In the 1968-1970 CBS Western series "Lancer", Brinegar had the role of Jelly Hoskins; and in 1969 he appeared in "Charro!" starring Elvis Presley. Then, in 1973, he played the barman in Clint Eastwood's film "High Plains Drifter". From 1982 to 1983, returning to television, Brinegar portrayed a humorous cowboy-like character, Lamar Pettybone, during the first season of the ABC series "Matt Houston". Later he reprised a revised version of his "Rawhide" Wishbone character for the 1991 TV movie "The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw," in which he delivers a brief monologue that contains references to several old television Westerns.