Ponderosa Steakhouse and Bonanza Steakhouse under the Metromedia Restaurant Group. The names of the restaurants were derived from the classic TV series "Bonanza", which was set at a place called Ponderosa Ranch. In 1963, Dan Blocker, who played Eric "Hoss" Cartwright on "Bonanza", started the Bonanza Steakhouse chain. The first Bonanza opened in Westport, Connecticut. Sam Wyly and his brother Charles Wyly bought the small Bonanza restaurant chain three years later. The company grew to approximately 600 restaurants by 1989, when the Wylys sold it to Metromedia. In 1965, Dan Lasater, Norm Wiese and Charles Kleptz founded Ponderosa in Kokomo, Indiana, moving the headquarters to
The Smith Family (TV series) The Smith Family (TV series) The Smith Family is an American comedy-drama television series starring Henry Fonda and Ron Howard and produced by Don Fedderson Productions in association with CBS television. The series aired on ABC from January 20, 1971 to June 7, 1972, for 39 episodes. Chad Smith is a police detective in Los Angeles. The show covered the exploits of Sergeant Smith and his relationships with his wife Betty and their three children, 18-year-old Cindy, 15-year-old Bob and 7-year-old Brian. The opening season theme song was "Primrose Lane", composed by Red Callender (as George Callender) and Wayne Shanklin.