[stillafreemind]

Thought maybe it was time for a break in the politics and "bad" news. We tuned in last night and what a trip to the past this shows invokes!

I am a James Arness fan..I miss him dearly and I could watch these half-hour shows all day long.

[RetiredArmy]

We watch the TV land channel a lot. Lots of old TV shows on that channel. Takes you back to the 1950-70 when there were decent TV shows on.

[basil]

I recently bought a new car, and it came equipped with Satellite radio. I keep it turned to the old radio shows from the 30’s and 40’s and 50’s. I heard one show that aired in 1929.

I absolutely love it! Each time I get in my car, I have it turned on.

I have been known to sit in the car after I have arrived at my destination, to finish listening to a broadcast......

[Bobalu]

These are all up on youtube in 480p and easily downloaded using firefox and downloadhelper.

Here is a link to John Wayne introducing the series
Gunsmoke in Matt Gets It

Here is a link to help you find the episodes.

[ExNewsExSpook]

I’m also a big Gunsmoke fan and it’s hard to find the original, 30 ninute black-and-white episodes on cable, since most prorammers believe anything that isn’t in color drives away viewers. Nice to know the earliest episodes are airing somewhere.

A few tidbits about those episodes. Most of the early segments were heavily based on radio scripts that had already been produced. That practice continued until the series became one hour in length. By the time the TV series debuted, Gunsmoke had been a successful radio series for five years, with close to 200 episodes “in the can.”. So, the producers had plenty of material to work with.

Also, legend has it that John Wayne was the first choice to play Matt Dillon. However, there’s no real evidence to support that theory. But James Arness was under contract to Wayne’s production company when the series was cast, so it was easy for him to make the recommendation.

Gunsmoke was also one of the most realistic westerns on TV, in more ways than one. If you watch some of the BW episodes, you’ll see bar girls in the Long Branch go up the stairs with cowboys, and return a few minutes later—an obvious reference to the saloon’s secondary business (and Miss Kitty’s real profession). Amazingly, the CBS censors never caught on, and the scenes remained in the series.

Finally, if you watch the closing credits, you’ll see the later BW episodes were filmed by the Arness Production Company. When Gunsmoke became a hit, CBS was anxious to keep their star happy and gave him a chance to cash in as a producer. When the series expanded to 60 minutes in length, CBS bought him out and Arness became an even wealthier man.

[Migraine]

James Arness, who plays Dillon, had light hair in real life.

...as one might expect -- he and Peter Graves were brothers.