10 Most Groundbreaking TV Episodes Ever

Historic Impact: Main Characters Can Be Killed Off

The death principal characters on a TV show has become something of a cultural fascination now that shows like The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones killing folks off with reckless abandon. But it wasn't always like this. Audiences weren't always waiting for the axe to drop on their favorite character.

In 1972, Bonanza was nearing the end of its run as America's most beloved, serialized Western. Unfortunately, before the show could wrap up, Dan Blocker, who played gentle giant "Hoss" Cartwright, would die of a pulmonary embolism. The show's creators had a decision to make: Cancel the show, or continue on without one of the audience's favorite characters.

Ultimately, all involved decided it was best to continue. But rather than recasting Hoss with another actor -- or sending him off to the same mysterious island as Cousin Oliver and Chuck Cunningham and every other TV character who's disappeared with no explanation -- they decided to write his death into the Season 14 premiere.

It's subtle, but multiple characters talk about Hoss in the past tense. For instance, his on-air father says things like "I know what it's like to lose a son" while staring sorrowfully at a photo of Hoss. Even if they didn't know the back story, viewers knew that Hoss was no longer with us.