Friend (25 Jan. 1964)

A man carrying a tempting sum of money is attacked from behind by someone who beats him and leaves him for dead. Lucky for the injured man, an old friend of Matt is there to take him in to Doc Adams for mending.

Director:

Harry Harris

Writer:

Kathleen Hite

Stars:

James Arness, Milburn Stone, Amanda Blake

Cast

Episode cast overview:
James Arness	...	Matt Dillon
Milburn Stone	...	Doc
Amanda Blake	...	Kitty
Burt Reynolds	...	Quint
Tom Reese	...	Judd
Jan Shepard	...	Marge
Ben Wright	...	Father Tom
Butch Patrick	...	Runt
George Keymas	...	Gore
Ralph Moody	...	Finley
Glenn Strange	...	Sam
Frank Kreig	...	Barkeep

Storyline

A man rides into town with a badly beaten stranger in tow. Matt finds out he was a friend who befriended him ten years ago under similar circumstances and rides to the town he calls home when he hears he was killed shortly after Doc sent the stranger on his way.

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Genres:

Drama | Western

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 January 1964 (USA)

Filming Locations:

CBS Studio Center - 4024 Radford Avenue, Studio City, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Arness Production Company, Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

User Reviews

Another surprising episode that plays more like a mystery novel

Here is another surprising offering. More of a mystery tale that will have the viewer glued to the screen waiting for the next piece of the story to be revealed.

It begins as Judd Nellis comes into Dodge bringing a badly wounded man that he found on the prairie. He takes the man over to Doc Adams where Doc advises that he might not live. Matt, who happens to be an old friend of Judd, wants to know more about the wounded man. Matt has known Judd ever since Judd saved his life when bandits jumped him years ago. Judd was the one that got Matt help. Judd tells Matt that he found the man, who later we know as Frank Gore, along the side of the road east of town. Nothing else was seen and Judd just felt like he needed to get him some help. Judd leaves town heading home.

Later Frank has recovered from his wounds. Frank advises that when he was brought in he could hear voices and now can place a face with Doc and Matt put he did not know the other voice. Doc tells him that the voice was Judd Nellis and he was the one that brought him into the office. Frank wanted to know where he lives so that he could thanks him. Matt finds out that Frank was carrying $1000 and it was stolen.

Three weeks later, Matt receives a letter from a pastor saying that Judd had been killed and ask Matt to come to his church. When Matt arrives the priest, Father Tom, did not know anything about his death other than the grave was here after he returned from another town. But Matt finds out from a saloon girl that Judd had a visitor right before he died. The visitor's name was Frank Gore.

Matt also finds out that the pastor, Father Tom, is also an friend of Judd. He had been a friend since Judd found him beaten up on the roadside and nursed him back to health. And now Matt knows that Judd may not be the friend everyone thinks. When a small boy named Runt tells Matt that he saw a fight between Judd and Gore and that next day there was a tombstone with Judd's name, Matt feels lead to dig up the grave. This will cause a situation where at the end of the episode there will be two freshly dug graves.

Cannot say more about this episode. A script where the entire time the tale gets stranger and stranger till you know something is wrong. A great mystery that will have the viewer guessing at what happens next. Good watch!