To restore the chemistry of the original cast, as the third season began in 1961, Spring Byington, formerly of the sitcom "December Bride", and Dennis Holmes joined the series in the roles of Daisy Cooper, a matronly widow, and Mike Williams, a young orphan permitted to live at the Sherman Ranch pending location of any next of kin, which never happened. At the beginning of its third season, "Laramie" was one of the first television programs that made the transition from black-and-white to color. On January 2, 1962, a new version of the NBC peacock "living color" logo was introduced before the "Laramie" broadcast that evening. This symbol, the "Laramie Peacock", was used before every color program on the network until 1975. Because of declining ratings in its last season, "Laramie" was cancelled.