This 1950s TV Episode Showed A Con Artist Named Trump Who Promised To Save A Town From Apocalypse By Building A Wall [Video]
Who ever saw this one coming?
One of the early promises that Donald Trump made to his voters was that he would build a wall across the entire length of U.S. border with Mexico and would make the Mexican government pay for it. Despite intense backlash from liberal quarters, the president-elect stuck to his promise during the stretch of his campaign, benefiting hugely in southern states wary of undocumented immigrants taking away American jobs.
But as it turns out, he is not the first Trump who promised to save America by building a wall, at least not the first one when you take into consideration fictional characters as well. In what can only be described as a hugely co-incidental and somewhat peculiar prediction, a 1950s Western TV show featured a man named Walter Trump who claimed that the only way to save a town from the end of the world was by building a wall, and that he alone knew how to go about that business.
Very Trump-esque, won’t you say?
The episode, taken from CBS’ Western TV show Trackdown, featured an oil salesman named Walter Trump who claimed that he could save a community from devastation by building a wall across the town.
The TV episode was lost in the abyss of time until a YouTuber named Barcy Brafman unearthed it and posted it online in November of 2016. The “End of the World” show featured actor Lawrence Dobkin as Walter Trump, a con man who claimed that the Texan town of Talpa would succumb to a firestorm unless the residents allowed him to build a wall across the length of the town’s perimeter. In the episode, the community is taken for a ride until Oakland native Robert Culp, who played Texas Ranger Hoby Gilman, calls Trump’s bluff and finally arrests him for stealing, as reported by SF Gate.
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The rumors of such an episode have been doing online rounds ever since it was uploaded in November, but while some believed that such a show did never exist, rumor-debunking website Snopes reported that the rumor was in fact true.
“The television series Trackdown really did produce an episode featuring a ‘Trump’ character who came to town claiming that only he could prevent the end of the world by building a wall (and also sold special force propelling umbrellas to deflect meteorites). The episode (S1, E30) aired on CBS in 1958 and was titled ‘The End of the World,’ featuring actor Lawrence Dobkin playing the role of Walter Trump.”
You can watch sections of the show in which con artist Trump promised to save the town by building a wall below. A transcription of a relevant portion of the show has also been attached below.
“Narrator: Hoby had checked the town. The people were ready to believe. Like sheep they ran to the slaughterhouse. And waiting for them was the high priest of fraud.
Trump: I am the only one. Trust me. I can build a wall around your homes that nothing can penetrate.
Townperson: What do we do? How can we save ourselves?
Trump: You ask how do you build that wall. You ask, and I’m here to tell you.”
[Featured Image by Marcy Brafman/YouTube]
