Shavetail: Fort Laramie (March 4, 1956)

“Shavetail” is an episode of Fort Laramie, the old-time radio show, first broadcast March 4, 1956. Listen free on Stupid Potato.

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What happens

Captain Quince reprimands young Lieutenant Sybert for abandoning his orders and engaging in combat with Indians, resulting in one soldier killed and others wounded. When Major Daggett threatens an official inquiry, Quince accepts responsibility and proposes leading a pursuit to recover the stolen horses and prevent further uprising before the situation escalates.

Fort Laramie, a cavalry outpost in Indian country on the frontier

Characters: Captain Lee Quince, Lieutenant Sybert, Sergeant Gores, Major Daggett, Private Lylie, Corporal Mercer, Corporal Dean, Private Wagner

Listen for: The tension between Quince's protective mentorship of his young officers and his strict adherence to military discipline, plus the discussion of cavalry versus infantry company designations and frontier command responsibilities.

Written from the episode itself; it never gives away the ending. Every recording is remastered for the stream: cleaned of rumble, hiss and mains hum (and the old TV whine where we found it), then levelled in two passes to steady broadcast loudness, so one show is never quieter than the next.