Old Time Radio Shows

Fort Laramie Radio dramas of the forties saw the rise of the Hard-Boiled detective . These independent heroes appealed to the returning WWII veteran who might have been craving a return to the excitement he had experienced while serving in the military. The fifties were the time of the Adult Western, perhaps better labeled as "Cowboys and Injuns for Thinking People". The mature-person's Westerns did not replace crime thrillers, but they did provide a choice of entertainment with a little less murder. Thoughtful Westerns reached a high point with the gritty reality of Gunsmoke in 1952. Created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston, the genesis of Gunsmoke was a desire expressed by CBS boss William Paley for a " Philip Marlowe in the Old West". U.S. Marshal Matt Dillon was every bit as hard-boiled as the most noir -ish Private Eye , just with dust and horses instead of urban grime, and many critics consider Gunsmoke to have been a high...