The owner of a riverboat named the Sultana and a family plantation, The Waverly, Derringer is a Southern aristocrat seemingly devoted to gambling, but in reality he is a secret agent authorized to help maintain law and order and justice in the city by any means that may become necessary. His constant companion is Pahoo-Ka-Ta-Wah (X Brands), a fierce Pawnee Indian who communicates with Yancy only by hand gestures, and appears ready at a moment's notice to use the shotgun that he always carries. Yancy s weapons of choice are a four-barrel Derringer carried in his hat, another up his left sleeve and a knife in his belt. As Yancy and Pahoo make their way through the gambling casinos, riverboats and picturesque streets of New Orleans, they cross paths with rogues, aristocrats, sinners and saints, always ready to thwart crime and help the helpless!

The beautiful Madame Francine (Frances Bergen) is the proprietor of the Sazarac, a famous New Orleans private gambling house and is Yancy s love interest in the series. Guest stars include Charles Bronson, Claude Akins, Lisa Lu, Lee Van Cleef, John Vivyan, Beverly Garland, Julie Adams, Robert McCord, Louise Fletcher, Woody Chambliss and Margaret Field.