[vintagetoppsguy]

I learned yesterday that James Arness passed away last Friday at the age of 88. I didn’t hear anything about it in the media, but I have been sick the last few days and haven’t watched much TV. Matt Dillon was my childhood hero and this is very sad news to me. I’m sure he was a hero to many others as well.

Arness was a war hero before he turned actor. His show, “Gunsmoke”, was the the longest-running show in TV history with 635 episodes and re-runs are still shown on TV Land. I watch them whenever I can.

My thoughts and prayers go out to his wife and family. He will truly be missed.