Archibald Gillespie, USMC

In Dream West, Marine Lieutenant Archibald Gillespie arrived at John C. Fremont's camp in Oregon to relay verbal orders from the president.  Moments later, he was killed in an Indian attack.  This is a rewrite of history.

Gillespie was born in New York in 1812 and joined the Marines in 1832.  In October 1845, President Polk provided him with secret messages for Commodore Sloat of the Pacific Squadron, US Consul Thomas O. Larkin (based in Monterrey, California), and John C. Fremont.  He sailed to Vera Cruz, arriving on December 10th.  His efforts to cross the country were hindered by the latest uprising.  However, he crossed the country and arrived in Mazatlán.  In late February, he was picked up by an American ship on the west coast of Mexico and made his way to Monterrey, California.  Having delivered his messages to both Sloat and Larkin, he then went in search of Fremont.

Fremont had been ejected from California by General Castro and was near Kamath Lake in Oregon, which is where Gillespie found him.  No sooner had Gillespie arrived with his secret message than Fremont marched back into California.  Little did they know, the war had begun with the Thornton Affair almost 2 weeks earlier.  The Bear Flag Revolt took place on June 14th and Commodore Robert "Fighting Bob" Stockton raised the US flag on July 18.  Los Angeles surrendered on August 13th, thus concluding the initial conquest of California.

Captain Gillespie was named military commandant of the southern district.  He had 48 men to hold Los Angeles.  This might have been fine if he had not imposed martial law.  The locals soon rose in rebellion.  The American forces were soon under siege at Fort Moore Hill.  By the end of September, Gillespie surrendered and marched to the coast, leaving Los Angeles to the Californios.  An initial effort to retake the city with the help of the US Navy failed.  The Navy transported Gillespie and his men to San Diego.

In early December, news arrived that General Kearny was nearby.  Stockton sent a detachment under Gillespie to escort him the rest of the way to San Diego.  Gillespie arrived with 40 men and a field gun.  After his long march, Kearny was itching for a fight.  He had traveled from Fort Leavenworth, Kansas to California without a shot fired.  So it was that the weary Dragoons charged to battle against fresh Californio lancers who knew the terrain much better and whose lances were not rendered useless by the rain.  The Californios recognized Gillespie from his tyrannical rule in Los Angeles and targeted him.  He was lanced in the chest, puncturing a lung.

Despite the disastrous battle, the column arrived in San Diego on December 12th.  Despite his injuries, Gillespie was well-enough to ride north the following month.  He was again wounded during the battle to retake Los Angeles.  On January 10, 1847, Gillespie was called upon to raise the US Flag, the very one he had hauled down in September.

Gillespie remained with the Marines until 1854.  He died in San Francisco in 1873.

Though most of this falls outside the story that Dream West tells, Gillespie should not have been killed off.  Though Fremont's party was attacked by Indians and also 'got even' with them soon after, Gillespie was not one of the fatalities.  Gillespie should have been yet another cameo, like Jim Bridger or Tom Fitzpatrick.

Dream West (Part 3)

It is 1847.  General Kearny arrests Lt. Col. John C Fremont with plans of court martialing him for mutiny, among other things.  The trial takes place in Washington, where Senator Thomas Hart Benton sits behind his son-in-law; the long break between Benton and his daughter Jessie is at an end.  Fremont is found guilty and ordered dishonorably discharged.  He counts on a Presidential Pardon, which comes but does not absolve him entirely.  He resigns the army and sets out on his 4th expedition.

Kit Carson was unavailable, so Fremont hired Bill Williams (Anthony Zerbe) as guide.  The expedition is a disaster as the men are stranded in the snows of the Rocky Mountains.  Several die of starvation.  When Fremont finally gets to California and reunites with Jessie, he is a rich man.  There is gold on the ranch he purchased.  With this, he financed yet another expedition, his 5th and final one, mapping a path through the Rockies for a railroad.

In 1856, Fremont is the first Republican nominee for the presidency.  Abraham Lincoln (F Murray Abraham) is among the delegates who nominate him.  He loses by a large margin.

1858.  Thomas Hart Benton is on his death bed.  Jessie visits.  Her father agreed that she was right about Fremont all those years ago.  She chose a very fine man.

In 1861, the Civil War has begun and President Lincoln named Fremont to command the Western Department, with a particular interest in preventing Missouri from joining the Confederacy.  In St. Louis, Fremont immediately confronted the rebel sympathizers in the city.  Time to stop treating them with kid gloves.  He went so far as to post a proclamation freeing slaves from rebels.  Lincoln viewed this as a huge overstep on Fremont's part and sent General Hunter (James Cromwell) to replace him.

It 1887, Fremont and his wife live a modest life on Staten Island.  All their wealth was lost on bad investments in the railroads.  They depend upon Jessie's writing to support them.  In a final train journey back to California, they encounter a man and his son.  The man gushes about Fremont and his book enabling his parents to travel west and thus provide him the prosperous life he now has.

The final chapter is a hodgepodge.  Where the first two episodes had a smooth flow with the rise of Fremont (episode 1 covered 4 years or so) and Fremont at War (episode 2 covers 4 years or so), this one covers the rest of his life (40 years). That's a lot of time to cover and it feels rushed.  The disaster of the 4th expedition is fully explored, even dragging at times.  The 5th expedition, which sees the return of Kit Carson, felt rushed by comparison.  The presidential campaign started with Fremont's nomination at the Republican Convention and ended almost the next scene with his defeat.  Next thing you know, it's the Civil War.  None of Fremont's battles are filmed; it is all camp and HQ.  This chapter feels more like a history lecture than an engaging story.

Though I like F Murray Abraham, he is badly cast as Abraham Lincoln.  He is in so much makeup that he almost looks to be wearing an Abe Lincoln mask.  The look is unconvincing to the extent of being distracting.  He lacks the towering stature of Lincoln.  His conversation with Jessie where she chides him for withdrawing Fremont's emancipation proclamation made Lincoln look small.

Overall, the miniseries is good.  It is too lenient on Fremont, but it is telling the story from his point of view.  My reading of the man shows him to be brash and arrogant.  He had a high opinion of himself and was not prone to humility.  Chamberlain's Fremont does not come across as a man who grew up in South Carolina.

Recommended.

Dream West (Part 2)

John Charles Fremont (Richard Chamberlain) finished his expedition by testing a raft on the river.  Loading all the gear and valuable data into inflatable boat, the explores raft back toward civilization.  Unfortunately, they were not ready for the rapids.  Much of the equipment is lost but the records are recovered. Back home, it is now time to write the report, but Fremont finds he has not talent for it.  Jessie (Alice Krige) gladly takes over.  She has a talent for making the report readable.  When the book is published, it proves to be a great success.  During a celebratory dinner, Secretary of the Navy George Bancroft suggested that Fremont should travel to California on his next expedition and be ready for war between the United States and Mexico.  However, no written orders were provided.

With Kit Carson (Rip Torn) at his side, Fremont set out on his 3rd Expedition.  Once in California, his wanderings drew the ire of General Castro.  Fremont was ordered out of the state.  While in Oregon, a Marine Lieutenant, Archibald Gillespie (Johnathan Frakes), arrived.  Fremont needed to get back to California, but there are still no written orders.  Soon, Fremont is nudging American settlers to overthrow the California Government, infuriating John Sutter (Jerry Orbach).  The Bear Flag Republic is born.  Only weeks later, the US Navy raised the US flag over California.  Eager to report the success to Washington, Fremont sent Kit east with dispatches.  On the way, Kit encountered General Stephen Watts Kearny (G D Spradlin) heading toward California with his column of US Dragoons.  Kearny roped Kit into leading the column back to California.  When Kearny arrived in California, he immediately clashed with Fremont.  Fremont declined to follow Kearny's orders; after all, Commodore Robert Stockton was in charge of California.

In Washington, Jessie sought help for her husband.  Bancroft denied any orders for Fremont to topple California.  When she met with President Polk (Noble Willingham), he was equally adamant that no such orders were conveyed.  Unsurprisingly, Kearny placed Fremont under arrest for mutiny and marched him east for an eventual court martial.

This episode gets several things wrong.  Firstly, Lt. Gillespie is killed during an Indian attack.  This came as a real shock when I watched it, as I thought it was going to be fun to have Commander William Riker of Star Trek play second fiddle again.  Nope, he's barely arrived when he is killed.  In truth, Gillespie was second in command of the California Battalion during the conquest.  He survived the war.  Polk is portrayed more like Andrew Jackson.  Polk was quite mild, letting folks convince themselves that he agreed with them by being pleasant.  Here, he denounced Jessie for implying that he sent Fremont to conquer California.  The initial conquest of California saw almost no fighting whereas this has a montage of battles as Fremont leads his men from town to town, guns blazing and cannon firing.  Senator Benton (Fritz Weaver) is still avoiding his daughter more than 5 years after her marriage.  In fact, the ostracism was quite brief, but it is ongoing throughout this chapter.

As with the previous episode, there are numerous historical figures beyond those already mentioned who get cameos: Tom Fitzpatrick, General Jose Castro, Ezekial Merritt, and Sagundai.  For a TV production, it is quite immersive of the period.

Recommended.

Dream West (Part 1)

It is 1839.  John Charles Fremont (Richard Chamberlain) is exploring the land between the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers.  He is second in command of the expedition.  While exploring, he comes upon a dead family who got lost in the wilderness; a faulty map is among their belongings.  Fremont commits himself to publishing accurate maps to Oregon.

Back in Washington, Fremont is introduced to Missouri Senator Thomas Hart Benton, a strong proponent for westward exploration and expansion.  However, Fremont is more interested in the senator's daughter, Jessie (Alice Krige).  Romance soon follows but Senator Benton does not approve.  Fremont and Jessie marry behind his back, creating a split between father and daughter.

In 1842, Fremont sets out on his first expedition.  Unable to hire Jim Bridger or another well-known guide, he hires Christopher 'Kit' Carson (Rip Torn).  Carson proves to be an outstanding guide and a lifelong friend.  While mapping the Oregon Trail, they happen upon Jim Bridger (Ben Johnson).  Bridger says to go back or take a different route; the local tribe is up in arms.  Fremont will not be dissuaded and rides directly into the Indian camp.

The first episode of a miniseries from 1986, it is headed by Mr. Miniseries himself.  It does an excellent job of painting the era and showing the life of Fremont.  Many historical figures appear, some with little more than a brief cameo (Senator John Crittenden, Jim Bridger, Provost) and others get bigger roles (Maria Crittenden, Stephen Watts Kearny, Edward 'Ned' Kern, Karl Preuss, Joseph 'Papa Joe' Nicollet).  Where many such adaptations use fictional characters around the core of historic ones, this production followed the history.  David Nevin, who wrote the novel, has good attention to detail in his historical stories.

The series combines the first (1842) and second (1843) expeditions into one.  Likewise, the break between Jessie and her father was mended in short order (before Fremont left for his first expedition) while it lasts until the final episode of the miniseries.

This open episode leaves one eager to see the next chapter.  Recommended.