Gunsmoke featured Arness in the leading role of U.S. Marshal Matt Dillon. His real-life height certainly made him stand out from the pack, as he stood at 6'7″ tall. Arness started out in theater before moving over into feature films and television, but he had some difficulty making it work in Hollywood.
James Arness was 6' 7" (2.01m) tall. However, in this episode Hollywood tricks make him appear smaller than Chuck Conners, who was 6' 5½" (1.9m) tall. Chuck Conners was also known as "The Rifleman" in the series The Rifleman (1958).
Although Arness wanted to be a naval fighter pilot, he was concerned his poor eyesight would bar him. However, it was his 6-ft, 7-in (2.01 m) frame that ended his chances because the height limit for aviators was set at 6 ft, 2 in (1.88 m).
James Arness was the quiet type while he was away from his character, Marshal Matt Dillon. His Gunsmoke character was known for his strong moral code, sense of justice, and fairness, but off-screen Arness was known to limit personal appearances and interviews.
Although he was only in 50 episodes and joined mid-season, Reynolds didn't feel like an outsider. In fact, while he was there, he and the cast became great friends. "He was a wonderful guy to work with, and we all became friends," Arness said. "He just fit right in with the family group, and we had a wonderful time.
How much did James Arness make per episode of Gunsmoke?
Did the cast of Gunsmoke get along in real life?
The cast of Gunsmoke was able to get pretty chummy with each other during the show's twenty-season run, to the point where they felt like a family. Leading this cast of Western stars was James Arness, a man who was— apparently— as tall as he was kind.
Stone was brought on as one of the original principal cast members along with James Arness, Amanda Blake, and Dennis Weaver. However, they didn't all initially get along. Stone initially “hated” Arness because he didn't think that he took the job seriously enough.
Gunsmoke made Ken Curtis' Festus Haggen a series regular to replace Dennis Weaver's beloved Chester Goode after he left to pursue other acting opportunities. However, Curtis refused to return for the first made-for-tv Gunsmoke movie after its 20-season run because of a couple of serious disagreements with a producer.
He was raised as a Methodist. Arness attended John Burrows Grade School, Washburn High School and West High School in Minneapolis. Despite “being a poor student and skipping many classes”, he graduated from high school in June 1942. He then enlisted in the United States Army to serve in World War II.
According to an article on television westerns in "Time" magazine (3/30/59), Arness stood 6' 7", weighed 235 lbs, and had chest-waist-hips measurements of 48-36-36.
Did James Arness do his own horse riding in Gunsmoke?
Arness was known for his physicality and willingness to do his own action scenes, including horse riding, fighting, and other physical challenges. However, for particularly dangerous or high-risk stunts, a stunt double would sometimes be used to ensure the safety of the actors.
Who turned down the role of Miss Kitty on Gunsmoke?
But that was the reasoning behind Polly Bond's decision to refuse the part of Miss Kitty on Gunsmoke. The former Polly Ellis had recently married Tommy Bond, a former child actor most famous for playing "Butch" on The Little Rascals.
What was the relationship between James Arness and Peter Graves?
Peter Aurness grew up with his older brother James in Minneapolis. The two boys both joined the Army in World War II and later fell into acting. James altered the family surname to Arness. Peter opted for a stage name from his maternal side, Graves.
James Arness, the 6-foot-6 actor who towered over the television landscape for two decades as righteous Dodge City lawman Matt Dillon in "Gunsmoke," died Friday. He was 88.
Bates spent 25 years as a stuntman, which included being James Arness's stunt double in 1972, and in 2016 he received the prestigious Silver Spur Award at a ceremony in Hollywood, California.
' ” Arness, who remained close to Weaver after he left the series, praised him as a “really fine actor.” “We really liked each other a whole lot,” Arness said.
In his lifetime, James Arness was married twice. James first married Virginia Chapman in 1948. During this marriage, he adopted Chapman's son Craig Arness (1946 – 2004), who went on to found the stock photography agency, Westlight and worked as a photographer for National Geographic.
Following the aforementioned "Gunsmoke" TV movies (the last in 1994, when Arness was 71), Arness basically retired. His marriage to Virginia Chapman ended in divorce in 1960. They had three children, one of whom, Jenny Lee, committed suicide in 1975. Arness subsequently married Janet Surtrees in 1978.
But the changing of the guard really happened in the Season 9 episode titled "The Prairie Wolfer," where Chester and Festus actually appear together. In fact, this particular episode had appearances from Matt, Kitty, Doc, Chester, Festus, Sam and Quint.
What actor appeared in the most Gunsmoke episodes?
James Arness played Marshal Matt Dillon in 635 episodes of Gunsmoke, the only cast member to appear in every single one. While fellow regulars Amanda Blake and Milburn Stone can't top that, they were both in more than 500 episodes — a significant achievement by any standard!
Things all turn out for the best in the end. Festus helps save the Pugh family's welfare, Av Marie and Toby get married and plan to leave for California, and Dibble even gets up from under his tree, but the rest of the Gunsmoke leads have nothing to do at all.
Duke had set up an interview with Arness, hoping he would have time to play the small role of Houston in The Alamo. However, to his dismay, his old pal never turned up. The story goes that Wayne never really forgave him for the snub and Richard Boone was cast instead.
Did James Arness and Milburn Stone get along in real life?
Obviously, Arness straightened out and once the two actors were on the same wavelength, they got along just fine. In a later interview, Stone told TV Guide, "I spent the first two years on Gunsmoke despising Jim's lack of professionalism.
A: Matt Dillon (James Arness) and Kitty (Amanda Blake) never married during the series 1955-75 run, although close watchers of the show were convinced they had connected at some time. But in a 1973 episode, Matt had a brief affair with another woman, Mike Yardner (Michael Learned), while he had amnesia.
