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Gunsmoke

Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centered on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central character is lawman Marshal Matt Dillon, played by William Conrad on radio and James Arness on television.

The radio series ran from 1952 to 1961. John Dunning wrote that, among radio drama enthusiasts, "Gunsmoke is routinely placed among the best shows of any kind and any time." It ran unsponsored for its first few years, with CBS funding its production.

In 1955, the series was adapted for television and ran for 20 seasons. It ran for half-hour episodes from 1955 to 1961, and one-hour episodes from 1961 to 1975. A total of 635 episodes were aired over its 20 year run. At the end of its run in 1975, Los Angeles Times columnist Cecil Smith wrote: "Gunsmoke was the dramatization of the American epic legend of the west. Our own Iliad and Odyssey, created from standard elements of the dime novel and the pulp Western as romanticized by Buntline, Harte, and Twain. It was ever the stuff of legend."

Five made-for-TV movies were produced after its 20-year run. The show won 15 Primetime Emmy Awards as well as other accolades. It was frequently well received, holding a top-10 spot in the Nielsen ratings for several seasons.

The United Kingdom series was initially titled Gun Law.

Radio series (1952–1961)
In the late 1940s, CBS chairman William S. Paley, a fan of the Philip Marlowe radio series, asked his programming chief, Hubell Robinson, to develop a hardcore Western series, about a "Philip Marlowe of the Old West". Robinson delegated this to his West Coast CBS vice president, Harry Ackerman, who had developed the Philip Marlowe series.

Ackerman and his scriptwriters, Mort Fine and David Friedkin, created an audition script called "Mark Dillon Goes to Gouge Eye" based on one of their Michael Shayne radio scripts, "The Case of the Crooked Wheel", from mid-1948. Two versions were recorded. The first, recorded in June 1949, was very much like a hardcore detective series and starred Michael Rye (credited as Rye Billsbury) as Dillon; the second, recorded in July 1949, starred Straight Arrow actor Howard Culver in a more Western, lighter version of the same script. CBS liked the Culver version better, and Ackerman was told to proceed.

A complication arose when Culver's contract as the star of Straight Arrow would not allow him to do another Western series. The project was suspended for three years, when producer Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston discovered it while creating an adult Western series of their own.

Macdonnell and Meston wanted to create a radio Western for adults, in contrast to the prevailing juvenile fare such as The Lone Ranger and The Cisco Kid. Gunsmoke was set in Dodge City, Kansas, during the thriving cattle days of the 1870s. Dunning notes, "The show drew critical acclaim for unprecedented realism."

Cast
The radio series first aired on CBS on April 26, 1952, with the episode "Billy the Kid", written by Walter Newman, and ended on June 18, 1961. The show stars William Conrad as Marshal Matt Dillon, Howard McNear as Doc Charles Adams, Georgia Ellis as Kitty Russell, and Parley Baer as Dillon's assistant, Chester Wesley Proudfoot.

Matt Dillon
Matt Dillon was played on radio by William Conrad and on television by James Arness. Two versions of the same pilot episode titled "Mark Dillon Goes to Gouge Eye" were produced with Rye Billsbury and Howard Culver playing Marshal Mark Dillon as the lead, not yet played by Conrad. Conrad was one of the last actors to audition for the role of Marshal Dillon. With a resonantly powerful and distinctive voice, Conrad was already one of radio's busiest actors. Though Meston championed him, Macdonnell thought Conrad might be overexposed. During his audition, however, Conrad won over Macdonnell after reading only a few lines. Dillon, as portrayed by Conrad, was a lonely, isolated man, toughened by a hard life. Macdonnell later claimed, "Much of Matt Dillon's character grew out of Bill Conrad."

Meston relished the upending of cherished Western fiction clichés and said that few Westerns gave any inkling of how brutal the Old West was in reality. Many episodes were based on man's cruelty to man and woman, inasmuch as the prairie woman's life and the painful treatment of women as chattels were touched on well ahead of the time of most media. As originally pitched to CBS executives, this was to be an adult Western, not a grown-up Hopalong Cassidy.

Dunning writes that Meston was especially disgusted by the archetypal Western hero and set out "to destroy [that type of] character he loathed". In Meston's view, "Dillon was almost as scarred as the homicidal psychopaths who drifted into Dodge from all directions."

Doc Adams
Howard McNear starred as Dr. Charles Adams in the radio series, and Milburn Stone portrayed Dr. Galen Adams in the television version. In the radio series, "Doc" Adams was initially a self-interested and somewhat dark character with a predilection for constantly attempting to increase his revenue through the procurement of autopsy fees. He was acerbic, somewhat mercenary, and borderline alcoholic, in the program's early years. His real name was Dr. Calvin Moore. He came west and changed his name to escape a charge of murder. However, McNear's performances steadily became more warm-hearted and sympathetic. Doc wandered throughout the territories until he settled in Dodge City 17 years later under the name of Charles Adams. Conrad borrowed the surname from cartoonist Charles Addams as a testament to Doc's initially ghoulish comportment. Milburn Stone was given free rein to choose the character's first name, and chose that of the ancient Greek physician and medical researcher Galen.

Miss Kitty
Kitty was played by actress Georgia Ellis on radio, and by Amanda Blake on television. Ellis first appeared in the radio episode "Billy the Kid" (April 26, 1952) as "Francie Richards" – a former girlfriend of Matt Dillon's and the widow of a criminal, but the character of "Miss Kitty" did not appear until the May 10, 1952, episode "Jaliscoe". Sometime in 1959, Ellis was billed as Georgia Hawkins instead of Georgia Ellis. Amanda Blake appeared in over 500 episodes of the television series, with her last being the April 1, 1974, episode titled, "The Disciple".

In the radio series, Kitty's profession was hinted at, but never explicit; in a 1953 interview with Time, Macdonnell declared, "Kitty is just someone Matt has to visit every once in a while". The magazine observed that she is "obviously not selling chocolate bars". The television show first portrayed Kitty as a saloon dance hall employee, then from season two, episode 36 ("Daddy-O"), as half-owner of the Long Branch Saloon.

Dillon and Kitty clearly have a close personal relationship.

Distinction from other radio Westerns
Gunsmoke is often a somber program, particularly in its early years. Dunning writes that Dillon "played his hand and often lost. He arrived too late to prevent a lynching. He amputated a dying man's leg and lost the patient anyway. He saved a girl from brutal rapists, then found himself unable to offer her what she needed to stop her from moving into ... life as a prostitute." Some listeners, such as Dunning, argue the radio version was more realistic. Episodes were aimed at adults with some of the most explicit content of their time, including violent crimes, scalpings, massacres, and opium addicts. Many episodes end on a somber note, and villains often get away with their crimes.

The program was set after the arrival of the railroad in Dodge City (1872), and Kansas had been a state since 1861. In reality, a U.S. Marshal (actually a deputy marshal, because only the senior officer in the district holds the title "marshal") would not be based in Dodge City and would not be involved in local law enforcement.

Apart from the doleful tone, Gunsmoke is distinct from other radio Westerns, as the dialogue is often slow and halting, and the outstanding sound effects give a palpable sense of the prairie setting. The effects are subtle but multilayered, giving the show a spacious feel. John Dunning wrote, "The listener heard extraneous dialogue in the background, just above the muted shouts of kids playing in an alley. He heard noises from the next block, too, where the inevitable dog was barking."

Gunsmoke is unique from other Westerns in that it was unsponsored in the first few years of production. The program was funded by CBS in the first two years. Series producers said that if the show were sponsored, they would have to "clean the show up". The producers wanted to find a sponsor that would allow them to keep the show the way it was.

Television proposal
Not long after the radio show began, talk began of adapting it to television. Privately, Macdonnell had a guarded interest in taking the show to television, but publicly, he declared, "our show is perfect for radio", and he feared, as Dunning writes, "Gunsmoke confined by a picture could not possibly be as authentic or attentive to detail. ... In the end, CBS simply took it away from Macdonnell and began preparing for the television version."

Conrad and the others were given auditions, but they were little more than token efforts – especially in Conrad's case, due to his obesity. However, Meston was kept as the main writer. In the early years, most of the television episodes were adapted from the radio scripts, often using identical scenes and dialogue. Dunning wrote, "That radio fans considered the TV show a sham and its players impostors should surprise no one. That the TV show was not a sham is due in no small part to the continued strength of Meston's scripts."

Macdonnell and Meston continued the radio version of Gunsmoke until 1961, making it one of the most enduring vintage radio dramas.

Conrad directed two television episodes, in 1963 and 1971, and McNear appeared on six, playing characters other than Doc, including three times as storekeeper Howard Rudd.

Television series (1955–1975) and TV movies
The television series ran from September 10, 1955, to March 31, 1975, on CBS, with 635 total episodes. It is the second Western television series written for adults, premiering on September 10, 1955, four days after The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp. The first 12 seasons aired Saturdays at 10 pm, seasons 13 through 16 aired Mondays at 7:30 pm, and the last four seasons aired Mondays at 8 pm. During its second season in 1956, the program joined the list of the top-10 television programs broadcast in the United States. It quickly moved to number one and stayed there until 1961. It remained among the top-20 programs until 1964.

Premise
Set in Dodge City, Kansas during the years following the American Civil War, the series follows the lives of U.S. Marshal Matt Dillon and the citizens he is sworn to protect. Among them are his deputies, Chester Goode, and later Festus Hagen, town physician Galen “Doc” Adams, and saloon owner, Miss Kitty Russell. Most episodes involve disruptions caused by those arriving from outside Dodge City. Since Dillon’s authority extends beyond town, some episodes focus on his travels, while other plots revolve around mishaps occurring while Dillon is gone. Both deputies are shown to be loyal, but often inept or indecisive at handling problems when Dillon is not around. Although Dillon and Miss Kitty are never portrayed in a romantic relationship, it is apparent they care deeply for each other. Doc Adams is portrayed as a very competent and caring physician, but his conservative treatment methods often frustrate his patients who expect a quick recovery. Doc and both deputies are often used as comic relief over the course of the series.

Transition from radio to TV
When Gunsmoke was adapted for television in 1955, contrary to a campaign to persuade the network, the network was not interested in bringing either Conrad or his radio costars to the television medium. Conrad's weight was rumored to be a deciding factor. Denver Pyle was also considered for the role, as was Raymond Burr, who was ultimately also seen as too heavy for the part. Charles Warren, television Gunsmoke's first director, said, "His voice was fine, but he was too big. When he stood up, his chair stood with him." It has long been rumored that John Wayne was offered the role of Matt Dillon; according to Dennis Weaver's comments on the 50th Anniversary DVD, disc one, episode "Hack Prine", John Wayne was never even considered for the role; to have done so would have been preposterous, since Wayne was a top movie leading man. The belief that Wayne was asked to star is disputed by Warren. Although he agrees Wayne encouraged Arness to take the role, Warren says, "I hired Jim Arness on the strength of a picture he's done for me ... I never thought for a moment of offering it to Wayne."

According to Thomas "Duke" Miller, a television and movie celebrity expert, this story was told to him by legendary actor James Stewart: "Jimmy said he was in the office with Charles Warren when Mr. Wayne came in. Mr. Warren asked Wayne if he knew James Arness, and Mr. Wayne said yes. Mr. Warren told Mr. Wayne about the transition of the show from radio to television, and Mr. Wayne readily agreed that James Arness would be a terrific choice for the part of Matt Dillon. I have no reason to doubt the story, because Jimmy absolutely knew everybody."

In the end, the primary roles were all recast, with Arness as Marshal Matt Dillon (on the recommendation of Wayne, who also introduced the pilot), Dennis Weaver as Chester Goode, Milburn Stone as Dr. G. "Doc" Adams (the G. later specified as standing for Galen), and Amanda Blake as Miss Kitty Russell. Macdonnell became the associate producer of the television show and later the producer. Meston was head writer.

The series was filmed at the present site of California Lutheran University (CLU) and nearby Wildwood Regional Park in Thousand Oaks, California.

In 1975, CBS made the decision not to renew Gunsmoke for a 21st season, without making any public announcement or informing the producers or cast members ahead of time. The entire cast was stunned by the cancellation, as they were unaware that CBS was considering it. According to Arness, "We didn't do a final, wrap-up show. We finished the 20th year, we all expected to go on for another season, or two or three. The (network) never told anybody they were thinking of cancelling." The cast and crew read the news in the trade papers.

Cast

 * U.S. Marshal Matt Dillon (1955–1975): James Arness
 * Galen "Doc" Adams (1955–1975): Milburn Stone
 * Kathleen "Kitty" Russell (1955–1974): Amanda Blake
 * Chester B. Goode (1955–1964): Dennis Weaver
 * Festus Haggen (1964–1975): Ken Curtis

Chester and Festus Haggen are Dillon's sidekicks, though others became acting deputies for $2 1/2$- to $7 1/2$-year stints: Quint Asper (Burt Reynolds) (1962–65), Thad Greenwood (Roger Ewing) (1965–67), and Newly O'Brien (Buck Taylor) (1967–75), who served as both back-up deputy and doctor-in-training, having some studies in medicine through his uncle, which then continued under Doc Adams. Initially on the fringes of Dodge society, Festus Haggen was slowly phased in as a reliable sidekick and part-time deputy to Matt Dillon when Reynolds left in 1965. When Milburn Stone temporarily left for heart bypass surgery in 1971, Pat Hingle played Dr. John Chapman for several episodes.
 * Sam Noonan (bartender; 1955–1959): Bert Rumsey
 * Clem (bartender; 1959–1961): Clem Fuller
 * Sam Noonan (bartender; 1961–1973): Glenn Strange
 * Jim Buck (stagecoach driver; 1957–1962) and Floyd (bartender; 1974–75): Robert Brubaker
 * Quint Asper (blacksmith; 1962–1965): Burt Reynolds
 * Deputy Marshal Clayton Thaddeus "Thad" Greenwood (1965–1967): Roger Ewing
 * Newly O'Brian (gunsmith/Deputy Marshal; 1967–1975): Buck Taylor
 * Wilbur Jonas (storekeeper, 1955–1963): Dabbs Greer
 * Howie Uzzell (hotel clerk, 1955–1975): Howard Culver
 * Moss Grimmick (stableman; 1955–1963): George Selk
 * Bill Pence (Long Branch owner/co-owner 1955?–56–?): Judson Pratt
 * Bill Pence, (1958–1961): Barney Phillips
 * Louie Pheeters (town drunk; 1961–1970): James Nusser
 * Ma Smalley (boardinghouse owner; 1961–1972): Sarah Selby
 * Hank Miller (stableman; 1963–1975): Hank Patterson
 * Mr. Bodkin (banker; 1963–1970): Roy Roberts
 * Barney Danches (telegraph agent; 1965–1974): Charles Seel
 * Roy (townsperson; 1965–1969): Roy Barcroft
 * Halligan (rancher; 1966–1975): Charles Wagenheim
 * Mr. Lathrop (storekeeper; 1966–1975): Woody Chambliss
 * Nathan Burke (freight agent; 1966–1975): Ted Jordan
 * Percy Crump (undertaker; 1966–1972): Kelton Garwood (also credited as Jonathan Harper)
 * Ed O'Connor (rancher; 1968–1972): Tom Brown
 * Judge Brooker (1970–1975): Herb Vigran
 * John Chapman (1971): Pat Hingle
 * Miss Hannah (saloon owner; 1974–75): Fran Ryan

Music
The Gunsmoke radio theme song and later television theme is titled "Old Trails", also known as "Boothill". The Gunsmoke theme was composed by Rex Koury. The original radio version was conducted by Koury. The television version was thought to have been first conducted by CBS west coast music director Lud Gluskin. The lyrics of the theme, never aired on the radio or television show, were recorded and released by Tex Ritter in 1955. Ritter was backed on that Capitol record by Rex Koury and the radio Gunsmoke orchestra.

Other notable composers included:
 * Elmer Bernstein
 * Jerry Goldsmith
 * Bernard Herrmann
 * Jerome Moross
 * Franz Waxman

Format
From 1955 to 1961, Gunsmoke was a half-hour show, retitled Marshal Dillon in syndication. It then went to an hour-long format. The series was retitled Gun Law in the UK. The Marshal Dillon syndicated reruns of half-hour episodes lasted from 1961 until 1964 on CBS, originally on Tuesday nights within its time in reruns.

Syndication
In syndication, the entire 20-year run of Gunsmoke is separated into three packages by CBS Television Distribution:
 * 1955–1961 half-hour episodes: These episodes are sometimes seen in their original format and sometimes in the Marshal Dillon format. When first-run, prime-time episodes of Gunsmoke expanded to an hour in fall 1961, CBS-TV reran the half-hour episodes as Marshal Dillon on the network on Tuesday nights from 1961 through 1964. These were later rerun in syndication. General syndication ended in the 1980s, but they do air occasionally on cable television. Local stations would show the retitled Marshal Dillon version of the series, while the series under the original Gunsmoke title (with some episodes under the Marshal Dillon retitling) were seen in the late 1990s on TV Land and later Hallmark Channel. STARZ! Westerns Channel aired this version under the Marshal Dillon title. RetroPlex also aired two half-hour episodes under the original Gunsmoke title, although the episodes are advertised as Marshal Dillon, on Saturday nights from 8 to 9 pm Eastern time. MeTV announced that it would begin the half-hour black-and-white episodes beginning on January 2, 2017.
 * 1961–1966 one-hour black-and-white episodes: These episodes have not been widely seen in regular syndication since the 1980s, although selected episodes did air from the mid-1980s through the early 1990s on CBN Cable/The Family Channel, and later on Encore Westerns on a three-year contract that ended around 2006. As of January 2010, Encore Westerns was again airing the episodes. In October 2015, MeTV announced that it would begin airing the one-hour black-and-white episodes on October 26.
 * 1966–1975 one-hour color episodes: The last nine seasons of the Western, the most widely syndicated episodes of the entire series run, are still aired on some local stations, and nationally on TV Land and MeTV.

The program currently airs on four major venues: TV Land, which has carried the show since its inception in 1996, Encore Westerns, INSP, and Weigel Broadcasting's MeTV digital subchannel network. Individual stations such as KFWD in Dallas also carry the series in their markets. It has also been shown on satellite channel CBS Action in the UK, Ireland and Poland. The series also appears intermittently on MeTV's themed sister network Decades, which CBS holds a partial interest in; it appears on the schedule depending on the theme and year a particular day has.

Home media
In 2006, as part of Gunsmoke's 50th anniversary on television, selected episodes were released on DVD in three different box sets. Twelve episodes, from 1955 to 1964, were selected for the Gunsmoke: Volume I box set, and another twelve episodes, from 1964 to 1975, were selected for the Gunsmoke: Volume II box set. Both sets are also available as a combined single "Gift Box Set". A third unique DVD box set, known as Gunsmoke: The Directors Collection, was also released with 10 selected episodes from certain seasons throughout the series' 20-year history. All of these box sets are available on Region 1 DVD from Paramount Home Entertainment and CBS DVD.

Additionally, Paramount Home Entertainment and CBS DVD have released the series in its entirety on DVD for 13 years between 2007 and 2020 in Region 1 (all of the seasons except for season one and seasons sixteen through twenty were split into two volumes). A complete series box set was released on May 5, 2020. All DVDs have been released with English audio and close captioning from season 1 to 5 and starting season 6 English SDH.

TV movies
In 1987, CBS commissioned a reunion movie titled Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge. James Arness and Amanda Blake returned in their iconic roles of Matt Dillon and Miss Kitty, with Fran Ryan returning as Kitty's friend and saloon-owner Hannah and Buck Taylor as Newly O'Brian. Doc Adams and Festus Haggen were not featured in the film. Milburn Stone had died seven years earlier in 1980 and the role of Doc was not recast. Ken Curtis balked at the salary offer he received and said that he should be paid based on Festus's importance in the character hierarchy. The screenwriters responded to Curtis's absence by making Newly the new Dodge City marshal. The film, shot in Alberta, features a now-retired Marshal Dillon being attacked and a vengeful former rival returning to Dodge City to entrap him.

In 1990, the second telefilm, Gunsmoke: The Last Apache, premiered. Because Amanda Blake had died the year before, the writers revisited a 1973 episode for the movie. The episode was based on "Matt's Love Story". In the episode, Matt loses his memory and his heart during a brief liaison with "Mike" Yardner (played by Michael Learned, better known for playing Olivia in The Waltons). In the film, Learned returns as Mike, who reveals to Marshal Dillon that he is the father of their daughter, Beth (played by Amy Stock-Poynton) and asks him for help in saving her from a band on Apaches. Other films included Gunsmoke: To the Last Man (1992), Gunsmoke: The Long Ride (1993), and Gunsmoke: One Man's Justice (1994). Arness stars in all five made-for-television movies.

Accolades

 * In TV Guide′s April 17, 1993, issue celebrating 40 years of television, the all-time-best-TV programs were chosen. "No contest, this [Gunsmoke] was the TV Western."
 * Entertainment Weekly (February 19, 1999, issue) ranked the premiere of Gunsmoke as No. 47 in the "100 Greatest Moments in Television".
 * Entertainment Weekly, in 1998, ranked Gunsmoke as No. 16 in The 100 Greatest TV Shows of all time.
 * In a 1998 TV Guide poll of 50,000, Gunsmoke was ranked as CBS's best Western and James Arness was ranked as CBS's best "Gunslinger".
 * In 1997, the episode "The Jailer" was ranked No. 28 on TV Guide's 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time.
 * In 2002, TV Guide ranked Gunsmoke as No. 40 in the 50 greatest television shows of all time.
 * In 2013, TV Guide ranked it as #27 on their list of the 60 Best Series.
 * In 2013, the Writers Guild of America ranked Gunsmoke – and The Defenders – #84 on their list of the 101 Best Written TV Series.
 * In 2019, the radio episode "The Cabin" was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

Viewer reception
Gunsmoke was television's number one ranked show from 1957 to 1961, then it expanded to one hour and slipped into a decline. CBS planned to cancel the series in 1967 after the twelfth season, but widespread viewer reaction prevented its demise, including a mention in Congress and pressure from Babe Paley, the wife of CBS's longtime president William S. Paley. Gilligan's Island producer Sherwood Schwartz states that Babe pressured her husband not to cancel Gunsmoke in 1967, so the network cut Gilligan's Island, instead. The show continued in its new time slot at 8 pm on Mondays. This scheduling move led to a spike in ratings that had it once again rally to the top 10 in the Nielsen ratings, which again saved the series when CBS purged most of its rural content in 1971. The series remained in the top 10 until the 1973–74 television season. After its last original airing on March 31, 1975, Gunsmoke was canceled after a 20-year run (with reruns continuing to air until September), even though it still ranked among the top 30 programs in the ratings; the Mary Tyler Moore spin-offs Rhoda (which was going into its second year in the Fall-1975 season) and Phyllis (a fall-1975 freshman) would be scheduled for the 8 pm hour previously occupied by Gunsmoke that fall. Thirty television Westerns came and went during its 20-year tenure, and Gunsmoke was the sole survivor, with Alias Smith and Jones and Bonanza both leaving the airwaves $2 1/2$ years earlier in January 1973.

Longevity records
The television series was the longest-running, primetime, live-action television series at 20 seasons, until September 2019 with the 21st-season premiere of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. The original Law & Order, which was canceled in 2010 after tying Gunsmoke's longevity record for a live-action, primetime television series, began its 21st season in February 2022. , it had the highest number of scripted episodes for any U.S. primetime, commercial, live-action television series. On April 29, 2018, The Simpsons surpassed the show for the most scripted episodes. Some foreign-made programs have been broadcast in the U.S. and contend for the position as the longest-running prime-time series. , Gunsmoke was rated fourth globally, after Doctor Who (1963–present), Taggart (1983–2010), and The Bill (1984–2010).

Character longevity
James Arness and Milburn Stone portrayed their Gunsmoke characters for 20 consecutive years, a feat later matched by Kelsey Grammer as the character Frasier Crane, but over two half-hour sitcoms (Cheers and Frasier). This was surpassed by Mariska Hargitay and Ice-T, who have portrayed the characters Olivia Benson and Fin Tutuola on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit for over 25 and 24 consecutive years to date, respectively. George Walsh, the announcer for Gunsmoke, began in 1952 on the radio series and continued until the television series was canceled in 1975.

James Arness, Milburn Stone, Ken Curtis, Dennis Weaver, and Amanda Blake are all inductees of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.

In popular culture
Dodge City's Boot Hill Museum has a tribute to Gunsmoke, including set furniture from the 1960s and an old television tuned to the show. Signed photographs from the show's actors and other memorabilia are on display including a vest worn by Sam the bartender and a dress worn by Miss Kitty. In 2015, several of the surviving staff reunited at Wild West Fest in Dodge City, including stars Burt Reynolds, Buck Taylor, Jess Walton, Bruce Boxleitner, and writer Jim Byrnes.

In media
A fight scene between Arness and guest star John Anderson from the 1958 episode "Buffalo Man" appears in the educational film Film Editing: Interpretation and Value, produced by American Cinema Editors. Footage from the scene is used in editing classes in many film schools in the United States.

The Gunsmoke brand was used to endorse numerous products, including cottage cheese and cigarettes.

The Hartland toy company included an 8" ($1/9th$ scale) plastic Matt Dillion figure and his horse Old Faithful Buck in their line of famous TV cowboys and horses during the 1950s.

Lowell Toy Manufacturing Corporation ("It's a Lowell Game") issued Gunsmoke as game No. 822. Other products include Gunsmoke puzzles,

Comics

 * Dell Comics published numerous issues of their Four Color comics series on Gunsmoke (including issues #679, 720, 769, 797, 844 and, in 1958–1962, #6–27).
 * Gold Key Comics continued with issues #1–6 in 1969–70.
 * A comic strip version of the series ran in British newspapers for several years under the show's UK title, Gun Law.
 * Hardcover comic BBC Gunsmoke Annuals were marketed in Great Britain under the authority of the BBC which had broadcasting rights there.
 * Gunsmoke comics in Spanish were published under the title Aventura la ley del revolver (Gun-Law Adventures).

Books

 * In 1957, Ballantine Books published a collection of short stories. Each story is based on a half-hour Gunsmoke episode. Although a photo of James Arness and the CBS TV logo are on the book cover, in at least one story Matt introduces Chester as "Chester Proudfoot", an indication that the stories are actually adapted from radio scripts.
 * Whitman Books published
 * Gunsmoke by Robert Turner in 1958, and
 * Gunsmoke: "Showdown on Front Street" by Paul S. Newman in 1969 ...
 * In 1970, Popular Library published the following paperback book written by Chris Stratton:
 * Gunsmoke
 * In 1974, Award Books published the following paperback books written by Jackson Flynn based on the television series:
 * ''Gunsmoke #1: "The Renegades"
 * Gunsmoke #2: "Shootout"
 * Gunsmoke #3: "Duel at Dodge City"
 * Gunsmoke #4: "Cheyenne Vengeance"
 * In 1998, Boulevard Books published the following paperbacks written by Gary McCarthy based on the TV series:
 * Gunsmoke
 * Gunsmoke: "Dead Man's Witness"
 * Gunsmoke: "Marshal Festus"
 * A series of novels based upon the television series written by Joseph A. West with forewords by James Arness was published by Signet:
 * Gunsmoke: "Blood, Bullets and Buckskin", January 2005 (ISBN 0-451-21348-3)
 * Gunsmoke: "The Last Dog Soldier", May 2005 (ISBN 0-451-21491-9)
 * Gunsmoke: "Blizzard of Lead", September 2005 (ISBN 0-451-21633-4)
 * Gunsmoke: "The Reckless Gun", May 2006 (ISBN 0-451-21923-6)
 * Gunsmoke: "Dodge the Devil", October 2006 (ISBN 0-451-21972-4)
 * Gunsmoke: "The Day of the Gunfighter", January 2007 (ISBN 0-451-22015-3)
 * "Gunsmoke: An American Institution, Celebrating 50 Years of Television's Best Western" Written by Ben Costello, Foreword by Jim Byrnes, and Introduction by Jon Voight and published by Five Star Publications, Inc.(now Story Monsters LLC) Published 1 edition (December 22, 2012), ISBN 978-1589852228

Independent e-book

 * Gunsmoke: Battlefield Dodge, June 2015

Music

 * On February 12, 1993, country music artist Toby Keith released his debut single Should've Been a Cowboy. The first verse of the song references the main characters of Gunsmoke, in which Marshal Dillon never settled down with his love interest Miss Kitty.

title: Gunsmoke


text:
Talk:Andover, Massachusetts

Untitled
Hey guys, I'm the WikiProject Cities assessor of this article; if you need advice on how to improve it, just come and give me a holler! --Starstriker7(Say hior see my works) 05:42, 21 September 2008 (UTC)
 * I guess we are mutes here. One problem is that, if the apparatus gets complex enough, people assume it is correct and everything is fine. Despite appearances the article is at this moment essentially unreferenced.Branigan 12:40, 11 October 2012 (UTC)

Witchcraft
I am removing the following sentence from the article: "Although the city best known for witchraft hysteria is Salem, Andover executed the most of its citizen in connection with witchcraft charges." This statement is grammatically incorrect to the point that I'm not even sure what the author meant to claim -- Andover executed most of its citizens? Or did Andover execute more citizens than Salem did? Is either of these claims true? Please provide a source and be clear if you would like to add a note about witchcraft to the article. NBS525 12:59, 17 July 2006 (UTC)

I have started working on a better description of the witchcraft episode. Citations are coming. Ogram (talk) 05:00, 13 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I guess ogram forgot about it, as there are yet no references there.Branigan 12:36, 11 October 2012 (UTC)

Civil War
Harriet Beecher Stowe did not write "Uncle Tom's Cabin" while she resided in Andover and this statement should be removed.

"Racist Reputation"?
This whole subsection smells like vandalism to me. It was added by an anonymous user, includes no sources, and describes the distance between Boston and Andover in minutes rather than miles. The location of its placement in the article seems somewhat random, and the "15 minutes" is not even correct! Can anyone provide a source to back up the legitimacy of the claim? Does anyone agree that perhaps the section should just be deleted? Also, see this edit, made by the same user to a different article. NBS525 13:41, 11 December 2006 (UTC)

I Agree with the vandalism notation. As near as I can determine, there is no such periodical as the "African-American Weekly". In addition, while Andover does have a large number of large homes that could be described as mansions, they are not located on Colonial Drive, which is a fairly moderate income neighborhood. The entire addition smells of agenda.

Fair use rationale for Image:Seal of the town of andover.png
Image:Seal of the town of andover.png is being used on this article. I notice the image page specifies that the image is being used under fair use but there is no explanation or rationale as to why its use in this Wikipedia article constitutes fair use. In addition to the boilerplate fair use template, you must also write out on the image description page a specific explanation or rationale for why using this image in each article is consistent with fair use.

Please go to the image description page and edit it to include a fair use rationale. Using one of the templates at Fair use rationale guideline is an easy way to insure that your image is in compliance with Wikipedia policy, but remember that you must complete the template. Do not simply insert a blank template on an image page.

If there is other fair use media, consider checking that you have specified the fair use rationale on the other images used on this page. Note that any fair use images lacking such an explanation can be deleted one week after being tagged, as described on criteria for speedy deletion. If you have any questions please ask them at the Media copyright questions page. Thank you.

BetacommandBot (talk) 09:18, 21 January 2008 (UTC)

 * I've changed the "licensing" section of the image's page to indicate that the image is in the public domain. The rationale is that there is very good reason to believe that this image was published well before 1923. Unfortunately, the history of this seal is not that well documented so it is difficult, and may not be possible, to establish a definitive first date of publishing. Moulding (talk) 18:03, 21 January 2008 (UTC)

 * I realize this thread may be long out of date but I found an article in a local newspaper (Andover Townsman) that says the current seal of the town was designed for its 250th anniversary in 1896, well before the 1923 cutoff. Thank you!  --Nannochloropsis (talk) 02:16, 6 August 2018 (UTC)

Train derailment of 6 Jan 1853
Considering that president-elect Franklin Pierce was aboard, and his son Benjamin killed, this seems worth a mention in the article on the city where it happened... Wyvern (talk) 23:50, 21 July 2011 (UTC)
 * That section has one citation at the end that does not relate to the incident. It belongs, but it needs to be cited. Mechanic1c (talk) 15:45, 20 May 2015 (UTC)

Brown affair annotations
This paragraph is entirely covered by one page in "Perilous Times." A ref to this page is tacked on to successive sentences. Also use is made of chains of refs. The urls don't always match the pages and some urls go to inaccessible pages. That is why I do not give urls to Google previews. Google keeps changing the previewable material. If you're concerned about quasi-vandals requesting refs on material covered by the very next ref, well, it is all in how you word the ref. You don't need duplicate refs on successive sentences. What I propose to do is gather the refs into one ref at the end of the paragraph stating "Perilous Times" and whatever others given that are relevant to the affair. Frankly I think the "Perilous" ref covers it.Branigan 17:28, 10 October 2012 (UTC)

Notable people
I notice the remarks next to the names are being used to plug the persons, especially in the case of modern actors and writers. I plan to objectify and simplify the comments. Also, many of them have references. These are not necessary. Every person mentioned has a blue link to an article, and the article states the ref. I will of course check that the ref is in the article, but if it is, then it is not necessary here.Branigan 19:24, 10 October 2012 (UTC)

Sources, links, references
In this article the sources are not that, they are external links either unsuitably to advertising and blogs or more relevantly to sites containing information not in the notes. External links are more of the same. I'm either taking them out or putting them under External Links. Sometimes the notes in other articles (or references) reference different pages of the same book. Sources are often used for the books, which are then referenced in short form in the notes. Harvard ref system suitable for that, but WP programmers have been working on new ways to accomplish it. If you have books and articles not referenced in the notes then they would go in "additional reading." Sometimes "Bibliography" is used for either. This article, once you take out the advertising and move the external links to external links, is somewhat short of encyclopedic sources. I guess the Internet is just too quick and easy. Most of the refs should be to books and articles, so obviously most of the referencing still needs to be done. When that gets done, we can use "Sources" more appropriately.Branigan 00:53, 11 October 2012 (UTC)

Historical population table discussion
The sources section of the population table looks terrible and is hard to use. I propose we go over to a different footnote format.

Current set-up. Maybe you have been wondering why you cannot access the footnotes for this table. That is because they are are in a template, "Template:Historical populations/Massachusetts municipalities references" which you can access if you do a search on the quoted item. If you want to access the table code stating the references then do an edit. Understand, elements of WP do not like you to do that. Some people run the show and they are counting on your ignorance to keep it that way. However, WP allows access to this code. You can change it according to the usual protocols. That latter topic is why you are seeing this entry. I got some changes to suggest. This is the discussion.

What is wrong. The Census Bureau sites referenced by these "cite web" citations have changed a bit. Look at the access dates. Moreover, I would not have done the "cite web" in quite that way. People need access to these footnotes. Now, this template is being used for a one-article event. Those refs are specific to that use of that table. That is not WP policy. The whole idea behind a template is to produce something that can be placed in any article. Here, these instances only apply to one article. This is a concealment device sometimes used by experienced WP users. I propose we abandon that template and do it a different way.

Counter-proposal. I tested the table and it seems that a note can be placed after each year. Moreover, if the difference between one and two digits throws the column out of alignment, "template:nowrap" and a space can be used to adjust the spacing; in fact, it has to be, otherwise the table code will wrap the note to the next line as soon as the space is inserted. This way, we can see what source is associated with what year, and the less skilled public can access the references. This is my proposal. Since it represents an alternative to which someone might object I am bringing it up for discussion. Please discuss. Eventually I will take no discussion as a yes vote. Thanks.Branigan 11:30, 11 October 2012 (UTC)
 * Having proposed this course I am having second thoughts. What I did not see before is that the refs are set up to general tables or general sites with pages, giving this sort of data not just for Andover. So, it is not true that the template is only used for this town. To implement the scheme I have proposed would require editing every single article using the template, a lot of work. The refs can be updated in the template. Therefore I am modifying my proposal to this extent: unless there is a significant response favoring putting these notes individually in each article I will not attempt to change the system. I may update the notes in the template.Branigan 14:19, 12 October 2012 (UTC)

Using "affluent" in the introductory sentence
I added "citation needed". It seems more like boosterism than a neutral descriptor. I wanted to delete it entirely but someone put it back. My reasoning: There are 28 towns in Massachusetts with higher per capita incomes -- some considerable higher than Andover's. Most of those wealthier towns' Wikipedia pages don't refer to them as affluent. Andover is also not home to any of the 25 wealthiest Massachusetts zip codes. http://www.esri.com/news/rss/pdfs/wealthiest-zip-codes_1_4_12.pdf In terms of real estate, there are presently three homes listed for more than $2 million in Andover; compare a truly affluent town such as Weston, where there are 33 listings above $2 million. http://www.zillow.com/weston-ma/expensive-homes/?index=31

Perhaps the solution is to say "relatively affluent" in that Andover is wealthy/affluent compared to its immediate neighbors in the Merrimack Valley. However, in the larger greater Boston economy, it is a nice, upwardly-mobile, middle class outer suburb but not really "affluent" in the bigger scheme of things. Cbmccarthy (talk) 21:28, 23 November 2014 (UTC)

Further changes
Because people kept putting the "affluent" moniker in the intro, despite my points above (which no one bothered to address), I added the "POV-lead" box, which requires the question to be discussed and agreed before moving forward.

Cbmccarthy (talk) 00:39, 30 December 2014 (UTC)
 * The term should not be used in the first sentence of the lead. The ref is not currently online, but has been tagged as not supporting the statement, so it's a POV term. It's WP:synthesis to decide the label should be used based on comparing reported data for Andover to that for other communities. If reliable sources use the term "affluent" to describe Andover then we can use the term sourced to those refs, but even then I would suggest not using the term in the first sentence of the lead. Meters (talk) 01:01, 30 December 2014 (UTC)

I agree with Meters. Cbmccarthy (talk) 01:41, 3 January 2015 (UTC)

Merriam-Webster defines affluent as, "having a large amount of money and owning many expensive things." http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/affluent In terms of real estate, Zillow currently lists 18 properties for $1 million or more (in the traditionally slowest selling season). http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/Town-of-Andover-MA-01810/fsba,fsbo,new_lt/58495_rid/1000000-_price/3630-_mp/days_sort/42.72356,-71.057682,42.575332,-71.274662_rect/11_zm/0_mmm/ According to the Boston Business Journal (via Andover Patch), Andover had 217 residents who filed as making at least $1 million in 2011, accounting for one millionaire per every 157 people. The average income for millionaires in Andover was $2,441,000, according to the report. http://patch.com/massachusetts/andover/how-many-millionaires-live-andover-0? http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/blog/bbj_research_alert/2014/12/the-massachusetts-towns-and-cities.html? Using income and other demographic data provided by Esri, the Boston Business Journal listed it's wealthiest zipcodes in Massachusetts. Andover ranked 37 out of 490. http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/blog/bbj_research_alert/2012/12/wealthiest-zip-codes.html? That said, while Andover is an affluent town, I would agree that it should be removed from the introductory sentence if that's Wikipedia's format. It might be better placed in the Demographics section. Jfneylon (talk) 21:12, 9 January 2015 (UTC)
 * The term "affluent" should not be used anywhere in the article unless reliable sources use it. It's not up to Wikipedia to apply labels. Wikipedia does not make judgments like that. It does not matter if you or I think Andover is affluent. Meters (talk) 21:58, 9 January 2015 (UTC)
 * Removed as unsourced puffery/POV Meters (talk) 22:01, 9 January 2015 (UTC)

External links modified
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External links modified
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Infobox photo
A reader ticket:2019080810002693 reports that the photo shown as the main photo in the info box is the old town hall and there is a new town hall.

Assuming the report is accurate, there is no particular requirement that the photo in the info box be the current town hall. For example, if the old town hall is particularly significant, either historically or architecturally, it might be an appropriate photo to use, but if that's the case the caption should accurately reflect that fact. Alternatively, someone should track down or arrange for a photo of the current town hall.-- S Philbrick (Talk)  12:33, 8 August 2019 (UTC)

July 2016 proposal to split.
In July 2016, Somebody proposed splitting this article. There has been no discussion about the split. The article is not long enough to warrant a split. The only reason to split is to up the Wikipedia article count. Maybe somebody is watching this article, they can remove the template. User-duck (talk) 20:47, 11 December 2020 (UTC)

 * ✅. Came here looking for a discussion thread myself. Removed the template as it is very outdated and does not warrant its own article (yet). Babegriev (talk) 22:03, 5 January 2021 (UTC)

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Talk:Andover, Massachusetts


text:
Talk:The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment
This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 6 June 2019 and 24 July 2019. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Aramirez546.

Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 11:06, 17 January 2022 (UTC)

Data conflicting with cited sources
Guys, something is going very wrong here. The data for the film's gross takings are cited to the 2002 version of Box Office Mojo, which I take it is a reliable source. We are therefore stating the gross takings as they were in that year, when the film obviously caused a box office sensation. This does not deny or belittle any later earnings, but they are not the point here - this is not a news site, reporting every small change day-to-day; nor a data site, reporting whole data streams for years on end. This is an encyclopedia, and our job is to report "the main points" reliably. Our reliability is a function of the sources we cite, and our compliance with those sources. We can't be seen to be citing 2002 sources (or 2020 sources) and then putting in what may (or may not) be 2021 figures compiled from nobody-knows-where. For what it's worth, I'd say that providing the 2002 data and citing it to a 2002 source makes very good sense here, as it says all that is needed - this film did extremely well at the box office at that time, basta. It is either Original Research, failure to cite sources, or abuse of sources (making them seem to say what they do not) to modify data in an article while the source says something different - that is really damaging to Wikipedia's reputation. I do hope these points are clear to everybody - they are central to the way Wikipedia works, and to how the non-editing public sees Wikipedia, so they matter. All the best, Chiswick Chap (talk) 08:45, 2 May 2021 (UTC)
 * Nothing is going wrong here at all, other than your desire to use data from 19 years ago. How can you say the 2002 version of Box Office Mojo is a reliable source but not believe the 2021 version of the site? As per https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Infobox_film. It says "Insert the worldwide gross revenue accrued by the film in its theatrical run". It doesn't say the initial theatrical run. Why would people include out of date information in an online encyclopedia? I agree that the initial gross is relevant and noted in the body of the article that the figure you used was its initital gross and similarly in the box office section to make this clear but the infobox should have its gross, not a gross at a random point in time. The citation indicates at what point in time the data comes from. Check the majority of film infoboxes and they do not show at what point in time the gross was taken from other than from the citation so is bizarre to include it here.Sudiani (talk) 11:06, 2 May 2021 (UTC)
 * Please don't ignore the evidence. I understand there is a tradition of giving the latest figure, but it is neither the only one that makes sense, nor even necessarily the best or most appropriate one. Further, there is a long-running confusion of figures, and seemingly an equally long-running tradition of abuse of sources.

 * 1) Other editors have found the two different gross values confusing long before I came across it: they see two where they expect one, and they edit accordingly, --- wrongly but not entirely unreasonably, and frankly entirely predictably. I suggest that whenever we have such a situation on Wikipedia, as we unquestionably have here, both readers and editors need clarity in the form of disambiguating glosses, like "as of 2021" or whatever. Without such a gloss, the data certainly are ambiguous, which is no good. If you want the 2021 figure there (briefly, until next year...) then say which figure you are using, and update the citation. I understand there is a tradition of running after the latest data in this way - I think it foolish - but if you have such a tradition, at least it must be handled in a way that non-specialist readers and indeed non-specialist editors can immediately appreciate; otherwise, you're editing only for yourself, which is no good.

 * 2) The fact is that the film became a sensation back in 2002, and its box office figure then is certainly of encyclopedic interest. That is also a permanent, stable datum, which the constantly-changing "latest" figure is not. It makes good sense to use that figure in the text, whatever you choose to do in the infobox. I do hope this is clear. I appreciate you guys have a "film" tradition but all the same you do need to communicate with the rest of the world in the article. All the best, Chiswick Chap (talk) 11:47, 2 May 2021 (UTC)

British English?
Should this article be in British English? I noticed "instalment" had been reverted back to "installment" back in 2018. It should be "instalment", right? Ccrashh (talk) 01:37, 16 July 2023 (UTC)


text:
A3 road

The A3, known as the Portsmouth Road or London Road in sections, is a major road connecting the City of London and Portsmouth passing close to Kingston upon Thames, Guildford, Haslemere and Petersfield. For much of its 67 mi length, it is classified as a trunk road and therefore managed by National Highways. Almost all of the road has been built to dual carriageway standards or wider. Apart from bypass sections in London, the road travels in a southwest direction and, after Liss, south-southwest.

Close to its southerly end, motorway traffic is routed via the A3(M), then either the east–west A27 or the Portsmouth-only M275 which has multiple lanes leading off the westbound A27 — for non-motorway traffic, the A3 continues into Portsmouth alongside the A3(M), mostly as a single carriageway in each direction through Waterlooville and adjoining small towns. The other section of single carriageways is through the urban environs of Battersea, Clapham and Stockwell towards the northern end, which has to accommodate bus lanes and parking meter bays.

Early history
By the 17th century, the historic Portsmouth Road bore great strategic significance as the road link between the capital city and what became the settled main port of the Royal Navy, as well as a non-military port like nearby Chichester — a petition was passed by Her Majesty for the expansion of the bench of justices of the town of Guildford along its route, in consideration of the importance of the Portsmouth Road, in 1603. Many of the other towns and villages that the road passed through gained income and, in the case of towns, a market advantage as a result — principally in the history of Kingston upon Thames, Godalming and Petersfield. The modern A3 follows the general route of the Portsmouth Road, but it bypasses many of the towns and villages along the way, leaving the various stretches of the old route for local traffic — for instance, the A307, its original course through Kingston-upon-Thames and Esher, retains its name, Portsmouth Road.

The road was once the haunt of highwaymen such as Jerry Abershawe, who in the 18th Century terrorised the area around Kingston and led a gang based at the Bald Faced Stag Inn on the Portsmouth Road. Another particularly dangerous location was in the vicinity of the wooded crest skirting the Devil's Punch Bowl, Hindhead, about 8 mi south-west of Guildford.

Later History
A programme of road improvements, starting in the 1920s, transformed the road, so that it is now predominantly a two- or three-lane carriageway, bypassing the town centres; south of the South Downs National Park, it includes a section of motorway, the A3(M), just before the road reaches the A27 at Havant. The construction of the Kingston and Guildford bypasses in the 1920s and 1930s made use of temporary narrow-gauge railways to move the construction materials. The Esher bypass, between Hook from the first mentioned bypass to the M25, is three lanes with a motorway-standard hard shoulder; from there to Guildford the road has three lanes.

Lord Montagu of Beaulieu stressed the urgency of building a Kingston bypass in 1911, but public funds were not secured before the onset of World War I and were not available in the aftermath. By the early 1920s, traffic in Kingston town centre had increased by over 160% in 10 years in the coaching town and the decision was taken in 1923 to revive the plans, with the contract worth £503,000. Work started in 1924, and it was opened by the Prime Minister, Stanley Baldwin, on 28 October 1927. It ran for 8.5 mi from the Robin Hood Gate of Richmond Park to the outskirts of Esher. The opening ceremony concluded with refreshments for 800 guests in marquees near to the northern start/end. Its construction immediately attracted developments of housing where access was easiest. The Restriction of Ribbon Development Act 1935 came too late to prevent this private housing, which is apparent where the A3 winds through Tolworth and New Malden, where the architecture includes concrete to art nouveau apartments, Mock-Tudor gabled houses and gabled Arts and Crafts movement-inspired houses. The final section of the Kingston bypass now forms part of the A309 thanks to the construction of the Esher bypass.

The complexity of the double roundabout at the junction between the A309 Kingston by-pass and the A307 led to it being referred to colloquially as the Silly Isles; later the junction officially adopted the name The Scilly Isles.

In 2011, the Hindhead Tunnel became the centrepiece of the Hindhead bypass, away from the road through the village, where the only urban set of traffic lights on the route outside London had created a bottleneck. Until 2011, the road through Hindhead was the last single-carriageway section of the route, outside London and Portsmouth.

Route
The road follows a route roughly parallel to the Portsmouth Direct Line railway which goes through, rather than past, all of the towns which the road serves, with Havant and Woking 2 mi and 3 mi, respectively, off the road.

Greater London
The A3 starts at King William Street at its junction with Gracechurch Street in the City of London, crosses the River Thames at London Bridge while entering the London Borough of Southwark, and goes south-west along Borough High Street and Newington Causeway to the Elephant and Castle roundabout. It continues along Newington Butts, and bounds then enters the London Borough of Lambeth on Kennington Park Road which becomes Clapham Road and Clapham High Street. The A3 then turns west (leaving as its straight continuation the A24) as Clapham Common North Side. Along this road, it enters the London Borough of Wandsworth, after which it runs concurrently with the A205 'South Circular' along Battersea Rise, Wandsworth Common North Side and East Hill, and goes through Wandsworth, and then the A205 carries on west towards Richmond. On West Hill, just east of the Tibbets Corner junction with the A219 near Putney Heath, the road increases from one lane each way to a three-lanes-each-way dual-carriageway and the speed limit increases from 30 to 40 mph. The A3 then continues south-west between Richmond Park and Wimbledon Common, as Kingston Road before beginning to bypass Kingston upon Thames while going through Roehampton Vale. The A3 enters The Royal Borough of Kingston Upon Thames just before Kingston Vale where there is a junction with the A308 for Kingston upon Thames and Richmond Park.

For the first 5 km south of Richmond Park, the A3 runs within 300 m of the Beverley Brook, crossing it three times. Although there is no point where the stream itself can be seen when driving along the road, the bridge parapets are visible and, for 2 km, where the road runs along the edge of Wimbledon Common, the trees flanking the stream can be glimpsed across playing fields, with the lightly managed "natural" woodland of the common rising beyond. Except for the playing fields, the whole of the common, including Beverley Brook, is both a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and a Special Area of Conservation (SAC). The speed limit then increases to 50 mph before going under the Coombe Flyover. The A3 then goes on a flyover at Shannon Corner located on the edges of Motspur Park, Raynes Park and New Malden, before having an additional junction for New Malden, then Tolworth and Hook along the Kingston By-pass.

Brief features of a section of road contribute to a traffic pinch-point during peak hours around the Hook underpass. The road reduces from three lanes to two in the underpass. The speed limit at this point in the London-bound direction reduces from 70 to 50 mph, with the first of a handful of Gatso speed enforcement cameras. If returning to London, traffic from the A309 also joins just before the underpass.

Surrey
The A3's Kingston By-pass now ends sooner leaving a spur junction the A309 to the Scilly Isles junction near Sandown Park, Esher, its route instead becoming the Esher By-pass on the border of Hook, London and Long Ditton, Surrey. Here the speed limit rises to 70 mph, with 3 lanes and a motorway-grade hard shoulder.

After passing Claygate, the motorway-standard section has junctions with the A244 between Esher and Oxshott, then the A245 between Cobham and Hersham. The road's Wisley Interchange with the M25 enables a flyover still with a 70 mph speed limit. It bypasses Wisley, Ockham, Ripley (and Burpham which is a suburb of Guildford) before cutting through the major town itself as a dual carriageway and changing to a 50 mph speed limit. It returns to 70 mph at the A31 and A246 junction before bypassing Godalming and Milford. It continues through a tunnel at Hindhead (constructed in 2011 to improve capacity and bypass the Devil's Punch Bowl) before leaving Surrey.

Hampshire
The A3 enters Hampshire just after exiting the Hindhead Tunnel, passes Liphook and Bramshott, turns SSW past Liss, then passes Petersfield. The A3's original route between Hindhead and Petersfield, passing through several villages, became the B2070. At Liss, there remains an at-grade roundabout, the only such junction on the route. Over the South Downs, it passes Clanfield and Horndean. From just north of Horndean, (still heading towards Portsmouth) the A3 separates from the A3(M) (below) and continues as London Road as far as Hilsea, south of which it is Northern Parade. It runs along the west side of Portsea Island which forms Portsmouth proper, roughly parallel with the M275, into the nearly waterfront centre of the city where, after passing the Catholic cathedral, it meets with the A2030. Here, it reaches Old Portsmouth, passing the Anglican cathedral and the 15th century harbour where it comes to an end at Broad Street and Portsmouth Point.

Hindhead tunnel

The Hindhead Tunnel is a 1830 m twin bore tunnel, which cost £371 million to construct, and is the longest non-estuarial road tunnel in the UK. Transport Secretary Philip Hammond conducted the opening ceremony on 27 July 2011, though the northbound tunnel opened to traffic two days later than the southbound one, on 29 July.

The new dual carriageway diverges from the original route where the old A3 began climbing sharply as it headed towards the scenic Devil's Punch Bowl. The old road now turns right and continues into Highfield Lane. From there, the remainder of the original road to Punch Bowl Common - a short distance north-east of the Hindhead traffic lights - has been completely ripped up and returned to nature. From the south, the short and largely built-up southern stretch of old A3 (now bypassed) runs up from the Grayshott exit into Hindhead and remains in use, but has been renumbered from A3 to A333.

Ham Barn roundabout, Liss
Since the 2013 opening of the Hindhead Tunnel, the modern route (or, in the case of the southernmost section, its associated motorway section) is at least dual-carriageway, but at Liss is the sole at-grade roundabout. Widely considered the main traffic pinch-point and an accident hotspot (due to its unusual egg-shape and camber angle which can cause lorries at excess speed to tip over), there have been wide calls for its removal, the projected increase in traffic with the completion of the tunnel supporting the proposal. In November 2010, the Highways Agency announced it would discuss three options for the roundabout's future, but in December it announced that no change would be commenced before 2015:

 * full-time signalling,
 * removing the roundabout entirely (and thereby removing the A3/B3006 connection completely),
 * keeping the existing system.

Cathedral exit, Guildford
The slip road exiting the A3 leading to the Royal Surrey County Hospital and the Surrey Research Park regularly creates congestion on the main A3 during peak times, when the traffic queue reaches onto the main carriageway. In May 2011, it was announced that this is to be resolved with new improvements to the traffic system directly adjacent to the A3, with work funded jointly by the University of Surrey and Surrey County Council.

Related urban proposals and developments
Various schemes exist to manage urban traffic and economise land use, and include running park and ride services. The main such scheme along the route is in Guildford. In February 2015, the Mayor of London Boris Johnson announced plans to build over a short section at Tolworth, after visiting a similar site in Boston, Massachusetts; the Mayor said "rebuilding some of our complex and ageing road network underneath our city would not only provide additional capacity for traffic, but it would also unlock surface space and reduce the impact of noise and pollution." Similar plans have been proposed for other areas of London but proven cost-prohibitive.

A3(M)
This section of the road was opened in 1979 and acts as an alternative to the A3 road in this part of Hampshire.

Cycling
There are several cycle routes which follow the route of the A3.

London
In London, Cycle Superhighway 7 (CS7) runs either side of the A3 from Elephant and Castle to Clapham Common. The route is signposted and marked using painted blue cycle logos, carrying cyclists through Kennington, Stockwell, and Clapham. North from Elephant and Castle, CS7 runs along the A300/Southwark Bridge Road towards the City. South of Clapham Common, CS7 runs along the A24 to Colliers Wood, via Balham and Tooting.

Between Wandsworth and Kingston Vale, a shared-use path runs alongside the A3 for cyclists and pedestrians. The path is segregated from other road traffic and links to cycle paths which run alongside the A308/Kingston Hill. This provides Norbiton with a traffic-free route to Wandsworth, which is also the terminus of Cycle Superhighway 8 (CS8 to Millbank).

Surrey and Hampshire
Shared-use paths and cycle lanes run alongside the A3 at points between the Greater London boundary and Portsmouth.

Between Thursley and Milford in Surrey, cycle crossings of the slip roads exist for cyclists travelling along the cycle lanes.

There is a cycle path between Liss and Petersfield which runs along the Portsmouth-bound (southbound) side of the A3. The route joins the A3 south of West Liss and leaves the dual-carriageway to the north of Petersfield (at Farnham Road). The route between Liss town centre and Farnham Road is part of National Cycle Route 22 (NCR 22).

South of Petersfield, National Cycle Route 222 (NCR 222) follows the route of the A3 until the route reaches Waterlooville. The route passes through the Queen Elizabeth Country Park and passes along the eastern rim of Clanfield. The main cycle route between Petersfield and the Country Park follows NCR 22 through Buriton.

Notes and references

 * Notes
 * References

title: A3 road


text:
Talk:Football Hall of Fame

Old Talk
Why are most these names in all caps? Atorpen 05:03 Jan 25, 2003 (UTC)
 * They're not anymore, I think they were copied form some official site where they are capitalised. Ams80 19:08 Mar 2, 2003 (UTC)

It looks a lot better. Good work. The shouting hurt my ears, too. Bluelion 00:49 Mar 3, 2003 (UTC)

Why is this page calledFootball Hall of Fame instead of Pro Football Hall of Fame which if I'm not mistaken is the official name. Otherwise how am I to know if this is the Canadian Football Hall of Fame or some Hall of Fame of Association Football (Soccer)? Or am I to assume if it doesn't have a qualifier it is American? - Stoltz

It needs to be renamed. I guess most codes and associations have a "Hall of Fame", Australian Football certainly does. The only question is what to rename it to. American football hall of fame? Pro football hall of fame? Tannin

Pro Football Hall of Fame which, I believe, as does Stoltz, is the official name. Bluelion 11:27 Mar 2, 2003 (UTC)

But isn't this the most famous one by far, making this case similar to why London, England is at London? What other famous examples are there that also use the above name? --mav

 * I'm not aware of any in Australia. Sounds an unlikely term for people in the UK to use. Guess that leaves the States. Tannin

I thought articles were supposed to be named by common usage. The Pro Football Hall of Fame is, in common usage, called the Pro Football Hall of Fame, not the Football Hall of Fame. The Football Hall of Fame is something that I, personally, have never heard of. London is commonly called London, so naming an article London makes sense. Using the title Football Hall of Fame, which I have never heard anyone use, does not make sense to me. Bluelion 00:49 Mar 3, 2003 (UTC)

Their official website even uses "pro" in its URL. -- Zoe

title: Talk:Football Hall of Fame


text:
Talk:The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Data conflicting with cited sources
Guys, something is going very wrong here. The data for the film's gross takings are cited to the 2003 version of Box Office Mojo, which I take it is a reliable source. We are therefore stating the gross takings as they were in that year, when the film obviously caused a box office sensation. This does not deny or belittle any later earnings, but they are not the point here - this is not a news site, reporting every small change day-to-day; nor a data site, reporting whole data streams for years on end. This is an encyclopedia, and our job is to report "the main points" reliably. Our reliability is a function of the sources we cite, and our compliance with those sources. We can't be seen to be citing 2003 sources and then putting in what may (or may not) be 2021 figures compiled from nobody-knows-where. For what it's worth, I'd say that providing the 2003 data and citing it to a 2003 source makes very good sense here, as it says all that is needed - this film did extremely well at the box office at that time, basta. It is either Original Research, failure to cite sources, or abuse of sources (making them seem to say what they do not) to modify data in an article while the source says something different - that is really damaging to Wikipedia's reputation. I do hope these points are clear to everybody - they are central to the way Wikipedia works, and to how the non-editing public sees Wikipedia, so they matter. All the best, Chiswick Chap (talk) 08:49, 2 May 2021 (UTC)

Karl Urban's stand-in
The caption for the image of the five men on horseback identifies the actor on the left as Karl Urban. According to the director's audio commentary, the character intended to be Éomer in that scene is portrayed by Karl Urban's stand-in, and thus is an unknown Rohan rider. The plan was to replace the hand of the stand-in with Urban's, but that never happened. Spleezleton (talk) 21:35, 1 August 2022 (UTC)


text:
Yuelu Academy

The Yuelu Academy (also known as the Yuelu Academy of Classical Learning, ) is on the east side of Yuelu Mountain in Changsha, Hunan province, on the west bank of the Xiang River. As one of the four most prestigious academies over the last 1000 years in China, Yuelu Academy has been a famous institution of higher learning as well as a centre of academic activities and cultures since it was formally set up during the Northern Song Dynasty. The academy was converted into the Hunan Institute of Higher Learning in 1903. It was later renamed Hunan Normal College, Hunan Public Polytechnic School, and finally Hunan University in 1926. Yuelu Academy was once a center of Confucian learning in China.

History
The academy was founded in 976, the ninth year of the Song dynasty (960–1279) under the reign of Emperor Taizu (960–976), and was one of the four most renowned shuyuan (academies of higher learning). The renowned Confucian scholars Zhu Xi and Zhang Shi lectured at the academy.

During the Qing dynasty (1644–1911), the academy inculcated an ascetic philosophy of self-examination and dedication to rescuing the world from the decadence of recent times. The academy remained loyal to the Neo-Confucian school of the Song dynasty which emphasized moral self-cultivation, community solidarity, and social hierarchy. Among the prominent alumni were the early Qing scholars Wang Fuzhi and Yan Ruyi. But by the early 19th century, academy scholars saw no contradiction in devoting serious study also to practical subjects such as martial engineering, political economy, waterworks, and management of bureaucracy. They called these studies jingshi (statecraft), made up of the characters jing (manage) and shi (things, or "the world"). Early 19th century graduates formed what one historian called a "network of messianic alumni." These included Tao Zhu, who reformed the grain transportation system and salt monopoly; Wei Yuan, compiler of works on Western geography (Illustrated Treatise on the Maritime Kingdoms), the exploits of the Qing expansionist campaigns, and the basic collection of statecraft essays; Bao Shichen; and most prominent, Zeng Guofan, architect of the Tongzhi Restoration and leader of Xiang Army. Later 19th-century alumni include Zuo Zongtang, a reformer faction (Yangwu) official; Hu Linyi; Guo Songtao, China's first ambassador to a foreign country; Cai E, a major leader in defending the Republic of China during National Protection War era.

In 1903, the academy became a university, and in 1926, it was officially named Hunan University.

The academy is the only one of the ancient Chinese academies of classical learning to have evolved into a modern institution of higher learning. The historical transformation from Yuelu Academy to Hunan University can be seen as symbolic of the development of China's higher education. This change mirrors the vicissitudes of the education system in mainland China. As a part of Hunan University, the academy is currently a center of publication and research.

In 1988, it was listed as a "Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Hunan" by the State Council of China.

title: Yuelu Academy