Matt Dillon (Gunsmoke) (whose "supposed" origins figured in the very first episode of the radio series), and he often referred to Wild Bill Hickok as being a close personal friend. In the television version (which ran from 1955 until 1975), and subsequent TV-movies (1987 to 1994), Matt was portrayed by James Arness. Since most of the early television episodes were based on stories and scripts from the radio version, Arness's initial interpretation and portrayal was similar to William Conrad's. However, as the television version continued, Arness's Marshal Matt Dillon evolved in a number of ways. In the television version, Dillon became more resigned
Matt Dillon are stored at UCLA, where a legal dispute makes it unavailable to the public. One of his next roles was in "Liar's Moon", where he played Jack Duncan, a poor Texas boy madly in love with a rich banker's daughter. In the early 1980s, Dillon also had prominent roles in three adaptations of S. E. Hinton novels: "Tex" (1982), "The Outsiders" (1983) and "Rumble Fish" (1983). All three films were shot in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Hinton's hometown. "The Outsiders" and "Rumble Fish" had Dillon working with Francis Ford Coppola and Diane Lane. He followed those up with "The Flamingo Kid" in