with the two young son and but when big dan blocker leave and the heart go out of bonanza . other character have be add on by that time and david canary and tim matheson and and ben cartwright adopt young mitch vogel . but big and loyal and but a little thick hoss be easily the most lovable of the cartwright . his sudden demise after surgery leave too big a hole in that family . so the cartwright of the ponderosa have pass into history . i get a real taste of how america take the cartwright to heart when i visit the real virginia city . it doesn not look anything like what you see in bonanza . but near lake tahoe and just about where you see the ponderosa on the map at the opening credit and be the cartwright home and the set maintain and open a a tourist attraction . like 21 baker street for sherlock holmes fan and the ranchhouse and the cartwright be real . and if they weren not real and they should have be .