Episode Details

Originally Aired: June 14, 1959

Gunsmoke #375, "Kitty's Kidnap,"

Matt Dillon and Chester rescue a man from a lynching on the trail, only to discover their good deed has freed Pete Brass, a notorious outlaw wanted in three states. When Matt finds a Wichita Bank money sack in Brass's belongings, he hauls the unrepentant criminal back to Dodge and locks him up. Brass remains cocky behind bars, warning Matt that his boys will soon break him out and that the marshal will regret saving his life. The outlaw's confidence proves well-founded when two members of his gang, Milt and Jess, arrive in town and begin carefully studying the situation.

Rather than rushing in with guns blazing, Milt insists on developing a plan. While gathering information at the Long Branch, they learn something valuable: Marshal Dillon is partial to the saloon owner, Miss Kitty, who happens to be leaving town the next day on the stage to Larned with Doc Adams. As the two outlaws watch Matt, Kitty, Doc, and Chester enjoying dinner together, they clearly have more than a simple jailbreak on their minds.