John Meston and refined the main characters who would populate his and Macdonnell's radio portrayal of Dodge. Jeff Spain soon became United States Marshal Matt Dillon, and veteran voice actor William Conrad was chosen by Meston, Macdonnell, and two other network audition judges to be the lawman and the series' central figure. Other seasoned actors filled the needed regular supporting roles, including Parley Baer as Marshal Dillon's trusty assistant Chester Proudfoot, Howard McNear as Dr. Charles "Doc" Adams, and Georgia Ellis, whose role in the series' early episodes would quickly evolve into the saloon "hostess" Kitty Russell. "Gunsmoke" was broadcast for the
John Meston later star as Marshal Matt Dillon on "Gunsmoke"; and Howard McNear, who would be cast as "Doc" in that radio drama. It was at this time, at the turn of the 1950s, when Meston also began adapting stories, writing original scripts, and serving as an editorial supervisor for episodes of "Romance", another popular CBS radio drama that had been on the air since 1943. He contributed scripts as well to installments of "Suspense" and "Lux Radio Theater", yet two more of CBS Radio's lineup of notable programs during 1940s, 1950s, and early 1960s. In 1949 executives and programmers at CBS