The American Spectator

David T| 6.3.11 @ 2:53PM

He played the Thing in The Thing from Another World, still the best sci-fi movie of the 1950's, imo.

Tom Osterman| 6.3.11 @ 11:09PM

Don't forget him as the male lead in "Them."

Michael L. Hauschild| 6.3.11 @ 3:27PM

One of my heros is gone. Are they all together now Aaron? (the original cast)

Aaron Goldstein| 6.3.11 @ 3:38PM

Yes. Arness was the last surviving member of the original cast.

Occam's Tool| 6.3.11 @ 3:38PM

A Great One has passed, whose brother was another Great One, Peter Graves (who famously attended the University of Minnesota)..

This is said. On the other hand, that worthless POS, Jack Kevorkian, breathes no more today.

Al Adab| 6.3.11 @ 3:39PM

His son Craig, an old college friend, predeceased him a few years ago. RIP both of you.

PattyMor| 6.3.11 @ 4:01PM

Bill O'Reilly did a great interview with Arness. Bill called James a war hero for his service in WWII in Italy. James was so modest that he wouldn't call his service, heroic. A true American patriot.

Wayne | 6.3.11 @ 4:05PM

Just recently I compared him to John Wayne, saying that he had the presence to do some of the John Wayne roles (and I believe did in Red River). My favorite role was his in the mini-series How the West Was Won. He obviously had a leg injury. God bless him.

I Survived Arlen Specter| 6.3.11 @ 4:49PM

He also co-starred in the following John Wayne movies: "Hondo", "Island In The Sky", "Big Jim McClain, & "The Sea Chase".

Big Java| 6.3.11 @ 4:09PM

Good-bye, Mr Dillon. Saturday nite has never been the same.

Thom| 6.3.11 @ 4:47PM

It won't be long if not already before the word virtue can not be associated with anything that walks in Hollywood.

I kind of miss the days when you could sit before a TV set or go to the movies without feeling like you needed a bath when it was all said and done.....

People like Arness and Wayne understood what it meant to be an American....and weren’t consumed by being celebrity politicians.

Oldefarte| 6.3.11 @ 5:00PM

OMG, I'm devastated! Gunsmoke/Arness was simply the BEST. May the Almight bless and keep him!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Nick| 6.3.11 @ 6:16PM

When I was assigned to the 3rd I.D., in '88, they made us watch To Hell and Back with Audey Murphy. We were constantly reminded of the division's role at the Battle of the Marne and Audey Murphy's heroic acts (rightly so.)

But, this is the first time that I've heard that James Arness fought with this unit during WWII. Unless, of course, I killed those brain cells while I was there. (We did a lot of drinking in those days. A lot of drinking. It was West Germany, after all.)

Mr. Arness was one of the great ones. He will be missed. God bless him and his family.

Skippy| 6.4.11 @ 3:27PM

Years ago I heard the story that Arness, aboard a landing craft at Anzio, was shuffled to the front of the small boat due to his remarkable height.
The commander on the craft had him go off first in order to determine the depth of the water, and whether the boat was close enough to shore to safely disembark the soldiers.
He did, it was, and eventually we won the war.
Mr. Arness stood tall even when no cameras were rolling.
Ave atque vale.

James Shuler| 6.4.11 @ 1:53AM

I dont know either, never heard any word about their relationship, be it good or bad, so I suppose it must have been relatively normal. What we do know is that James,
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Richard Baker| 6.4.11 @ 3:40PM

Enjoyed him in Gunsmoke but also, as mentioned above, in Them and The Thing. Humble and talented, to boot. His type have disappeared from the entertainment industry and the country is the worse for their passing. The childish narcissists who have taken the stage these days aren't even in the same hemisphere with such as Arness and others. RIP.

Rich D| 6.4.11 @ 4:37PM

So the Simpsons eclipsed Gunsmoke? We have fallen.

darcy| 6.4.11 @ 6:26PM

I lived in Hollywood in 1961, on Beechwood Dr., and on Halloween night I, with my sister, happened to knock on James Arness' door, a mere three doors down from our apartment (first time I knew he was a neighbor). And being fully acquainted with his role as Matt Dillon, I was duly impressed with not only his physical stature but with his modesty. He had no candy for us trick-or-treaters, but apologized profusely and said some very kind things to us, none of which I can still remember. The more I think about it, though, the more I'm certain he said something about buying the whole candy store for us next year, so eager was he to make amends for his lapse. He was a gentle and humble man, from what I could tell, and not at all affected by his "celebrity" status.

Too few men like him left in the world these days. More's the pity!

bbrooke| 6.4.11 @ 10:44PM

I knew him in Hawaii in the "60s, when he lived on Makaha. Great and modest man then, as now. Loved surfing.

albert constantine jr.| 6.6.11 @ 9:08AM

He also reprised his role as an infantryman in the 1949 film "Battleground", in which he portrayed a sergeant in the 101st Airborne at Bastogne. R.I.P., as "Taps" sounds.