Gunsmoke (TV Series) Coreyville (1969) User Reviews

An episode dominated by strong female performances

[garrard · 9/10 · 21 July 2009]

The western, as it usually appears in both print and film, features males in prominent positions in the storytelling. "Gunsmoke," most most "sagebrush sagas" of the period was centered around a dominant male character, in the form of Matt Dillon (memorably played by James Arness).

However, the long-running CBS drama frequently broke from "tradition" by having stories in which women take precedence and are in charge. "Coreyville" is one installment from the series' latter years that features brilliant performances from two veteran actresses, Ruth Roman and the legendary Nina Foch, along with the young Jo Anne Harris.

Roman is the saloon woman with a lurid past while Foch is the town matriarch that rules with an iron fist, controlling everyone, including her ne'er-do-well sons Billy Joe and Frank. Eventually, a "secret" shared by the two women will be revealed, much to the dimay of the former, but well worth the wait.

Even in its fifteenth season, the writers of "Gunsmoke" still were able to churn out topnotch drama featuring realistic characters in true-to-life situations.

"Coreyville" is one of those tales.

The Evolution of Television Story Telling

[kenbarr-ny · 7/10 · 9 January 2015]

This episode of the long running Western shows the evolution of writing for a TV series. This story runs more as a police process drama than the traditional high action Western. In "Coreyville," a man wrongly accused of murder is in the midst of a kangaroo style trial ordered by the matriarch of a town. Marshall Dillon rides into town to stop this and demand a fair trial with a sober judge and legal representation for the defendant. He's eventually run out of town and roughly 40 minutes into the story, we find out the truth. It was an accidental shooting done by the eldest son of the matriarch. Actually, he isn't her son, his mother is the town saloon keeper. Justice is finally served and all is well again.

There's is very little shooting and no gunfights. It is mostly a story telling episode with Marshall Dillon doing the detective work. It could have been a Columbo, McCloud, or The Name of The Game Episode. Ironside would also work. Given that it was aired in 1969, the producers and writers understood that American tastes were changing and they tried to adapt with the times. It is highly instructive for a writer like me. The performances, with only James Arness among the regular cast appearing, are quite good. John Schuck (his name is misspelled in the credits), Ruth Roman and Nina Foch are the best known and perform their roles well. The rest of the cast do well. It is instructive for those of us interested in the history of story telling on TV as a lesson in writing.

BIg Plot Twist 10 minutes before the end

[rerunwatcher · 8/10 · 7 June 2021]

Wow. Major plot twist in this show about ten minutes before the end.

Three

[darbski · 10/10 · 14 February 2018]

***SPOILERS*** Okay, there just have to be spoilers, here, don't there? Why? I'll tell you now. There is a misunderstanding that must be cleared up. See, everyone thinks that there are two strong women in this episode, and I'll argue that there are actually three. When this story takes off, there is a dirtbag laying on the street, chained to a wagon wheel. A saloon girl has been killed, and he's the guy they've picked out to hang. Many problems occur in their handling of this event and suspect.

The first problem is that the thoroughly unlikable idiot that is, for all intents and purposes, done for; has a sister. She's clearly the brains of the family. There are two other women: Agatha Corey, and Flo Watson. Played by Nina Foch, and Ruth Roman, both are very good parts played by very good actresses. Little sister, Ellie Wylie, is played by Jo Ann Harris. In my opinion, even though she is a babe in the woods next to the formidable talents of the much more experienced actresses; she carries every bit of her part with a depth and strength that is top of the class.

Ellie literally saves the day for her unsavory brother and Matt; rescuing both from bad fates. without her guts and determination, both would be goners. You just gotta admire the character, the part, and the talent that presented it.

The rest of the story is just terrific, the other reviewers have given it the just coverage. What I think needs to be brought forth, is the talent of Ms. Harris. This is something that should be remembered when we watch these dramatic efforts. The S.A.G. and the casting departments do very fine work showcasing these talents, and we cannot forget them. When you see this episode, watch Ms. Harris' acting: she's really something. It's a 10.

Entertaining drama & excellent cast

[Johnny_West · 10/10 · 8 February 2024]

Agatha Corey (Nina Foch) plays the powerful widow of a town named after her husband. The inbred townies worship her, because she owns everything and they are too lazy to move somewhere else.

She has two sons, one of them is named Billy Joe (but they say it like Billy Joel), played by Kevin Coughlin, who died in 1976 at the age of 30. Billy Joe is not too bright, but he plays an important role by being honest to Marshal Dillon, and telling him how his brother is innocent.

His brother is played by Thomas Hunter, whose greatest fame was in European and Italian Westerns. He has a very poignant look, which makes his confessions of love for the woman that he killed very sincere and sad.

He also looks a lot like Michael McDonald, who used to play the cry-baby Stuart Larkin on Mad TV. Thanks to the Nina Foch, who plays Agatha Corey, the controlling mother, it is hard not to laugh and think of Stuart Larkin every time I see this episode of Gunsmoke. On Mad TV, Stuart's controlling mother was played by Mo Collins.

Ruth Roman plays the bar owner. She has a big secret to share, and eventually, everyone finds out that there is more than one Corey mother in town. Roman was a very talented actress, like Foch, and they hate each other's guts with the kind of realistic passion that only great actors can create. Their fire makes this boring story a lot better than it should be.

The last motivating force in this episode is the gorgeous Jo Ann Harris, who plays the sister of the accused killer (sinister Bruce Glover). She runs to Dodge to get Matt Dillon involved, and is willing to risk his life to bring Justice to Coreyville.

One thing that I did not like is that Dillon gets an incredible beating from the townies, but he does not arrest any of them, or get even. In various other episodes, Dillon occasionally got beaten up by locals who were loyal to bad characters, and Dillon was willing to turn the other cheek. It would have been nice to see him exact some revenge on occasion.

Marshal Dillon tries to bring justice to a town controlled by two women

[kfo9494 · 6/10 · 17 October 2012]

Even with the nice actors assembled in the cast, for some reason the story seemed to pass like a snail. A nice story that just took too long to reach the climax.

Marshal Dillon gets called into a town named Coreyville where justice is handed down by intoxicated jurors and a drinking Judge. But the real power behind the town is a strong widow named Agatha Corey. From her window above the town, she controls all functions of the town. However there is one person she cannot control and that is Flo Watson, the red-headed bar maid in the local saloon.

When the town is placing Titus Wiley on trial for killing a women, Matt intervenes and declares a mistrial. This was much to the dislike of Agatha Corey which wanted to see Wiley declared guilty.

It will not be till late in the show that we discover why she wanted the wrong man convicted. Plus we also are made aware of a twenty year old secret that Agatha and Flo have with each other.

Even with the episode being short on action, there was just enough here to keep the viewer's attention.

Ruth Roman & Nina Foch

[jarrodmcdonald-1 · 5 October 2015]

Ruth Roman worked in a variety of genres, including westerns. In this season 15 offering of Gunsmoke entitled 'Coreyville' Roman plays an influential saloon madame who battles a strong-willed widow (Nina Foch) for control of a town that Marshall Dillon (James Arness) visits on business. The classic episode was originally broadcast in 1969, and it is bolstered by the strong work done by the guest stars.

As for Roman and Foch, both ladies have very different acting styles, so it's rather interesting to see them go toe-to-toe in this story. Incidentally, the actresses costarred with Glenn Ford seventeen years earlier in the film YOUNG MAN WITH IDEAS. So I am assuming they must have been friends and found a way to work together again.

Roman was invited back by Gunsmoke's producers to do a two-parter a couple seasons later, where she would portray a different character. And Foch would later turn up in an episode of Bonanza.

lame melodrama

[grizzledgeezer · 6/10 · 24 July 2013]

This might have been an acceptable story on another TV Western, but it's so lame it should be taken out and shot.

It is the oft-rehashed tale of a wealthy person who runs a town, keeping everyone under their thumb. Nothing has been done to freshen the situation, and it all plays out pretty much as you'd expect.

Though Marshal Dillon steps in to make sure the accused gets a fair trial, his presence has no apparent effect on the outcome, as Mrs Corey //wants// a procedurally fair trial (but with an innocent man convicted), and the guilty party eventually speaks up for his own reasons, without being pressured.

This episode is of "Bonanza" or "Big Valley" quality, not worthy of "Gunsmoke".

By the way, the town of Coreyville appears to be the same set used for the Bonanza episode "A Hot Day for a Hanging". "That tree... where have I seen that tree?"

Strong Female Characters, Unoriginal Script

[wdavidreynolds · 5/10 · 7 June 2021]

Agatha Corey, matriarch of the Corey family, thinks she is in charge in the town which bears the family's name and provides the name of this episode, Coreyville. The town was built by Agatha's husband, a strong man who has since passed away. She has two sons, Frank and Billy Joe. Frank is the handsome, intelligent son. Billy Joe is younger and mentally challenged.

When a woman in the town dies under suspicious circumstances, a "rawhider" named Titus Wylie is charged with murder. The fact that Wylie is not a very likeable character combined with the facts that the appointed judge and jurors for the trial are mostly drunks, and Mrs. Corey wants him convicted and hanged, leaves Wylie little in the way of hope.

Wylie's sister Ellie knows her brother is being railroaded. She brings Matt Dillon from Dodge City to intervene. The Coreyville citizens are not too keen about having someone interfere, even if it is a U. S. Marshal.

There is one person in Coreyville Agatha has not been able to subjugate: Flo Watson, the owner of the Coreyville saloon. Flo has been a thorn in Agatha's side for many years and for many reasons that are woven into the mystery of this story.

This is one of those episodes where the only thing that makes this a Gunsmoke story is the involvement of Matt Dillon. The entire episode takes place in or near Coreyville, and none of the other regular cast members make an appearance.

The cast in this episode is formidable. Nina Foch, who was a well-respected acting teacher and underrated actress, portrays Agatha Corey in her only Gunsmoke role. Her character is strong on the surface, but we learn over the course of the story that she is vulnerable and insecure.

The great Ruth Roman plays Flo Watson. She is convincing as the tough, obstinate saloon owner. This was Roman's first appearance in the series. She would return in Season 17's two-part episode "Waste; Part 1" and "Waste: Part 2." Roman and Foch had a few things in common. Both began their careers in film before moving into television. The Italian actress Rosetta Calavetta dubbed the voices for both women for some of the films in which they appeared in Italy. Foch appeared in the film The Ten Commandments, and Roman was considered for a role in the same film.

Kevin Coughlin returns for another of his five Gunsmoke roles as Billy Joe Corey. Little known actor Thomas Hunter appears in his one-and-only Gunsmoke episode as Frank Corey.

Veteran character actor Bruce Glover makes the first of his two Gunsmoke appearances as Titus Wylie. This is the only Gunsmoke episode where Jo Ann Harris appears. She plays Ellie Wylie, who is the hero of this episode where strong women are featured.

Ultimately, there simply is not much about this episode that makes it worthy of the lofty levels of the best stories that make Gunsmoke so appealing. The plot is more like a combination of a soap opera and a television mystery. It is a bit of a shame that this much talent was assembled for a story that offers so little in the way of originality.