What was one of Bonanza's historic firsts?

In one of its saddest historic firsts, Bonanza became the first show to address the death of one of its young male stars. After Blocker passed in between seasons 13 and 14, the creators knew they couldn't recast Hoss, as Blocker was so beloved. While in the series, the characters addressed the death simply in passing, a 1988 Bonanza TV movie stated his cause of death was drowning while trying to save a woman.

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