Over the course of Festus Haggen's presence on Gunsmoke, we are introduced to a good number of his family members. This is the fourth episode that features Ken Curtis as Festus, and we have already met his Uncle Black Jack Haggen. In this episode, we get to meet his cousins, Mayblossom and Feeder Haggen.
Mayblossom has traveled to Dodge City from Texas in search of Festus, because her father and Festus's father agreed the two would marry when they reached adulthood. (One of the bits of Haggen trivia we learn from this episode is they hail from Texas.) This arrangement is a problem for both Mayblossom and Festus, because neither is especially interested in marrying the other. Mayblossom is actually in love with another Haggen cousin named Feeder, but she is resigned and devoted to the original marriage agreement.
Festus doesn't know about Mayblossom's love for Feeder, but he knows one way he can avoid marriage is to find another man to marry his cousin. He starts with Matt Dillon, but, of course, that doesn't work. Even if Matt was willing, Mayblossom isn't interested, because Matt has no facial hair -- something she considers important in a man. (Mayblossom doesn't care for bare faces or bare arms on a man, as we will soon learn.) Festus also asks Kitty to keep her eyes open for a possible husband for Mayblossom.
To add to the weirdness of this story, throughout the episode, Festus carries a level he won in a card game from a man named Lon. Festus is fascinated with this tool he can use to determine if a surface is level, and, as a result, he goes around checking all sorts of surfaces only to find that most are not level.
Most of this story is lighthearted with a good dose of humor, but a much, much darker element is introduced when Festus has to leave town. Festus asks Matt to check on his cousin, but Mayblossom is confident she can take care of herself. Lon, the former owner of the level, follows Mayblossom from Dodge to the house Festus bought for her (because Ma Smalley wouldn't let Mayblossom keep her mule inside her room at the boarding house) and rapes her. This is the second time during Season 9 that rape is introduced into a Gunsmoke story, with the first being "The Magician" earlier in the season.
When Festus returns, he learns of the assault, and Matt warns him not to try to take matters into his own hands. Festus responds by telling Matt in no uncertain terms to stay out of Haggen business. A conversation with Mayblossom quickly reveals Lon as the culprit. Festus finds Lon and kills him.
This darker twist makes the episode one of the stranger in the entire run of the series. So much of the episode is very lighthearted. We don't expect the rape and murder, but what is even stranger, the events are just kind of shrugged off by everyone! When Feeder shows up to pledge his love to Mayblossom, she is so smitten she no longer seems to care that much about the assault. When Festus guns down Lon in about as cold-blooded manner possible, Matt arrests him but then admits he isn't likely to be convicted under the circumstances.
To add to the odd nature of this episode, this Kathleen Hite story introduces one of the recurring Festus quirks: the fact that most of his aunts have what are traditionally considered men's names. In this episode, Festus tells Matt about Mayblossom's mother, Aunt George.
Lauri Peters fills the role of Mayblossom well. The character's calm, matter-of-fact penchant for honesty surprises the Dodge City regulars. Peters was known more for her work on Broadway, and only appeared in a few television shows and films over the years. Roger Torrey's brief appearance as Feeder Haggen includes a thick accent that seems a bit exaggerated, and the beard looks much too fake. Torrey would later play a recurring character on The Beverly Hillbillies. Richard X. Slattery, a familiar face from television and films who often played small parts, appears briefly in this episode as the man that sells Festus the shack he buys for Mayblossom.
This episode marks the first of what will be many primarily humor-laden Gunsmoke episodes involving various Festus Haggen family members over the remaining seasons of the series, but none of them are quite as strange as this one.
Mayblossom has traveled to Dodge City from Texas in search of Festus, because her father and Festus's father agreed the two would marry when they reached adulthood. (One of the bits of Haggen trivia we learn from this episode is they hail from Texas.) This arrangement is a problem for both Mayblossom and Festus, because neither is especially interested in marrying the other. Mayblossom is actually in love with another Haggen cousin named Feeder, but she is resigned and devoted to the original marriage agreement.
Festus doesn't know about Mayblossom's love for Feeder, but he knows one way he can avoid marriage is to find another man to marry his cousin. He starts with Matt Dillon, but, of course, that doesn't work. Even if Matt was willing, Mayblossom isn't interested, because Matt has no facial hair -- something she considers important in a man. (Mayblossom doesn't care for bare faces or bare arms on a man, as we will soon learn.) Festus also asks Kitty to keep her eyes open for a possible husband for Mayblossom.
To add to the weirdness of this story, throughout the episode, Festus carries a level he won in a card game from a man named Lon. Festus is fascinated with this tool he can use to determine if a surface is level, and, as a result, he goes around checking all sorts of surfaces only to find that most are not level.
Most of this story is lighthearted with a good dose of humor, but a much, much darker element is introduced when Festus has to leave town. Festus asks Matt to check on his cousin, but Mayblossom is confident she can take care of herself. Lon, the former owner of the level, follows Mayblossom from Dodge to the house Festus bought for her (because Ma Smalley wouldn't let Mayblossom keep her mule inside her room at the boarding house) and rapes her. This is the second time during Season 9 that rape is introduced into a Gunsmoke story, with the first being "The Magician" earlier in the season.
When Festus returns, he learns of the assault, and Matt warns him not to try to take matters into his own hands. Festus responds by telling Matt in no uncertain terms to stay out of Haggen business. A conversation with Mayblossom quickly reveals Lon as the culprit. Festus finds Lon and kills him.
This darker twist makes the episode one of the stranger in the entire run of the series. So much of the episode is very lighthearted. We don't expect the rape and murder, but what is even stranger, the events are just kind of shrugged off by everyone! When Feeder shows up to pledge his love to Mayblossom, she is so smitten she no longer seems to care that much about the assault. When Festus guns down Lon in about as cold-blooded manner possible, Matt arrests him but then admits he isn't likely to be convicted under the circumstances.
To add to the odd nature of this episode, this Kathleen Hite story introduces one of the recurring Festus quirks: the fact that most of his aunts have what are traditionally considered men's names. In this episode, Festus tells Matt about Mayblossom's mother, Aunt George.
Lauri Peters fills the role of Mayblossom well. The character's calm, matter-of-fact penchant for honesty surprises the Dodge City regulars. Peters was known more for her work on Broadway, and only appeared in a few television shows and films over the years. Roger Torrey's brief appearance as Feeder Haggen includes a thick accent that seems a bit exaggerated, and the beard looks much too fake. Torrey would later play a recurring character on The Beverly Hillbillies. Richard X. Slattery, a familiar face from television and films who often played small parts, appears briefly in this episode as the man that sells Festus the shack he buys for Mayblossom.
This episode marks the first of what will be many primarily humor-laden Gunsmoke episodes involving various Festus Haggen family members over the remaining seasons of the series, but none of them are quite as strange as this one.
