The Sacketts
The Sacketts is a 1979 American made-for-TV Western miniseries directed by Robert Totten. It’s based on Louis L’Amour’s novels The Daybreakers and Sackett and stars Sam Elliott, Tom Selleck, Jeff Osterhage, and Glenn Ford.
The story follows three Sackett brothers from Tennessee in 1869: Tell, Orrin, and Tyrel. At Orrin’s wedding, Tyrel kills a man who attacked Orrin, and the brothers head west to start fresh. Tell works in a mining camp, Tyrel becomes a cowhand and befriends veteran Cap Rountree and former gunfighter Tom Sunday, who becomes a mentor. Orrin later joins them as they head toward Santa Fe.
They join a cattle drive to Abilene and plan new ventures, while Cap and Tell search the mountains for gold. In Santa Fe, Orrin and Tyrel get involved with wealthy landowners Don Luis and Jonathan Pritts. Sunday wants power and a fresh start of his own, which strains the brothers’ relationships. A deadly pursuit by Ira Bigelow and his men brings danger to Tell, Cap, and the Sackett family.
Orrin and Tyrel are made deputy sheriffs after exposing Pritts’s scheme to have a man killed. Sunday’s influence fades, and he becomes bitter. Meanwhile, Ange Kerry is rescued by Tell and Cap during the troubles. The Bigelow gang closes in on Tell at Purgatorie, a small Colorado town, and a final showdown erupts in the street.
In the end, Tell steps out to face the gang, with Cap and the others backing him. Orrin and Tyrel arrive to help, and the Sackett brothers—Tell, Orrin, and Tyrel—kill all seven of the Bigelow gunmen. Cap joins the brothers, and they walk away together as a united family.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 13:53 (CET).