Daddy-O

Right after Kitty purchases half interest in the Long Branch she receives a telegraph that her long lost father is coming for a visit. Kitty has never seen her father as he left the family in New Orleans when she was very small and she is not sure how she will react to his appearance.

But when the stage comes in this neat gentleman greets her as her father, Wayne Russell, and wants to develop a relationship with Kitty. When Mr Russell hears that Kitty is half owner of a saloon, he thinks that is not something a lady should be doing. He offers to take her back to New Orleans where he has a successful freight business. But Kitty will find out that all things are not what they seem when she agrees to return with her father to New Orleans.

John Dehner is excellent cast as the New Orleans gentleman that finds her daughter. He really brings the character to life as he takes the viewer on a mood swing throughout the episode. Not the way we wanted the episode to end but one that makes for a good watch.

The dress and hat the Kitty wears at the end of this episode (when she's meeting her dad at the stage) look like a duplicate of a costume that Anna Lee wore in the Boris Karloff movie, "Bedlam". If it's the same dress, this means Kitty is wearing what may be the most famous costume of all time: Scarlett OHara's green velvet curtain dress, originally worn by Vivien Leigh. Happy to add this to this episode's trivia section, if anyone can confirm my suspicion. I know that the dress went through some restoration years ago, and that it was very fragile and discolored. Also unknown is how many of these were made and subsequently altered for use in other movies or TV shows. I believe there's another Gunsmoke episode where Kitty wears this same velvet dress, but the name of the episode escapes me. Again, if anyone can add their observations, that would be helpful, and thanks so much.

Kitty buys half-interest in the Long Branch the same day her long lost dad comes to visit. Seems he deserted her mother, so Kitty doesn't know what to expect. Turns out he's a very courtly gentleman who owns a prosperous freight business in New Orleans. Now he wants Kitty to sell her interest and join him down South. So what will Kitty do and how will Matt react.

More a human-interest story than the usual rough and tumble, so we again see what fine ensemble acting the cast was capable of. Catch Chester's expressions even when he's not speaking and off to the side. He's still engaged, unlike many actors who simply retreat from the story when not in the spotlight. Note too, the small tear in Doc's jacket, a good character touch befitting a frontier doctor. Anyway, this is a Kitty showcase showing again that Blake was not only pretty, but a heckuv an actress as well. All in all, it's a different kind of entry that also features that fine actor John Dehner as the father.

Kitty Russell buys half of Bill Pence's interest in the Long Branch Saloon. Shortly after the transaction is complete, Kitty receives a telegram from her father, who abandoned Kitty and her mother when Kitty was young. The father is coming from New Orleans to visit Kitty in Dodge City.

After Wayne Russell arrives, he begins trying to convince his daughter to abandon her plans and return to New Orleans and join him in his freight business.

John Dehner makes the third of twelve guest star appearances in the series with this story where he plays Kitty's father. Dehner, who played various characters in many of the Gunsmoke radio episodes, is perfect in this role.

Judson Pratt plays Bill Pence for the second and final time. Pratt would appear in one additional episode as another character.

Cyril Delvanti with his distinctive gaunt, wrinkled, weathered face and English accent makes a brief appearance as the messenger who delivers the message to Kitty. This is Delvanti's third series appearance. He would eventually appear in eight episodes.

This episode, along with the Season 8 episode "Panacea Sykes," gives the viewer a rare glimpse into the past life of Kitty Russell, and that makes it one of the more important episodes. Dehner, Amanda Blake, and the other regular cast members all deliver outstanding performances.

(On a personal note, the first time I saw this episode, I kept wishing Matt Dillon would show more affection for Kitty and at least tell her he was going to miss her.)

Note: Viewers watching the episodes in the original broadcast order may notice in the earlier Season 2 episode "Sweet and Sour," Kitty says she is a half-owner of the Long Branch. Yet, in this episode, she purchases half interest in the saloon from Bill Pence. This episode (number 565) was filmed prior to the episode (number 569) that was broadcast earlier and the events happen prior to the "Sweet and Sour" story.