Nat Sieberts, a wealthy Dodge City rancher, is engaged to marry Polly Troyman in Dodge City. Polly is from a southern plantation family, and her brother Henry hates Sieberts. Henry does not want Sieberts to marry his sister. Nat and Henry almost face off before Matt Dillon steps in and prevents any bloodshed.
There is also a woman in Dodge named Beulah that is obviously in love with Sieberts. Beulah is a poor woman, possibly slow-witted, probably promiscuous, and is treated with disdain by many of the Dodge residents.
The wedding takes place. As the newlyweds are riding away, Sieberts is shot. Marshal Dillon investigates.
Wayne Morris plays Nat Sieberts in his only Gunsmoke guest appearance. Morris was a decorated World War II pilot. His promising acting career deteriorated after his return from the war. He appeared in several b-grade westerns and started accepting roles in television dramas -- mostly westerns. He suffered a fatal heart attack in 1959 at the relatively early age of 45.
A young June Lockhart portrays Beulah. Television fans that recognize Lockhart from her roles as Ruth Martin on Lassie, Maureen Robinson on Lost in Space, or Dr. Janet Craig on Petticoat Junction may be surprised to see Lockhart portraying this odd character. She is excellent in the role.
Gail Kobe has a small part as Polly Troyman in this, her first Gunsmoke involvement. She would later play larger roles in three additional episodes of the series.
Barry McGuire, who was actually born in Caldwell, Kansas, appears as Henry Troyman in this episode. He would return for one additional episode in the series.
Bill Erwin plays the preacher who marries Nat and Polly in an uncredited part. The familiar character actor had played a preacher earlier in Season 3's "Romeo" episode.
David S. "Sam" Peckinpah wrote the screenplay for this episode, as he did for ten other John Meston stories in the early years of the series. This is the last screenplay Peckinpah provided for Gunsmoke. (Note: IMDB credits Peckinpah as the screenplay writer for the upcoming episode "Bottleman," but Peckinpah was not the author of that screenplay.) Peckinpah makes some significant changes to Meston's story, especially in the resolution.
In Meston's original version, Beulah is referred to as "Crazy Beulah," and the character is more blatant about her obsession with Siebert (The "s" is added to the Siebert name in the television version of the story). The relationship with Siebert is not at all mutual. After she shoots Siebert, Beulah boasts about it and tells Marshal Dillon she despises the man. There is no mention in Meston's version of Matt arresting Beulah or Siebert paying her bail. Instead, Matt puts her on a train bound for St. Louis, where she has family, while Siebert recovers at the Troyman home where Polly takes care of him.
Peckinpah rearranges the story so that Beulah is less forthcoming about shooting Sieberts. When she finally confesses, it is clear she still cares for the man. Sieberts, who never seems especially excited about marrying Polly, gives the Troyman family money to return to their plantation and try to revive it. He has the marriage annulled and chooses to remain in Dodge. It is implied that some future relationship between Sieberts and Beulah is possible, although Sieberts tells Matt he will not marry again.
Meston's original story is the more conventional tale, while Peckinpah's screenplay is -- not surprisingly -- more ambiguous and more sympathetic to the Beulah character. (Ambiguity is a frequent part of Peckinpah's writing.)
Since this is the last screenplay Peckinpah wrote for the series, it is worth mentioning that he authored a story titled "The Sharpshooter" for Gunsmoke, but it was rejected by the producers. He reworked the story and submitted it to the producers of Zane Grey Theatre. It was aired as an episode of that anthology series. Peckinpah and director/producer Arnold Laven later proposed a series based on the episode using the premise of a father and young son establishing a ranch in the Old West. ABC agreed to air the series, and The Rifleman was born. A slightly altered version of "The Sharpshooter" was aired as the first episode of the series. The relationship between the famed writer/director and The Rifleman was brief, however. Peckinpah thought the violence depicted should be more realistic, and he thought the brutality of the period should be more explicitly portrayed, particularly in how it impacted the Mark McCain character. The ABC network and the producers of The Rifleman did not share Peckinpah's vision, and he left the show.
Peckinpah also wrote for other westerns, including Have Gun - Will Travel, Broken Arrow, and a few episodes of Zane Grey Theatre other than the aforementioned "The Sharpshooter." One of those episodes was titled "Trouble at Tres Cruces," and it served as the pilot for Peckinpah's brilliant but short-lived series The Westerner starring Brian Keith. The Season 1 Gunsmoke episode "The Queue" was the first writing credit Peckinpah received.
There is also a woman in Dodge named Beulah that is obviously in love with Sieberts. Beulah is a poor woman, possibly slow-witted, probably promiscuous, and is treated with disdain by many of the Dodge residents.
The wedding takes place. As the newlyweds are riding away, Sieberts is shot. Marshal Dillon investigates.
Wayne Morris plays Nat Sieberts in his only Gunsmoke guest appearance. Morris was a decorated World War II pilot. His promising acting career deteriorated after his return from the war. He appeared in several b-grade westerns and started accepting roles in television dramas -- mostly westerns. He suffered a fatal heart attack in 1959 at the relatively early age of 45.
A young June Lockhart portrays Beulah. Television fans that recognize Lockhart from her roles as Ruth Martin on Lassie, Maureen Robinson on Lost in Space, or Dr. Janet Craig on Petticoat Junction may be surprised to see Lockhart portraying this odd character. She is excellent in the role.
Gail Kobe has a small part as Polly Troyman in this, her first Gunsmoke involvement. She would later play larger roles in three additional episodes of the series.
Barry McGuire, who was actually born in Caldwell, Kansas, appears as Henry Troyman in this episode. He would return for one additional episode in the series.
Bill Erwin plays the preacher who marries Nat and Polly in an uncredited part. The familiar character actor had played a preacher earlier in Season 3's "Romeo" episode.
David S. "Sam" Peckinpah wrote the screenplay for this episode, as he did for ten other John Meston stories in the early years of the series. This is the last screenplay Peckinpah provided for Gunsmoke. (Note: IMDB credits Peckinpah as the screenplay writer for the upcoming episode "Bottleman," but Peckinpah was not the author of that screenplay.) Peckinpah makes some significant changes to Meston's story, especially in the resolution.
In Meston's original version, Beulah is referred to as "Crazy Beulah," and the character is more blatant about her obsession with Siebert (The "s" is added to the Siebert name in the television version of the story). The relationship with Siebert is not at all mutual. After she shoots Siebert, Beulah boasts about it and tells Marshal Dillon she despises the man. There is no mention in Meston's version of Matt arresting Beulah or Siebert paying her bail. Instead, Matt puts her on a train bound for St. Louis, where she has family, while Siebert recovers at the Troyman home where Polly takes care of him.
Peckinpah rearranges the story so that Beulah is less forthcoming about shooting Sieberts. When she finally confesses, it is clear she still cares for the man. Sieberts, who never seems especially excited about marrying Polly, gives the Troyman family money to return to their plantation and try to revive it. He has the marriage annulled and chooses to remain in Dodge. It is implied that some future relationship between Sieberts and Beulah is possible, although Sieberts tells Matt he will not marry again.
Meston's original story is the more conventional tale, while Peckinpah's screenplay is -- not surprisingly -- more ambiguous and more sympathetic to the Beulah character. (Ambiguity is a frequent part of Peckinpah's writing.)
Since this is the last screenplay Peckinpah wrote for the series, it is worth mentioning that he authored a story titled "The Sharpshooter" for Gunsmoke, but it was rejected by the producers. He reworked the story and submitted it to the producers of Zane Grey Theatre. It was aired as an episode of that anthology series. Peckinpah and director/producer Arnold Laven later proposed a series based on the episode using the premise of a father and young son establishing a ranch in the Old West. ABC agreed to air the series, and The Rifleman was born. A slightly altered version of "The Sharpshooter" was aired as the first episode of the series. The relationship between the famed writer/director and The Rifleman was brief, however. Peckinpah thought the violence depicted should be more realistic, and he thought the brutality of the period should be more explicitly portrayed, particularly in how it impacted the Mark McCain character. The ABC network and the producers of The Rifleman did not share Peckinpah's vision, and he left the show.
Peckinpah also wrote for other westerns, including Have Gun - Will Travel, Broken Arrow, and a few episodes of Zane Grey Theatre other than the aforementioned "The Sharpshooter." One of those episodes was titled "Trouble at Tres Cruces," and it served as the pilot for Peckinpah's brilliant but short-lived series The Westerner starring Brian Keith. The Season 1 Gunsmoke episode "The Queue" was the first writing credit Peckinpah received.