Gunsmoke (TV Series) Uncle Oliver (1957) User Reviews

Someone is after Chester's job.

[kfo9494 · 7/10 · 13 June 2013]

When slow minded farmers, Uncle Oliver and Viney, ride into Dodge it proves that Dodge is the center of culture for some people. Uncle Oliver is trying to find a job for Viney and when they meet the Marshal, Oliver decides that Viney could become a Marshal. But he would have to first learn the job and ask Matt if Viney could be his assistant. But Matt informs Oliver that Chester has that job and no one else is needed.

Well it is not long before someone shoots Chester and all the evidence points to Viney. Since Chester was only wounded in the shooting and Viney is no where to be found, Matt believes that Chester's life may still be in danger.

As the episode went along it appeared that this was going to be a simple story with no excitement to the finish. But throw in a little twist right near the end and you have a nice story.

Crazy Uncle

[jamdifo · 6/10 · 22 January 2013]

What a crazy uncle, uncle oliver is. The whole episode leads you to believe the nephew took a shot at Chester, when it really was Uncle Oliver with the motive of getting rid of Chester so his nephew could have a job helping the Marshal. Little does Uncle Oliver realize that Dillon would never work with his nephew because he's so dumb it would be dangerous for him to work with him. But honestly, Chester is almost as dumb as him. So I think Dillon just couldn't work with another Chester in his lifetime.

In the end, Dillon kills the much older Uncle Oliver, which I calculate as at least the 40th person that Marshal Dillon has killed on the show. This is the first time Chester has been wounded on the show. An average episode dealing with a way out premise.

Matt's Would-be Apprentice

[wdavidreynolds · 8/10 · 6 January 2022]

Viney Stang and his Uncle Oliver make their way to Dodge City from some isolated place on the prairie. It is immediately obvious Viney has never been around many people. Uncle Oliver is older and slightly more worldly, but neither man fits into Dodge culture.

Viney's father recently died, and Uncle Oliver has promised to care for the tall, lanky, man-child. When they meet Matt Dillon and Chester Goode, Uncle Oliver decides Viney should work for Marshal Dillon and learn the law enforcement ropes. Matt makes it clear Chester provides all the help needed, which leads Viney to conclude Chester is in the way and should be eliminated. Chester is concerned, while Matt shrugs it off.

The situation becomes more serious when someone takes a shot at Chester and wounds the sidekick. Of course, Matt suspects Viney, but he has mysteriously disappeared. Marshal Dillon devises a plan that will hopefully catch the culprit.

Earle Hodgins plays Uncle Oliver in the first of four different Gunsmoke roles. Hodgins was already a veteran of the television western with multiple roles in pre-Gunsmoke shows like The Lone Ranger, The Cisco Kid, The Range Rider, and many others. Earlier in his career, Hodgins could frequently be seen in a plethora of those western films that were often shown during Saturday afternoon matinee double-features like Oregon Trail Scouts and Oklahoma Badlands.

Paul Wexler had previously appeared as one of Rose Daggit's abductors in the "Sins of the Father" episode from earlier in the season. He portrays Viney in this story. Wexler usually played menacing types of characters, and this role as the slow-witted nephew is something different for him.

Writer John Meston occasionally used the premise of someone unfamiliar with life in a more populated area visiting Dodge City and wreaking havoc of some sort. He would often incorporate bits of humor along with some drama. For example, Season 1's "Magnus" and "Tap Day for Kitty" both use a similar approach.

Hodgins and Wexler are two lesser-known actors who shine in this entertaining story with a nice mix of intrigue and humor.

Getting Chester's Job

[dougdoepke · 1 March 2013]

Two yokels, Viney & Uncle Oliver, arrive in Dodge. Clearly, they've spent too much time alone on the prairie since poor young Viney has trouble 'thinking'. Problem is Uncle Oliver wants Viney for Chester's job since he promised Viney's dad he'd take care of the overgrown galoot. Now Chester's worried because there's no telling what these prairie-happy characters might do, especially after someone takes a shot at him.

Good Meston script that mixes dabs of humor with the melodrama. So does someone want Chester's job badly enough to kill him. I don't know if I've ever seen Paul Wexler (Viney) before, but he cuts a string-bean figure in a floppy hat like no one I've seen before. Plus he does an excellent job as the slow thinking lummox. Hodgins (Oliver) is a familiar face from a hundred westerns, usually playing a fast-talker of one type or another. All in all, it's an above average entry with an emphasis on characters, which the series had a real feel for.

Chester Gone wrong

[darbski · 10/10 · 28 July 2017]

**SPOILERS** I gotta give it a 10, even though there's this little problem. See, well, actually two small problems, now that I think a little more; of course, they're hooked together, so, okay. There's this guy who wants his useless nephew to have a job, and being a sneaky old codger, he ambushes Chester (figuring nephew'll get the job); almost gets him, too. When things go south for that plan, he shifts over to the Let's get Viney (dumb as a stump nephew). He's got Matt fooled, too. Problem is, Chester lives. Oliver (sneaky fink uncle) sneaks up to Doc's office to finish off Chester, and Matt levels his Karma. Matt's surprised at who it is, and the nephew turns out to be a decent fellow after all, R.I.P. Uncle Ratt.

Here's the two items. First, when Matt KNEW someone was coming up to Doc's place, and Doc opened the door (and got out of the way), why didn't he have his gun out and ready? You know; aimed at the door. Second, and this is the biggie; why, in the name of all that's holy, when Doc was holding the door open, didn't they have Matt plug Oliver twice, and have him stagger back into and breaking the cheap railing and then flip over and down to the alley? It looks like about a fourteen-foot drop, and a good stuntman could have done real sweet justice to the proper end of a prairie scumwad. The actor playing that part. Earl Hodgins, was just great at these roles, and he deserved a better exit than just falling dead on Doc's floor. Plus, now, Doc has to clean it all up. do they call that justice??

A Vintage TV Western

[StrictlyConfidential · 5/10 · 31 August 2021]

(*Viney Stang quote*) - "Well, what do you want me to do? Get rid of Chester? Shoot him or something?"

"Uncle Oliver" was first aired on television May 25, 1957.

Anyway - As the story goes - Marshal Dillon meets Uncle Oliver, a newcomer who feels his witless nephew would make a better deputy than Chester.