Q 01/05

James Arness's son Rolf Aurness became a 1970 world champion in which sport?

A) Rodeo

B) Surfing

C) Skiing

D) Sailing

Answer · why

B) Surfing

Surfing made Rolf Aurness the 1970 world champion when he beat Midget Farrelly in the final at Johanna in Victoria, Australia.

Q 02/05

Before Gunsmoke, James Arness played the alien creature in which 1951 science-fiction horror film?

A) The Day the Earth Stood Still

B) When Worlds Collide

C) The Thing from Another World

D) The Man from Planet X

Answer · why

C) The Thing from Another World

The Thing from Another World cast him as a plant-based alien thawed from Arctic ice that feeds on blood and shrugs off bullets.

Q 03/05

Which Mission: Impossible star was the younger brother of Gunsmoke lead James Arness?

A) Martin Landau

B) Peter Lupus

C) Greg Morris

D) Peter Graves

Answer · why

D) Peter Graves

Peter Graves took a name from his mother's side of the family as a stage name so he would not be confused with his elder brother.

Q 04/05

Which movie star recommended James Arness for Gunsmoke and introduced its first episode on camera?

A) John Wayne

B) Gary Cooper

C) James Stewart

D) Henry Fonda

Answer · why

A) John Wayne

John Wayne told viewers his friend would become a big star; accounts differ on whether he was ever offered the part himself.

Q 05/05

Gunsmoke shoots were sometimes halted because stoic star James Arness could not stop doing what?

A) Sneezing

B) Yawning

C) Giggling

D) Coughing

Answer · why

C) Giggling

Giggling fits could shut the set down, and his stunt double Ben Bates said the big man laughed with his whole body.