Dennis Weaver

Actor

"The basic message of Gunsmoke was that there’s going to be the bad and there’s going to be the good. And most of the time, the good will win out. That’s an old theme. There are no new themes, it’s just the way you do them. It’s the way you bring fresh characters to that theme."

About This Interview

Dennis Weaver (1924-2006) was interviewed for two hours in Malibu, CA. Weaver reminisced about growing up in Missouri during the Great Depression, and remembered working as a migrant worker in his summers. He talked about his move to New York and his early acting experience, on the stage and on television. He described his move to Hollywood under contract with Universal, and his move from feature films into television in the mid-1950s. Next, he spoke at length about his co-starring role on the long-running classic Gunsmoke, detailing the origins of his character Chester’s limp and country bumpkin accent. He also talked about his subsequent work on series including Kentucky Jones and Gentle Ben, and discussed his leading role on NBC’s McCloud. Finally, he spoke about his more recent work, from movies made-for-television including Duel to the series Stone and Buck Jones. The interview was conducted by Henry Colman on September 24, 2002.