Get outta Dodge — Toasting ‘Gunsmoke,’ TV’s most critically acclaimed Western
Gunsmoke, TV’s longest running prime time, live action dramatic series for decades until tying with Law and Order, starred James Arness as Marshal Matt Dillon, Dennis Weaver as Dillon’s dependable, high-strung, drawling sidekick Chester Goode, Milburn Stone as the crotchety but lovable Galen “Doc” Adams, and Amanda Blake as the brassy Miss Kitty Russell, proprietor of the Long Branch saloon and Dillon’s ravishing red-haired enigmatic flame.
The series premiered September 10, 1955 on CBS in a special 30-minute episode introduced by John Wayne, who was preparing to depart for Monument Valley to begin filming John Ford’s iconic Western The Searchers. The Duke’s blessing basically ensured instant credibility for Gunsmoke, which was initially compared unfavorably with the radio version starring William Conrad of later Cannon fame.
Crackling writing largely from the hand of John Meston, realistic gunfights and bare knuckle brawls, and chemistry among the talented cast sealed the classic western’s status as the No. 1 show for four straight years [1957–1961].
Gunsmoke remained in Nielsen’s Top 10 ratings for an additional nine seasons and amazingly still trampled the competition as late as 1974 [No. 15], enduring various time slot alterations. Still consistently in the…
