The Sad Reason Bette Davis Appeared on ‘Gunsmoke’
On October 1, 1966, viewers were surprised to tune in to a new episode of Gunsmoke and find Bette Davis herself as that week’s guest star. Davis was one of the most iconic actresses of Golden Age Hollywood; she’d won two Best Actress Oscars, and had been nominated again in 1962 for her comeback vehicle, Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? But while she put in a strong performance on the show, the story of how she got there is a sad tale of how limited opportunities were for older actresses in the 1960s.
In “The Jailer,” Davis plays Etta Stone, a widow who holds Marshal Matt Dillon and Miss Kitty hostage as revenge for the hanging of her husband six years earlier. The cast also included Bruce Dern as one of Stone’s sons, adding even more star power to the episode. It is now remembered for the dramatic scenes between Davis and Amanda Blake, including a staged fight that reportedly left both actresses exhausted but produced riveting television.
TV Guide/Everett Collection
Why Did Bette Davis Appear on Gunsmoke?
So how did one of Hollywood’s most celebrated actresses end up in Dodge City? By the mid 1960s, Davis was still a household name, but the film roles available to her were not what they once had been. Hollywood had a long history of overlooking older women, even those with Academy Awards. Davis turned to television for the kinds of challenging parts she still craved.
However, Dern admitted that he knew Davis was not sure about appearing on television at first. But she accepted the job because she was having trouble finding movie roles and this fell into her lap. Even so, Dern shared in a 2013 interview with CBS News, “[I went] to work on a Gunsmoke. And Walter Hill, who’s a wonderful, fabulous director — I’d go anywhere for Walter Hill to work for him; I’ve done three [films] for him — he comes up to me (it was [my] second Gunsmoke) [and] he says, ‘Wait ’til you see who your mom is today.’ And I walk in, and there’s Bette Davis sitting a chair. And I get tears in my eyes. She said, ‘And what’s the matter with you, Brucester?’ I said, ‘Bette, it’s a Gunsmoke.’ [She said] ‘Who’s gonna pay for my cigarettes? I took an ad out in the trades, [saying] ‘seven-time Oscar nominee looking for work.’ Nobody cares.'”
Where to Watch Bette Davis’ Gunsmoke Episode Today
“The Jailer” will air at 1pm EST on MeTV on September 22, 2025; it can also be streamed for free on Pluto TV.
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Wild West- Heroes & Villains
November 2022
Celebrates the unique sense of justice, compassion and adventure in the Old West as seen on TV and in the movies
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