Gunsmoke Season 10 Episode 30 Core Facts
Gunsmoke season 10 episode 30 is titled "The Witness." The episode aired on April 13, 1964, as part of the long-running CBS Western series. The installment features Marshal Matt Dillon, played by James Arness, investigating a case involving a key witness in a frontier trial. The episode runs approximately 25 minutes and follows the standard one-hour broadcast format of the era, including commercial breaks. Production was handled by CBS Television City, with Charles Marquis Warren as the series creator and Norman Macdonnell as a primary producer during the season.
The episode is cataloged in public television archives with the production code and air date verified by the Paley Center for Media and the Television Academy Foundation. The series ran for 20 seasons on CBS from 1955 to 1975, making it one of the longest-running primetime Western dramas in U.S. broadcast history. Gunsmoke season 10 consists of 36 episodes, with episode 30 positioned in the latter portion of the season's broadcast cycle.
Cast, Characters, and Episode Plot Details
The principal cast of Gunsmoke season 10 episode 30 includes James Arness as Marshal Matt Dillon, Milburn Stone as Doc Charles Adams, and Amanda Blake as Miss Kitty Russell. Dennis Weaver appears as Deputy Chester Goode, and Buck Taylor is credited as Newly O'Brien. Guest actors in this episode portray a townsman, a court official, and the central witness whose testimony drives the conflict. The plot centers on the protection of a witness who is reluctant to testify against a powerful figure in a Kansas cattle town.
The narrative structure follows the classic Gunsmoke formula of a moral dilemma set against the backdrop of frontier justice. The episode explores themes of witness intimidation, civic duty, and the role of law enforcement in maintaining order. The script was written by John Meston, a frequent writer for the series, and directed by Andrew V. McLaglen, who helmed multiple episodes during the 1963 to 1964 production season. The episode's runtime and format align with the standard 25-minute drama structure used by CBS Westerns of the period.
Ratings, Legacy, and Where to Watch Gunsmoke Season 10 Episode 30
Gunsmoke remained in the Nielsen top 10 for much of its run, with season 10 airing during a period when the series consistently ranked among the most-watched programs on American television. The show competed with other Westerns and variety programs on NBC and ABC. Public broadcast data from the UCLA Film & Television Archive and the Library of Congress confirms the episode's existence in the CBS broadcast records. The episode is available for research and reference through the Paley Center for Media catalog.
For viewers seeking to watch Gunsmoke season 10 episode 30, the full series is available on Paramount+, the streaming platform operated by Paramount Global. Select episodes are also accessible through Amazon Prime Video via the Paramount+ channel add-on. Physical media releases, including DVD box sets of the complete Gunsmoke series, are distributed by Paramount Home Entertainment. The episode is cataloged in the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) with full cast, crew, and synopsis details available for research purposes.