Matt Dillon (Gunsmoke) In the opening of most radio episodes, the announcer would describe the show as "...the story of the violence that moved west with young America, and the story of a man who moved with it." William Conrad's Matt would take over, saying, "I'm that man, Matt Dillon, United States Marshalthe first man they look for and the last they want to meet. It's a chancy job, and it makes a man watchful ... and a little lonely." Conrad's Matt provided bits of narration for many of the radio episodes, usually to help set the scene for the listener or to
Matt Dillon (Gunsmoke) to spot female troublemakers. Whenever he disregarded Kitty's warnings about the intentions or character of a particular woman, he invariably regretted it. An early (November 29, 1952) radio episode that was simply titled "Kitty" provided a particularly significant insight into a major reason for the affinity that the two felt toward one another. Matt invites Kitty to a public dance and she is reluctant to accept for fear that she will be viewed with disdain due to her vocation as a saloon hostess. Matt is persistent and Kitty eventually relents, but her instincts prove correct. She is shunned and treated