Gunsmoke: The First Season

Gunsmoke was the black-and-white version of a radio show that starred Bill Conrad as Dodge City Marshal Matt Dillon, circa 1873. Conrad was a fine actor with a voice that was used to great effect when he narrated Rocky & Bullwinkle and The Fugitive, but he was short and thick, and nobody’s idea of a lean, mean town tamer. James Arness, on the other hand, was six foot, seven inches—so tall, he barely had to act. When the half-hour show began broadcasting on September 10, 1955, Arness�