American leading man famed as the star of one of the longest-running
shows in U.S. television history,
Rauchende Colts (1955). Born of Norwegian
heritage (the family name, Aurness, had formerly been Aursness) in
Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Rolf and Ruth Duesler Aurness. His father was
a traveling salesman of medical supplies and his mother later became a
newspaper columnist. James attended West High School in Minneapolis.
Although he appeared in school plays, he had no interest in performing,
and dreamed instead of going to sea. After high school, he attended one
semester at Beloit College before receiving his draft notice in 1943.
He entered the army and trained at Camp Wheeler, Georgia, before
shipping out for North Africa. At Casablanca, Arness
joined the 3rd Infantry Division in time for the invasion of Anzio. Ten
days after the invasion, Arness was severely wounded in the leg and
foot by German machine-gun fire. His wounds, which plagued him the rest
of his life, resulted in his medical discharge from the army.
While recuperating in a hospital in Clinton, Iowa, Arness was visited by his younger
brother Peter (later to gain fame as actor
Peter Graves), who suggested he
take a radio course at the University of Minnesota. James did so, and a
teacher recommended him for a job as an announcer at a Minneapolis
radio station. Though seemingly headed for success in radio, he
followed a boyhood friend's suggestion and went with the friend to
Hollywood to find work as a film extra. Arness studied at the
Bliss-Hayden Theatre School under actor
Harry Hayden, and while appearing in a play
there was spotted by agent Leon Lance. Lance got the actor a role as
Loretta Young's brother in
Die Farmerstochter (1947).
The director of that film, H.C. Potter,
recommended that he drop the "u" from his last name and soon thereafter
the actor was officially known as James Arness.
Little work followed this break, and Arness became sort of beach bum, living on the
shore at San Onofre and spending his days surfing. He began taking his
acting career more seriously when he began to receive fan mail
following the release of the Young picture. He appeared in a production
of "Candida" at the Pasadena Community Playhouse, and married his
leading lady, Virginia Arness. She
pressed him to study acting and to work harder in pursuit of a career,
but Arness has been consistent in ascribing his success to luck. He
began to act small roles with frequency, often due to his size,
and mostly villainous characters. Most notable among these was that of the space
alien in
Das Ding aus einer anderen Welt (1951).
While playing a Greek warrior in a play, Arness was spotted by agent
Charles K. Feldman, who represented
John Wayne. Feldman introduced Arness
to Wayne, who put the self-described 6', 6" actor under personal
contract. Arness played several roles over the next few years for and
with Wayne, whom he considered a mentor. In 1955, Wayne recommended
Arness for the lead role of Matt Dillon in the TV series
Rauchende Colts (1955). (Contrary to urban
legend, Wayne himself was never offered the role.) Arness at first
declined, thinking a TV series could derail his growing film career,
but Wayne argued for the show, and Arness accepted. His portrayal of
stalwart Marshal Dillon became an iconic figure in American television
and the series, aired for 20 seasons, is, as of 2008, the
longest-running dramatic series in U.S. television history. Arness
became world-famous and years later reprized the character in a series
of TV movies.
After the surprising cancellation of "Gunsmoke" in 1975,
Arness jumped immediately into another successful (though much
shorter-lived) Western project, a TV-movie-miniseries-series
combination known as "How The West Was Won." A brief modern police
drama, McClain's Law (1981),
followed, and Arness played his mentor John Wayne's role in
Treck nach Missouri (1988), a remake of
the Wayne classic.
Following the aforementioned "Gunsmoke" TV movies
(the last in 1994, when Arness was 71), Arness basically retired. His
marriage to Virginia Chapman ended in divorce in 1960. They had three
children, one of whom, Jenny Lee, committed suicide in 1975.
Arness subsequently married Janet Surtrees in 1978.
