"Bronco" premiered in the fall of 1958 when Warner Bros. executives and actor Clint Walker clashed over Walker's contract on the series "Cheyenne". Walker had walked out on his show over such stringent clauses as a requirement that he return half of all personal appearance fees to Warner Bros., and that he only record for Warner music labels. When the two sides came to an impasse, the network hired newcomer Ty Hardin to play the new character of Bronco Layne, but kept the title of "Cheyenne".