The "Historical" Matt Dillon

Marshall Matt Dillon was a fictional character from the television show Gunsmoke, played by actor James Arness and created by writer John Meston. Gunsmoke was a popular western that aired from 1955 to 1975, and prior to that, was a popular radio series with William Conrad as the star. Though the character was fictional, "Matt Dillon" represented the personalities of multiple famous western heroes of Dodge City, Kansas. Lawrence Deger was the first marshal of Dodge City and other famous marshals and assistants included Ed Masterson, Wyatt Earp, James Masterson; and Bill Tilghman.

James Arness, who played the fictional western hero in Gunsmoke, was also a war hero in the United States Army. As a rifleman in the army, Arness earned a number of medals. In the 1950s and 1960s during the height of the Civil Rights movement, however, Aurness' medals meant nothing to the white supremacy groups that noticed the themes of racism that Gunsmoke addressed in the television program. According to Aurness, the show's themes of racism and religion were "groundbreaking".

“The writers and directors brought timeless stories to TV viewers that still stand up today, with themes such as racism and religion,” says James Arness, who starred as Matt Dillon. “These were all new ideas to television at that time.” - James Arness

William Branham took the side of the white supremacists against Aurness, rebuking both Arness and "Matt Dillon" for their cowardice. Branham claimed that Gunsmoke was "glorifying sin", and rebuked parents for letting their children act the part of "Marshall Matt Dillon". Branham went so far as to claim not only that "Matt Dillon" was a real historical figure, but that he was "yellow as a rabbit". Branham introduced fictional history concerning the focal point of the Gunsmoke television show, claiming that the "historical" Matt Dillon shot twenty-eight innocent people in the back just outside of Dodge City while cowering in a bush.

You can learn this and more on william-branham.org

https://william-branham.org/site/research/people/matt_dillon