The Cast: Gunsmoke (July 27, 1958)

“The Cast” is an episode of Gunsmoke, the old-time radio show, first broadcast July 27, 1958. Listen free on Stupid Potato.

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What happens

Marshal Matt Dillon calls on Doc Adams when young Ruth Tucker comes seeking medical help for her mother, who has swallowed a nail and is in severe pain. Matt and Doc ride out to the Tucker ranch, knowing they must be careful because Ruth's father Shell has forbidden his family from ever seeing a doctor. Doc fights to save Ruth's mother, but she dies during the operation, leaving Matt to face the difficult task of telling Shell what has happened.

Dodge City and the Tucker ranch in Kansas Territory

Characters: Matt Dillon, Doc Adams, Ruth Tucker, Shell Tucker, Chester

Listen for: Doc's desperate attempt to save Ruth's mother and the confrontation with Shell Tucker over his refusal to allow medical treatment for his family.

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.