When Carl Jaekel is granted a pardon after eight years in prison, he returns to Dodge and the women who has been writing him the entire time. His return is a surprise, but not nearly the sur... Read allWhen Carl Jaekel is granted a pardon after eight years in prison, he returns to Dodge and the women who has been writing him the entire time. His return is a surprise, but not nearly the surprise awaiting him.When Carl Jaekel is granted a pardon after eight years in prison, he returns to Dodge and the women who has been writing him the entire time. His return is a surprise, but not nearly the surprise awaiting him.
Photos
Storyline
Did you know
- Quotes
Carl Jaekel: You know, Dirks, half the trouble in this world comes from having a big mouth.
Featured review
Curiously Underdeveloped Story
Carl Jaekel is granted a pardon and released from prison after he helped stop some other prisoners from escaping. Only he and the other escapees know Jaekel was the mastermind behind the escape, but Jaekel double-crossed the others to improve his standing with the prison officials and effect his release. (This seems like quite a gamble for a prisoner to take. I doubt foiling an escape plan would result in someone with the power to do so issuing a pardon, but it is necessary for this story.)
Prior to going to prison for eight years, Jaekel lived in Dodge City. He still loves a woman named Beth who lives there. Jaekel was in prison for killing a man who had insulted Beth. Jaekel does not realize until he arrives back in Dodge that Beth is now married to a man named Norman Wilson, and they have a daughter named Penny. For some reason, Beth had continued to allow Carl to think she cared for him. She wrote him letters and sent them from the Long Branch Saloon so Carl would think she still worked there.
Now that Jaekel has returned, he refuses to acknowledge anything has changed in his relationship with Beth. He threatens both Norman and Penny to try to force Beth to take him back. Beth is terrified of Carl and continues to send mixed signals about any future they may have together.
Eric Braeden steals the show with his portrayal of the psychopath Carl Jaekel in this story. This is his first involvement in a Gunsmoke episode, but he would return for the three-part "Gold Train" episode in Season 17 and again in Season 19's "The Iron Blood of Courage" -- all memorable performances. Braeden frequently played heavies in television dramas around the time this episode was made. He is probably best known for his thousands of appearances as the character Victor Newman in "The Young and the Restless" daytime soap opera.
Julie Gregg portrays Beth Wilson. This is her only Gunsmoke appearance, but soon after her performance on Gunsmoke, she played Sandra Corleone, Sonny's wife, in The Godfather.
John Crawford makes another appearance in this episode, this time as Norman Wilson. Crawford would appear again with Eric Braeden in the "Gold Train" episodes in Season 17.
Mia Bendixsen plays the part of Penny Wilson. Her acting career did not extend beyond her childhood. This is her only participation in the Gunsmoke world.
Vic Tayback and James Chandler both appear early in the portion of the story that addresses Carl Jaekel's release from prison. Chandler plays the warden. Tayback plays one of the prisoners betrayed by Jaekel.
This is one of the oddest of the 600-plus episodes of Gunsmoke. Writers in the Westerns genre often relied on tropes and formulaic stories, but this story can best be described as a psychological thriller.
The biggest issue in this story for me is Beth's motivation for continuing to deceive Carl for so many years. It is also puzzling that Beth continues to allow Carl to terrorize her and threaten her family without telling anyone. It is difficult to understand what the character thought would be the result of her actions and inactions. If not for some extremely fortuitous coincidental events, there is no way the situation would have resolved in anything but a disaster.
There can be little argument that Eric Braeden's chilling portrayal of Carl Jaekel is the highlight of this episode, but the Beth Wilson character is the most intriguing. As other reviewers have stated, she is as much a villain in this episode as Carl.
Pragmatic marriages that are apparently "loveless" are quite common in Gunsmoke stories. The reason Beth married Norman is because he was kind and she thought he would be a good provider, not because she loved him. This opens the door to the idea that Beth was still in love with Carl, although she tells Carl she no longer has feelings for him. This is not made clear in the story, but it would explain Beth's actions over the years leading up to this story, as well as her actions within the story.
This is yet another episode where the regular Gunsmoke cast exists primarily on the fringes - a common attribute of stories in Season 16 and later. Since the story mostly takes place in and around Dodge City, the characters are there, but they have minimal bearing on the story.
Prior to going to prison for eight years, Jaekel lived in Dodge City. He still loves a woman named Beth who lives there. Jaekel was in prison for killing a man who had insulted Beth. Jaekel does not realize until he arrives back in Dodge that Beth is now married to a man named Norman Wilson, and they have a daughter named Penny. For some reason, Beth had continued to allow Carl to think she cared for him. She wrote him letters and sent them from the Long Branch Saloon so Carl would think she still worked there.
Now that Jaekel has returned, he refuses to acknowledge anything has changed in his relationship with Beth. He threatens both Norman and Penny to try to force Beth to take him back. Beth is terrified of Carl and continues to send mixed signals about any future they may have together.
Eric Braeden steals the show with his portrayal of the psychopath Carl Jaekel in this story. This is his first involvement in a Gunsmoke episode, but he would return for the three-part "Gold Train" episode in Season 17 and again in Season 19's "The Iron Blood of Courage" -- all memorable performances. Braeden frequently played heavies in television dramas around the time this episode was made. He is probably best known for his thousands of appearances as the character Victor Newman in "The Young and the Restless" daytime soap opera.
Julie Gregg portrays Beth Wilson. This is her only Gunsmoke appearance, but soon after her performance on Gunsmoke, she played Sandra Corleone, Sonny's wife, in The Godfather.
John Crawford makes another appearance in this episode, this time as Norman Wilson. Crawford would appear again with Eric Braeden in the "Gold Train" episodes in Season 17.
Mia Bendixsen plays the part of Penny Wilson. Her acting career did not extend beyond her childhood. This is her only participation in the Gunsmoke world.
Vic Tayback and James Chandler both appear early in the portion of the story that addresses Carl Jaekel's release from prison. Chandler plays the warden. Tayback plays one of the prisoners betrayed by Jaekel.
This is one of the oddest of the 600-plus episodes of Gunsmoke. Writers in the Westerns genre often relied on tropes and formulaic stories, but this story can best be described as a psychological thriller.
The biggest issue in this story for me is Beth's motivation for continuing to deceive Carl for so many years. It is also puzzling that Beth continues to allow Carl to terrorize her and threaten her family without telling anyone. It is difficult to understand what the character thought would be the result of her actions and inactions. If not for some extremely fortuitous coincidental events, there is no way the situation would have resolved in anything but a disaster.
There can be little argument that Eric Braeden's chilling portrayal of Carl Jaekel is the highlight of this episode, but the Beth Wilson character is the most intriguing. As other reviewers have stated, she is as much a villain in this episode as Carl.
Pragmatic marriages that are apparently "loveless" are quite common in Gunsmoke stories. The reason Beth married Norman is because he was kind and she thought he would be a good provider, not because she loved him. This opens the door to the idea that Beth was still in love with Carl, although she tells Carl she no longer has feelings for him. This is not made clear in the story, but it would explain Beth's actions over the years leading up to this story, as well as her actions within the story.
This is yet another episode where the regular Gunsmoke cast exists primarily on the fringes - a common attribute of stories in Season 16 and later. Since the story mostly takes place in and around Dodge City, the characters are there, but they have minimal bearing on the story.
helpful•101
- wdavidreynolds
- Jul 27, 2021
Details
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content