James Arness - James Arness

with James E. Wise, Jr.

Foreword by Burt Reynolds

McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Jefferson, North Carolina, and London

Photographs from the television program Gunsmoke , originally broadcast over the CBS Television Network, are used with the permission of the copyright proprietor, CBS, Inc. All rights reserved.

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGUING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA

Arness, James, 1923
James Arness : an autobiography / by James Arness with James E. Wise, Jr. ; foreword by Burt Reynolds

p.cm.

Includes index.

ISBN-13: 978-0-7864-3316-2

1.Arness, James, 19232.ActorsUnited StatesBiography.
3.Large type books.I.Title.

PN2287.A695A32008

791.4502'8092dc22[B] 2008009830

British Library cataloguing data are available

2001 James K. Arness and Janet L. Arness. All rights reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Front cover painting: John Howard Sanden, James ArnessMatt Dillon, oil on canvas, 46" x 44", 1981, 1982.05, National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, Oklahoma City, OK

McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers
Box 611, Jefferson, North Carolina 28640
www.mcfarlandpub.com

For Janet, the heart and soul of my life.

Without her love and support,

this book would not have been possible.

by Burt Reynolds

FOR MANY YEARS (45 to be exact) I have been asked, What were the best times for you growing up as an actor? Without hesitation, I have always said, The 2 years I was on Gunsmoke. They were for me the best of times. There were many reasons, but the main reason was that it was then I learned how actors on a film set should behave. What it meant to say someone is really a pro.

I learned that acting isnt an easy careerlong, tough hours sometimesbut it can be a wonderful time. That the working environment really can produce a family with real warmth among the cast and an honesty that you may or may not share again, but you will always be striving for from that time on.

Its no secret that such an environment starts at the top. If the star or top-billed actor displays no fits of temperament or unprofessionalism and makes no ridiculous demands, then it becomes almost impossible to act like a total ass if youre billed below that actor. It doesnt stop people from trying, but in those days a professional environment was very effective in stunting the growth of temperamental types. Young actors who are totally unprofessional today couldnt have lasted back then. They just wouldnt have been around very long.

The biggest surprise for everyone who had the good fortune to work on a few episodes of Gunsmoke in those days was Jim Arness. He was funny. I mean get-the-giggles, wrap-up-for-the-cast-and-crew, time-out-and-get-it-together funny. Ive known professional funnymen. Its no surprise to people that Dom DeLuise could (as I have done in return to him) practically put me in a coma laughing. Yes, David Niven was the best storyteller (raconteur if you will) I ever worked with. Jonathan Winters and Richard Pryor could always put me away. But for sheer surprise (Where did that come from?) no one could top Matt Dillon. First of all, he was a very large, imposing, strong man. Your first thought always was, damn, hes bigger than I thought he would be. He had that wonderful ability to surprise you, make you laugh at yourself or the situation that actors often find themselves in.

Just as surprising, he was totally without ego. He never imposed his position on anyone. Not once did I or anyone else ever see Jim being rude, overbearing, self-righteous or selfish to anyone, whether crew member, extras, day players or co-stars. Ive done over 200 TV shows (the only actor canceled by all three networks ... twice) and over 75 features and I cant think of any actor whose behavior on the set and off was more unpretentious than Jims. He just didnt or wouldnt play the star. I think the mere thought of it would have made him laugh.

Yes, of course, my time spent with Milburn Stone, Ken Curtis and Amanda Blake was priceless. I have hours of stories about the wonderful quality time spent with each and every one of them. But in the end we all followed our tall, self-effacing leader. We all hated acting that looked pretentious. If you could catch us working, it wasnt good. We worked hard to make it look effortless. Thats why those shows, although now thought of as part of the Golden Years of TV, were not as honored by our industry as they should have been. Who knew when we watched Gleason, Lucy and Andy that we were watching irreplaceable performances? Only now when every episode is being collected and sold over and over again do we finally get it.

I left Gunsmoke only because it was time for me to move on, but I left with everyones blessing and best wishes. Ive had a hell of a ride since. A movie career that I never could have dreamed of. But when I think of those episodes of Gunsmoke on that wonderful old stagesitting and telling stories in front of the Long Branch Saloon with Matt, Kitty, Doc and Festuswell, it just never gets any better than that.

This will embarrass Jim, to hear me say that he was and is so loved and revered by all of us. But you have to face it, old friend. Like it or not, you and that show are what the word icon really represents.

Burt Reynolds

by James E. Wise, Jr.

WHEN I ARRIVED ON A LOVELY, bright morning, Jim Arness swept me into his home like a long-lost friend. I was doing research for a Naval Institute Press book, Stars in Khaki, about actors whod served in the U.S. Army and the air services. Knowing that Arness had been wounded at Anzio in 1944, and as a longtime fan of his Marshal Matt Dillon character on Gunsmoke, Id hoped he would grant me an interview. He did much more than that: he and his wife, Janet, granted me their friendship.

Because of my Navy background, Jim wore a USS Enterprise ballcap, received years earlier when hed visited the aircraft carrier. Hed laid out all kinds of World War II mementos from his days in the Army. Quietly he told me about his experience. Before being shipped over there, like many other young American men during World War II, hed thought of combat as a new, exciting adventure. He couldnt wait to get overseas and fight for his country.

James Aurness (he would later change his last name to Arness when he began his acting career) was assigned as a buck private to the 2nd Platoon, E Company (rifle), 2nd Battalion in the 7th Regiment (Cotton Balers) of the famed 3rd Infantry Division. (Audie Murphy, the United States most decorated soldier during World War II, also served in the 3rd.) As a replacement soldier at Monte Cassino, Italy, he witnessed brutal fighting and killing. He and his comrades remained anxious to join in, but their zeal took on a more sober tone. They saw that their chances of survival were diminishing, especially after they landed at Anzio. There, they faced an overwhelming enemy force. The 3rd Division suffered some 3,000 casualties during its first ten days of combat.

Jims leg was shattered during a night patrol on 1 February 1944. He was transported by ship to a hospital in Tunisia, then Stateside to an Army hospital in the midwest where he spent one year recovering. When he left the war behind him, he wore a Combat Infantry Badge, a Purple Heart, his campaign medals, and, eventually, a Bronze Star.

When Jim and Janet asked if I would help write Jims autobiography, saying yes was easy. Id gotten to know him as an unassuming, charming man full of enthusiasm and wit. We were both from the midwest, and wed both spent happy, carefree childhood summers in upper Minnesota and Wisconsin. Our recollections meshed so often that it seemed as if wed hung around the same country stores.