Matt has amnesia and is saved by the lovely Michael Learned. Since he has no recollection of being the Marshall of Dodge and also that he is the exclusive "property" of Miss Kitty, he falls in love with the lady who saved him. She is a widow and very handy, but Matt finds a lot of things to fix on her ranch and it is obvious that they are falling in love with each other. On one particular evening in a very quaint way, we hear Matt whistling, the widow opens her bedroom door and then we see Matt walking towards the room....then we break to commercial! Oh, but we know the handsome Matt and the lovely widow have a wonderful night of love. The dastardly bad guy, played by Victor French, shows up at the ranch and tells the widow who Matt really is. After Matt hears mention of Dodge City, his memory slowly starts to return. Of course, he goes back to Dodge, breaking the widow's heart. And Miss Kitty never hears about his misadventure in another woman's arms.
13 Reviews
A true love story for Valentine's Day
christianwindsurfer14 February 2012
While Matt Dillon is trailing a killer named Favorite, played by Victor French who shot a gambler back in Dodge, Matt gets bushwhacked by him and suffers from amnesia due to a glancing shot to the head. Matt gets found and nursed back to health by young widow Miss Mike, played by Michael Learned. Favorite then gets hired by Starcourt, a land-grabbing rancher to murder the widow. When Favorite meets up with Miss Mike and Matt, he is treated kindly by Miss Mike and has a change of heart. You have to admire widow Mike's spunk and grit. At first she tries to resist her attraction for Matt but later gives in. When told by Favorite about Matt's true identity, she had to choose between telling Matt or not. She knows if she tells Matt who he really is, she may lose him forever. Matt would be bound by duty to go after Favorite and the landowner. At best, Matt would return back to Dodge and at worse, he would be killed. Either way, Miss Mike would lose Matt forever if she tells him his true identity. This episode is full of irony and is a tear-jerker.
Matt's Love Story
michaelcooke-8732614 February 2018
If there is ever a Love Story for the ages, this is it. For any dyed-in-the-wool Gunsmoke fan, this story puts a new spin on the oldest theme in the world. Matt and Kitty always had a "thing", but Matt was always too married to his work to be really serious. It takes amnesia to get Matt to be really serious about really one woman. This shows the inner Matt Dillon. He is compassionate, thoughtful, fearless and, yes, loveable. After a spell he shows how truly grateful he is for being cared for by anyone. Matt always had that side of him, however, he always had that badge to guide his true focus - his badge and the law.
Because of his focus on the badge, it took a blow to the head to find out what was really in Matt's heart. And Michael Learned, who else could play this part, was perfect in the part of Mike Yardner in this award winning episode. Parley Baer as Chester Wesley Proudfoot. After nurturing and helping and getting Matt back on his feet, she finds out who he really is. Her line at the very end "Its hard to find two good men and lose them both", will make you cry is revealing as we learn what we always knew throughout the story that Mike was a hard working, deeply committed person who has had some bad breaks. But you know she's gonna get through this heartbreak as well.
This, in my opinion, casting being so good, is why Gunsmoke ran for 20 years while others fell by the wayside. This and James Arness, who played the part consistently and professionally, gave its adoring fans something to store in their hearts. Gunsmoke always had a stellar cast from the originals, Milburn Stone, Amanda Blake and Dennis Weaver. Even the smaller regulars were consistent and good. When they needed to add a cast member, they found the best in Bert Reynolds, Ken Curtis, Buck Taylor, Roger Ewing, James Nusser and Roy Roberts.
But along with the TV Gunsmoke fans, there were many old Radio Gunsmoke fans who were hoping the TV version would measure up to the radio version. Gunsmoke on radio also had a stellar cast with William Conrad as Matt, Parley Baer as Chester Wesley Proudfoot, Howard McNear as Doc Adams and Georgia Ellis as Kitty Russell.
Because of his focus on the badge, it took a blow to the head to find out what was really in Matt's heart. And Michael Learned, who else could play this part, was perfect in the part of Mike Yardner in this award winning episode. Parley Baer as Chester Wesley Proudfoot. After nurturing and helping and getting Matt back on his feet, she finds out who he really is. Her line at the very end "Its hard to find two good men and lose them both", will make you cry is revealing as we learn what we always knew throughout the story that Mike was a hard working, deeply committed person who has had some bad breaks. But you know she's gonna get through this heartbreak as well.
This, in my opinion, casting being so good, is why Gunsmoke ran for 20 years while others fell by the wayside. This and James Arness, who played the part consistently and professionally, gave its adoring fans something to store in their hearts. Gunsmoke always had a stellar cast from the originals, Milburn Stone, Amanda Blake and Dennis Weaver. Even the smaller regulars were consistent and good. When they needed to add a cast member, they found the best in Bert Reynolds, Ken Curtis, Buck Taylor, Roger Ewing, James Nusser and Roy Roberts.
But along with the TV Gunsmoke fans, there were many old Radio Gunsmoke fans who were hoping the TV version would measure up to the radio version. Gunsmoke on radio also had a stellar cast with William Conrad as Matt, Parley Baer as Chester Wesley Proudfoot, Howard McNear as Doc Adams and Georgia Ellis as Kitty Russell.
Simply a wonderful story
martinxperry-1486813 June 2018
Victor French and a lovely Micheal Leanerd put in outstanding performances. This is so well written and acted. Michael Learned plays a widow named "Mike", of all names, stumbles across a wounded and apparently amnestic Matt Dillon. This story has everything you could want including a short love story, an unlikely hero and well;.....won't spill the beans about the ending. If this one comes up or you want one to save for later, this is the one to watch. This is a solid ten in my book.
A Legendary Story for a Legendary Series
wdavidreynolds29 September 2021
In one of the more famous episodes in the Gunsmoke series, Matt Dillon is pursuing a man wanted for murder named Les Dean. Dean is a loner who is about as tough as they come. He is not an ordinary outlaw, as he actually lives by a moral code -- it just is not always aligned with what passes for law and order. When he has the opportunity, he shoots Matt, takes anything that might identify him, and abandons the Marshal.
In pursuit of water, Matt's horse eventually finds a homestead on the prairie. The property belongs to a woman named Mike Yardner. Mike knows it is not likely a saddled horse would be wandering riderless on the prairie. She manages to find Matt barely conscious and with some help from him, is able to transport him back to her house.
When Matt regains full consciousness, he discovers he has suffered memory loss. He does not know who he is, what happened, or anything about his past. (This is a form of memory loss known as "posttraumatic amnesia" because of the head injury with elements of another form of memory loss known as "retrograde amnesia" where the victim cannot recall memories prior to the onset of amnesia.)
A romance begins to develop between Mike and Matt. They share a kiss -- something he never did with Kitty Russell -- and, later, it is strongly implied the couple slept together. (In the 1990 Gunsmoke film, "Gunsmoke: The Last Apache," it is revealed that Mike had Matt's daughter following the incidents depicted in this story.)
Meanwhile, a cowardly rancher named Hasty Starcourt wants the land Mike owns. He hires Dean to kill Mike.
Michael Learned stars in this episode as Mike Yardley. Learned was appearing as Olivia Walton in the series The Waltons at the time this episode was filmed. The Waltons was a CBS series, as was Gunsmoke. Learned would return as another character a few episodes later in the two-part "A Game of Death... An Act of Love" episode. Naming Learned's character Mike in this story is obviously a nod to Learned's name.
This is the third episode of Season 19 of Gunsmoke, and, like the two-part "Women for Sale" episode that started the season, most of this episode only involves the Matt Dillon character. There is a single scene set in Dodge City where the other series stars discuss the fact that Matt has been away for an extended period. It appears the scene was added to remind the viewer the other cast members were still part of the show.
Victor French makes another of his eighteen different Gunsmoke appearances as the "outlaw with integrity" Les Dean character. Les Dean is the kind of character French excelled at playing.
Actor Keith Andes plays the part of Hasty Starcourt in this story. This is the only appearance in the series for Andes, although he and James Arness both had parts as young men in the 1947 film The Farmer's Daughter starring Loretta Young, Joseph Cotton, and Ethel Barrymore.
Johnathan Lippe (his birth name was Johnathan Goldsmith, and he later started using that name instead of Lippe) is another Gunsmoke veteran that appears in this episode as the character Monte Rupert, one of Starcourt's employees. Lippe made fourteen different appearances in the series. He tended to play the same impetuous, foolish character who tends to talk when he should listen.
Familiar character actor William Schallert has a small part here as Judge Ray Cordelius. This is the last of seven appearances by the actor in the series.
This is one of those episodes that longtime fans of the series tend to remember. It is also a story with significant impact on Gunsmoke lore. It is a fascinating use of the amnesia theme, which is certainly not unique in television and films. Gunsmoke fans know Matt Dillon would never have allowed Mike to break through those rigid barriers where he keeps everyone -- and especially Kitty -- at some distance if not for the memory loss. He is "married" to his badge and his responsibilities as a U. S. Marshal.
It is shocking (and profoundly sad on some level) how quickly Matt reverts to his old persona once he regains his memory. How he can so quickly discard his feelings for Mike (at least it *seems* as though he discards them) is disturbing.
The different plot elements used in this story -- Matt chasing a fugitive, Matt being injured, a love story, and the greedy, wealthy landowner who covets their neighbor's land -- have been used in other episodes and other television series, but the way those elements are used here is refreshing and unique.
In pursuit of water, Matt's horse eventually finds a homestead on the prairie. The property belongs to a woman named Mike Yardner. Mike knows it is not likely a saddled horse would be wandering riderless on the prairie. She manages to find Matt barely conscious and with some help from him, is able to transport him back to her house.
When Matt regains full consciousness, he discovers he has suffered memory loss. He does not know who he is, what happened, or anything about his past. (This is a form of memory loss known as "posttraumatic amnesia" because of the head injury with elements of another form of memory loss known as "retrograde amnesia" where the victim cannot recall memories prior to the onset of amnesia.)
A romance begins to develop between Mike and Matt. They share a kiss -- something he never did with Kitty Russell -- and, later, it is strongly implied the couple slept together. (In the 1990 Gunsmoke film, "Gunsmoke: The Last Apache," it is revealed that Mike had Matt's daughter following the incidents depicted in this story.)
Meanwhile, a cowardly rancher named Hasty Starcourt wants the land Mike owns. He hires Dean to kill Mike.
Michael Learned stars in this episode as Mike Yardley. Learned was appearing as Olivia Walton in the series The Waltons at the time this episode was filmed. The Waltons was a CBS series, as was Gunsmoke. Learned would return as another character a few episodes later in the two-part "A Game of Death... An Act of Love" episode. Naming Learned's character Mike in this story is obviously a nod to Learned's name.
This is the third episode of Season 19 of Gunsmoke, and, like the two-part "Women for Sale" episode that started the season, most of this episode only involves the Matt Dillon character. There is a single scene set in Dodge City where the other series stars discuss the fact that Matt has been away for an extended period. It appears the scene was added to remind the viewer the other cast members were still part of the show.
Victor French makes another of his eighteen different Gunsmoke appearances as the "outlaw with integrity" Les Dean character. Les Dean is the kind of character French excelled at playing.
Actor Keith Andes plays the part of Hasty Starcourt in this story. This is the only appearance in the series for Andes, although he and James Arness both had parts as young men in the 1947 film The Farmer's Daughter starring Loretta Young, Joseph Cotton, and Ethel Barrymore.
Johnathan Lippe (his birth name was Johnathan Goldsmith, and he later started using that name instead of Lippe) is another Gunsmoke veteran that appears in this episode as the character Monte Rupert, one of Starcourt's employees. Lippe made fourteen different appearances in the series. He tended to play the same impetuous, foolish character who tends to talk when he should listen.
Familiar character actor William Schallert has a small part here as Judge Ray Cordelius. This is the last of seven appearances by the actor in the series.
This is one of those episodes that longtime fans of the series tend to remember. It is also a story with significant impact on Gunsmoke lore. It is a fascinating use of the amnesia theme, which is certainly not unique in television and films. Gunsmoke fans know Matt Dillon would never have allowed Mike to break through those rigid barriers where he keeps everyone -- and especially Kitty -- at some distance if not for the memory loss. He is "married" to his badge and his responsibilities as a U. S. Marshal.
It is shocking (and profoundly sad on some level) how quickly Matt reverts to his old persona once he regains his memory. How he can so quickly discard his feelings for Mike (at least it *seems* as though he discards them) is disturbing.
The different plot elements used in this story -- Matt chasing a fugitive, Matt being injured, a love story, and the greedy, wealthy landowner who covets their neighbor's land -- have been used in other episodes and other television series, but the way those elements are used here is refreshing and unique.
Mike is it?
darbski7 June 2018
Warning: Spoilers
***SPOILERS*** I've always thought that Michael Learned was way too hot for the sweetness and light Waltons, and naturally, I'm right. It doesn't take a genius to see that she's also a terrific actress. Now, what I hate about episodes like this one, is that just going into it we know that the beautiful lady either has to be killed (or have a terminal illness), wanted and arrested, or be left behind. Happened here, too. Victor French lives up to his "Scruffiest Bad Guy of the Week" image, and turns out to be a creep in wolf's clothing with a heart. It's a very good watch, and not just because of the acting. Ms. Learned's beauty, and her great voice make up for the roughness of everyone else, and push this episode into a strong 10.
Miss Michael Learned is wonderful in this likable episode
kfo949414 February 2013
Matt is on a trail of a bandit named Les Favorite Dean (Victor French). As Les waits on the prairie, Matt rides close up and Les shoots him. He then hits him in the head with the butt of the rifle and leaves him for dead in the lonesome prairie.
Matt's horse comes up on a farm house that is occupied by a widow Ms Mike Yardner (Michael Learned). She and her dog happen to find Matt and take him back to her house. When Matt wakes up, he has amnesia and cannot remember anything about his life. With Matt helping around the farm house the two become smitten with each other to the point of thinking marriage.
Meanwhile there is a rancher named Starcourt that wants the land and farm that Yardner is living on. When Les Dean comes riding up, he hires him to get rid of Yardner. When he arrives at the Yardner place, he is stunned to see Marshal Dillon. But Matt has taken on another name and does not recognize the wanted man.
Dean has a change of heart and refuses ti kill the woman and then tells her about Matt's true identity. When she tells Matt that he is the marshal in Dodge it seems like all his memory returns. Will Matt give up his years of being a Marshal for the chance at real love?
As a person that really dislikes amnesia episodes, this show was better than expected. Michael Learned is great as the widow that fell in love with the tall stranger. And Victor French is just as good as the rough villain with a sweet side. With the script and the acting this episode is entertaining to the very end. Good Watch
Matt's horse comes up on a farm house that is occupied by a widow Ms Mike Yardner (Michael Learned). She and her dog happen to find Matt and take him back to her house. When Matt wakes up, he has amnesia and cannot remember anything about his life. With Matt helping around the farm house the two become smitten with each other to the point of thinking marriage.
Meanwhile there is a rancher named Starcourt that wants the land and farm that Yardner is living on. When Les Dean comes riding up, he hires him to get rid of Yardner. When he arrives at the Yardner place, he is stunned to see Marshal Dillon. But Matt has taken on another name and does not recognize the wanted man.
Dean has a change of heart and refuses ti kill the woman and then tells her about Matt's true identity. When she tells Matt that he is the marshal in Dodge it seems like all his memory returns. Will Matt give up his years of being a Marshal for the chance at real love?
As a person that really dislikes amnesia episodes, this show was better than expected. Michael Learned is great as the widow that fell in love with the tall stranger. And Victor French is just as good as the rough villain with a sweet side. With the script and the acting this episode is entertaining to the very end. Good Watch
Where's Kitty?
cheadwrites1 February 2017
When Matt is shot by a fugitive he is hunting. He wakes up, in the house of a beautiful, and feisty, widow (Michael Learned) who's character is coincidentally named Mike.
They fall in love. Okay, this is where I have a problem.
Amnesia, or no, why is it the producers of Gunsmoke, pussyfooted around with the romantic relationship between Matt (James Arness) and Kitty Russell (Amanda Blake) for decades without there being some resolution between them?
Matt and Kitty never even share an on-camera kiss. There have been episodes where Matt shares an attraction with other women. There have been episodes where Kitty shares an attraction with other men. But none, where Matt and Kitty consummate (even verbally) their relationship to each other.
I'm a fangirl of Gunsmoke, especially the original half-hour segments, and the wonderful episodes written by the amazing Kathleen Hite, but darn't this is way too much foreplay.
So, As far as Matt's Love Story goes. I can't watch it without thinking about him "cheating" on Kitty. There, I've said it.
They fall in love. Okay, this is where I have a problem.
Amnesia, or no, why is it the producers of Gunsmoke, pussyfooted around with the romantic relationship between Matt (James Arness) and Kitty Russell (Amanda Blake) for decades without there being some resolution between them?
Matt and Kitty never even share an on-camera kiss. There have been episodes where Matt shares an attraction with other women. There have been episodes where Kitty shares an attraction with other men. But none, where Matt and Kitty consummate (even verbally) their relationship to each other.
I'm a fangirl of Gunsmoke, especially the original half-hour segments, and the wonderful episodes written by the amazing Kathleen Hite, but darn't this is way too much foreplay.
So, As far as Matt's Love Story goes. I can't watch it without thinking about him "cheating" on Kitty. There, I've said it.
a stale story made new
grizzledgeezer20 October 2013
Warning: Spoilers
One might wish to compare/contrast "Matt's Love Story" with the "Presumed Dead" episode of "The Big Valley". Though the plotting is much the same, the "Big Valley" is little more than trashy melodrama, with Miss Barbara Stanwyck going over a cliff in a stagecoach (yet surviving!), one of the funniest moments in the history of TV. *
What makes "Matt's Love Story" such a grand episode is that it sidesteps the clichés of amnesia stories /and/ falling-in-love stories /and/ chasing-after-the-bad-guy stories. (The preceding sentence is an example of a polysyndeton -- a fancy way of saying "run-on", but acceptable because it has a fancy name.) Any serious fiction writer should study "Matt's Love Story" to see how something old can be made new.
I'd like to give "Matt's Love Story" a 10, but I'm reluctant, because it doesn't /quite/ reach the level of a truly "definitive/vital" tale. It's a foregone conclusion Matt isn't going to stay with Mike, but it would have been nice to see a bit more angst on Matt's part.
Nevertheless... a must-see episode.
* Miss Kitty does it, too -- using much of the same stock footage! -- yet with less implausibility.
What makes "Matt's Love Story" such a grand episode is that it sidesteps the clichés of amnesia stories /and/ falling-in-love stories /and/ chasing-after-the-bad-guy stories. (The preceding sentence is an example of a polysyndeton -- a fancy way of saying "run-on", but acceptable because it has a fancy name.) Any serious fiction writer should study "Matt's Love Story" to see how something old can be made new.
I'd like to give "Matt's Love Story" a 10, but I'm reluctant, because it doesn't /quite/ reach the level of a truly "definitive/vital" tale. It's a foregone conclusion Matt isn't going to stay with Mike, but it would have been nice to see a bit more angst on Matt's part.
Nevertheless... a must-see episode.
* Miss Kitty does it, too -- using much of the same stock footage! -- yet with less implausibility.
Finally Matt 19 Years
jamesst-0611210 March 2022
I've watched since 1955 often until retirement now watched all 20 seasons and this was one of my top 5 episodes. Arness,Michael Learned and Victor French were excellent. Would have rated a 10 if Kitty could have felt the pain Matt had watching her over the years stepping out by seeing him with Mike.
Matt's Love Story
rmont-0638316 March 2021
The thing I like best about this episode, is that to me, Mike is what Kitty would be like if she hadn't been raised in bars and gambling houses. They are both strong, independent women. Women who know that they can't force Matt into being what he's not. It was nice to see Matt able to be with a woman without his marshall obligations inhibiting him.
Ending didn't ring true
jonbadart7 June 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Enjoyed just about everything about this episode but the end. Look, I understand why it was done, given the framework of the show, but there was nothing in Ms. Mike's character that had me believing she would have ridden away from Matt the way she did. She was a strong independent woman who had fallen for Matt. That Mike would have simply turned her back the way she did seemed hollow to me. Of course, there was only about 30 seconds left in the show, so yeah, I get it.
Still, though, a very well acted episode. In particular, by the reliable Mr. French and the often under-appreciated Michael Learned.
Still, though, a very well acted episode. In particular, by the reliable Mr. French and the often under-appreciated Michael Learned.
Right is Right. What is Right?
Far_Out20 May 2023
Warning: Spoilers
The core of the oater genre is the conflict of life/personal codes. This ep is a fabulous example of this. We have Dillon's famous devotion to "the law." We also have the greedy and twisted owner of a significant ranch. Then there is the quirky way of a wanderer of considerable survival skills.
I've never accepted Dillon's super strict adherence to the latest legal code. As this ep well demonstrates, there are degrees of "sin" all around. The truly evil one is the man who enjoys favor of the "system." His ability to get a judge to come out to his place so as to convince him to lobby for the use of eminent domain which would take away his neighbor's property in service to the creation of a travel route was telling. This would assumedly allow him to gobble up whatever land the government would not need at a low cost. All nice and legal like.
The wanderer is played by the beloved Mr. Edwards from LHOP (Victor French). Like that character, this one called "Favorite" uses any number of corny sayings in reaction to learning/seeing something. It's quite endearing and very much helps the viewer to overlook how tough and menacing Favorite was when we first saw him shoot Dillon. Maybe his code is a good one?
Here's the most important thing: He had Dillon literally dead to rights. A skilled marksman, he intentionally grazed him from distance with a very high caliber bullet and later did not kill him before leaving the scene. His code was to not kill those who did not deserve it. Dillon was just doing his job, after all. I'd bet anything that the gambler he killed was no innocent and had cheated him, although this was never broached in this ep.
There ends up being a showdown on the evil ranch and sure enough, it was a fascinating portrayal of disparate ways. Favorite returned to hand back the silver coins he was paid for killing the neighbor. He changed his mind about harming a good woman and he would not hold the retainer he was paid.
Of course, this did not sit well with the one who only cared about what HE wanted. Dillon arrives just as shooting breaks out. Had he been even a couple of minutes faster, we would have seen him arrest the one (Favorite) who was doing the most righteous thing. There was a warrant for Favorite and none for the wicked and "respectable" one.
On top of this, there is the most intense romance of the entire series involving Dillon. Without the burden of his code to be a lawman 24/7, he was free to commit to a wife. He would have, too.
I wish this were a two-parter. As is, it is among the very best eps ever made.
I've never accepted Dillon's super strict adherence to the latest legal code. As this ep well demonstrates, there are degrees of "sin" all around. The truly evil one is the man who enjoys favor of the "system." His ability to get a judge to come out to his place so as to convince him to lobby for the use of eminent domain which would take away his neighbor's property in service to the creation of a travel route was telling. This would assumedly allow him to gobble up whatever land the government would not need at a low cost. All nice and legal like.
The wanderer is played by the beloved Mr. Edwards from LHOP (Victor French). Like that character, this one called "Favorite" uses any number of corny sayings in reaction to learning/seeing something. It's quite endearing and very much helps the viewer to overlook how tough and menacing Favorite was when we first saw him shoot Dillon. Maybe his code is a good one?
Here's the most important thing: He had Dillon literally dead to rights. A skilled marksman, he intentionally grazed him from distance with a very high caliber bullet and later did not kill him before leaving the scene. His code was to not kill those who did not deserve it. Dillon was just doing his job, after all. I'd bet anything that the gambler he killed was no innocent and had cheated him, although this was never broached in this ep.
There ends up being a showdown on the evil ranch and sure enough, it was a fascinating portrayal of disparate ways. Favorite returned to hand back the silver coins he was paid for killing the neighbor. He changed his mind about harming a good woman and he would not hold the retainer he was paid.
Of course, this did not sit well with the one who only cared about what HE wanted. Dillon arrives just as shooting breaks out. Had he been even a couple of minutes faster, we would have seen him arrest the one (Favorite) who was doing the most righteous thing. There was a warrant for Favorite and none for the wicked and "respectable" one.
On top of this, there is the most intense romance of the entire series involving Dillon. Without the burden of his code to be a lawman 24/7, he was free to commit to a wife. He would have, too.
I wish this were a two-parter. As is, it is among the very best eps ever made.
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