[35] The nearest that Matt and Miss Kitty have to a romantic evening together is when they try to have dinner over the Long Branch Saloon ("A Quiet Day In Dodge", 1973). The IMDb staff came together to round up their favorite crime movies, shows, and documentaries. GUNSMOKE, James Arness, Ken Curtis, 1955-1975 / Everett Collection. Kitty was played by Georgia Ellis on radio, and by Amanda Blake on TV. The High Chaparral cast was an ensemble of actors from a wide cultural background, spanning several decades in ages, sharing little in common except their love for acting. For other uses, see, Primetime Emmy Award wins and nominations, Because the show was a "primetime" series, the competition does not include such long-lived shows as. The show stars William Conrad as Marshal Matt Dillon, Howard McNear as Doc Charles Adams, Georgia Ellis as Kitty Russell, and Parley Baer as Dillon's assistant, Chester Wesley Proudfoot. When Gunsmoke was adapted for television in 1955, in spite of a campaign to persuade the network, the network was not interested in bringing either Conrad or his radio costars to the television medium. I've been kicking around Hollywood a long time. Here is some background information provided by the actors themselves, their press agents, and/or their friends and relatives. Milburn Stone had died 7 years earlier in 1980 and the role of Doc was not recast. Here are some great movies worth streaming that you won't see at the Oscars this year. Apart from the doleful tone, Gunsmoke was distinct from other radio Westerns, as the dialogue was often slow and halting, and due to the outstanding sound effects, listeners had a nearly palpable sense of the prairie where the show was set. That the TV show was not a sham is due in no small part to the continued strength of Meston's scripts."[15]. It was one of the "stepping stones" toward the production of Gunsmoke. ... Cody is determined to show the other competitors that he is more than a bull rider and that he can ranch with the best of them. I have no reason to doubt the story, because Jimmy absolutely knew everybody.". This FAQ is empty. American radio and television Western drama series, This article is about the radio and television series. In 1962, Burt Reynolds was added to the show's lineup, as the "halfbreed" blacksmith Quint Asper, and performed that role from the year just before the departure of Chester Goode and to just after the appearance of Festus Haggen. A later episode ("Daddy O", Season two, episode 36, filmed in 1956 and aired in 1957) begins with Chester pointing out to Matt (who had been out of town) a new sign under the Long Branch Saloon sign saying "Russell & Pence, Proprietors". Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? The Marshal Dillon syndicated reruns of half-hour episodes lasted from 1961 until 1964 on CBS, originally on Tuesday nights within its time in reruns. [36] The nearest Miss Kitty gets to being married is when she has to pretend to be married to Cavalry Sgt. On the Biography Channel's Behind The Scenes: Gilligan's Island (2002), Gilligan's Island producer Sherwood Schwartz states that Babe pressured her husband not to cancel Gunsmoke in 1967, so the network cut Gilligan's Island instead. Dodge City was never again seen. [18], Not long after the radio show began, talk began of adapting it to television. Firecreek. The two ruffians find her and try to force her to help them rob the store. Since Amanda Blake had died the year before, the writers decided to revisit a 1973 episode for the movie. The amiable Waco expatriate was usually described as Dillon's "assistant", but in the December 13, 1952, episode "Post Martin", Dillon described Chester as Dillon's deputy. Jim Buck (stage driver; 1957–1962) and Floyd (bartender; 1974–75): Deputy Marshal Clayton Thaddeus "Thad" Greenwood (1965–1967): Newly O'Brian (gunsmith/Deputy Marshal; 1967–1975): Buck Taylor, Moss Grimmick (stableman; 1955–1963): George Selk. ", "When Chester Forgot to Limp and other fond recollections of 20 years on Gunsmoke", "Raymond Burr auditioned for the role of television's Matt Dillon", John Wayne's introduction of television's first, "When Prostitution Wasn't a Crime: The Fascinating History of Sex Work in America", "Heldenfels' Mailbag: 'The Little Couple,' Jean Peters, game show prizes", "The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum", "TV Guide Magazine's 60 Best Series of All Time", "Jay-Z, a speech by Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and 'Schoolhouse Rock!' Macdonnell and Meston continued the radio version of Gunsmoke until 1961, making it one of the most enduring vintage radio dramas. Stubborn, determined, 50-year-old John Cannon is the patriarch of the family with ambitions to establish a cattle empire while finding a way to co-exist with the Apaches and the Mexicans just across the border. [63] William Lava composed the original theme music for television, as noted in the program credits. 822. Stage 3, CBS Studio Center - 4024 Radford Avenue, Studio City, Los Angeles, California, USA. I've made a lot of pictures out here, all kinds, and some of them have been Westerns. Though Meston championed him, Macdonnell thought Conrad might be overexposed. Kitty Russell was born in New Orleans and reared by a flashy foster mother (who once visited Dodge), although her father visited Dodge on one occasion and wished to have her return to New Orleans. Doc Adams' backstory evokes a varied and experienced life: In some episodes, he had educational ties to Philadelphia; in others, he spent time as ship's doctor aboard the gambling boats that plied the Mississippi River, which provided a background for his knowledge of New Orleans (and acquaintance with Mark Twain). Most notably, this transformation began during (and progressed steadily following) the July 1952 episode "Never Pester Chester", in which a physician with a more compassionate and devoted temperament is essential to the plotline when Chester is near-fatally injured by two trouble-making Texas drovers. John Dunning wrote that among radio drama enthusiasts, "Gunsmoke is routinely placed among the best shows of any kind and any time. But now that all are grown, Nancy and Jess have quietly paired off. Open Range. Law & Order, longest-running law-enforcement series in American television. 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