From the opening credits to many climactic showdowns, the camera framed Arness in the center, a big, silent man, awaiting either peace or violence, commanding attention amidst even the most boastful or colorful of bad guys. He acted in numerous films, including Them! You are and always have been appreciated. Sincerely, Jim Arness. For more: James Arness dead.
James Arness has died: why he was the greatest TV Western lawman. Save FB Tweet More. No one at the time — the cast members included — knew how right that prediction would be, said Ben Costello, author of a new book, "Gunsmoke: An American Institution.
There was plenty of action, but there was also introspection. Arness's character, Marshal Dillon had to think his way out of problems as much as shoot his way out. Storylines revolved around each of the other regular cast members, and a wide variety of guest stars brought fresh angles to the stories. There's never been another show quite like it, said Robert Houston, executive director of Kanab's Western Legends Round-up, which will be paying a special tribute to "Gunsmoke" in honor of the 50th anniversary of the show's beginning.
But it's also where we learned about values. Families watched it together. It was a big part of their lives. At the Kanab fest, which runs Aug.
And Buck Taylor, who played Newly O'Brien for eight seasons, will be in attendance, as will Morgan Woodward and Jan Shepard, who made frequent guest appearances on the show. Many of the "Gunsmoke" episodes were filmed in Kanab, so it's a natural for Western Legends to observe its 50th anniversary, said Houston. It's part of our Western heritage and our film heritage, for Kanab and all of Utah.
People are coming from all over the world for the celebration, he said. The show still has fans — and fan clubs — all over. One reason the show was and is so popular is that "in every facet, it had the best the industry had to offer," Costello said by phone from his home in California.
There's not another dramatic series that has come close. It was so popular that by there were 30 Westerns on the air — and we only had three networks. One reason "Gunsmoke" became an American institution, said Costello, is that it was moral. But not always by itself. Sometimes the whole town had to rally and work together. It sounds kind of silly to say stuff like that, but wouldn't it be nice if we had more of that morality now? The "Gunsmoke" stars also made appearances at rodeos and other arenas around the country, and that helped build their fan base.
A couple whose son was in a coma asked them to come and stand by his bed so they could take a picture. Even though the boy wouldn't know they were there, it was his favorite show.
So they did, and Ken began to talk to the boy like Festus — and the boy woke up. It just shows the power of something positive, the effect it can have on people. It was a great thing to be part of, Buck Taylor said by phone from his ranch in Texas. He's looking forward to returning to Kanab. And it brings back a lot of good memories. Things were different then; entertainment was different. That injury ended up being long-lasting and left a huge impact on his walking.
That said, whenever Arness had to shoot a scene for Gunsmoke in which there was a lot of walking, he needed to give that scene priority over all the others. That way, he would be able to give his leg the time it needed to rest and for him to recover before moving on to the rest of the shooting. Glenn Strange, who played Sam Noonan, was a real life cowboy turned actor who certainly had a huge impact on his Gunsmoke co-stars.
When he was 74 years old, the actor died of lung cancer, two years before the show wrapped up. Amanda Blake, who played Miss Kitty, took the loss especially hard. Many Gunsmoke fans were bothered by how the series ended. After all, it was a popular show that lasted for 20 years. The writers decided not to tie up any loose ends in the finale of Gunsmoke. It was reported that the producers of the show told Weaver to limp in order for him to look shorter than he really was.
However, there was another rumor that Weaver added the limp himself as a way to back up his country accent and stand out even more.
As for the in-show explanation, his limp was acquired during the Civil War. In the end, though, Weaver said he regretted giving Chester a limp because it was a lot of work to keep it up!
Ewing played him for two seasons, then basically fell off the radar. He has been out of the industry loop for over 40 years since his involvement in show business. Ewing is an incredibly private person, and the now year-old chose to not indulge in the modern world of celebrity.
Reports state that 26 different actors were considered for the role of Matt Dillon, which comes as no surprise given that the series succeeded mainly because of this character.
The man who voiced Dillon in the original radio show was William Conrad, who was one of the first actors considered for the role. Raymond Burr was another favorite considered for the role. And because of this, he thought it would really injure his chances of being cast for the role of Chester when he was auditioning.
He felt like he gave a sub-par performance. He believed it so much that he actually begged the producers to allow him to audition another time. So, for his second audition, he put in extra effort, with a country accent an all. The rest, of course, is history. A large number of actresses went in to audition for the role of Miss Kitty. The actress Polly Bond was originally picked for the role. It even seemed like the ideal career move for her — someone who starred in Westerns when she was a child.
While she was chosen for the role, she ultimately turned it down because she wanted to focus on her family. Little did she know, though, that the role would have guaranteed her work for at least 20 years.
They say that some of the most iconic sayings have the most humble beginnings. Curious as to the origin? Well, this phrase actually originates from Gunsmoke and refers to Dodge City, Kansas, where the series is set. The bad guys in the show used the phrase whenever Dillon and the gang one-upped them. There you go, folks. Now you know where it came from. Despite being as popular as ever during its entire run, Gunsmoke was almost canceled in by CBS.
Gunsmoke fans were happy. Not so much. Whereas the rest of the cast and their characters sometimes missed an episode, the writers and producers were insistent that Matt Dillon showed up in every single episode. What that means is that Arness appeared as Dillon for a total of episodes.
Kelsey Grammer, on Frasier, is the only other actor to have played a character on prime time TV in America for a longer amount of time. Milburn Stone, who played Doc Adams, only missed six episodes of Gunsmoke.
And he had a good reason: a heart attack. Many good artists are able to adapt easily and learn different mediums without too much of a challenge. Nowadays, Taylor has become a painter who recently painted a portrait of James Arness. The year-old has made quite a name for himself as an artist. Many of his paintings are on display at some of the biggest rodeos in Texas.
James Arness was seemingly unable to let go of Matt Dillon. He did, after all, play the character for two full decades. After the original run of Gunsmoke wrapped in , Arness was asked over and over again to come take up the role again. Amanda Blake and Buck Taylor came back to reprise their role, but Milburn Stone passed away in , seven years before the movie aired. He was 75 years old. Arness went on to star in the five reunion movies of Gunsmoke. Remember that? The show only had one season, though, and Jeanette Nolan was the star.
They were in search of gold in the mines of California. During the second half of his tenure on Gunsmoke, he suffered from a severe case of arthritis. The condition only deteriorated over the years. It ultimately led to him not being physically able to work the hours that he was accustomed to working. In an attempt to manage it, Arness and the producers agreed that he could shoot all his scenes for one episode in one particularly long day so that he had enough time to rest.
Do you remember the opening credits for Gunsmoke? Well, they remained relatively unchanged for most of its year run.
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