Quint Asper and a beautiful young woman named Susan Degler have fallen madly in love. Susan's father, Cyrus Degler, a former man from "the hill country" (like Festus Haggen) owns a ranch near Dodge City. Cyrus has grown very possessive of Susan, especially in recent years since his wife died and Susan has grown older. He cannot stand the thought of his daughter marrying and leaving him alone. This puts him at odds with Quint. While Cyrus uses the excuse of not wanting his daughter to marry a "half breed," it is obvious Quint's ethnicity has little to do with his objections.
The situation spirals out of Cyrus's control, as it becomes increasingly apparent he is losing his daughter. Cyrus chooses to take the drastic step of "sending for" Cousin Praylie. Cousin Praylie is someone who "fixes" situations. Anytime someone in the Degler family is in trouble, they call Cousin Praylie for help. According to Festus, Praylie "does the dirty work" for the Deglers.
Cyrus sets a chain of events in motion that will lead to a horribly tragic outcome.
There is nothing especially unique about this tragedy of a couple in love facing protests from other family members. As a matter of fact, George Kennedy, who plays the Cyrus Degler role in this episode and the Gunsmoke writers would explore a similar theme in Season 11's episode "Harvest." Cyrus Degler in this episode and Ben Payson in the Season 11 episode are essentially the same person. The only very minor complaint regarding this episode is the outcome is predictable.
(Pretty much any time a major cast member engages in a romance during this time in television history, the story inevitably leads to tragedy.)
The thing that lifts this episode above the norm is the acting. Kennedy, Royal Dano as Praylie, and Katherine Ross as Susan each deliver the goods with their respective performances. Kennedy and Dano were no strangers to Gunsmoke, each appearing in several episodes. This marks the first of two appearances by Katherine Ross, both during Season 10. Of course, Ross would go on to star in The Graduate with Dustin Hoffman and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid with Paul Newman and Robert Redford.
Dano's performance here is particularly noteworthy, as it again demonstrates his range as an actor. In distinct roles he convincingly played characters that were kind and gentle, silly and funny, and mean and despicable, as he does here.
This episode must rank in the top ten tragic Gunsmoke episodes. This is also one of the few episodes of the series that features Burt Reynolds as a central character. Reynolds appeared in several episodes during the brief time he was on the show, but he was usually just a supporting character. Reynolds appeared in a few more episodes before leaving the series, but I tend to think of this episode as a fitting end to the Quint Asper character on the show. In a much later episode, Matt reveals that Quint left Dodge. It makes sense that he might want to leave the town after the tragic events in this story.
The mini side story about Doc Adams and his ham adds some needed levity to this heavy episode. The scene in the Long Branch where Doc, Festus, and Quint are delighting in the cured ham while Kitty questions what all the fuss is about is funny. Aged, "country" ham is an acquired taste, for sure.
Veteran actor Charles Morton is especially amusing as a Long Branch patron who helps himself to some of Doc's ham while Doc is distracted. Morton's career began in Vaudeville. He was cast as a leading man in a few silent films in the late 1920s, but his career did not fare as well after that. He appeared in numerous films and television shows during an extensive acting career, but most of his parts were small and/or uncredited. He appeared in ten different Gunsmoke episodes prior to his death in 1966, always in an uncredited part.
(Footnote: As the father of a pretty daughter close to Susan Degler's age, I disagree with other reviewers who call Cyrus's behavior toward his daughter "creepy." He is definitely overly protective of Susan, and one gets the distinct impression that no man would measure up to what he wants for his daughter. While I am not overprotective of my daughter - I actually LIKE her boyfriend - I can understand how Cyrus feels. This story is a nice reminder that one should be careful about how they treat things they treasure, especially other human beings.)
The situation spirals out of Cyrus's control, as it becomes increasingly apparent he is losing his daughter. Cyrus chooses to take the drastic step of "sending for" Cousin Praylie. Cousin Praylie is someone who "fixes" situations. Anytime someone in the Degler family is in trouble, they call Cousin Praylie for help. According to Festus, Praylie "does the dirty work" for the Deglers.
Cyrus sets a chain of events in motion that will lead to a horribly tragic outcome.
There is nothing especially unique about this tragedy of a couple in love facing protests from other family members. As a matter of fact, George Kennedy, who plays the Cyrus Degler role in this episode and the Gunsmoke writers would explore a similar theme in Season 11's episode "Harvest." Cyrus Degler in this episode and Ben Payson in the Season 11 episode are essentially the same person. The only very minor complaint regarding this episode is the outcome is predictable.
(Pretty much any time a major cast member engages in a romance during this time in television history, the story inevitably leads to tragedy.)
The thing that lifts this episode above the norm is the acting. Kennedy, Royal Dano as Praylie, and Katherine Ross as Susan each deliver the goods with their respective performances. Kennedy and Dano were no strangers to Gunsmoke, each appearing in several episodes. This marks the first of two appearances by Katherine Ross, both during Season 10. Of course, Ross would go on to star in The Graduate with Dustin Hoffman and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid with Paul Newman and Robert Redford.
Dano's performance here is particularly noteworthy, as it again demonstrates his range as an actor. In distinct roles he convincingly played characters that were kind and gentle, silly and funny, and mean and despicable, as he does here.
This episode must rank in the top ten tragic Gunsmoke episodes. This is also one of the few episodes of the series that features Burt Reynolds as a central character. Reynolds appeared in several episodes during the brief time he was on the show, but he was usually just a supporting character. Reynolds appeared in a few more episodes before leaving the series, but I tend to think of this episode as a fitting end to the Quint Asper character on the show. In a much later episode, Matt reveals that Quint left Dodge. It makes sense that he might want to leave the town after the tragic events in this story.
The mini side story about Doc Adams and his ham adds some needed levity to this heavy episode. The scene in the Long Branch where Doc, Festus, and Quint are delighting in the cured ham while Kitty questions what all the fuss is about is funny. Aged, "country" ham is an acquired taste, for sure.
Veteran actor Charles Morton is especially amusing as a Long Branch patron who helps himself to some of Doc's ham while Doc is distracted. Morton's career began in Vaudeville. He was cast as a leading man in a few silent films in the late 1920s, but his career did not fare as well after that. He appeared in numerous films and television shows during an extensive acting career, but most of his parts were small and/or uncredited. He appeared in ten different Gunsmoke episodes prior to his death in 1966, always in an uncredited part.
(Footnote: As the father of a pretty daughter close to Susan Degler's age, I disagree with other reviewers who call Cyrus's behavior toward his daughter "creepy." He is definitely overly protective of Susan, and one gets the distinct impression that no man would measure up to what he wants for his daughter. While I am not overprotective of my daughter - I actually LIKE her boyfriend - I can understand how Cyrus feels. This story is a nice reminder that one should be careful about how they treat things they treasure, especially other human beings.)