 |
 |
|
 |
 |
 HITES & HIGHTOWERS
Water towers and windmills
were widespread
in the Old West,
but we don't really see
enough in Gunsmoke.
The only time
we're made aware
that Dodge has at least
one watertower,
is when someone
is dunked & drowned in one,
in the b&w hr The Do-Badder.
There's a good look at the base of one in Old Yellow Boots.
Twice in twenty,
a windmill figures prominently
in an episode--
when Tim McIntire fixes one
in The Storm,
and Festus another
in Aunt Thede.
KATHLEEN HITE
produced her own
tv western, Empire (1962).
One of the stars
was Charles Bronson,
later one of the lead actors
on The Travels
of Jaimie McPheeters (1963),
all of whose episodes started
with the phrase "The Day of."
The Wild Wild West (1965)
did the opposite, beginning
its titles with "The Night of."
Rawhide (1959) had learned
how interminable
as a wagon train
or a cattle drive it could be,
to prefix all its episodes
with "The Incident of,"
and abandoned the gimmick
on its 4th, 7th, and 8th season.
With exceptions,
Wagon Train stuck
to its practice of embarking
at "The" and arriving at "Story."
The non-western Perry Mason
also remained faithful
to its beginning,
"The Case of the."
Its star Raymond Burr,
had been the lead
of the radio western
Fort Laramie,
whose episodes
began and ended
with Kathleen Hite's
best writing.
Watch enough episodes
of Kathleen Hite's 1962 series,
Empire, and you'll realize
that it is a prototype
of the later rich & rancho
series Dallas (1978)
and Dynasty (1981).
Kathleen Hite herself
wrote three episodes
of Falcon Crest (1981). |
|
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
 A HISTORY OF GUNSMOKE
"Oh, East is East, and West is West,
and never the twain shall meet,
Till Earth and Sky stand presently
at God's great Judgment Seat;
But there is neither East nor West,
Border, nor Breed, nor Birth,
When two strong men stand face to face,
though they come from the ends of the earth!"
-Rudyard Kipling
Matt and Matt side by side?
Yes! And Kitty and Kitty,
Doc and Doc,
and Chester and Chester too!
Track & trail the evolution
of Gunsmoke as it went
through its several eras!
"Gunsmoke" was shown
as "Gun Law" on British TV.
In France, it was called
"Police des plaines."
No, the setting was not
changed to Illinois;
Dillon remained in Dodge,
Kansas.
TEST YOUR GUNSMOKE IQ
Why did William Conrad
not play Matt Dillon on TV?
1) His voice was not
solid and resonant enough.
2) Radio salaries were higher
than television salaries.
3) He opted to do the tv version
of The Fat Man instead.
4) He lost too much weight
to play Matt Dillon
after a bout of dengue fever
caught in downtown Los Angeles.
Copyright
© 2006 E. A. Villafranca, Jr.
All Rights Reserved |
|
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
 WIND PATTERNS
Besides convincing
James Arness to be
on Gunsmoke,
and introducing the show
on its premiere night,
John Wayne
had a million other
uncanny connections
to Gunsmoke and its star.
Bryan "Slim" Hightower
was John Ford's favorite
stuntman.
He worked in many
Ford movies,
including The Searchers.
Robert Marmaduke Hightower,
John Wayne's character
in Ford's 3 Godfathers (1948),
was named after
Slim Hightower.
The first regular episode
of Gunsmoke,
Billy the Kid,
aired on April 26, 1952.
Gunsmoke's first
semi-regular character,
Mr. Hightower,
made his first appearance.
Three decades and three years
before 4' 2" Billy Curtis stood
next to 6' 7" James Arness
as a gag in Arizona Midnight,
Curtis had already done
the same thing
with 6' 4" John Wayne
in Three Texas Steers.
Did Miss Kitty practice
numerology & astrology?
John Wayne was born
on May 26, 1907;
Sam Edwards on May 26, 1915;
and James Arness
on May 26, 1923.
Gunsmoke itself was born
on a 26th--April 26, 1952.
The first-produced tv episode,
Hack Prine, wasn't shown first
and lost that honor
to Matt Gets It;
instead, it became...
Episode No. 26.
Amanda Blake herself was 26
when tv Gunsmoke
first hit the air.
|
|
