The story line was that she could no longer tolerate having a man in her life that has been shot eleven times and knew the next time might prove to be fatal. Miss Kitty closed the Long Branch Saloon, and put it up for sale, and then left Dodge. Amanda Blake chose to leave Gunsmoke voluntarily.
The character was a vital part of the production, and for 19 seasons, the role stood out, making it a fan favorite. Amanda Blake decided to leave the show; therefore, Kitty was not in the final season. The audience missed her, and the actress shared that feeling about the show.
What was the cause of Miss Kitty's death on Gunsmoke?
For nearly 20 years, Blake played Miss Kitty Russell on the popular Western TV series Gunsmoke. Although when she died in August 1989, the media initially reported that she died of cancer, the cause of death was later confirmed to be AIDS-related complications. It is not known how she contracted the virus.
What was the last episode Kitty was in on Gunsmoke?
In Amanda Blake's last episode after 19 years on the show. Matt's life is changed when his gun arm is seriously wounded. Matt's life is changed when his gun arm is seriously wounded.In Amanda Blake's last episode after 19 years on the show.
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.
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.
Dennis Weaver never anticipated that the series would be as successful and long running as it was— and as he neared the end of his time on Gunsmoke, he was entirely out of creative directions in which to take his character, and he began to feel the physical repercussions of walking with a limp for so long.
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.
Between 1963 and 1967, the ratings for Gunsmoke had declined to the point where the show fell outside the Top 30 in the Nielsen ratings. The decision to cancel Gunsmoke was initiated by a younger core of CBS executives, who felt that Gunsmoke was outdated and should be replaced with a more contemporary show.
When Blake decided not to return for the show's 20th (and final) season, the character was said to have returned to New Orleans. She was replaced by the hoarse-voiced, matronly actress Fran Ryan (known to many as the second Doris Ziffel on CBS's Green Acres .)
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.
After Gunsmoke ended, Arness performed in Western-themed movies and television series, including How the West Was Won, and in five made-for-television Gunsmoke movies between 1987 and 1994. An exception was as a big-city police officer in a short-lived 1981–1982 series, McClain's Law, starring with Marshall Colt.
Miss Blake, testifying in the same sultry voice that sounded from countless scenes at the smokey Long Branch saloon, showed little effects of her surgery. She said she had smoked two to three packs a day for 30 years. Not a lighted cigarette was in evidence in the crowded hearing room.
He stayed with Gunsmoke through its entire television run, with the exception of 7 episodes in 1971, when Stone required heart surgery and Pat Hingle replaced him as Dr. Chapman.
' ” 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.
Gunsmoke, a gritty depiction of American West life, featured screen legends like Burt Reynolds and John Wayne in guest roles. Some Gunsmoke actors still living and working today include Roger Ewing, Buck Taylor, Kim Darby, and William Shatner.
Nineteen years of encouraging the good works of Marshal Matt Dillon on the TV show ”Gunsmoke,” and never even a kiss from the hero. Amanda Blake, who played Miss Kitty, grew tired of commuting from her Phoenix home to Hollywood and quit the show in 1974.
What was the relationship between James Arness and Peter Graves?
James Arness is an American actor, best known for portraying Marshal Matt Dillon on Gunsmoke for 20 years. His brother was the late actor, Peter Graves.
Dennis Weaver, whose portrayal of Deputy Chester Goode in the classic television western "Gunsmoke" made him the favorite sidekick of the early television era, died on Friday at his home in Ridgway, Colo. He was 81. The cause was complications of cancer, said Julian Myers, his publicist.
The television series of Gunsmoke ran from 1955 to 1975 and is said to be one of the longest running prime-time shows on television. There were 635 episodes and many of the outdoor scenes for this show were shot in Johnson Canyon near Kanab, Utah.
