Gunsmoke Pilot Open 1955 James Arness

[chriswarren44]

We are still watching old B&W 1955 Gunsmoke on our new 1080p 120hz widescreen High Definition TV's!

[caroleargo]

I see that Cheyenne is on Saturday nights on Encore Retroplex.

[fucheduck]

I am guessing in the other opening it is always Paul Richards who is the other guy he is shooting at.

[caroleargo]

Encore Westerns is now showing these episodes. Unfortunately, they've stopped the Virginian and Cheyenne:(

[kbirdus]

@caroleargo And Encore isn't using the "Marshal Dillon" title onscreen; they are using the original title. Sorry to see "The Virginian" go, though.

[scentmuse]

'law' as opposed to lawlessness'? i say yes.

does history teach us nothing? law, with compassion, would

be more matt's credo

[WWETNAwrestlingfan15]

Rest in peace James.

[coolanddark]

Such a bad azz! RIP James Arness! My hero!

[gambler731]

The greatest lawman on tv. A sad loss to all the fans and James or Matt is probably havig a beer with Doc,Chester, Uncle Fester, ...no wait a minute, wrong show,Festus, and Miss Kitty at the Long Branch in the sky. Take care my friend.

[mustaffa1611]

Gunsmoke was propaganda put out by the elite to justify government. Many times Matt Dillion will say "I didn't kill him, the law did." and this will be just minutes after we see him pull the trigger on his gun and shoot the person. This guy was in total denial using "the law" to justify himself being nothing more than a serial killer.

[Rjelmiles]

@mustaffa1611

I don't know how many episodes you watched but you must have missed the message in the show. It certainly wasn't just a shoot 'em up cowboy show. The good guys didn't win, Matt didn't always get his man and every show didn't have a happy ending. It was much deeper than that much of the time. It sure wasn't propaganda.

RIP James Arness.

[thankGodforDavidG]

"Big Jim" kept the peace in Dodge and for a long time was like a member of the family. Rest in peace Marshal Dillon and I'll be seeing you some day !

[bluesdca]

This title "Marshall Dillon" and opening sequence that you see were used for the syndication of the old 30 minute Gunsmoke episodes in the early 1960s. Renaming the old episodes of a TV show still running in primetime happened sometimes. In the 1960s when CBS ran old episodes of The Andy Grifftith Show during the daytime, the episodes were retitled "Andy of Mayberry." Old episodes of "Bonanza" were retitled "Ponderosa."

[revueguy]

@bluesdca I can think of others. Dragnet was known as Badge 714 in syndication, Fury became Black Stallion, and Wagon Train as Major Adams or Trailmaster.

[GeorgeVreelandHill]

Real TV.

Enough said.

George Vreeland Hill

[yogafan6500]

The TV world is sadden the loss of one of it's greats. James Arness. He'll forever be remembered as Marshall, Matt Dillion on the longest running westerns ever made Gunsmoke from 1955 to 1975. His character was the most legendary icons that we'll remember when we seen him the classic show. and he'll also be rememered for his role in the classic sci-fi flck The Thing . Good-bye Mr Arness and happy trails to you till we meet again. James Arness 1923-2011 : ( ...

[Footsniffer51]

Of all the TV Western "Marshals": "Jim Crown" (Stuart Whitman/Cimarron Strip) "Dan Troop" (John Russell/Lawman) "Micah Torrence" (Paul Fix/The Rifleman), James Arness really 'breathed life' into "Matt Dillon." Micah Torrence handled the town of Northfolk on the Rifleman without a Deputy but Lucas McCain (Connors) was always around with his Winchester to have his back. Dillon literally 'singlehandedly' brought justice to Dodge City. There will never be another one like him. R.I. P. "Matt."

[BoredMarcus]

r.i.p. James Arness :-(

good times :-)

[bjc19199]

i am one of the boomers who watched this program with my grandmother. i loved marshall dillon then and i love it today. i watch him every night on me tv at night. he so cute! does anyone know that james arness played the original thing, in the movie the thing?

[alanjr333]

To be correct, this is actually the opening to the half hour syndicated version of Gunsmoke..  It was called Marshall Dillon because in those days, the shows were sponsored by specific companies who didnt werent involved in the syndication, so they wouldnt allow the show to be called Gunsmoke. The same thing happened to Captain Midnight and Ovaltine. They had to rename the syndicated show Jet Jackson, and even dubbed Jet Jackson over every mention of Captain Midnight.

[bigbob07087]

who remember Ken Curtis as part of the regimental singers in Rio Bravo? He was quite a singer

[GOOSEYGOOSE9]

i would get out of bed at almost 5 in the morning and watch marshal dillon on NBC affilliate KING-TV channel 5 when i was a sophomore and junior in high school from 81 thru 83.

[melpeacheyfan]

Correction Gunsmoke ran on Saturday night then CBS repeated it on Tuesday night as Marshall Dillon this is the Tuesday night intro which is different than the Saturday intro.

[ronetteloverz]

And Matt Dillon wasn't finding his feminine side...

[thinkorthwim69]

The Rifleman, Wanted Dead Or Alive, Paladin, The Lone Ranger, The Roy Rogers Show, Circus Boy, 77 Sunset Strip, and so so many others oh yeah and the Jackie Gleason show I guess I am showing my age but what an era it was

[Juliaflo]

@thinkorthwim69 It was, indeed, an era, and I guess I am showing my age as well, but, uh-uh, I won't tell. (21-plus, LOLOLOLOL).

Here's wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving.

[utubemusiccritic]

Dillon was a real man. He had one woman and told the others to get lost. And even with that one woman, what they did or might have done was private!

[chogiepath]

I'm one of the Boomers who went to bed when this show began on Saturday night at 9 pm. I would come into the living room and draw my cap pistol against Marshall Dillon, then I would go to bed. We only had one Black & white TV.

Then Dad would stay up watching the show. I was usually still awake and heard the ending theme. For some reason I drifted off to sleep safe and secure knowing Marshall Dillon and my Dad were the good guys. Dad passed years ago, but I get Teary every time I hear the theme.

[JudgeJulieLit]

@chogiepath In real life too James Arness had been a hero -- in WW2 in the military his leg was shot up . . . and for decades after he had recurring pain. Yet like his tv marshal, he was a noncomplaining strong, silent, courageously common-sensically right-acting giant of a man. Spoke softly, carried the gun of Justice, and fired as needed. Rode herd on wild otherwise criminally anarchic Dodge City. And protected Miss Kitty.

[JudgeJulieLit]

@chogiepath Too for me this show invariably evokes my dad (R.I.P.) Not only was it his never-miss favorite, but he looked (and somewhat acted) like JA. And named my younger sister for the actress who played Miss Kitty.

"Cap pistols"? lol . . . blast from the past !

[Parrotluver2]

I Have Watched and Loved all 10 Seasons of Gunsmoke But I Have never seen Dillion Get Laid.. many Very Pretty Women have tried to Seduce him Could he Be Gay? IMLAO

[phREaker419]

@Parrotluver2 Blasphemy!

[mavivirgie]

this was the opening of the tuesday night reruns in the 1960s

[Juliaflo]

@mavivirgie Score! I remember these Tuesday night reruns.

(Don't figure out my age, but have a Happy Thanksgiving).

[JudgeJulieLit]

@Juliaflo If you saw Gunsmoke in reruns and on a Tuesday night, you're not the oldest of the fans! "First-generation"ers saw first telecasts (on CBS) Sat. nites at 9 p.m. Chased by (my dad's and most of America's no. 2 fave tv western) Have Gun Will Travel. Both series' protagonists -- Marshall Dillon and Paladin -- epitomized the American ideal of the heroic rugged individualist, fighting (like other '50s tv hero Superman) for "truth, justice, and The American Way."

[Juliaflo]

@JudgeJulieLit I saw Gunsmoke in its inception on Saturday nights, but did not say where I was when I saw it , LOLOLOLOL.

Happy New Year.

[Footsniffer51]

@JudgeJulieLit : You are sooooooooo correct!!! My father and I always watched Gunsmoke on CBS and not only Gunsmoke, HGWT, Cheyenne, Sugarfoot, Lawman, etc. These "youngsters" only heard of Gunsmoke from watching TVLand.

[melollylolly]

awesome

[IExposeMormonism]

I remember trying to out draw him. I was 5-6.

[Teflon65]

I remember that reruns of an old show, called "Emergency", were syndicated under the title, "Emergency I". The color episodes of "Dragnet" were eventually sydnicated under the same name, but with the year the show first ran, in the title, e.g., "Dragnet 1968". "The Bob Cummings Show" was later rerun as "Love That Bob", and so on.

[melollylolly]

wow-this show ran for twenty years

[biffarone]

It's strange when you think about it. Back in the Golden age of Television TV's were black and white, you had to manuever rabbit ear antennas to get a good picture and cigarette ads dominated the airwaves. But the shows including Gunsmoke were fantastic. Now we have HDTV, surround sound, Viagra and Cialis commericals and most programs are trash. What's wrong with this picture?

[vrghiks]

Seems that all good things get corrupted.Sad!

[zekepig]

maybe they should go back to airing cigarette ads

[RangerAlways]

I remember that" Camel is preferred by doctors 3 to 1."

L.S.M.F.T.

"Smoke Kool" with Chilly Willy the penguin.

Taryton with the activated charcoal filter. Just what the hell is activated charcoal anyway?

The Old Gold dancing cigarette boxes........with great legs.

Jeez, I'm old !

[zensorship]

@biffarone

So true! That's exactly why my TV is coated with an inch of dust. I don't watch anymore.

[kurtb8474]

@biffarone Reciprocity. The technology has definitely made a giant leap in the last 50 years, but the quality of the programming has gone in the opposite direction.

[michigancop]

@biffarone

We named our second son "Matthew" after Matt Dillion (James Arness). The TV channel METV (Memorable Entertainment Television) has these Marshal Dillions episodes on. There are great! The weekley episodes had "redeeming value" and had a moral to the story. People got killed each week but there was no blood and guts and no swearing. Today's TV programs suck. If I see another reality show I think I will throw up on my TV!

[melollylolly]

this opening of gunsmoke is awesome

[andrea2007homie]

Come see my new western video, just type in search: A Fight To The Death MCAA.

[actionsub]

This was a pretty common practice in the 50s and 60s. Andy Griffith was rerun in the mornings as "Andy of Mayberry", the Ward Bond eps of "Wagon Train" were repackaged as "Trailmaster", and "Private Secretary" was rerun as "Susie" (the latter was to get the sponsor ID out of the opening credits).

[Juliaflo]

I remember, I remember.

Uh-uh, I am NOT telling my age. LOL.

[scorpio888]

Yes, just as BONANZA was syndicated as THE PONDEROSA in 1972 (when the show was still in production), the half-hour GUNSMOKEs became MARSHAL (one "l") DILLON in 1961.

I wish they'd done a GUNSMOKE version of this opening--- it's much more dramatic than the usual one.

(Matt Dillons starts riding across the prairie circa 1967).

[Eduelsalvaje]

En los paises en que hablamos español Gunsmoke se llamaba La ley del revolver.

[1Bandit455]

Gunsmoke--great memories.

[fromthesidelines]

That's absolutely correct, 'biff'; when "GUNSMOKE" expanded to an hour in the fall of 1961, CBS decided to repeat the half-hour episodes on Tuesday nights at 7:30pm(et) under the "MARSHAL DILLON" title [to distinguish it from the first-run episodes on Saturdays]. After the network repeats ended in the fall of '64, they sent "MARSHAL DILLON" into syndication, where it played on local stations for years...

[Juliaflo]

I so disctinctly remember that occasion, and don't try to figure out my age, LOLOLOL.

[Eduelsalvaje]

En un principio el papel del marshall Matt Dillon lo iba a hacer ¡¡¡¡¡JOHN WAYNE!!!!! pero no pudo hacerlo y recomendo a su amigo James Arness que hizo del marshall Matt Dillon durante ¡¡¡¡¡ 20 años!!!!! desde 1955 hasta 1975.

[rainbowschild]

Heller for Congress

[MFisher7346]

My recollection as a kid was that Gunsmoke (it was called "Gun Law" here in the UK) started with about five solid minutes of nothing but close-ups of guns being fired.

Then at the end of each episode there was a shot of someone reloading their 45. You never saw any faces in these clips - just the guns and the hairy, sweaty hands holding them.

Doesn't anyone have any of these clips?

[Bluebonnett52]

'Marshall Dillon' was on TV Land about 5 years ago. I watched every one of the episodes, and would do it again. HEY! TV LAND! Put this back on for us ol' timers...

[biffarone]

Because Gunsmoke was the top rated show on Television CBS extended the show from 30 minutes to one hour on Saturday nights and then decided to rerun all the 1/2 hour shows from the first five years on Tuesday nights on CBS calling it Marshal Dillon and gave these episodes a unique theme song which was different from the traditional Gunsmoke theme. Jerry Goldsmith wrote the Marshal Dillon theme. Later on... Marshal Dillon went into syndication. I always liked this opening.

[Buckmizer]

This is not the opening to the pilot. It's the opening that they created when they syndicated "Gunsmoke" under the title "Matt Dillon".

[A1l2l2e2n4]

NICE SHOOTING!!!!!!!!!! Too bad we didn't see the b-----d fall, though!

[zekepig]

Did they ever show that b^$#^*d fall in the opening?

[A1l2l2e2n4]

Well, my father has told me that originally they DID show that, but because of complaints about violence, that sequence was re-shot (pardon my choice of words)so it didn't show the other guy hitting the dirt.

[ekocentric]

Yep. I was in the Air Force and had a hell of a time hitting a target...as a matter of fact, I missed almost everytime. (Thank goodness that the military in it's infinite wisdom gave me a hospital job).

What I have always wanted to do was to hit my target straight "from the hip" without even looking through my site.

In spite of this dumb little fact, I still love Hollywood because no matter what they do with an actor he/she is still going to "mess up" in style. That's why they get paid for it.