Season Eighteen

The River (Part One), September 11, 1972 Written by Jack Miller, Directed by Herb Wallerstein, Guest Cast: Jack Elam, Miriam Colon, Slim Pickens, Patti Cohoon, Clay O'Brien, Roger Torrey, Jerry Gatlin, Red Morgan, Pete Kellett, Gene Tyburn, Jack Perkins, Maudie Prickett. A gang of outlaws trying to recover some lost loot runs into Marshal Dillon. Dillon is trapped in a shootout with the gang and dives off a cliff into a rushing river to get away. He is pulled onto a raft by two runaway children

Cohoon & O'Brien on The River 

The River (Part Two), September 18, 1972 Written by Jack Miller, Directed by Herb Wallerstein, Guest Cast: Jack Elam, Miriam Colon, Slim Pickens, Patti Cohoon, Clay O'Brien, Roger Torrey, Jerry Gatlin, Red Morgan, Pete Kellett, Gene Tyburn, Jack Perkins, Maudie Prickett. As the gang closes in on Dillon, a new threat develops from a Frenchman the Marshal once saved--he sees the man making signals to an unseen band of accomplices.

Bohannon, September 25, 1972 Written by William Kelley, Directed by Alf Kjellin, Guest Cast: Richard Kiley, Linda Marsh, Vincent Van Patten, Helen Kleeb, Ed Bakey, Regis Cordic. Bohannan is a faith healer who travels the West ministering to a stream of supplicants. Doc Adams, skeptical of Bohannan's reputed cures, brings some of the people the man has treated to Dodge City in an effort to expose him as a charlatan.

Judgment, October 2, 1972 Written by Shimon Wincelberg, Directed by Philip Leacoek, Guest Cast: William Windom, Ramon Bieri, Tim O'Connor, Mariette Hartley, Katherine Helmond, Richard Kelton. A former convict arrives in Dodge seeking revenge against the man who caused his capture.

Mariatte Hartley

Katherine Helmond

The Drummer, October 9, 1972 Written by Richard Fielder, Directed by Bernard McEveety, Gust Cast: Victor French, Fionnuala Flanagan, Brandon Cruz, Bruce Glover, Kiel Martin, Herb Armstrong, Paul Sorenson. A young Indian boy helps redeem an ex-cavalry soldier who was responsible for crippling him during an attack on the boy's village.

Herb Armstrong

Fionnuala Flanagan

Sarah, October 16, 1972 Written by Calvin Clements, Directed by Gunnar Hellstrom, Guest Cast: Anne Francis, Anthony Caruso, Jonathan Lippe, Michael Lane, John Orchard, Kay E. Kuter, Res Holman, George Keymas, Larry Duran, Ronald Manning, Alberto Rina. Matt Dillon runs into an old flame when he rides into an outlaw hideout. He is passed off as her husband in order to protect him from the lawless band. Anne Francis guest-stars.

Anne Francis

The Fugitives, October 23, 1972 Written by Charles Joseph Stone, Directed by Irving Moore, Guest Cast: James Olson, Darrell Larson, Vic Tayback, Russell Johnson, Tony Melton. An outlaw's young brother is seriously injured in an accident, and Doc is held captive to treat him.

Eleven Dollars, October 30, 1972 Written by Paul Savage, Directed by Irving Moore, Guest Cast: Susan Oliver, Josh Albee, Ike Eisenmann, Diane Shalet, E.J. Andre, Roy Engle, Sam Edwards, Owen Bush, Phil Chambers, A.G. Vitanza, Jerry Brown, Gloria LeRoy, Tom Waters, Brad Trumbull. A spinster seeking a new life rides off to Abilene. Festus, riding after the girl to deliver some money due her, is bushwhacked by a pair of down-and-out hide hunters. Susan Oliver guest-stars.

Josh Albee

Ike Eisenmann

Milligan, November 6, 1972 Written by Ron Bishop, Directed by Bemard McEveety, Guest Cast: Harry Morgan, Joseph Campanella, Lynn Carlin, Patti Cohoon, Sorrell Booke, Charles MacCauley, Scott Walker, Lew Brown, Read Morgan, Gene Tyburn, John Pickard. A local farmer joins a posse and is criticized and punished for shooting an outlaw in the back. Harry Morgan and Joseph Campanella guest-star.

Tatum, November 13, 1972 Written by Jim Byrnes, Directed by Gunnar Hellstrom, Assistant Director Robert R. Shue, Guest Cast: Gene Evans, Sandra Smith, Sheila Larken, Jay MacIntosh, Jeff Pomerantz, Ana Korita, Ken Tobey, Lloyd Nelson, Neil Summers, Robert Tindall, Duncan Inches. An elderly ex-gunfighter demands to be buried in a cemetery next to his wife. But after his death, the bitter townspeople oppose Matt and the law and try to prevent it.

The Sodbusters, November 20, 1972 Written by Ron Bishop, Directed by Robert Totten, Guest Cast: Alex Cord, Morgan Woodward, Katherine Justice, Leif Garrett, Dawn Lyn, Paul Prokop, Cohn Male, Richard Bull, Joe di Reda, Robert Viharo, Norman Bartold. Marshal Dillon appears on the scene as a group of cattlemen are trying to gun down a farmer in a fight over water rights. Leif Garrett and Harrison Ford guest-star.

Dawn Lyn - with Arness and later...

Leif Garrett

Katherine Justice

Alex Cord

The Brothers, November 27, 1972 Written by Calvin Clements, Directed by Gunnar Hellstrom, Guest Cast: Steve Forrest, Joe Silver, Angus Duncan, Eddie Ryder, Richard O'Brien, Regis J. Cordic, Edward Faulkner, Reid Cruikshanks. After being duped into helping to shoot and kill an outlaw, Kitty finds herself pursued by the outlaw's brother.

---

Hostage!, December 11, 1972 Written by Paul Edwards, Directed by Gunnar Hellstrom, Guest Cast: William Smith, Geoffrey Lewis, Marco St. John, James Chandler, Nina Roman, Hal Baylor, Sandra Kent, Stafford Repp, W. Chambliss. A gang of marauders, "The Dog Soldiers," swears vengeance against Dillon by shooting down Kitty. As Kitty lies critically wounded, Matt starts tracking the outlaw who shot her. Click HERE for more information.

Geoffrey Lewis

< William Smith, one of Gunsmoke's greatest bad guys.

Jubilee, December 18, 1972 Written by Paul Savage, Story by Jack Freeman, Directed by Herb Wallerstein, Guest Cast: Tom Skerritt, Colin Wilcox-Home, Scott Brady, Alan Hale, Lori Rutherford, Todd Cameron. Ed Wells, a Kansas farmer, dreams of striking it rich with his quarter horse. Seeing the futility of the dream of riches, Festus wins a bet, and the farmer is forced to see Jubilee beat another horse in a match race. Alan Hale and Scott Brady guest-star.

Arizona Midnight, January 1, 1973 Written by Dudley Bromley, Directed by Irving Moore, Guest Cast: Billy Curtis, Stanley Clements, Mills Watson, Ken Mayer, Sadye Powell. A little cowboy astride a giant horse claims that the horse turns into an elephant when the moon is full. Dodge City residents are stunned when they see an elephant, wearing the cowboy's hat, appear in the street.

Homecoming, January 8, 1973 Written by Calvin Clements, Directed by Gunnar Hellstrom, Guest Cast: Richard Kelton, Robert Pratt, Stuart Margolin, Lurene Tuttle, Claudia Bryar, Ivy Jones, Lynn Marta. Two outlaw brothers return to Dodge City to visit their dying mother and threaten to take Kitty and Doc as hostages to ensure their safe escape across the border to Mexico. Festus goes to the rescue.

Shadler, January 15, 1973 Written by Jim Byrnes, Directed by Arnold Laven, Guest Cast: Earl Holliman, Diana Hyland, Denver Pyle, Linda Watkins, John Davis Chandler, Alex Sharp. After masquerading as a priest, convict Boone Shadler escapes from prison. Newly is forced into an uneasy alliance with Shadler to save a small town from outlaws. Earl Holliman, Denver Pyle, and Diana Hyland guest-star.

Patricia, January 22, 1973 Written by Calvin Clements, Directed by Alf Kjellin, Guest Cast: Jess Walton, Ike Eisenmann, Gail Bonney, Donald Elson, Charles Waggenheim, Richard Lundin, John Baer Newly marries a young woman whom he had courted while both were tending the injured from a Kansas tornado. However, Doc confirms that the woman is suffering from a life-threatening blood disease.

A Quiet Day In Dodge, January 29, 1973 Written by Jack Miller, Directed by AIf Kjellin, Guest Cast: Margaret Hamilton, Willie Aames, Leo Gordon, Shug Fisher, Douglas V. Fowley, John Fiedler, Helen Page Camp, J. Pat O'Malley, Herb Vigran, Walker Edmiston. Not having slept for two days, Marshal Dillon has a tough time when he returns to Dodge City with a dangerous prisoner. Margaret Hamilton guest-stars.

Wheland's Men, February 5, 1973 Written by Ron Bishop, Directed by Paul Edwards, Guest Cast: Robert Burt, William Bramley, Harrison Ford, Noble Willingham, Frank Ramirez, Bobby Hall, Ed Craig, Gerald McRaney, Richard Hale, Seaman Glass. An outlaw gang terrorizes Dodge City during Marshal Dillon's absence. Miss Kitty boldly challenges the leader to a poker game, with Dillon's life as the stake. Harrison Ford and Gerald McRaney guest-star.

Harrison Ford

Gerald McRaney (Simon And Simon)

Kimbrough, February 12,1973 Written by Jim Bymes, Directed by Gunnar Hellstrom, Guest Cast: John Anderson, Michael Strong, William Devane, Tom Falk, Rick Weaver, Doreen Long, Lisa Eilbacher, Wendell Baker, William Brawley, Robert Burt, Noble Willingham, Harrison Ford, Frank Ramirez, Richard Hale, Seaman Glass, Ed Craig, Bobby Hall, Gerald McRaney. Matt Dillon learns that the man who taught him everything he knows is now an itinerant drunk reduced to sweeping out stables for whiskey money.

Jesse, February 19, 1973 Written by Jim Byrnes, Directed by Bernard McEveety, Guest Cast: Brock Peters Jim Davis, Regis J. Cordic, Don Stroud, Leonard Stone, Robert Pine, Ted Gehring, Lloyd Nelson, Norman Bartold. Brock Peters plays an old friend of Festus's, now a fugitive from the law.

Talbot, February 26, 1973 Written by Jim Byrnes, Directed by Vincent McEveety, Guest Cast: Anthony Zerbe, Salome Jens, Peter Jason, Bill Williams, Charles MacCauley, Chanin Hale, Robert Totten, Link Wyler, Victor Izay, Robert Donner, Gloria Dixon, Tom Sutton. An outlaw named Talbot falls in love with the widow of a man he was forced to kill in self-defense.

This Golden Land, March 5, 1973 Written by Hal Sitowitz, Directed by Gunnar Hellstrom, Guest Cast: Paul Stevens, Victor French, Bettye Ackerman, Richard Dreyfus, Joseph Hindy, Wayne McLaren, Scott Selles, Kevin Coughin, Stephanie Epper, Robert Nichols. Moshe Gorofsky, the son of a Russian immigrant, is killed in a brutal hazing accident by a hooligan named Ruxton. Richard Dreyfuss guest-stars.

Richard Dreyfuss