Matt Dillon (Gunsmoke) no uncertain terms that he had no interest whatsoever. (Wayne was arguably the cinema's foremost box office attraction at the time.) Warren stated that the inquiry had not been serious inasmuch as Wayne could not realistically have been expected to abandon a thriving movie career for a less certain and immensely less lucrative television role. Wayne did, however, recommend James Arness for the part and his offer to introduce the first episode was readily accepted by CBS. Others who had auditioned for the part included Raymond Burr, Richard Boone, Denver Pyle, and William Conrad. All would go on to other
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