Gunsmoke

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Gunsmoke

Gunsmoke was a long-running old-time radio and television Western drama created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. The stories took place in Dodge City, Kansas during the settlement of the American West.

Radio Version

Macdonnel and Meston wanted to create a radio western for adults, in contrast to the prevailing juvenile fare like The Lone Ranger or The Cisco Kid. Gunsmoke was set in Dodge City, Kansas during the thriving cattle days of the 1870s. Dunning notes that "The show drew critical acclaim for unprecedented realism;" he also writes that Dunning among old time radio fans, "Gunsmoke is routinely placed among the best shows of any kind and any time." (Dunning, 304) The show's cast, writing, and sound effects have seen much praise.

The radio series, which first aired April 26, 1952 and ran until June 18, 1961 on CBS, starred William Conrad as Marshal Matt Dillon, Howard McNear as the ghoulish, brittle Doc Charles Adams, Georgia Ellis as prostitute, Kitty Russell and Parley Baer as Dillon's assistant (but not his deputy) Chester Proudfoot. (On the television series, Doc's first name and Chester's last name were changed.) Chester's character had no surname until "Proudfoot" was ad libbed by Baer during a rehearsal early on, while Doc Adams was named after cartoonist Charles Addams. In a 1953 interview with Time, Macdonnell declared, "Kitty is just someone Matt has to visit every once in a while. We never say it, but Kitty is a prostitute, plain and simple." (Dunning, 304)

William Conrad was actually one of the last actors auditioned for the role of Dillon. He was already one of radio's busiest actors, and had a powerful and distinctive baritone voice. Though Meston championed him, Macdonnell thought that Conrad might be overexposed. During his audition, however, Conrad won Macdonnell over after reading just a few lines.

There was lots of space, in every sense--dialogue was often slow and halting, and due to the outstanding sound effects, listeners had a nearly palpable sense of the prairie terrain where the show was set.

Dillon as portrayed by Conrad was a lonely, isolated man, toughened by a hard life. Metson relished in the upending of cherished western fiction clichés, and thought that few westerns gave any inkling of how brutal the old west truly was. Dunning writes that Metson was especially disgusted by the archetypal western hero, and set out "to destroy" that type of "character he loathed ... In Metson's view, Dillon was almost as scarred as the homicidal psychopaths who drifted into Dodge from all directions." (Dunning, 304)

John Dunning writes that Dillon "played his hand and often lost. He arrived too late to prevent a lynching. He amputated a dying man's leg and lost the patient anyway. He saved a girl from brutal rapists, then found himself unable to offer her what she needed to stop her from moving into ... life as a prostitute." (Dunning, 304) Some listeners, such as vintage radio authority John Dunning, have argued that the radio version of Gunsmoke was far more realistic than the TV series. Episodes were aimed at adults and featured some of the most explicit content of their time, including violent crimes, scalpings, massacres and opium addicts. Many episodes ended on a somber note, and villains often got away with their crimes.

Arguably, Gunsmoke had some of the best sound effects in the history of radio. They were subtle, but multilayered, and utilized very well, given the show's spacious feel. Dunning writes, "the listener heard extraneous dialogue in the background, just above the muted shouts of kids playing in an alley. He heard noises from the next block, too, where the inevitable dog was barking." (Dunning, 305)

Not long after the show began, there was talk of adapting it to television. Privately, Macdonnell had a guarded interest in taking the show to television, but publicly, he declared that "our show is perfect for radio" and he feared that, as Dunning writes, "Gunsmoke confined by a picture couldn't possibly be as authentic or attentive to detail." (Dunning, 305) "In the end," writes Dunning, "CBS simply took it away from" Macdonnell and began preparing for the television version of Gunsmoke. (Dunning, 305) Conrad and the others were given auditions, but they were little more than token efforts--especially in Conrad's case, due to his obesity. However, Metson was kept on the main writer. Dunning writes, "That radio fans considered the TV show a sham, and its players impostors, should surprise no one. That the TV show was not a sham is due in no small part to the continued strength of Metson's scripts." (Dunning, 304)

Macdonnel and Meston continued the radio version of Gunsmoke until 1961, making it one of the most enduring old time radio shows.

Television Version

The television series ran from September 10, 1955 to September 1, 1975 on CBS for 635 episodes. To this day, it is the longest run of any single entertainment series with continuing characters in American primetime television.

Conrad was the first choice to play Dillon on TV, having established the role, but his increasing obesity led to more photogenic actors being considered. Losing the role he had created embittered Conrad for many years to come. Raymond Burr was also considered, but he too was seen as too heavyset for the part. Rumors that the role was offered to John Wayne have been largely debunked.

The primary roles were recast. Macdonnell had nothing to do with the TV version of Gunsmoke, but Meston stayed on as head writer. James Arness played Marshal Matt Dillon throughout its 20-year run, the longest uninterrupted period any actor has played the same role in the same show in prime time. (Kelsey Grammer has since tied the role-playing record as Frasier Crane, but that role spanned two different shows, Cheers and Frasier). Actors possibly asked to play Matt Dillon on TV before Arness included Denver Pyle. It was John Wayne who recommended Arness for the part, and Wayne also introduced the first episode of the series.

Dillon's assistant/deputy was at first Chester Goode, played by Dennis Weaver, then Festus Haggen, played by Ken Curtis. Other important ongoing characters were the town doctor, Doc Adams (Milburn Stone) and the saloon girl, later saloon owner, Miss Kitty (Amanda Blake). While Matt Dillon and Miss Kitty clearly had a close personal relationship, viewers were seldom offered a deep look into that side of Dodge City life.

There were character differences between the radio and TV characters. The radio series Doc was acerbic, somewhat mercenary, and at times, came close to being alcoholic. The television Doc, though crusty, was in many ways softer and warmer. Another difference in characters was Miss Kitty, who in the radio series was just a saloon girl, not the owner, and it was often hinted that she did more than serve customers drinks. On television, if the Long Branch did house prostitutes, the show put a good spin on Miss Kitty and viewers were never made privy to what exactly she did besides run the Long Branch saloon.

From 1955 to 1961, Gunsmoke was a half-hour show. It then went to an hour-long format for the rest of its long run. From 1955 to 1966, it was in black and white, then in color from 1966 to 1975. In the early 1960s, older episodes of the series were rebroadcast under the title Marshal Dillon.

In 1967, the show's 12th season, CBS planned to cancel the series, but widespread viewer response — it was even mentioned in Congress — along with domestic pressure on the CBS head of programming by his wife, convinced them to continue it in the early evening on Mondays instead of Saturday nights. This seemingly minor change led to a spike in ratings that saw the series once again reach the top 20 in the Nielsen ratings before fading again before its cancellation in 1975. Gunsmoke was the show that ushered in the age of the adult western, which brought about Bonanza, Wagon Train and literally dozens of others. Gunsmoke outlasted all of its imitators, and was last western still airing when it was cancelled. James Arness and Milburn Stone were the only two original series regulars to remain with the series for the entire duration of its 20-season run.

In 1987, many of the original cast reunited for the TV movie, Return to Dodge, filmed in Alberta, Canada. A huge ratings success, this led to four more reunion films being filmed in the U.S.: The Last Apache (1990), To the Last Man (1992), The Long Ride (1993), and One Man's Justice (1994). The series also inspired a Gunsmoke video game produced for the NES by Capcom.

As of April 2006, two American series are aiming at matching or beating Gunsmoke's 20-year record. The sitcom The Simpsons, now in its 17th season, has been renewed through its 20th season, while the police procedural/courtroom drama Law & Order, now in its 16th year, is also expected to be a possible 20-year survivor. NBC announced on April 27, 2006 that Law & Order would be picked up for a 17th season, despite slipping ratings. WWE RAW claims to have aired more shows than Gunsmoke as of a July 25th airing; this claim has yet to be conclusively validated and RAW is considered a sports, rather than dramatic or comedic, series. (Programs of RAW's sort are often considered sports entertainment).

In syndication, the entire 20-year run of Gunsmoke is separated into three packages by CBS Paramount Television:

1955-1961 half-hour episodes: These episodes are sometimes seen in their original aired format and sometimes in the Marshal Dillon format. General syndication ended in the 1980s, but they do air occasionally on cable TV.
1961-1966 one-hour black-and-white episodes: These episodes have not been widely seen in regular syndication since the 1980s. Currently the one-hour episodes are aired on the Encore Westerns channel.
1966-1975 one-hour color episodes: These are the most widely syndicated episodes of the entire series run and are still aired on many stations in addition to its run on TV Land.

Comic books based on the series were also published. Dell Comics put out 5 issues of their Four Color Comics series on Gunsmoke (issues #679, 720, 769, 797, 844). This was followed by Gunsmoke #6-27 (1958-62). Gold Key Comics continued it with #1-6 in 1969-70.

Regular cast, major characters

Matt Dillon (1955-1975): James Arness
Doc Adams (1955-1975): Milburn Stone
Kitty Russell (1955-1974): Amanda Blake
Chester B. Goode (1955-1964): Dennis Weaver
Festus Haggen (1964-1975): Ken Curtis

Regular cast, minor characters

Clem (bartender; 1959-61): Clem Fuller
Sam (bartender; 1961-73): Glenn Strange
Rudy (bartender; 1965-67): Rudy Sooter
Floyd (bartender; 1974-75): Robert Brubaker
Quint Asper (blacksmith; 1962-1965): Burt Reynolds
"Thad" - Deputy Clayton Thaddeus Greenwood (1965-1967): Roger Ewing
Newly O'Brien (gunsmith; 1967-1975): Buck Taylor
Wilbur Jonas (storekeeper, 1955-63): Dabbs Greer
Howie Uzzell (hotel clerk, 1955-75): Howard Culver
Moss Grimmick (stableman; 1955-63): George Selk
Jim Buck (stagecoach driver; 1957-62): Robert Brubaker
Louie Pheeters (town drunk; 1961-70): James Nusser
Ma Smalley (boardinghouse owner; 1961-72): Sarah Selby
Hank Miller (stableman; 1963-75): Hank Patterson
Mr. Bodkin (banker; 1963-70): Roy Roberts
Barney Danches (telegraph agent; 1965-74): Charles Seel
Roy (townsperson; 1965-69): Roy Barcroft
Halligan (rancher; 1966-75): Charles Wagenheim
Mr. Lathrop (storekeeper; 1966-75): Woody Chambliss
Nathan Burke (freight agent; 1966-75): Ted Jordan
Percy Crump (undertaker; 1968-72): Kelton Garwood
Ed O'Connor (rancher; 1968-72): Tom Brown
Judge Brooker (1970-75): Herb Vigran
Dr. John Chapman (1971): Pat Hingle
Miss Hannah (saloon owner; 1974-75): Fran Ryan

Listen to

Sources

John Dunning, On The Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio, Oxford University Press, 1998. ISBN 0195076788

External links

Rauchende Colts | Gunsmoke | Gunsmoke