'Gunsmoke' Legend James Arness Dies at 88

Hollywood Reporter ^ | 6-3-11 | Mike Barnes

[STARWISE]

My Gram wouldn't miss it. Rest in peace, Marshall Dillon. Happy trails.

[Sacajaweau]

Thanks for some great entertainment.

[traderrob6]

A really good man...

http://exposingtheleft.blogspot.com/2011/06/james-arness-dies-at-88.html

[Rona Badger]

What an amazing run for a true pioneer of series television. May this last ride off into the sunset be his most glorious of them all!

[bgill]

All these years and he never did make Miss Kitty an honest woman.

[LaineyDee]

I loved that show. RIP Mr. Arness........

[blam]

One of mine and my dads favorites.

His brother was Peter Graves, another favorite.

Peter Graves

[Brucifer]

The man was fast on the draw. I had to cheat to beat him. Thanks for everything Marshall Dillon!

[izzatzo]

Really enjoyed Matt, Miss Kitty, Doc, etal. He was made for the role. Sad, but time passes.

[billorites]

"Arness is survived by his long-time companion, Kitty... "

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks STARWISE.

His death comes 14 months after his brother, Mission: Impossible actor Peter Graves, died of a heart attack at age 83.

[GnuHere]

6’7” - good grief!
Always liked Gunsmoke.

[izzatzo]

As the article mentions, he was a WWII Army vet. I heard one time that he was one of the first ones off at Anzio because they kind of used him as a water depth guage because of his height. O’Really interviewed him one time, that may have been where I heard it.

[Rockitz]

A couple of pretty good runs- 20 years as Marshall Dillon and 88 years in life. RIP to Mr. Arness and God’s peace to all who love him!

[oh8eleven]

The Thing From Another World
A classic and one of my favorites.
As a kid, it scared the hell out of me.

[laconic]

Agree in full. Arness as the Thing was really the scariest movie I saw as a child; could never get over the murder of the dogs, the hanging of the scientists in the greenhouse and the sounds Arness made, as well as the truly frightening musical score. The movie (Howard Hawks was director, I believe) was made in 1951 and was an allegory for the Soviet menace (”Watch the skies!!”) was the ending phrase; also, the Thing looked a good bit like Lenin, although he was much bigger. I couldn’t help but think of The Thing when I first viewed the old devil’s corpse in his mausoleum in Red Square. But the movie touted American teamwork that defeated The Thing, the limits of science and the foolishness of trusting outerspace aliens until you know their true intent (trust but verify). Plus, Robert Cornthwaite (who just died a couple of years ago) was great. Arness will be missed; one of the few in Hollywood for whom I had great respect; his brother Peter Graves is another.

[combat_boots]

RIP

And thanks.

[oh8eleven]

Arness as the Thing was really the scariest movie I saw as a child
I also have to throw in Vincent Price movies of the same era: The Tingler, House on a Haunted Hill, Fall of the House of Usher, etc. Great stuff.
I hold these movies and many others (eg, The Day the Earth Stood Still, War of the Worlds) in such high esteem that I never watch the remakes. Never.
What makes them all so special too is how much "terror" they created without the use of gratuitous violence, gore and profanity.

[annieokie]

I did not realize that was him as the THING. That movie scared me as a kid, especially when they tried to shut that door and his hand thrust out. That part would still scare me today.

[laconic]

Yes, House on Haunted Hill was terrifying, although the ultimate plot was really quite well thought out. The weird guy who appears as an appartion at the end of the movie was extremely odd; don’t remember the name of the actor.