James Arness

A notable exception was a brief turn as a big city policeman in the short-lived 1981 series, McClain's Law. He also had success on the stage, in particular with The Bespoke Overcoat which was filmed in 1956. Since Gunsmoke ended, Arness has continued to perform primarily in western-themed movies and television series, including How the West Was Won, and five made-for-television Gunsmoke reunion movies between 1987 and 1994. Both series were very popular in Britain. In fact, Wayne recommended Arness for the role of Matt Dillon. comedy series of the late 1950s and early 1960s, and then co-starred in its sequel Bootsie and Snudge as a tramp with Bill Fraser and Clive Dunn. He was a close personal friend of John Wayne's and co-starred in a film with him called Big Jim McClain. He starred in The Army Game a British T.V.

James Arness served in the United States Army during World War II and was severely wounded at the Battle of Anzio. He sometimes emphasised his Jewish background in the accent he used on screen. Though primarily identified with Westerns, he also is remembered for appearing in two science fiction films, The Thing from Another World and Them!. series Till Death Us Do Part and Are You Being Served?. He is the brother of Peter Graves. He continued working until the turn of the 1980s and had roles in the T.V. James Arness (originally Aurness) (born May 26, 1923 in Minneapolis, Minnesota) is an actor best known for portraying Marshal Matt Dillon on Gunsmoke, a role he played for 20 years, to this day the longest any actor has played the same role on the same show in prime time. Among his most often seen films (by modern audiences), are The Lavender Hill Mob and A Tale Of Two Cities.

He also died in London in 1987. Often seen in classic British films Alfie Bass was a small cockney-accented actor, born in London's Bethnal Green in 1920.