Dave's Lesson: Gunsmoke (April 10, 1960)

“Dave's Lesson” is an episode of Gunsmoke, the old-time radio show, first broadcast April 10, 1960. Listen free on Stupid Potato.

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What happens

Dave Barrett arrives in Dodge City to stay with Marshal Matt Dillon after his parents die. The young man is eager to help with law enforcement work, but Dillon and Chester caution him about the realities of frontier justice and the dangers of firearms.

Dodge City, Kansas - the Marshal's office and saloon

Characters: Matt Dillon, Dave Barrett, Chester, Kitty, Uncle Will

Listen for: A tense conversation between Chester and young Dave about guns and responsibility; Dave's impatience to prove himself useful in law enforcement work.

Written from the episode itself; it never gives away the ending. Every recording is remastered for the stream: cleaned of rumble, hiss and mains hum (and the old TV whine where we found it), then levelled in two passes to steady broadcast loudness, so one show is never quieter than the next.