Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston.

The central character is lawman Marshal Matt Dillon, played by William Conrad on radio and James Arness on television.

At the end of its run in 1975, Los Angeles Times columnist Cecil Smith wrote: "Gunsmoke was the dramatization of the American epic legend of the west.

Robinson delegated this to his West Coast CBS vice president, Harry Ackerman, who had developed the Philip Marlowe series.

The project was suspended for three years, when producer Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston discovered it while creating an adult Western series of their own.

[8] Macdonnell and Meston wanted to create a radio Western for adults, in contrast to the prevailing juvenile fare such as The Lone Ranger and The Cisco Kid.

"[1] The radio series first aired on CBS on April 26, 1952, with the episode "Billy the Kid", written by Walter Newman, and ended on June 18, 1961.

In the radio series, "Doc" Adams was initially a self-interested and somewhat dark character with a predilection for constantly attempting to increase his revenue through the procurement of autopsy fees.

Milburn Stone was given free rein to choose the character's first name, and chose that of the ancient Greek physician and medical researcher Galen.

Episodes were aimed at adults with some of the most explicit content of their time, including violent crimes, scalpings, massacres, and opium addicts.

Apart from the doleful tone, Gunsmoke is distinct from other radio Westerns, as the dialogue is often slow and halting, and the outstanding sound effects give a palpable sense of the prairie setting.

John Dunning wrote, "The listener heard extraneous dialogue in the background, just above the muted shouts of kids playing in an alley.

Conrad directed two television episodes, in 1963 and 1971, and McNear appeared on six, playing characters other than Doc, including three times as storekeeper Howard Rudd.

Among them are his deputies, Chester Goode, and later Festus Haggen, town physician Galen “Doc” Adams, and saloon owner, Miss Kitty Russell.

Doc Adams is portrayed as a very competent and caring physician, but his conservative treatment methods often frustrate his patients who expect a quick recovery.

"[17] According to Thomas "Duke" Miller, a television and movie celebrity expert, this story was told to him by legendary actor James Stewart: "Jimmy said he was in the office with Charles Warren when Mr. Wayne came in.

In the end, the primary roles were all recast, with Arness as Marshal Matt Dillon (on the recommendation of Wayne, who also introduced the pilot), Dennis Weaver as Chester Goode, Milburn Stone as Dr. G. "Doc" Adams (the G. later specified as standing for Galen), and Amanda Blake as Miss Kitty Russell.

In 1975, CBS made the decision not to renew Gunsmoke for a 21st season, without making any public announcement or informing the producers or cast members ahead of time.

Initially on the fringes of Dodge society, Festus Haggen was slowly phased in as a reliable sidekick and part-time deputy to Matt Dillon when Reynolds left in 1965.

When Milburn Stone temporarily left for heart bypass surgery in 1971, Pat Hingle played Dr. John Chapman for several episodes.

In syndication, the entire 20-year run of Gunsmoke is separated into three packages by CBS Media Ventures: The program currently airs on four major venues: TV Land, which has carried the show since its inception in 1996, Encore Westerns, INSP, and Weigel Broadcasting's MeTV digital subchannel network.

A third unique DVD box set, known as Gunsmoke: The Directors Collection, was also released with 10 selected episodes from certain seasons throughout the series' 20-year history.

The film, shot in Alberta, features a now-retired Marshal Dillon being attacked and a vengeful former rival returning to Dodge City to entrap him.

In the film, Learned returns as Mike, who reveals to Marshal Dillon that he is the father of their daughter,[44] Beth (played by Amy Stock-Poynton) and asks him for help in saving her from a band on Apaches.

Thirty television Westerns came and went during its 20-year tenure, and Gunsmoke was the sole survivor, with Alias Smith and Jones and Bonanza both leaving the airwaves 2+1⁄2 years earlier in January 1973.

[55] The original Law & Order, which was canceled in 2010 after tying Gunsmoke's longevity record for a live-action, primetime television series, began its 21st season in February 2022.

[59] This was surpassed by Mariska Hargitay and Ice-T, who have portrayed the characters Olivia Benson and Fin Tutuola on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit for over 25 and 24 consecutive years to date, respectively.

[17] James Arness, Milburn Stone, Ken Curtis, Dennis Weaver, and Amanda Blake are all inductees of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.

[61] Dodge City's Boot Hill Museum has a tribute to Gunsmoke, including set furniture from the 1960s and an old television tuned to the show.

[62] In 2015, several of the surviving staff reunited at Wild West Fest in Dodge City, including stars Burt Reynolds, Buck Taylor, Jess Walton, Bruce Boxleitner, and writer Jim Byrnes.