Dennis Weaver
McCloud featuring Dennis Weaver
Birth name	William Dennis Weaver
Born	June 4, 1924 Joplin, Missouri, USA
Died	February 24, 2006 (aged 81) Ridgway, Colorado, USA
Other name(s)	Danny Weaver
Spouse(s)	Gerry Stowell (1945 – 2006) (his death) 3 children
Official site	www.dennisweaver.com
Notable roles	Chester Goode in Gunsmoke Sam McCloud in McCloud David Mann in Duel
Emmy Awards
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series 1959 Gunsmoke

William Dennis Weaver (June 4, 1924 — February 24, 2006) was an Emmy Award-winning actor and was an American television actor, best known for his roles as sidekick Chester Goode from 1955 to 1964 on TV's first "adult Western" Gunsmoke, as Marshal Sam McCloud on the NBC police drama McCloud, which ran from 1970 to 1977, and as the protagonist in Steven Spielberg's feature-length directorial debut, the cult TV movie Duel in 1971. Image File history File links McCloud_DVD_cover. ... June 4 is the 155th day of the year (156th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1924 (MCMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Missouri. ... Joplin is a city located in parts of southern Jasper County and northern Newton County in the southwestern corner of Missouri. ... February 24 is the 55th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Colorado. ... Ridgway is a town located in Ouray County, Colorado. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... The cast of radios Gunsmoke: Howard McNear (Doc), William Conrad (Matt), Georgia Ellis (Kitty) and Parley Baer (Chester) Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. ... McCloud featuring Dennis Weaver McCloud was an American television police drama that aired on NBC from 1970 to 1977. ... Duel is a 1971 television movie directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Dennis Weaver. ... An Emmy Award. ... This is a list of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series winners: 1959 - Dennis Weaver, Gunsmoke 1960 - no award 1961 - Roddy McDowell, Not Without Honor 1962 - no award 1963 - no award 1964 - Albert Paulsen, Bob Hope Presents Chrysler Theater 1965 - no award 1966 - James... The cast of radios Gunsmoke: Howard McNear (Doc), William Conrad (Matt), Georgia Ellis (Kitty) and Parley Baer (Chester) Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. ... June 4 is the 155th day of the year (156th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1924 (MCMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar). ... February 24 is the 55th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... An Emmy Award. ... Actors in period costume sharing a joke whilst waiting between takes during location filming. ... See also: 1954 in television, other events of 1955, 1956 in television and the list of years in television. // Events April 1 - The DuMont Television network drastically cuts back its programming. ... See also: 1963 in television, other events of 1964, 1965 in television and the list of years in television. For the American network television schedule, please see 1964-65 American network television schedule. ... The cast of radios Gunsmoke: Howard McNear (Doc), William Conrad (Matt), Georgia Ellis (Kitty) and Parley Baer (Chester) Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. ... NBC (a former acronym for National Broadcasting Company) is an American television network headquartered in the GE Building in New York Citys Rockefeller Center. ... This does not cite any references or sources. ... McCloud featuring Dennis Weaver McCloud was an American television police drama that aired on NBC from 1970 to 1977. ... See also: 1969 in television, other events of 1970, 1971 in television and the list of years in television. For the American network television schedule, please see 1970-71 American network television schedule. ... See also: 1976 in television, other events of 1977, 1978 in television and the list of years in television. For the American network television schedule, please see 1977-78 American network television schedule. ... Steven Allan Spielberg KBE (born December 18, 1946)[1] is an American film director and producer. ... Duel is a 1971 television movie directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Dennis Weaver. ...

Early life

Weaver was born in Joplin, Missouri, to Walter Weaver (1890 - 1967) and Lena Prather (1892 - 1970) of Irish, Scottish, English, Cherokee and Osage ancestry. He wanted to be an actor from boyhood. He attended the University of Oklahoma, where he studied drama and also was a track star, setting records in several events. He served as a pilot in the United States Navy during the Second World War. In 1945, he married Gerry Stowell, with whom he had three children. In 1948, he tried out for the U.S. Olympic team in the decathlon. After he finished sixth in the Olympic Trials (only the top three made the team), his college friend Lonny Chapman convinced him to come to New York City to try acting. Alternate uses: see Joplin (disambiguation). ... 1890 (MDCCCXC) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar). ... 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar (the link is to a full 1967 calendar). ... 1892 (MDCCCXCII) was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... For other uses, see Cherokee (disambiguation). ... This does not cite any references or sources. ... University of Oklahoma, abbreviated OU, is a coeducational public research university located in the U.S. state of Oklahoma founded in 1890. ... {{ USN redirects here. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... See also: 1947 in sports, 1949 in sports and the list of years in sports. Baseball January 29: Commissioner Happy Chandler fines the Yankees, Cubs, and Phillies $500 each for signing high school players. ... The Games of the XIV Olympiad were held in 1948 at Wembley Stadium in London, England. ... // The Decathlon Day 1: 100 m long jump shot put High Jump 400 m Day 2: 110m hurdles discus throw pole vault javelin throw 1500 m Decathlon sprouted from the ancient game pentathlon. ... Lonny Chapman (born October 1, 1921 in Tulsa, Oklahoma) is an American television actor best known for his numerous guest star appearances on detective dramas, including Quincy, M.E., The A-Team, Murder, She Wrote, Matlock, and NYPD Blue. ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ...

Career

His first role on Broadway came as an understudy to Chapman as Turk Fisher in Come Back, Little Sheba. He eventually took over the role from Chapman in the national touring company. Solidifying his choice to become an actor, Weaver enrolled in The Actors Studio, where he met Shelley Winters. In the beginning of his acting career, he supported his family by doing a number of odd jobs, including selling vacuum cleaners, tricycles and women's hosiery. Broadway theatre[1] is the most prestigious form of professional theatre in the U.S., as well as the most well known to the general public and most lucrative for the performers, technicians and others involved in putting on the shows. ... An understudy is a theatrical term for someone who learns the lines and moves of a leading actor or actress in a theatrical play. ... Come Back, Little Sheba is a play written by American playwright William Inge. ... The Actors Studio is a membership organization for professional actors located in the Old Labor Stage at 432 West 44th Street in New York City. ... Shelley Winters (August 18, 1920 – January 14, 2006) was a two-time Academy Award-winning American actress. ... Regular vacuum cleaner for home use. ... Antique tricycle 19th century tricycle used in Iran A tricycle (often abbreviated to trike) is a three-wheeled vehicle. ... Hosiery describes undergarments worn directly on the feet and legs. ...

In 1952, Winters aided him in getting a contract from Universal Studios. He made his film debut that same year in the movie The Redhead from Wyoming. Over the next three years, he played roles in a series of movies, but still had to work odd jobs to support his family. // Events February 20 - The film The African Queen opens (Capitol Theater in New York City). ... Universal Studios (sometimes called Universal Pictures or Universal City Studios), a subsidiary of NBC Universal, is one of the major American film studios that has production studios and offices located at 100 Universal City Plaza Drive in Universal City, California, an unincorporated area of Los Angeles County between Los Angeles... The Redhead from Wyoming was a 1953 motion picture produced by Universal Studios and starring Maureen OHara and Alex Nichol. ...

It was while delivering flowers that he heard he had landed his biggest break — the role of Chester on the new television series Gunsmoke  — which would go on to become the highest-rated and longest-running series in US television history (1955 to 1975). He received an Emmy Award in 1959 for Best Supporting Actor (Continuing Character) in a Dramatic Series. A television program is the content of television broadcasting. ... The cast of radios Gunsmoke: Howard McNear (Doc), William Conrad (Matt), Georgia Ellis (Kitty) and Parley Baer (Chester) Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. ... An Emmy Award. ... See also: 1958 in television, other events of 1959, 1960 in television and the list of years in television. For the American network television schedule, please see 1959-60 American network television schedule. ... This is a list of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series winners: 1959 - Dennis Weaver, Gunsmoke 1960 - no award 1961 - Roddy McDowell, Not Without Honor 1962 - no award 1963 - no award 1964 - Albert Paulsen, Bob Hope Presents Chrysler Theater 1965 - no award 1966 - James...

Having become famous as Chester, he was cast in an offbeat supporting role in the 1958 Orson Welles film Touch of Evil, in which he nervously repeated, "I'm the night man." From 1964 to 1965, he portrayed a friendly veterinarian in the NBC dramatic commedy Kentucky Jones. His next substantial role was as Tom Wedloe on the television show Gentle Ben between 1967 and 1969. Year 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Touch of Evil (1958) is considered one of the last examples of film noir in the genres classic era (from the early 1940s until the late 1950s). ... Gentle Ben was a fictional character, a bear who was the subject of a childrens TV show in the 1960s. ... The year 1967 in television involved some significant events. ... See also: 1968 in television, other events of 1969, 1970 in television and the list of years in television. For the American network television schedule, please see 1969-70 American network television schedule. ...

He began appearing on the series McCloud in 1970, for which he received two Emmy Award nominations. In 1974, he was nominated for Best Lead Actor in a Limited Series and in 1975, for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series. His frequent use of the affirming Southernism, "There you go", became a catchphrase for the show. During the series, in 1971, he appeared in Duel, a television movie directed by Steven Spielberg. An Emmy Award. ... The year 1974 in television involved some significant events. ... This is a list of television-related events in 1975. ... A catch phrase is a phrase or expression that is popularized, usually through repeated use, by a real person or fictional character. ... Duel is a 1971 television movie directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Dennis Weaver. ... Steven Allan Spielberg KBE (born December 18, 1946)[1] is an American film director and producer. ...

Later series during the 80's (both of which lasted only one season) were Stone, in which Weaver played a Joseph Wambaugh-esque police sergeant turned crime novelist, and Buck James, in which he played a Texas-based surgeon and rancher. Look up stone in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

From 1973 to 1975, he was president of the Screen Actors Guild. The Screen Actors Guild (S.A.G.) is the labor union representing over 120,000 film actors in the United States. ...

In 1978, he played the trail boss R.J. Poteet in the television miniseries Centennial on the episode titled "The Longhorns". Weaver also appeared in many acclaimed television films. In 1980, he played Dr. Samuel Mudd, who was imprisoned for involvement in the Lincoln assassination, in The Ordeal Of Doctor Mudd. In 1983, he played a real estate agent addicted to cocaine in Cocaine: One Man's Seduction. Weaver received probably the best reviews of his career when he starred in the 1987 film Bluffing It, in which he played a man who is illiterate. In February 2002, he appeared on the animated series The Simpsons (episode DABF07, "The Lastest Gun in the West") as the voice of aging Hollywood cowboy legend Buck McCoy. The year 1978 in television involved some significant events. ... A miniseries (sometimes mini-series), in a serial storytelling medium, is a production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. ... Centennial was a 12-episode American television miniseries that aired on NBC from October 1978 to February 1979. ... This is a list of television-related events in 1980. ... Samuel Alexander Mudd, I (December 20, 1833 – January 10, 1883) was a Maryland doctor implicated and imprisoned for aiding John Wilkes Booth in the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. ... For other uses, see Abraham Lincoln (disambiguation). ... It has been suggested that Selective assassination be merged into this article or section. ... // February 8 - Minipops premieres on Channel 4 in the UK. Though a ratings success, it is canceled after the first series due to heavy media criticism. ... Real estate is a legal term that encompasses land along with anything permanently affixed to the land, such as buildings. ... Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. ... This is a list of television-related events in 1987. ... World illiteracy rates by country Literacy is the ability to read and write. ... This is a list of television-related events in 2002. ... An animated series or cartoon series is a television series produced by means of animation. ... Simpsons redirects here. ... The Lastest Gun in the West is a season 13 episode from the television series The Simpsons, which February 4, 2002. ... ... For other uses, see Cowboy (disambiguation). ...

For his contribution to the television industry, Dennis Weaver was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6822 Hollywood Blvd, and on the Dodge City (KS) Trail of Fame. In 1981, he was inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. A band plays on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. ... The Hall of Great Western Performers is a Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States. ... Bronze Wrangler The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is a museum and art gallery, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, housing one of the largest collections of: Western, American cowboy, American rodeo, and American Indian; art, artifacts, and archival materials, in the world. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ...

Dennis Weaver's most recent work was done on an ABC Family cable television show called Wildfire. He played Henry, the father of Jean Ritter and the co-owner of Raintree Ranch. He was only on the show for season 1, as he died of complications from cancer at the age of 81, on February 24, 2006, the same day Don Knotts died, Knotts was also 81 years old when he died. Wildfire is a 60-minute teen drama television series that airs on ABC Family. ... Cancer is a class of diseases or disorders characterized by uncontrolled division of cells and the ability of these to spread, either by direct growth into adjacent tissue through invasion, or by implantation into distant sites by metastasis (where cancer cells are transported through the bloodstream or lymphatic system). ... February 24 is the 55th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... Jesse Donald Knotts (July 21, 1924 – February 24, 2006) was an American comedic actor best known for his portrayal of Barney Fife on the 1960s television sitcom The Andy Griffith Show (a role which earned him five Emmy Awards), and as landlord Ralph Furley on the television sitcom Threes...

Private life

Weaver had been a vegetarian since 1958 and student of yoga and meditation since the 1960s. He was also renowned as an environmentalist, promoting eating lower on the food chain, alternate fuels such as hydrogen and wind power through an educational organization he founded, The Institute of Ecolonomics. He was also involved with John Denver's WindStar Foundation. The “Earth Ship”, the personal home he built in Ridgway, Colorado during the late 1980s, incorporated recycled materials in its construction and featured advanced eco-technologies. The 1960s decade refers to the years from January 1, 1960 to December 31, 1969, inclusive. ... John Denver (December 31, 1943 – October 12, 1997), born Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr. ... Ridgway is a town located in Ouray County, Colorado. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

Weaver was consistently involved with the annual Genesis Awards, which were created by The Ark Trust to honor those in the media who bring attention to the plight and suffering of animals. For 20 years, the Genesis Awards has paid tribute to the major news and entertainment media for producing outstanding works which raise public understanding of animal issues. ...

External links

• Dennis Weaver at the Internet Movie Database
• Archive of American Television 2-1/2 hour career-wide interview with Dennis Weaver on Google Video
• Gunsmoke 50th Anniversary 2005 from Dodge City, Kansas
• Animal Planet Genesis Awards, commentary on going Vegetarian in 1958
• "Dennis Weaver, 81, Sidekick on 'Gunsmoke,' Dies", The New York Times, February 28, 2006. 
• "Dennis Weaver, 81; Star of 'Gunsmoke,' 'McCloud' Also Was Environmental Activist", Los Angeles Times, February 28, 2006.  (information on his ancestry)
• Dennis Weaver at TV.com