James Arness biography

Synopsis

James Arness, born in Minneapolis in 1923, is an American actor best known for portraying Marshal Matt Dillon on the TV show Gunsmoke for 20 years. After working as a screen actor in the 1940s and 1950s, he took star-making role of his life. CBS's Gunsmoke was the first and longest running Western series on American television.

Profile

Actor, born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. He was wounded in the invasion in Anzio, Italy in 1944. After working as a screen actor in the 1940s and 1950s, he took on the role of Marshall Matt Dillon (after John Wayne turned it down), the no-nonsense, good-hearted hero of CBS's Gunsmoke, television's first and longest running Western series (1955??75). His brother was the television actor Peter Graves.