Matt must go to extreme lengths to stop the killing spree of a psychopathic murderer who provokes gunfights with cowboys, farmers, and others who he knows have no chance against him.Matt must go to extreme lengths to stop the killing spree of a psychopathic murderer who provokes gunfights with cowboys, farmers, and others who he knows have no chance against him.Matt must go to extreme lengths to stop the killing spree of a psychopathic murderer who provokes gunfights with cowboys, farmers, and others who he knows have no chance against him.
- Barfly
- (uncredited)
- Townsman
- (uncredited)
- Gypsy
- (uncredited)
- Townsman
- (uncredited)
- Barfly
- (uncredited)
- Townsman
- (uncredited)
- Townsman
- (uncredited)
- Barfly
- (uncredited)
- Bartender
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- John Dunkel
- John Meston(uncredited)
- Norman MacDonnell(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaJames Nusser (Krego's first victim) makes his second of 81 appearance in this show. It will still be five more years, however, before Nusser is cast in the recurring role of town drunk Louie Pheeters.
- Quotes
'Doc' Adams: [Stands over body of gunshot victim] Crego, he's a brutal man, Matt. He... you know what he did here? He shot that man in the gun arm first, then he put a bullet through each one of his knees. Finally shot him in the belly. That's a terrible thing to do, that's a painful way to kill a man. It's evil! He was just a poor potato grubber. He didn't have a chance.
When Crego makes the mistake of establishing residence in Dodge City, Matt Dillon is faced with the challenge of finding some way of stopping the man within the bounds allowed by the law if possible.
Charles Bronson plays the Crego character in this episode. This was still quite early in Bronson's acting career, but he had already worked in several westerns and with a few notable directors. (Bronson had only recently changed his name from Buchinsky when he appeared in this role.)
James Nusser makes another of his not-Louie-Pheeters appearances in the opening scene of this episode. Nusser appeared seven times in the series before he started appearing as the Pheeters character.
Dabbs Greer appears for the first time in the Wilbur Jonas role as the proprietor of the General Store in Dodge. Greer appeared in eighty different episodes, but in two of those appearances, he played a character other than Wilbur Jonas.
There is an odd scene early in this episode where Chester Goode and Matt visit a fortune teller. Virginia Chapman, who was married to James Arness at the time, plays the fortune teller in a role that is not credited. The scene is odd because it has no relevance to the story. (This scene is absent from the radio version of this story, too.) The "Reed Survives" episode from earlier in the season included a credit for Virginia Chapman as "Gypsy," but she never appears in that episode. The inclusion of the scene here is puzzling. It gives the impression it was originally shot for some other purpose and used in this episode to fill time. (This scene is often removed by networks today to allow more time for advertisements.)
Matt and Chester engage in a brief, interesting conversation in the Long Branch Saloon about Crego's spurs. Chester remarks that Crego is wearing "California spurs." There were generally two types of spurs cowboys wore in the Old West. "California spurs" were larger and often more ornate. "Texas spurs" tended to be more utilitarian and heavier.
Robert Stevenson directed this episode. He had extensive experience directing films in the 1930s, '40s, and early '50s. With the increasing popularity of television, he directed several episodes of Gunsmoke and a few other television series before returning to films in the late 1950s when he started working for Walt Disney. He was nominated for Best Director by the Motion Picture Academy in 1965 for the movie Mary Poppins.
The moral dilemma presented by this episode is fascinating. Do the ends justify the means? Even if someone sworn to uphold the law thinks (or knows) they can save lives by breaking the law -- in this case murdering someone -- what are the ethical and moral implications? In this instance, there is no ambiguity. Crego admits he has killed and even boasts about it. Matt knows Crego will kill others unless he is stopped, but does that make it acceptable for Matt to murder him as he threatens to do?
There are many Gunsmoke episodes where a superb cast saves a weaker story. In this case, a compelling, though-provoking story is the highlight.
- wdavidreynolds
- Dec 9, 2021
Details
- Runtime30 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
- 4:3