Editing Gunsmoke (section)

==== Matt Dillon ====
[[File:William Conrad 1952.JPG|thumb|right|[[William Conrad]] in 1952, when Matt Dillon was created on radio]]
[[Matt Dillon (Gunsmoke)|Matt Dillon]] was played on radio by William Conrad and on television by [[James Arness]]. Two versions of the same pilot episode titled "Matt Dillon Goes to Gouge Eye" were produced with Rye Billsbury and Howard Culver playing Marshal Matt Dillon as the lead, not yet played by Conrad. Conrad was one of the last actors to audition for the role of Marshal Dillon. With a resonantly powerful and distinctive voice, Conrad was already one of radio's busiest actors. Though Meston championed him, Macdonnell thought Conrad might be overexposed. During his audition, however, Conrad won over Macdonnell after reading only a few lines. Dillon, as portrayed by Conrad, was a lonely, isolated man, toughened by a hard life. Macdonnell later claimed, "Much of Matt Dillon's character grew out of Bill Conrad."<ref>[http://gunsmokenet.com/GunsmokeTGAW/Marks-Stuff/Gunsmoke/shots/79-WilliamDillon.htm "Matt Dillon's character grew out of Bill Conrad"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100928104923/http://gunsmokenet.com/GunsmokeTGAW/Marks-Stuff/Gunsmoke/shots/79-WilliamDillon.htm |date=September 28, 2010 }}, GunsmokeNet.com.</ref>

Dunning writes that Meston was especially disgusted by the archetypal Western hero and set out "to destroy [that type of] character he loathed". In Meston's view, "Dillon was almost as scarred as the homicidal psychopaths who drifted into Dodge from all directions."<ref name=":0" />