Gunsmoke, September 1955 to September 1975. One of my favorite shows and a nice way to remember Arness, who, in addition to being an actor was a military hero. Arness served as a rifleman with the U.S. 3rd Infantry Division, and was severely wounded during Operation Shingle, at Anzio, Italy. He landed on Anzio Beachhead on January 22, 1944 as a rifleman with 2nd Platoon, E Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment of the 3rd Infantry Division. On January 29, 1945, having undergone surgery several times, Arness was honorably discharged. His wounds continued to bother him, and in later years Arness suffered from chronic leg pain, which sometimes hurt when mounting a horse. His decorations include the Bronze Star Medal, the purple heart, the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with three bronze battle stars, the World War II Victory Medal and, for us who know what it means, the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB). Remember the cast? In addition to James Arness as Matt Dillon, recurring stars include Dennis Weaver as Chester Goode (1955–1964), Amanda Blake as Kitty Russell (1955–1974) [Tragic life, ended in death from HIV due to, in all probability, her marriage to Mark Spaeth of Austin, Texas], Milburn Stone as Doc Galen Adams, Ken Curtis as Festus Haggen (1964–1975) and several others. Listen to the music next time Comcast 524 plays the series.... a steady, even-handed, complete music theme not marred by histrionics. I miss them all. I miss the show. Do you?
Posted on: Sun, 16 Mar 2014 19:58:09 +0000
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