Prairie antics result in the death of a Jewish farmer's son, but the case is complicated by the farmer's refusal to identify the transgressors on the basis of religious principle.Prairie antics result in the death of a Jewish farmer's son, but the case is complicated by the farmer's refusal to identify the transgressors on the basis of religious principle.Prairie antics result in the death of a Jewish farmer's son, but the case is complicated by the farmer's refusal to identify the transgressors on the basis of religious principle.
Photos
Nick Borgani
- Townsman
- (uncredited)
Ted Christy
- Townsman
- (uncredited)
Bobby Gilbert
- Townsman
- (uncredited)
Frank Green
- Townsman
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- Hal Sitowitz
- Norman MacDonnell(uncredited)
- John Meston(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThis episode won the Mass Media Award from The National Conference of Christians and Jews.
- GoofsWhen Ruxton and the others are tearing up the saloon, Ruxton throws a lasso around a deer head on the wall and the head wobbles, indicating that it is loosely hung so that it can be torn down.
Featured review
A Timeless Exploration of Cultural Diversity
Cultures collide as the three Ruxton brothers, led by the oldest, Rouse, clash with a family of Russian Orthodox Jewish immigrants.
Rouse and his brothers have earned a reputation for getting drunk and wrecking saloons. Sober, they are hardworking cattle ranchers. Their drunken exploits have often run afoul of the law and have led Matt Dillon to ban them from drinking in Dodge City.
The Ruxtons are on their way back to their ranch after wreaking havoc in a saloon in Hayes when they encounter the Gorofsky family. Moshe, the father, and one of his sons, Semel, are engaged in an Orthodox Jewish prayer ritual. Rouse has never seen this kind of ritual before. When he asks questions, the Gorofsky men ignore the intruders and continue their prayers in accordance with their tradition. Rouse is angered by the lack of response, lassos Semel, and drags him away.
When Moshe finds Semel, he is gravely injured. The Gorofskys take him to Dodge City. Doc Adams does all he can, but Semel suffered a fractured skull and soon dies.
When Matt Dillon and Festus Haggen question Moshe, he tells them he did not see what happened to his son. He knows three men were involved in the incident, but he claims his faith prohibits him from speculating about what might have happened.
Gearshon, another Gorofsky son, is furious and frustrated that his father will not identify the Ruxtons to Marshal Dillon. He repeatedly attacks Rouse, first on the streets of Dodge and later at the Ruxton ranch, but the young man is no match for the older, physically tougher Ruxton.
Following the second incident, Rouse takes the younger son to the Gorosky farm and demands the family leave Kansas. If they refuse, Rouse will kill them. Moshe refuses to comply with Rouse's demands.
Paul Stevens makes his second Gunsmoke appearance in this episode. He plays the stoic Moshe Gorofsky character with the appropriate level of intensity. It is the kind of performance that was worthy of Emmy consideration.
Victor French makes another of his many Gunsmoke appearances here. He plays the Rouse Ruxton character. It is worth noting that Stevens and French had also both appeared in the "Trafton" episode from Season 17. (In fact, their roles in that episode are somewhat like the characters they play in this story.)
Actor Richard Dreyfuss appears in this story as the impetuous Gearshon Gorofsky. This is his only Gunsmoke role. Kevin Coughlin returns for his fourth Gunsmoke appearance as Calvin Ruxton, who can be viewed as the Ruxton counterpoint to Dreyfuss's character, as he acts as the conscience of the Ruxton brothers.
Bettye Ackerman portrays Zisha Gorofsky, the matriarch of the family. This is Ackerman's only Gunsmoke participation. Zisha mourns her dead son and shares Gearshon's frustration with Moshe's refusal to seek any justice available. But she also deeply loves Moshe and respects his devotion to his faith.
This final Season 18 episode is arguably the most unique of the entire series, and the depiction of Orthodox Judaism is certainly something not often seen in episodic television. Whether all of Moshe's beliefs are the result of generally accepted Orthodox Jewish beliefs or Moshe's own interpretation and application of those beliefs is debatable. (This is true of almost any system of belief and adherents to that system.)
The story addresses one man's refusal to compromise his deeply held principles, which has been addressed in other episodes of the series. (Two Season 9 episodes, "Lover Boy" and "The Magician" mine some of this territory, although the motivation and reasoning for the refusal of characters in those episodes to share information with law enforcement is quite different than what is portrayed here.) The bigger theme of U. S. westward expansion and the incorporation of diverse cultures has also been explored in other episodes with the encroachment of immigrants into land occupied by indigenous people, powerful cattle barons who resent settlers seeking their own piece of land, and rugged individualists who resent the settling and taming of the wilderness. However, this theme of cultural conflict has not been given the extensive personal treatment it is afforded in this story. (Season 14's "The Good Samaritans" comes closest to addressing some of the same cultural conflict territory as this episode.)
Gearshon's frustration over his father's refusal to compromise his beliefs is also a fascinating aspect included in the story. Moshe has moved his family to a new culture to escape religious persecution in czarist Russia, but he does not trust the representatives of the U. S. justice system or the machinations of that system, either. Gearshon's attempts to impose some measure of justice on the Ruxton brothers are borne from his frustration and impetuousness, but it ultimately breaks down the barriers that exist between the two families.
Beyond all these thematic comparisons is the remarkable, timeless applicability of the situation. The fear of those who are part of distinct cultures, other skin colors, diverse sexual preferences, and varied religious or political beliefs is as relevant in 2021 as it was in 1973 or 1875. The Ruxton brothers are key characters in this story, because they brutally attack the Gorofskys when they first encounter people who behave differently than what they know and expect. Once the Ruxtons begin to view the Gorofskys as fellow human beings, their attitudes soften.
Gunsmoke fans that only seek mindless entertainment and escape -- and there is certainly nothing wrong with that -- are likely to find the pace of this episode slow and lacking in interesting content. For those who value an experience more complex and profound, this episode is well worth viewing and pondering.
Rouse and his brothers have earned a reputation for getting drunk and wrecking saloons. Sober, they are hardworking cattle ranchers. Their drunken exploits have often run afoul of the law and have led Matt Dillon to ban them from drinking in Dodge City.
The Ruxtons are on their way back to their ranch after wreaking havoc in a saloon in Hayes when they encounter the Gorofsky family. Moshe, the father, and one of his sons, Semel, are engaged in an Orthodox Jewish prayer ritual. Rouse has never seen this kind of ritual before. When he asks questions, the Gorofsky men ignore the intruders and continue their prayers in accordance with their tradition. Rouse is angered by the lack of response, lassos Semel, and drags him away.
When Moshe finds Semel, he is gravely injured. The Gorofskys take him to Dodge City. Doc Adams does all he can, but Semel suffered a fractured skull and soon dies.
When Matt Dillon and Festus Haggen question Moshe, he tells them he did not see what happened to his son. He knows three men were involved in the incident, but he claims his faith prohibits him from speculating about what might have happened.
Gearshon, another Gorofsky son, is furious and frustrated that his father will not identify the Ruxtons to Marshal Dillon. He repeatedly attacks Rouse, first on the streets of Dodge and later at the Ruxton ranch, but the young man is no match for the older, physically tougher Ruxton.
Following the second incident, Rouse takes the younger son to the Gorosky farm and demands the family leave Kansas. If they refuse, Rouse will kill them. Moshe refuses to comply with Rouse's demands.
Paul Stevens makes his second Gunsmoke appearance in this episode. He plays the stoic Moshe Gorofsky character with the appropriate level of intensity. It is the kind of performance that was worthy of Emmy consideration.
Victor French makes another of his many Gunsmoke appearances here. He plays the Rouse Ruxton character. It is worth noting that Stevens and French had also both appeared in the "Trafton" episode from Season 17. (In fact, their roles in that episode are somewhat like the characters they play in this story.)
Actor Richard Dreyfuss appears in this story as the impetuous Gearshon Gorofsky. This is his only Gunsmoke role. Kevin Coughlin returns for his fourth Gunsmoke appearance as Calvin Ruxton, who can be viewed as the Ruxton counterpoint to Dreyfuss's character, as he acts as the conscience of the Ruxton brothers.
Bettye Ackerman portrays Zisha Gorofsky, the matriarch of the family. This is Ackerman's only Gunsmoke participation. Zisha mourns her dead son and shares Gearshon's frustration with Moshe's refusal to seek any justice available. But she also deeply loves Moshe and respects his devotion to his faith.
This final Season 18 episode is arguably the most unique of the entire series, and the depiction of Orthodox Judaism is certainly something not often seen in episodic television. Whether all of Moshe's beliefs are the result of generally accepted Orthodox Jewish beliefs or Moshe's own interpretation and application of those beliefs is debatable. (This is true of almost any system of belief and adherents to that system.)
The story addresses one man's refusal to compromise his deeply held principles, which has been addressed in other episodes of the series. (Two Season 9 episodes, "Lover Boy" and "The Magician" mine some of this territory, although the motivation and reasoning for the refusal of characters in those episodes to share information with law enforcement is quite different than what is portrayed here.) The bigger theme of U. S. westward expansion and the incorporation of diverse cultures has also been explored in other episodes with the encroachment of immigrants into land occupied by indigenous people, powerful cattle barons who resent settlers seeking their own piece of land, and rugged individualists who resent the settling and taming of the wilderness. However, this theme of cultural conflict has not been given the extensive personal treatment it is afforded in this story. (Season 14's "The Good Samaritans" comes closest to addressing some of the same cultural conflict territory as this episode.)
Gearshon's frustration over his father's refusal to compromise his beliefs is also a fascinating aspect included in the story. Moshe has moved his family to a new culture to escape religious persecution in czarist Russia, but he does not trust the representatives of the U. S. justice system or the machinations of that system, either. Gearshon's attempts to impose some measure of justice on the Ruxton brothers are borne from his frustration and impetuousness, but it ultimately breaks down the barriers that exist between the two families.
Beyond all these thematic comparisons is the remarkable, timeless applicability of the situation. The fear of those who are part of distinct cultures, other skin colors, diverse sexual preferences, and varied religious or political beliefs is as relevant in 2021 as it was in 1973 or 1875. The Ruxton brothers are key characters in this story, because they brutally attack the Gorofskys when they first encounter people who behave differently than what they know and expect. Once the Ruxtons begin to view the Gorofskys as fellow human beings, their attitudes soften.
Gunsmoke fans that only seek mindless entertainment and escape -- and there is certainly nothing wrong with that -- are likely to find the pace of this episode slow and lacking in interesting content. For those who value an experience more complex and profound, this episode is well worth viewing and pondering.
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- wdavidreynolds
- Sep 27, 2021
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