Kitty welcomes her mentor to town, but her friend is burdened by a secret: she's here to deliver the child of her outlaw son, a man willing to take his own mother hostage.Kitty welcomes her mentor to town, but her friend is burdened by a secret: she's here to deliver the child of her outlaw son, a man willing to take his own mother hostage.Kitty welcomes her mentor to town, but her friend is burdened by a secret: she's here to deliver the child of her outlaw son, a man willing to take his own mother hostage.
Photos
John Barton
- Barfly
- (uncredited)
John Breen
- Barfly
- (uncredited)
Noble 'Kid' Chissell
- Barfly
- (uncredited)
Bert Madrid
- Townsman
- (uncredited)
Spec O'Donnell
- Townsman
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writers
- Robert Lewin
- Norman MacDonnell(uncredited)
- John Meston(uncredited)
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaJean Arthur's first onscreen acting role after a 12-year hiatus.
- GoofsWhen Doc goes in the general store to get baby supplies he calls the store clerk Jonas. However that was a character played by Dabbs Greer. The clerk was played by Roy Barcroft, and his character is called 'Roy' and appeared many times in the Gunsmoke series. Even in the credits it has Roy listed for Barcoft's character..
Featured review
Notable Cast and Director
Julie Blane is an old friend of Kitty Russell from Kitty's formative days in New Orleans. According to Kitty, Julie taught her everything she knows about running a saloon. Julie pays a visit to Miss Kitty in Dodge City. All of Kitty's friends take an instant liking to Julie.
However, Julie's primary reason for visiting the Dodge City area is not to visit an old friend. She has traveled to Kansas to visit her son, Lonnie and his wife, who is expecting a baby. Lonnie is a wanted outlaw, although he is wanted under a different identity, and no one other than Julie and Lonnie know his true identity. Lonnie, his wife, and Lonnie's sidekick are all hiding in a shack somewhere outside Dodge.
When Lonnie's wife goes into labor, complications quickly arise. Julie had met Doc Adams in Dodge, and she insists that his assistance is required for the delivery. Lonnie sends his sidekick to Dodge to essentially kidnap Doc and bring him to the shack.
The biggest point of conflict in this story is that Lonnie Blane is a petulant narcissist. He doesn't really care about anyone else, including his mother and his baby. He is only concerned with self preservation. As a result, Julie and Doc find themselves more or less hostages held by Lonnie.
By all historical accounts, many actors valued the opportunity to appear in a Gunsmoke episode. Season 10 of Gunsmoke featured actors such as John Drew Barrymore, Theodore Bikel, and Dennis Hopper. This episode is notable because Jean Arthur was enticed from a 12-year acting hiatus to appear as the Julie Blane character. Supposedly her appearance here led to her getting her own series, The Jean Arthur Show, which only lasted a few episodes. Arthur had been an actress of some renown earlier in her career with starring roles in films such as Shane, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, and -- one of my personal favorites -- You Can't Take It With You. Arthur was reportedly Frank Capra's favorite actress.
Despite an obvious attempt to portray Arthur in the best possible light, her performance here would probably not be all that notable if not for her Hollywood status. There is a clear attempt to develop a romantic connection between Julie and Doc, but the chemistry never quite truly comes to fruition. Likewise, her onscreen relationship with Scott Marlowe, who plays Lonnie, comes across as stiff and superficial.
Another extraordinary aspect to this episode is that it was the second of two Gunsmoke episodes directed by the highly regarded director Joseph H. Lewis, who directed many episodes of the series The Rifleman and, later, The Big Valley. (In all fairness, the appreciation for Lewis developed in more recent years long after his career had ended.) While this does not rise to the level of some of the best work Lewis did, it does contain several familiar Lewis elements:
Some of the plot elements in this story recall some of Lewis' films, especially the film noir classic Gun Crazy. (To explore some of Lewis' best work, check out his films Gun Crazy, The Big Combo, and Terror in a Texas Town.) Some of the episodes of The Rifleman he directed are also highly regarded, especially "The Deserter." I think his other Gunsmoke episode, "One Killer On Ice" is superior to "Thursday's Child."
Scott Marlowe, a familiar face that appeared in four Gunsmoke episodes, tended to play the same sort of self-obsessed character in every performance, and this episode is no exception.
In the final analysis, this is one of those episodes that would probably not be of any particular note if not for the cast and the director.
However, Julie's primary reason for visiting the Dodge City area is not to visit an old friend. She has traveled to Kansas to visit her son, Lonnie and his wife, who is expecting a baby. Lonnie is a wanted outlaw, although he is wanted under a different identity, and no one other than Julie and Lonnie know his true identity. Lonnie, his wife, and Lonnie's sidekick are all hiding in a shack somewhere outside Dodge.
When Lonnie's wife goes into labor, complications quickly arise. Julie had met Doc Adams in Dodge, and she insists that his assistance is required for the delivery. Lonnie sends his sidekick to Dodge to essentially kidnap Doc and bring him to the shack.
The biggest point of conflict in this story is that Lonnie Blane is a petulant narcissist. He doesn't really care about anyone else, including his mother and his baby. He is only concerned with self preservation. As a result, Julie and Doc find themselves more or less hostages held by Lonnie.
By all historical accounts, many actors valued the opportunity to appear in a Gunsmoke episode. Season 10 of Gunsmoke featured actors such as John Drew Barrymore, Theodore Bikel, and Dennis Hopper. This episode is notable because Jean Arthur was enticed from a 12-year acting hiatus to appear as the Julie Blane character. Supposedly her appearance here led to her getting her own series, The Jean Arthur Show, which only lasted a few episodes. Arthur had been an actress of some renown earlier in her career with starring roles in films such as Shane, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, and -- one of my personal favorites -- You Can't Take It With You. Arthur was reportedly Frank Capra's favorite actress.
Despite an obvious attempt to portray Arthur in the best possible light, her performance here would probably not be all that notable if not for her Hollywood status. There is a clear attempt to develop a romantic connection between Julie and Doc, but the chemistry never quite truly comes to fruition. Likewise, her onscreen relationship with Scott Marlowe, who plays Lonnie, comes across as stiff and superficial.
Another extraordinary aspect to this episode is that it was the second of two Gunsmoke episodes directed by the highly regarded director Joseph H. Lewis, who directed many episodes of the series The Rifleman and, later, The Big Valley. (In all fairness, the appreciation for Lewis developed in more recent years long after his career had ended.) While this does not rise to the level of some of the best work Lewis did, it does contain several familiar Lewis elements:
- Low or unusual camera angles in several scenes
- A long take inside the shack as Doc moves around the table
- The funeral scene in particular is vintage Lewis, especially when the perspective changes so the viewer is looking out the door of the shack at the people gathered around the grave. This scene includes another long take as the characters walk toward the doorway from the gravesite.
- Long shots through trees as various characters approach the shack.
- Shots of people walking down stairways.
Some of the plot elements in this story recall some of Lewis' films, especially the film noir classic Gun Crazy. (To explore some of Lewis' best work, check out his films Gun Crazy, The Big Combo, and Terror in a Texas Town.) Some of the episodes of The Rifleman he directed are also highly regarded, especially "The Deserter." I think his other Gunsmoke episode, "One Killer On Ice" is superior to "Thursday's Child."
Scott Marlowe, a familiar face that appeared in four Gunsmoke episodes, tended to play the same sort of self-obsessed character in every performance, and this episode is no exception.
In the final analysis, this is one of those episodes that would probably not be of any particular note if not for the cast and the director.
- wdavidreynolds
- Jan 10, 2021
- Permalink
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Filming locations
- Stage 3, CBS Studio Center - 4024 Radford Avenue, Studio City, Los Angeles, California, USA(Dodge City Western Street)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
- 4:3
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