Ken Curtis - wikipedia Ken Curtis For other people with the same name, see Kenneth Curtis ( disambiguation ). This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. ( Learn how and when to remove these template messages ) This article possibly contains original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed. ( September 2016 ) This article includes a list of references, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. ( September 2016 ) This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources. ( September 2016 ) Ken Curtis Curtis in 1964 Curtis Wain Gates ( 1916 - 07 - 02 ) July 2, 1916 Lamar, Colorado, U.S. April 28, 1991 ( 1991 - 04 - 28 ) ( aged 74 ) Fresno, California, U.S. Cause of death Heart Attack Occupation Actor, singer Years active 1941 -- 1991 Height 6 ft 0 in ( 183 cm ) Spouse ( s ) Lorraine Page ( 1943 - ? ; div. ) Barbara Ford ( 1952 -- 1964 ; div. ) Torrie Ahern Connelly ( 1966 -- 1991 ; his death ) Children The old Bent County jail in Las Animas in southeastern Colorado, where Ken Curtis lived as a boy Ken Curtis ( July 2, 1916 -- April 28, 1991 ) was an American singer and actor best known for his role as Festus Haggen on the long - running CBS western television series Gunsmoke. Although he appeared on Gunsmoke in other earlier roles, he was first cast in his iconic role in season 8 episode 13, `` Us Haggens ''. His next appearance was with his mule, Ruth, in `` Prairie Wolfer '' in season 9 episode 16, which also featured Noah Beery Jr., as a villain. Contents 1 Biography 1.1 Early years 1.2 Career 1.2. 1 Gunsmoke 1.3 Last years 2 Death 3 Selected filmography 4 Television 5 References 6 External links Biography Early years Though born Curtis Wain Gates in Lamar in Prowers County in southeastern Colorado, he lived his first ten years on a ranch on Muddy Creek in eastern Bent County. The family moved in 1926 to Las Animas, the county seat of Bent County, so that his father, Dan Sullivan Gates, could run for sheriff. The campaign was successful, and Gates served from 1927 to 1931 as Bent County sheriff. The family lived below the jail, since the jail was the whole second floor and his mother, Nellie Sneed Gates, cooked for the prisoners. The jail is located for historical preservation purposes on the grounds of the Bent County Courthouse in Las Animas. Curtis was the quarterback of his Bent County High School football team and played clarinet in the school band. He graduated in 1935. During World War II, Curtis served in the United States Army from 1943 to 1945. He attended Colorado College to study medicine but left after a short time in order to pursue his musical career. Career Ken Curtis as Festus Haggin and James Arness as Matt Dillon, 1968 Curtis was a singer before moving into acting and combined both careers once he entered films. Curtis was with the Tommy Dorsey band in 1941, and succeeded Frank Sinatra as vocalist until Dick Haymes contractually replaced Sinatra in 1942. Curtis may have served simply as insurance against Sinatra 's likely defection, and it was Dorsey who suggested that Gates change his name to Ken Curtis. Curtis then joined Shep Fields and His New Music, an all - reeds band that dispensed with a brass section. Columbia Pictures signed Curtis to a contract in 1945. He starred in a series of musical Westerns with The Hoosier Hot Shots, playing singing - cowboy romantic leads. Curtis met his first wife, Lorraine Page, at Universal Studios, and they were married in 1943. For much of 1948, Curtis was a featured singer and host of the long - running country music radio program WWVA Jamboree. Ken Curtis joined the Sons of the Pioneers ( the foremost Western vocal group in history ) as a lead singer from 1949 to 1952. His big hits with the group included `` Room Full of Roses '' and `` ( Ghost ) Riders in the Sky ''. Through his second marriage, Curtis was a son - in - law of director John Ford. Curtis teamed with Ford and John Wayne in Rio Grande, The Quiet Man, The Wings of Eagles, The Searchers, The Horse Soldiers, The Alamo and How The West Was Won. Curtis also joined Ford, along with Henry Fonda, James Cagney, William Powell, and Jack Lemmon in the comedy Navy classic Mister Roberts. He was featured in all three of the only films produced by Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney 's C.V. Whitney Pictures : The Searchers ( 1956 ) ; The Missouri Traveler ( 1958 ) with Brandon deWilde and Lee Marvin ; and The Young Land ( 1959 ) with Patrick Wayne and Dennis Hopper. In 5 Steps to Danger ( 1957 film ) he is uncredited as FBI Agent Jim Anderson. Curtis also produced two extremely low - budget monster films, The Killer Shrews and The Giant Gila Monster. Curtis guest - starred five times on the Western television series Have Gun Will Travel with Richard Boone. In 1959 he appeared as cowhand Phil Jakes on the Gunsmoke season four episode, `` Jayhawkers ''. He also guest - starred as circus performer Tim Durant on an episode of Perry Mason, `` The Case of the Clumsy Clown '', which originally aired on November 5, 1960. He appeared in Ripcord, a show about a company providing skydiving services, along with Larry Pennell. The show ran from 1961 to 1963. Curtis played the role of Jim Buckley and Pennell was his young disciple Ted McKeever. This television program helped generate interest in sport parachuting. In 1964, Curtis appeared as muleskinner Graydon in the episode `` Graydon 's Charge '' of the syndicated Western television series, Death Valley Days, also guest starring Denver Pyle and Cathy Lewis. Gunsmoke This section has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. ( Learn how and when to remove these template messages ) This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( April 2015 ) This section possibly contains original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed. ( April 2015 ) James Arness, Ken Curtis, Amanda Blake, and Milburn Stone Curtis remains best known for his role as Festus, the scruffy, cantankerous and illiterate deputy in Gunsmoke. While Marshal Matt Dillon had a total of five deputies over two decades, Festus held the role the longest ( 11 years ), in 304 episodes, and was the most colorful. Festus was patterned after `` Cedar Jack '' ( Frederick Munden ), a man from Curtis ' Las Animas childhood. Cedar Jack, who lived 15 miles south of town, made a living cutting cedar fence posts. Curtis observed many times that Jack came to Las Animas, where he would often end up drunk and in Curtis ' father 's jail. Festus ' character was known, in part, for the nasally, twangy, rural accent which Curtis developed for the role, but which did not reflect Curtis ' actual voice. Besides engaging in the usual personal appearances most television stars undertake to promote their program, Curtis also traveled around the country performing a Western - themed stage show at fairs, rodeos, and other venues when Gunsmoke was not in production, and even for some years after the show was canceled. Curtis also campaigned for Ronald Reagan in 1976, during the future President 's attempt to secure the Republican nomination from incumbent Gerald Ford. In two episodes of Gunsmoke, Carroll O'Connor was a guest - star ; years later, Curtis guest - starred as a retired police detective on O'Connor's NBC program In the Heat of the Night. He voiced Nutsy the vulture in Disney 's 1973 animated film Robin Hood. A decade later, he returned to television in the short - lived Western series The Yellow Rose, in which he performed most of his scenes with Noah Beery, Jr... Last years In 1981, Curtis was inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Curtis ' last acting role was as the aging cattle rancher `` Seaborn Tay '' in the television production Conagher ( 1991 ), by western author Louis L'Amour. Sam Elliott starred in the lead role, and Curtis ' Gunsmoke co-star Buck Taylor ( Newly O'Brien ) played a bad man in the same film. Buck Taylor 's father, Dub Taylor, had a minor role in it. He joined the Gunsmoke cast in 1967, superseding the previous deputy, Thaddeus `` Thad '' Greenwood, played by Roger Ewing. Curtis married Torrie Connelly in 1966. They were married until his death in 1991 and he had two step - children. A statue of Ken Curtis as Festus can be found at 430 Pollasky Avenue in Clovis, California, in Fresno County in front of the Educational Employees Credit Union. In his later years, Curtis resided in Clovis. Curtis was a Republican. Death Curtis died on April 28, 1991, in his sleep of a heart attack in Fresno, California. He was cremated, and his ashes were scattered in the Colorado flatlands. Selected filmography This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( April 2015 ) Santa Fe Trail ( 1940 ) - Officer singing at celebration ( uncredited ) Rhythm Round - Up ( 1945 ) - Jimmy Benson Song of the Prairie ( 1945 ) - Dan Tyler Out of the Depths ( 1945 ) - Buck Clayton Throw a Saddle on a Star ( 1946 ) - Curt Walker That Texas Jamboree ( 1946 ) -- Curt Chambers Cowboy Blues ( 1946 ) - Curt Durant Singing on the Trail ( 1946 ) - Curt Stanton Lone Star Moonlight ( 1946 ) - Curt Norton Over the Santa Fe Trail ( 1947 ) - Curt Mason Riders of the Pony Express ( 1949 ) - Tom Blake Stallion Canyon ( 1949 ) - Curt Benson Call of the Forest ( 1949 ) - Bob Brand Everybody 's Dancin ' ( 1950 ) - Ken - Member Sons of the Pioneers Rio Grande ( 1950 ) - Donnelly - Regimental Singer ( uncredited ) Don Daredevil Rides Again ( 1951 ) - Lee Hadley aka Don Daredevil Fighting Coast Guard ( 1951 ) - Ken - Member Sons of the Pioneers The Quiet Man ( 1952 ) - Dermot Fahy ( uncredited ) The Long Gray Line ( 1955 ) - Specialty ( uncredited ) Mr. Roberts ( 1955 ) - Yeoman 3rd Class Dolan The Searchers ( 1956 ) - Charlie McCorry 5 Steps to Danger ( 1956 ) - FBI Agent Jim Anderson ( uncredited ) The Wings of Eagles ( 1957 ) - John Dale Price Spring Reunion ( 1957 ) - Al The Missouri Traveler ( 1958 ) - Fred Mueller The Last Hurrah ( 1958 ) - Monsignor Killian Escort West ( 1958 ) - Trooper Burch The Young Land ( 1959 ) - Lee Hearn The Horse Soldiers ( 1959 ) - Cpl. Wilkie The Killer Shrews ( 1959 ) - Jerry Farrell My Dog, Buddy ( 1960 ) - Dr. Lusk Freckles ( 1960 ) - Wessner The Alamo ( 1960 ) - Capt. Almeron Dickinson Two Rode Together ( 1961 ) - Greeley Clegg How the West Was Won ( 1962 ) - Cpl. Ben ( uncredited ) Cheyenne Autumn ( 1964 ) - Joe Robin Hood ( 1973 ) - Nutsy - A Vulture ( voice ) Pony Express Rider ( 1976 ) - Jed Richardson Legend of the Wild ( 1981 ) Lost ( 1983 ) Once Upon a Texas Train ( 1988 ) - Kelly Sutton ( John Henry 's Gang ) Conagher ( 1991, TV movie - Seaborn Tay, Cattle Rancher ( Last appearance ) Television This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( April 2015 ) The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp ( 1957 ) - episode - Warpath - Major Hendericks ( uncredited ) Have Gun Will Travel ( 1959 - 1960 ) - Monk Wagon Train ( 1960 ) - episode - The Horace Best Story - Pappy Lightfoot Wagon Train ( 1960 ) - episode - The Colter Craven Story - Kyle Cleatus Perry Mason ( 1960 ) - Tim Durant Sea Hunt ( 1961 ) - episode - The Octopus Story - Professor Dean Austin Ripcord ( 1961 -- 1963 ) - Skydiver James ( Jim ) Buckley The Aquanauts ( 1961 ) - two episodes - Horton / head waiter Gunsmoke ( 1963 -- 1975 ) - Festus Death Valley Days ( 1964 ) - Graydon 's Charge - Graydon The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams ( 1978 ) - episode - Once Upon a Starry Night - Uncle Ned Vega $ ( 1979 ) - Digger Dennison How the West Was Won ( 1979 ) - Sheriff Orville Gant The Yellow Rose ( 1983 -- 1984 ) - Hoyt Coryell Airwolf ( 1986 ) - Cecil Carnes Sr. In the Heat of the Night ( 1990 ) - Tom McCauley References Jump up ^ `` Gunsmoke : GunsmokeNet.com ''. gunsmokenet.com. Retrieved 2016 - 09 - 03. Jump up ^ `` Gunsmoke : GunsmokeNet.com ''. gunsmokenet.com. Retrieved 2016 - 09 - 03. ^ Jump up to : Ap ( 1991 - 05 - 01 ). `` Ken Curtis, Actor, 74, Festus on ' Gunsmoke ' ''. The New York Times. ISSN 0362 - 4331. Retrieved 2016 - 09 - 03. Jump up ^ `` Gunsmoke : GunsmokeNet.com ''. gunsmokenet.com. Retrieved 2016 - 09 - 03. Jump up ^ ( 1 ) `` Ken Curtis appeared in a number of cheesy movies, '' GunsmokeNet.com. Jump up ^ `` Death : Torrie Ahern Connelly Curtis ''. 1997 - 11 - 13. Retrieved 2016 - 09 - 03. Jump up ^ ( 2 ) `` Ken Curtis statue, '' GunsmokeNet.com Jump up ^ https://books.google.com/books?id=QfHXAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA173&dq=Martha+Tilton+Republican&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwir-8ivuLDTAhUM8IMKHU_XAPUQ6AEILjAC#v=onepage&q=Ken%20Curtis&f=false Jump up ^ ( 3 ) Ken Curtis Obituary, LA Times, GunsmokeNet.com External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ken Curtis. Ken Curtis at Find a Grave Ken Curtis on IMDb Michael Breid shares memories of being part of Ken Curtis ' backup band for his stage show during the 1970s Chuck Anderson ( November 22, 2007 ). `` Ken Curtis ''. The Old Corral. Retrieved December 30, 2008. Teresa Murray ( August 10, 2008 ). `` Ken Curtis Biography ''. Evil Twin. Retrieved December 30, 2008. 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Question: who was the actor that played festus in gunsmoke
Answer: Ken Curtis