Whatever Happened to The Cast of Gunsmoke? (Jerry Skinner Documentary)

[Music] the nation was first introduced to TVs Gunsmoke on CBS television network on September the 10th 19 and 55 no one could have imagined that it would last for 20 years and become one of the most popular westerns ever its last episode was on March the 31st 1975 Gunsmoke was mostly filmed at the CBS Studio City backlot it had once belonged to Republic Pictures and Matt Dillon walked down the same street as Gary Cooper did and the epic movie High Noon gunsmoke's obsessed with due largely to its cast members starting with its major star James Arness that played marshal Matt Dillon James King Arness was born May the 26th 1923 in Minneapolis Minnesota to Roth and Ruth Arness James's father Roth was a medical supply salesman and his mother Ruth will later write a newspaper column now James had one younger brother Peter Aeneas who was born on March the 18th 1926 and will become the actor Peter Graves taking his maternal family's last name Peter will become a star in his own right starred in TVs hit show Mission Impossible Peter Graves will die of a heart attack on the 14th of March 2010 after returning home from a luncheon date with his family he will die fifteen months before his older brother James he will be cremated at the age of 83 James and Peter Arness will attend West High School in men Annapolis James will graduate in 1942 despite not like in school and in March of 1943 at the age of 19 our nest was drafted into the Army for World War 2 you'll see action in January of 1944 while storming a beachhead at Anzio Italy with the 3rd Infantry Division he will win the Bronze Star and Purple Heart from this action he'll be wounded in the right leg from machine-gun fire he will have multiple surgeries and spent a year hospitalized he will always walk with a slight limp after the war in his recuperation at the suggestion of his brother Peter he would try a broadcast course through the GI Bill and land a spot on the local radio station W lol in Minneapolis and not being satisfied as a small-time broadcaster our niece and a friend hitchhikes all the way to California they say to try to get jobs as movie extras while still on the GI Bill in roles in an acting scoop he was spotted by an agent that got him his first job playing Loretta Young's brother in the farmer's daughter in 1947 in 1948 while performing at Southern California Pasadena community Playhouse he'll meet the leading lady and actress Regina Chapman they'll be made on the 12th of February 1948 this mage will produce two children first Ginny Lee Arnaz born to 23rd of May 1950 she'll become an actress and will occasionally appear on monk she'll become distressed believed over a love affair and commit suicide by overdose on the 12th of May 1975 11 days before 25th birthday Ralph Arnez was born two years after Ginny Lee on February 18 1952 he inherited his daddy's love for surfing and by the time he was 18 he had won the world surfing championship in 1970 after Ginny Lee suicide in 1975 and his mother of Virginia's accidental overdose of sleeping pills in 1977 his beloved wife dies of cancer the next year in 1978 Roth read rules to his daddy's ranch for several years before being able to continue his life Craig Arness was the oldest son of virginia chapman from a previous marriage James adopted Creek as his own Craig became an award-winning photographer and reporter with the National Geographic Craig would died December the 14th 2004 from lung and anemia complications he leaves his wife Daphne and his two children Holly and Brian Craig was 58 years old while married to Virginia Chapman Arness landed a part in the thing he was spotted by Charles Feldman that represented the actor John Wayne in 1952 Arness signed a contract with John Wayne productions and Arneson Wayne became close friends during the next three years he will appear in movies produced by John Wayne productions such as Hondo and others in 1955 a radio program called Gunsmoke was adapted for television they were looking for someone to play the part and lead row of marshal Matt Dillon with a recommendation in support of John Wayne James Arness was selected he was star on Gunsmoke for the next 20 years lasting until nineteen seventy-five Gunsmoke will make our nests a multi-millionaire he will be very humble and treat other cast members with respect he'll be the only original cast member to appear in every Gunsmoke episode ever one from the producers to the stagehands said that our Ness was easiest actor they had ever worked with and as the star of the show he made no demands he was 32 years old when Gunsmoke started and 52 when the series ended in 1959 Gunsmoke had been on the air for four years James's wife Virginia became depressed tried suicide and then the next year in 1960 she tried suicide again Virginia's mental condition calls the two to separate and finally divorce James was 39 and Virginia was 41 Arness filed for custody of the children after 12 year-old Ginny Lee was hospitalized with acute alcoholic poisoning custody of the children was granted to Arness Virginia while mayor Turner has appeared in Perry Mason with Raymond Burr Highway Patrol with Broderick Crawford she also appeared in Gunsmoke with her husband Virginia Chapman will died on July the 29th 1977 14 years after divorcing Arness from an accidental overdose of sleeping pills she will never in a Virginia was 56 years old four years after his divorce from Virginia James Arness will meet throw us branded at the Columbia studio commissary while theme and Gunsmoke Arness was 41 and she was 22 they'll not marry but the romance will last for six years our des was reluctant to me he said that he was burnt from his first mage Taurus was not only an aspiring actress but she was a registered nurse and had become known as the nurse to the stars she took care of Patricia O'Neill after her stroke after her breakup with Arness she will marry again and have a son one year after Gunsmoke finished and a year before Virginia Chapman's death our Nance was star in the made from movie TV the McKay hands in 1976 a television adaption of How the West was won two years later on 16 December 1978 our nest age 55 will married 32 year old Janet surgeries they will remain married for over 32 years until our nieces death in 2011 now over the years James Arness was star in several Gunsmoke sequels in 1981 and 82 he will star in his final TV series on NBC's MacLaine's long in 1994 Arness will retire from acting at the age of 71 on June the 3rd 2011 James Arness will die of natural causes at his in Janet's Brentwood home his star for television is located at 17 51 vain he's buried at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale California [Music] James Arness Matt Dillon was 88 years old in all westerns ever met Dylan must have a Miss Kitty and God smokes Miss Kitty Russell was a pretty redhead by the name of Amanda Blake her real name was Beverly Louise Neal she was the only child of Jesse and Louise Neal Jesse was a banker and her mother was a housewife Blake was raised in Buffalo New York and born on the 20th of February 1929 in 1943 the Neal family moved to Claremont California after graduated from Claremont High School she enrolled in college but spent most of her time working pursuing her dream of becoming an actress she began performing in summer stock and small theater groups when not acting she worked as a telephone operator she finally landed a contract with MGM and started doing bit parts in 1949 the next year in 1950 she played in her first role stars in my crown that starred Joel McCrea on August the 22nd 1954 she may has done Whitman they were divorced August 21st nineteen and fifty-six one year after the start of Gunsmoke when Amanda was 27 she got the break of her life when she was hired to play Kitty Russell the madam and owner of the Long Branch saloon she will play Miss Kitty for 19 years while playing Kitty she will marry two more times on a 15th of August 1964 she'll marry Jason Day a ranger and cattle-raiser in Arizona they will divorce three years later in 1967 that same year on the 30th of June 1967 she'll marry Frank Gilbert they all remain married for 14 years they'll become involved in saving wildlife they will also be the first animal refuge to successfully breed cheetahs in captivity she will support animal welfare organizations the rest of her life Blake and Gilbert will divorce in 1982 their Phoenix home and ten acres at 50 106 East exner Street in the Arcadia district will become a refuge for big cats with one line and ten cheetahs our neighbors were referred to her place as Kitty's cat house in 1968 Amanda Blake after receiving several awards for her role in Gunsmoke will be the first woman and third person to be inducted into the National cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City now Gunsmoke was set in Dodge City Kansas in the 1880s although they never filmed there they did take the name of the Long Branch is Miss Kitty's place and their favorite place to eat and stay of course was the Dodge House now this is a map of the real 1880s Dodge City Kansas from this map you can see the train tracks running through the middle of Dodge all on the south side or lower part of the tracks is the red-light district now this is where the worst ones with crooked gamblers and prostitutes and drunk Cowboys hung out now here are some of the real saw doves that made their living in Dodge such as miss Frankie Belle who got into an argument with Wyatt Earp heat him over the head with something and spent tonight in jail and also Big Mo and here's Sadie Red Seal and others now you'll be glad to know that Miss Kitty would not have been a part of this group of ladies as the Long Branch was located on the north side of the railroad tracks the North said was were respectable merchants and citizens resided no ladies of the nets allowed a Long Branch saloon was where the red X is located it was a more upper-class saloon not to say that there was never any trouble but not as much now this is Dodge City and the more respectable part on the north side of the tracks and this is the Long Branch in the spring of 1879 Levi Richardson a Buffalo hunter and Frank love in a professional gambler had trouble over Richardson's affections for Lovins wife Mattie it came to a conclusion here Oh at the Long Branch when both men were sitting at the same table and both pull guns that they worked supposed to have as the smoke cleared Richardson raises and rises from the table and takes a few steps and collapse on the floor dead the town marshal who was in another saloon nearby heard the shots and rushed to the long braids too late lovin has a manner wound on his hand and it was all a waste because loving will leave Matty and his small son a short time later and never returned the large white building where the F is is a diet house now this is where Doc Holliday had his office and practiced dentistry he also lived there and further east is the cattle pens that's where the trail herds would wait to be loaded onto boxcars in 1940 the replica of Front Street Dodge City was built as close to the real thing as they could use in old historical pictures now the open ground in front of these buildings was actually where the first Hills Cemetery was located it was later moved it was located behind the buildings on Front Street which was at that time located closer to the railroad tracks where cars are traveling now Dodge City actually had two front streets both facing the railroad tracks the deadline was the tracks no guns were allowed north of the railroad but anything went south of the railroad deputy Edie Masterson brother of Bat Masterson was killed in a saloon were the cars of cross the tracks on the south side now he was called to a disturbance after being shot he stumbled back across the tracks towards us and then fell dead in the street now the bar inside the rebuilt Long Branch is an original cherry wooden bar from the 1880s the frequent visitor to Dodge City is buck Taylor that played deputy newly O'Brien on Gunsmoke buck gives a tape introduction to Dodge City visitors and have several paintings that he painted of Gunsmoke characters hanging on the walls for sale in 1974 after 19 years playing Miss Kitty Amanda Blake goes into semi-retirement she stated 19 years is long enough to be stuck behind a bar and if I have to put on that damn bustle one more time I'll scream she stated that things were not the same after her close friend clean strange that played Sam the bartender died one year earlier in 1973 three years after leaving Gunsmoke Amanda will be diagnosed with throat cancer she will have oral surgery and take therapy to learn to talk again she'll become an advocate of the American Cancer Society in 1984 she'll marry mark spate he was a developer and Austin Texas City Councilman she learned that her husband is bisexual and has HIV virus she would divorce him a few months later in 1985 faith will soon die of AIDS shortly after their divorce he was 45 years old Blake will play one more time Miss Kitty in 1987 returning to Dodge she always kept in touch with her Gunsmoke friends through the years such as Arness Weaver Taylor and others on August the 16th 1989 Amanda Blake Miss Kitty will die at the mercy General Hospital in Sacramento she will succumb to the complications of AIDS believed caught from her ex-husband at her request she will be cremated and her ashes scattered over the animal reserve that she helped establish Amanda Blake had no children she was 60 years old now what would Matt Dillon and Miss Kitty be without her sidekick Chester good played by actor Dennis Weaver William bill Dennis Weaver was born 4 June 1924 in Joplin Missouri he was the son of Walter and Lenny Parker Weaver Dennis's father worked for an electrical company and also farmed Dennis was raised up a farm boy working and doing farm chores after graduating from high school and interned junior college he joined the Navy Air Corps during World War two spent several months learning how to fly at the boulder colorado training facilities after receiving his wings as a Navy pilot he was given leave to go home before being shipped overseas while on leave the atomic bomb was dropped and that was quickly the end of his Navy career after being discharged he will make Geraldine or Jerry Stowe will he admit her while in junior college and on the 20th of October 1945 they'll drive to Columbus Kansas to the Justice of the Peace they will remain married for over 60 years until Dennis is dead in 2006 it will be their only managed they will have three boys Rick will be born 1949 and become an actor and producer Robert or Robbie as he was called will be born in 1953 the family will be devastated in 2003 on July the 16th when Robbie's wife Lynn and will be killed along with seven other people when a driver runs over shoppers at a farmers market in Santa Monica California now rusty will be born 1959 and he'll become an actor in some rain now this is a picture of Dennis and two of his boys Rick and Robbie after man Dennis will enter the University of Oklahoma Weaver had participated in sports in high school and had excelled he had won a scholarship in 1948 Dennis placed sixth in the Olympic Trials in decathlon and actually won the final event of 1500 meter run he graduated with a fine arts degree that same year in 1948 after graduation he went to New York and entered an acting school to pursue his childhood dream of becoming an actor he received his first break with the help of Shelley Winters performing in the stage play come back little Sheba and in 1952 he signed a contract with Universal Studios performing in bit parts and struggling for money he found extra work Dooley flowers for $60 a week in order to support his family in 1955 we were tried out for the part of Chester on Gunsmoke he did poorly on his first audition he has to get a second change by changing his speech to a slow long drawn-out voice he won the part the producers asked him to come back with a handicap for Chester's part he decided to use a stiff leg they loved the idea and the only problem was as Chester he would sometime forget which leg was supposed to be still home Gunsmoke he earned $300 a week to start nine years later he was making nine thousand per week in 1959 Weaver will win an Emmy for his role as Chester you will form friendships with other cast members that will last a lifetime he will form a singing trio with Amanda Blake and Willard stone and they will appear at fairs across the country even breaking all records at the Albuquerque State Fair in 1964 after nine years on Gunsmoke Dennis will be offered his own series called Kentucky Jones it will only last for one season but in 1967 he will star in general being that will last for two seasons in 1971 Weaver will make a movie called duel and I think it's one of his best with a new director named Steven Spielberg Weaver will perform his own driving stunts in that movie from 1973 to 1975 Dennis will serve as president of the Screen Actors Guild same position that Ronald Reagan once held Weaver will state that his most enjoyable series was McLeod from 1970 until 1977 in this series he played a makes it go lawman assist in the New York Police Department Weaver becomes what he always wanted to be a leading man in 19 and 81 Dennis Weaver was introduced into the National cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City in 1989 The Weavers built an environmental home on 20 acres of ranchland in Ridgeway Colorado it was his prized position in 1991 he was diagnosed with prostate cancer and on the 24th of February 2006 Dennis Weaver will quietly pass away from prostate cancer by falling over in his wife Jerry's arms it was at their home in Ridgeway Dennis will be cremated at his own request he was 81 years old Dodge City now has a Marshall a Miss Kitty and a Chester all it needs is a town doctor dodge city's doctor was doc Adams played by veteran actor and will burn stone Hugh Weaver and stone was born July the 5th 1904 in Burton Kansas his father Herbert and mother Laura were shopkeepers and store owners Erin had one brother Joseph called Joe and a sister named Glennis Joe will become a journalist with a Wichita Eagle and San Diego Union and evening tribute he will write scripts for television even Gunsmoke now this is Milburn and his sister Glennis he graduated from Burton high school and was an excellent athlete he participated in every school play Melbourne left home out of school with one of the traveling entertainment groups that often played the Burton Opera House he eventually ended up doing a vaudeville act during these years he marries Ellen Morrison she was called Nellie they were made June to 23rd 19 and 25 they will have Milburn's only child Shirley Joan born the next year in 1926 he will remain married to Nelly until her death from heart disease at 19 and 37 two years early the stones moved to California so that Milburn could try his hand at movie business he sang with monogram pictures playing unbilled parts but he had just landed a major part in federal bullit the same year that nearly died two years later in 1939 he marries Jane garrison within one year they will quickly divorce and remarry they will remain made over 40 years until Millard's death in nineteen and 80 in 1940 he will play the brother of Roy Rogers gone bad in 1944 he will be in the great Alaskan mystery then for years he will play bit parts over 150 character after parts before 1955 and Gunsmoke stone was grateful to have a steady paycheck that Gunsmoke provided he had worked for director John Ford that was a friend of John Wayne's that was a friend of James or nieces which always helps me Aaron stone was soon become doc Adams to millions of Gunsmoke fans each week you'll play the role of doc animals which he said he dearly loved for the next 20 years to a 1975 in 1968 he will receive an Emmy for his role as doc anims Maren stone could sang very well as Amanda Blake and Dennis Weaver could they formed a trio and conformant over the road in 1971 after 16 years old Gunsmoke Don's suffered a serious heart attack he underwent bypass surgery at UAB Hospital in Birmingham Alabama remarkably he recovered in only a short few months and returned to Gunsmoke and in 1975 when Gunsmoke went off there Melbourne will retire with his wife chained to their home in Rancho Santa Fe California located just north of San Diego stone always enjoyed hippie and family members and friends into the business such as his niece Madge Blake who was 5 years younger than Milburn although she was 50 when she tried out as a character actress you probably recognize her from the real McCoys and other TV shows five years after Gunsmoke on the 12th of June 1980 Hugh Miller and stoned doc Adams dies at the script Memorial Hospital in La Jolla California of a severe heart attack one year after his death in 1981 you'll be introduced into the cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City Maren stone star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is located at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard beveren stone is buried at the El Camino Memorial Park Cemetery in San Diego next to his wife change who passed away the 20th of October 2002 doc Adams was 75 years old in 1964 when Dennis Weaver left Gunsmoke they tried desperately to find a substitute replacement finally settling on a Western Actor King Curtis who played Festus Haggen he stepped into the part of Matt Dillon's deputy and sidekick and stayed longer than any others for 11 years ken Curtis was born courteous playing gates in Alomar Colorado on the 2nd of July 1960 but he was raised on a ranch on Muddy Creek in southwest corner of bent Ken 1926 Ken's father Dan gates was elected sheriff of bent County and the family moved into the building that was customary for the shirt the family lived on the bottom floor and the jailhouse was on the top floor Ken's mother Nellie cooked for the prisoners candidate picture of Dan and his three sons Curtis 10 Chester 14 and Carl 17 now here's Curtis with his mother Nellie and his daddy sheriff Dan with one of his deputies now deer in high schoo can play football as quarterback and learned to play the saxophone he graduated in 1935 he enrolled in college but soon found yet a good voice and loved singing he began touring with local swing groups he decided that he would try some songwriting in California formed a band to play his songs and others Cecil B DeMille his secretary heard him saying he was hard at MGM to welcome visitors by saying in songs a record was sent of Ken singing to Tommy Dorsey and in 1941 Curtis gets a job with a Tommy Dorsey band to help fill in for Frank Sinatra it said that tummy suggested that he changed his name from Curtis gates to key in Curtis from 1943 to 1945 Kurdish served in the infantry during world war ii after being released from the military in 1945 he signed a contract with Columbia Pictures to play in low-budget westerns as a singing cowboy Ken had recorded Tomalin tumbleweed and was heard by the sons of the pioneers they hired him as a lead singer from 1949 until 1953 while still with the pioneers in 1952 ken mares Barbara Ford the daughter of famous Western director John Ford he had become a member of forged stock company along with Ward bud Ben Johnson John Wayne marine O'Hara Harry Carey jr. and others appearing in numerous Ford directed movies along with John Wayne such as Rio Grande II the quiet man The Searchers the Alamo horse soldiers and others in 1964 Curtis and Barbara Ford will divorce after 12 years this was the same year that Dennis Weaver will leave Gunsmoke after being hard to play Festus Haggen on Gunsmoke and two years after his divorce from Barbara in 1966 12 March he will marry Tori Connolly they will remain married for 25 years until Ken's death in 1991 in 1975 when Gunsmoke went off there Kim continued to act and travel the country with the County Fair circuit that he loves so much and in 1981 ken Curtis was inducted into the National cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City on the 28th of April 1991 at his home in Clovis California Ian Curtis will die peacefully in his sleep believed from a heart attack or stroke he'll be cremated and his ashes will be spread over the flat lands of Colorado or he was raised Qian Curtis Festus was 74 years old

Channel: Jerry Skinner

Views: 4,622,398

Rating: 4.7539048 out of 5

Keywords: James Arness, Ken Curtis, Amanda Blake, Milburn Stone, Dennis Weaver, Dodge City, Gunsmoke

Id: fx4Ejp5NNTg

Length: 37min 2sec (2222 seconds)

Published: Mon Sep 05 2016