Gunsmoke Gunsmoke Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West. The central character is lawman Marshal Matt Dillon, played by William Conrad on radio and James Arness on television. When aired in the UK, the television series was initially titled Gun Law, later reverting to "Gunsmoke". The radio series ran from 1952 to 1961. John Dunning wrote that among radio drama enthusiasts, ""Gunsmoke" is routinely placed among the best shows of any kind
Matt Dillon (Gunsmoke) hesitated to do so when the situation warranted. Dillon often tried to talk men out of "trying him", and would express a genuine regret to family members when he had to kill a man. In one salute to modern police dramas, one episode ["The Fourth Victim"] Matt Dillon has to try to stop a mad killer who is shooting Dodge citizens for no apparent reason. Possibly the angriest Matt Dillon ever got was after an accidental shooting ("The Round Up"). An old friend, Zel, had come to town during an influx of wild acting cattle drovers. Matt deputized him, and