Gunsmoke: Old West Stories

Originally Aired: February 24, 1957 In Gunsmoke #255, “Impact,” Marshal Matt Dillon grows wary when a string of “accidents” begin to befall tough-as-nails widow Ellie Larkin. The source of his suspicion? Lonnie Welch—a drifter turned surrogate son who seems a little too eager to inherit her ranch. As Matt probes deeper into Lonnie’s past, a shocking pattern emer...

Originally Aired: February 17, 1957 In Gunsmoke #254, “Doubtful Zone,” Marshal Matt Dillon is drawn into a case that's more heartache than crime when a store break-in leads him to a runaway girl named Willie Beeper. Fleeing a brutal home life and dry farm drudgery, Willie wants only a fresh start—with a stolen pistol, a stolen shirt, and a bottle of Paris perfume she couldn&rsquo...

Originally Aired: February 10, 1957 In Gunsmoke #253, “Hellbent Harriet,” a woman’s grief sharpens into something more fierce when her husband, Jim Morney, is found dead—his injuries blamed on a fall from his horse. But Harriet Morney, as strong and unyielding as the Kansas land she works, is certain it was murder. Suspecting a neighbor with motives of greed and lust, Harri...

Originally Aired: February 3, 1957 In Gunsmoke #252, “Cold Fire,” Marshal Matt Dillon investigates a baffling case of embezzlement and death when $20,000 in gold vanishes from the Dodge City bank vault. All clues point to Marvin Gross, a mild-mannered teller living under the strict eye of his mother. When Marvin dies resisting arrest, it seems like a tragic open-and-shut case—unt...

Originally Aired: January 27, 1957 In Gunsmoke #251, “A Woman Called Mary,” Marshal Matt Dillon confronts a case that demands more than just the law—it calls for justice of the heart. When Red Sutter cons a lonely woman, Buffalo Mary, out of her savings, a prison sentence seems certain. But Dillon proposes an alternative: let Red work off his debt through hard labor, hauling wate...

Originally Aired: January 20, 1957 In Gunsmoke #250, “Categorical Imperative,” Marshal Dillon defies a raging snowstorm to recapture Clay Macklin, an unrepentant cattle rustler who’s almost certain to walk free due to lack of evidence. As the elements test their endurance, a near-fatal accident on the ice forces Dillon to rescue the very man he pursued—sparking an unexpecte...

Originally Aired: January 13, 1957 In Gunsmoke #249, “Ozymandias,” Marshal Dillon is tasked with serving an eviction notice that could uproot homesteader Sloat Carson from the only land he’s ever known. The order comes from Burke Cragar, a domineering rancher obsessed with owning every inch of Blue Sage Valley—soon to be renamed after himself. But when Cragar’s embitt...

Originally Aired: January 6, 1957 In Gunsmoke #248, “Devil’s Hindmost,” Marshal Dillon finds himself trying to avert tragedy when a jealous farmer, Buck Webber, becomes convinced his estranged wife Rancy is being wooed by a suave gambler named Frisco Bates. As Rancy seeks independence and respect, Buck's anger boils into deadly intent. But when three shots ring out in the night,...

Originally Aired: December 30, 1956 In Gunsmoke #247, “Hound Dog,” Marshal Dillon finds himself mediating an unlikely and emotional conflict when a reclusive trapper’s beloved old dog is shot and killed. At first, suspicion and resentment fall on a nearby homesteader—but the truth is far more complicated, involving a frightened boy, a mistaken shot, and the deep loneliness...

Originally Aired: December 23, 1956 In Gunsmoke #246, “Beeker’s Barn,” a bitter snowstorm forces estranged couple Will and Harmony Ross to take shelter in the barn of Harmony’s father, Jethro Beeker—a man who disowned her two years prior. As tensions rise and old wounds reopen, Harmony goes into labor, setting the stage for an emotional reckoning between father and da...

Originally Aired: December 16, 1956 In Gunsmoke #245, “Cherry Red,” fiery widow Cherry Odell is still clinging to hope that her long-absent husband Slim will return—until a handsome stranger named Red Larned rides into Dodge with a shocking revelation. Claiming to be Slim’s former partner, Red tells Cherry her husband is dead—killed by Indians. But Marshal Dillon has...

Originally Aired: December 9, 1956 In Gunsmoke #244, “Braggart’s Boy,” the son of frontier loudmouth Cleave Cleveland arrives in Dodge dressed like a dime-novel cowboy, fresh from Philadelphia. While Cleave has spent years crafting a reputation as a fast gun, the reality is far less impressive. When his son Tom tries to live up to the legend, he provokes a deadly encounter with n...

Originally Aired: December 2, 1956 In Gunsmoke #243, “Speak to Me Fair,” a young Kiowa boy stumbles into Dodge, gravely wounded and unable to speak—his tongue brutally cut out. Marshal Matt Dillon, outraged by the boy’s mutilation, begins a tense investigation that points toward a ruthless cattleman, Silas Trach, whose own livestock has been disappearing. As Matt unravels t...

Originally Aired: November 25, 1956 In Gunsmoke #242, “Tail to the Wind,” mild-mannered homesteader Pessy Neller refuses to be bullied, even when the ruthless Burke Reese and his son Spike escalate their campaign of intimidation—burning property, sabotaging wagons, and terrorizing his wife. Marshal Matt Dillon steps in to confront the cowards in public, determined to shame them i...

Originally Aired: November 18, 1956 In Gunsmoke #241, “Brother Whelp,” the return of outlaw Stead Rudger stirs old tensions and buried betrayals in Dodge City. Stead’s discovery that his former fiancée married his younger brother during his long absence sets off a slow-burning fuse of vengeance. But with the lives of his brother Tom, his old flame Tessie, and a six-month-o...

Originally Aired: November 11, 1956 In Gunsmoke #240, “Pretty Mama,” Marshal Matt Dillon is called to a remote ranch where Hank Marvel has been mysteriously shot dead. His young son, Beanie, claims to have seen a suspect—but Matt’s instincts tell him there’s more beneath the surface. As the investigation leads to a volatile cowhand, Jack Teague, and the alluring young...

Originally Aired: November 10, 1956 In Gunsmoke #239, “Crowbait Bob,” Dodge City’s Marshal Matt Dillon receives a strange request from a dying drunk—make a will and protect a mysterious box until after his death. As the ailing Crowbait Bob drifts toward his final breath in a jail cell, the motives of estranged relatives and the quiet compassion of saloon owner Kitty Russell...

Originally Aired: October 28, 1956 In Gunsmoke #238, “Dirty Bill’s Girl,” a new face in Dodge turns more than a few heads. Rose, a striking blackjack dealer, runs a table so hot it draws in both gamblers and trouble. When Marshal Dillon starts watching her play, he finds she’s not just a cardsharp—she’s a woman with a mission. Rose has been tracking one man acro...

Originally Aired: October 21, 1956 In Gunsmoke #237, “Til Death Do Us,” a sanctimonious farmer, Jezreel Cobb, and his cowed wife, Minerva, drift into Dodge—and into danger. After shots are fired at their buggy, Matt Dillon follows a rumor to a braggart gunman who claims he was offered $300 to kill Cobb. When the gunman forces a showdown at the Long Branch, Matt drops him—bu...

Originally Aired: October 14, 1956 In Gunsmoke #236, “Gunshot Wound,” Jim Nielsen returns to Dodge with a bullet still lodged near his heart and revenge burning in his soul. After surviving a fight with the Mailer brothers two months prior, Nielsen learns his wound is fatal—and decides to take the men who shot him with him to the grave. Despite Marshal Matt Dillon’s efforts...

Originally Aired: October 7, 1956 In Gunsmoke #235, “The Gambler,” a refined riverboat gambler named Clint Ascom arrives in Dodge City with one mission: to find and kill a man he’s never met—Jim Cass. Marshal Matt Dillon intervenes, puzzled by the animosity toward the mild-mannered, gunless Cass. As the mystery unfolds, it’s revealed that a dark secret from Cass&rsquo...

Originally Aired: September 30, 1956 In Gunsmoke #234, “The Brothers,” the arrival of legendary lawman Leif Tugwell in Dodge stirs up tension, especially with a hot-headed young gunslinger, Trace Gore, eager to make a name by taking him down. Marshal Matt Dillon tries to keep the peace, unaware that Tugwell is hiding a debilitating illness that has ended his days as a gunfighter. As pr...

Originally Aired: September 23, 1956 In Gunsmoke #233, “Box o’ Rocks,” a humble old prospector named Packy Roundtree is supposedly laid to rest—until Marshal Matt Dillon pries open the coffin and finds only rocks. As it turns out, Packy faked his death to escape the brutal Jeb Cruder, a sadistic bully with a grudge and an eye on Packy’s secret silver strike. When Crud...

Originally Aired: September 16, 1956 In Gunsmoke #232, “Thick 'n Thin,” long-time partners Odie Perkins and Brace McCoy are at war—over sour grits. What starts as a spat over cooking spirals into a full-blown feud, with bullets flying between barn and house on their shared homestead. Marshal Matt Dillon steps in to restore order, but it’ll take more than jail time and lectu...

Originally Aired: September 9, 1956 In Gunsmoke #231, “Belle’s Back,” Belle Ainsley returns to Dodge after three years away—and immediately stirs up old memories, deeper secrets, and dangerous consequences. She claims she was abducted by the outlaw Jess Crider and forced to flee, but her younger sister Phyllis isn’t buying it. When Phyllis vanishes, Marshal Matt Dillo...