Norman Macdonnell an anthology series they had done. Their boss at CBS, Harry Ackerman, and other network executives dismissed that title, preferring "Gunsmoke", a program heading that Ackerman himself was credited with conceiving. Once given permission to proceed with "Gunsmoke", Macdonnell began developing a detailed production schedule for the new series' 30-minute episodes and arranging auditions to cast its recurring characters. His and Meston’s "Jeff Spain" soon became United States Marshal Matt Dillon, and veteran voice actor William Conrad was chosen by Macdonnell, Meston, and two other CBS screeners to portray that lead character. Other seasoned actors soon filled the needed regular
Boot Hill Hill Cemetery in Dodge City, Kansas. Boot Hill is the name of the cemetery in Dodge City in the "Gunsmoke" radio series. In many episodes, the marshal (Matt Dillon) would allude to "putting you in Boot Hill", or "another man headed to Boot Hill". In the first season of the "Gunsmoke" television series, the introduction to each episode showed Matt Dillon walking around Boot Hill reflecting on the deaths of men buried there. Boothill Graveyard is referenced in many films such as "Tombstone" (1993), "Wyatt Earp" (1994), and "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral" (1957), during which it was repeatedly sung