Bonanza: The Return portrayed Candy Canaday on the original series, was not involved with either TV-movie. The setting is The Ponderosa in the year 1905. Augustus Brandenburg (Dean Stockwell), a land baron, attempts to take the Ponderosa first by legal, and then by illegal means, in order to strip the land of its natural resources. The story includes several flashbacks to the original series. Bonanza: The Return Bonanza: The Return is a 1993 made-for-television film sequel to both the 1959–1973 television series "Bonanza" and the 1988 made-for-television film "". The movie was directed by Jerry Jameson and featured noted character actors Ben Johnson,
Bonanza became the Cartwright's foreman. Initially, "Bonanza" aired on Saturday evenings opposite "Dick Clark's Saturday Night Beech-Nut Show" and "John Gunther's High Road" on ABC, and "Perry Mason" on CBS. "Bonanza"s initial ratings were respectable, often coming in behind Mason but ahead of the ABC line-up. Ironically, executives considered canceling the show before its premiere because of its high cost. NBC kept it because "Bonanza" was one of the first series to be filmed and broadcast in color, including scenes of picturesque Lake Tahoe, Nevada, although most of the episodes were obviously filmed on soundstages until the seasons near the end