A headstrong young woman will undertake the long, dangerous journey to her fiancé's fort on her own if she must, so Matt nominates himself to escort her.A headstrong young woman will undertake the long, dangerous journey to her fiancé's fort on her own if she must, so Matt nominates himself to escort her.A headstrong young woman will undertake the long, dangerous journey to her fiancé's fort on her own if she must, so Matt nominates himself to escort her.
Photos
- Director
- Writers
- Kathleen Hite
- Norman MacDonnell(uncredited)
- John Meston(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaFort Wallace (where Matt and Sarah are going) was actually a real US Fort from 1865-1882. All that remains of the old fort is the Fort Wallace cemetery.
- GoofsAlthough not specifically stated in this episode, the main means of transportation to and from Dodge City in the period in which Gunsmoke was set was the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad (which reached Dodge in 1872. Sarah Drew arrives in Dodge and wants to travel cross-country to Fort Wallace, Kansas, which was served by the Kansas Pacific Railroad even earlier (1869). She could have taken the train to her destination and not gone through Dodge.
- Quotes
Gody Baines: You young'uns today, you stand on too much ceremony. You don't know the first thing about living. You act like it's something that starts in the future somewheres.
Featured review
Great Use of the Hour-long Format
Season 7 of Gunsmoke is notable in its portrayal of women. The first two episodes of the season feature scheming women in a negative light. The third episode focuses on Kitty Russell's devotion to an old friend, and demonstrates her tough nature.
This is the sixth episode of the season, and it highlights one of the most dynamic woman characters of the entire series. Barbara Lord is Sarah Drew. Lord had a short acting career, primarily appearing in television dramas in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Her performance in this episode of Gunsmoke is excellent.
Sarah appears in Dodge City seeking help in reaching her fiancé at Fort Wallace, which is over 150 miles northwest of Dodge. Matt and Chester tell Sarah the trail from Dodge to Fort Wallace is treacherous, and they strongly advise against her attempting to make the trip. But Sarah is determined. She eventually convinces Matt to take her, and thus the story truly begins.
There is some deserved criticism of a few of the hour-long Gunsmoke episodes during this season, as the transition from the first six seasons of 30-minute episodes sometimes resulted in obvious filler material. This episode certainly does not fall into that category. As a matter of fact, there is enough action in this episode, it could have easily filled a two-part episode.
(I particularly would have enjoyed seeing more scenes with Mabel Albertson as Gody Baines. She seems like a character that deserved an episode of her own.)
Along the way, Matt and Sarah encounter many obstacles, which is really the point to this fast-paced episode.
Kathleen Hite wrote over 40 episodes of Gunsmoke between 1957 and 1965, including some of the most memorable stories, including this one.
The most glaring thing missing from this episode is any presence of Amanda Blake as Kitty Russell. It is understandable, because the majority of the episode takes place outside of Dodge City, but I cannot imagine Kitty would have been too happy about Matt and Sarah having dinner together at Delmonico's. Nor would she have been likely to have been pleased to hear the story of what happened on the prairie once Matt returned. The fact that whatever her relationship with Matt was is completely ignored in this story is notable.
One has to wonder how Matt Dillon would have reflected on the events of this episode as he went on with his life. While Sarah makes her feelings for Matt very clear, Dillon remains his usual, guarded self where it comes to relationships with women.
The previous episode, "All That," and this episode highlight the benefits of the show moving to the hour-long format.
This is the sixth episode of the season, and it highlights one of the most dynamic woman characters of the entire series. Barbara Lord is Sarah Drew. Lord had a short acting career, primarily appearing in television dramas in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Her performance in this episode of Gunsmoke is excellent.
Sarah appears in Dodge City seeking help in reaching her fiancé at Fort Wallace, which is over 150 miles northwest of Dodge. Matt and Chester tell Sarah the trail from Dodge to Fort Wallace is treacherous, and they strongly advise against her attempting to make the trip. But Sarah is determined. She eventually convinces Matt to take her, and thus the story truly begins.
There is some deserved criticism of a few of the hour-long Gunsmoke episodes during this season, as the transition from the first six seasons of 30-minute episodes sometimes resulted in obvious filler material. This episode certainly does not fall into that category. As a matter of fact, there is enough action in this episode, it could have easily filled a two-part episode.
(I particularly would have enjoyed seeing more scenes with Mabel Albertson as Gody Baines. She seems like a character that deserved an episode of her own.)
Along the way, Matt and Sarah encounter many obstacles, which is really the point to this fast-paced episode.
Kathleen Hite wrote over 40 episodes of Gunsmoke between 1957 and 1965, including some of the most memorable stories, including this one.
The most glaring thing missing from this episode is any presence of Amanda Blake as Kitty Russell. It is understandable, because the majority of the episode takes place outside of Dodge City, but I cannot imagine Kitty would have been too happy about Matt and Sarah having dinner together at Delmonico's. Nor would she have been likely to have been pleased to hear the story of what happened on the prairie once Matt returned. The fact that whatever her relationship with Matt was is completely ignored in this story is notable.
One has to wonder how Matt Dillon would have reflected on the events of this episode as he went on with his life. While Sarah makes her feelings for Matt very clear, Dillon remains his usual, guarded self where it comes to relationships with women.
The previous episode, "All That," and this episode highlight the benefits of the show moving to the hour-long format.
helpful•182
- wdavidreynolds
- Aug 12, 2020
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Filming locations
- Janss Conejo Ranch, Thousand Oaks, California, USA(Front Street, Dodge City, Kansas)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
- 4:3
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