Episode Details

Episode Title: General Parsley Smith: The Lies That Saved a Town
Originally Aired: July 2, 1955

General Parsley Smith: The Lies That Saved a Town
An eccentric Civil War “general” arrives in Dodge, loudly accusing the town’s new banker of being a crook. Though dismissed as a harmless liar, Parsley Smith’s warnings grow louder—and more disruptive. Marshal Dillon tries to keep the peace, but suspicions mount as the banker’s shady associates come to light. When the general takes justice into his own hands and exposes a plot to rob the town blind, his lies reveal an unexpected truth—and end in a final, tragic twist.

Keywords: “Gunsmoke General Parsley Smith,” “Drew Holt Gunsmoke bank plot,” “July 1955 Gunsmoke radio,” “John Meston Gunsmoke script,” “Marshal Matt Dillon classic western,” “Chester Proudfoot and Doc Adams,” “old general western radio drama”

Cast: William Conrad (Matt Dillon), Parley Baer (Chester), Howard McNear (Doc), Georgia Ellis (Kitty), Vic Perrin (General Parsley Smith), John Dehner (Drew Holt), Joe Duval (Ed Nash), Harry Bartell (Mr. Botkin)