Shotgun Slade: Since the Western genre was beginning to lose popularity with viewing audiences, Shotgun Slade had three characteristics that made it unique. The first was Slades profession. Instead being a marshal, sheriff or wandering gunfighter, Slade was a private detective, hired by individuals to track down criminals, return stolen money and other similar duties. This was obviously influenced by the growing popularity of television private eyes such as Peter Gunn, Richard Diamond, Private Detective, Hawaiian Eye and others.