Gunsmoke (1955–1975): Season 10, Episode 7 - Help Me, Kitty - full transcript

When a pregnant young woman seeks Kitty's aid in escaping from the child's father, the two women take the stagecoach from Dodge and meet with greater danger.

(theme music playing)

(both guns fire)

ANNOUNCER: starring
James Arness as Matt Dillon.

♪♪

♪♪

Now, how much by the week?

Ten dollars, in advance.

I was told this is one of
the best hotels in town.

We think of it as the
only hotel in town.

Well, I'll say one thing...
You sure decorate it well.

You can't sleep your
pretty life away, Hope.



I was just
thinking a little, Ed.

Well, if you've got to
think, always think a little.

I thought I'd take a
look around town...

You know, just look.

That won't take long. I'll
show you around town.

No.

Let me do it, Ed.

Alone?

Please.

I'd like to.

I'll be waiting, Hope.

Why don't you watch
where you're going!

Well, I'm sorry. Uh,
can you get up all right?

Yeah, I can.



Can you?

(chuckles)

Well, I, uh... I
said I was sorry.

Are you hurt?

Do I look hurt?

Yeah. You look hurt.

♪♪

Miss Kitty.

I see her, Sam.

You look a little lost.

I guess I am.

You... you don't
remember me, do you?

Should I?

I'm Nettie Farmer's
daughter, Miss Kitty.

Hope Farmer?

(quietly): Yes.

Well, it's been a good ten years
since I've seen you and Nettie.

12. I was only six then.

Well, 12 years has
changed you a little bit.

It hasn't you, Miss Kitty.

(chuckles): Oh, no, course not.

Come on, let's get
out of the stampede.

Miss Kitty, is there
someplace that we can talk,

uh, privately?

Certainly. Come
on, let's go upstairs.

What a nice room.

It's home.

Yes, I can feel that.

Why don't you sit down, Hope.

No, I-I don't think
I can just yet.

Did you want to talk to
me about your mother?

She's part of it.

But it's about a
man, Miss Kitty.

His name is Ed.

Oh.

What did he promise you?

I guess I will sit down.

Mama never liked Ed, but
he's a pretty good talker.

Or maybe I was just
a very willing listener.

I ran off with him
almost a year ago.

I bought this for myself.

You ask what he
promised me, Miss Kitty.

It was marriage.

Mama was right.

She said he'd never marry me.

Where is Ed?

At the Dodge House.

I guess he's waiting for me.

I'm so ashamed.

Oh, Miss Kitty, I'm so ashamed.

Do you love him?

If I could just feel
clean again, decent.

Do you love him?

Hope, if he married you,

would that make
everything clean and decent?

No.

No, it's too late for that.

Are you sure?

'Cause if you
love him, it's just...

I don't even want
to see him again.

I just want to go home.

Maybe with Mama, I
can find my way back.

She... wanted so much for
me, and she worked so hard.

How would you like
to stay here with me?

(gasps softly)

I would.

- Are your things over at the Dodge House?
- Yes.

Would you like me to go
over and pick them up for you?

Please?

All right.

You just stay here and relax.

I'll be back in a little while.

(door opens, closes)

(sighs)

Sure is a dull day
around here, isn't it, Doc?

You're a peace officer;
don't you like peace?

Well, sure, but
not quite this much.

Well, you get paid whether
it's noisy or quiet, don't you?

Well, yeah, I get paid, but...

Yeah, well, that's the
unfairness of the whole thing.

You see, you get paid
anyway; it makes no difference.

But me, if I make a fee,
somebody's gonna have

to go berserk and
shoot somebody in here.

Well, Doc, I don't think
that's likely to happen.

Well, then I just may have
to incite a riot or something,

- so I can make a day's wages.
- Well, now, don't do that,

or I might have
to throw you in jail.

Well, we're back to
the full circle, you see?

You're right, it's a dull day.

(door opens)

Well, now, who's that?

Well, she's new here, ain't she?

She's new to me.

Is something wrong, Doc?

Well, I don't know. I'll see.

What's the trouble, miss?

I don't know. I went so weak.

I feel sort of funny.

Well, now, I'm a doctor;
maybe I can help you.

Matt, kind of help her back
into Kitty's room there, will you?

Sure, Doc. Come on, miss.

Sam, fetch me my bag there.

- Thank you.
- Mm-hmm.

- I'll be down here, Doc.
- Fine.

Where's Kitty, Sam?

Well, she just said she'd
be gone for a little while.

- Who is that new girl?
- Well, she came this morning.

Miss Kitty seems to know her.
What's wrong with her, Marshal?

Well, wait till Doc finds out.

Hello, Kitty.

Say, uh, Doc's upstairs
with that new girl.

- Doc? Why?
- Well, over there,

she sort of fainted
on the stairs.

(knocking)

Doc?

DOC: Yes. Come in, Kitty.

What's the matter with her?

Well, it's not too serious.

I just can't convince
her of it, that's all.

Well, Matt says she
almost fainted on the stairs.

Yeah, that's right. That
sometimes happens

when a woman's
gonna have a baby.

Here. I, uh... I'm gonna leave
you some of these powders.

Now, I'd like you to
give her one tonight

before she goes
to bed, if you will.

She... she's got
to have some rest.

I'll see that she gets it.

All right.

Um, I'll be down in a minute.

Yeah, all right, fine.

Now, don't you worry a bit;
everything's gonna be all right.

I'm... glad you
were here, Doctor.

So am I.

I knew.

(sighs)

But I was afraid.

Did you tell Ed?

Oh, no, no.

Hope, are you sure you
don't want to marry him?

I told you.

I don't even want to
see him one more time.

This isn't gonna be
easy alone, none of it.

I don't want him.

I want to go home.

Will you take me
home, Miss Kitty?

Please?

It'll be good
seeing Nettie again.

Now, I'll tell you what.

Why don't you try
to get some sleep.

And when you wake up, call me.

We'll take those
stairs together.

(door opens)

(door closes)

Thanks, Doc.

I've seen broader
smiles at a hanging.

Doc tells me she's
gonna have a baby, huh?

Yeah, well, that should
round out her day.

She isn't married.

Well, she's got a wedding ring.

Women sometimes
lie to themselves, Doc.

You two remember
Nettie Farmer, don't you?

Well, yeah. She used to work
here for you, didn't she, Kitty?

Well, sure. She lived
over at Ma Smalley's.

She had a little girl.

Little girl grew up.

Well, I'll be doggoned.

Doc, is she fit to ride a stage?

Well... if it
happened right away.

Wait a little while, it wouldn't
be a good idea. Why?

Well, I think I'll take
her home to Nettie.

Probably be the
best thing, Kitty.

Nettie'll understand.

You think she will?

I know she will.

Her child was left
without a father, too.

You sure ain't gonna win no
ribbons for loading, Clarence.

I ain't Clarence.

You ain't doing a
very good job, Henry.

Ain't Henry, neither.

Oh. He looks just
like Henry, don't he?

Looks a little more
like Clarence to me.

Well, neither one
of them are doing

a very good job of loading.

All right, all right, now,
look what you made me do.

Hand it up to you if I
knowed who you was.

Carl. My name's Carl.

Proud to know you, Carl.

My name's Festus.
This here is Quint.

How you doing, Carl?

Well, I'm just about
to fly. That's how I am.

Well, I reckon

we better let the man get
on with his loading, Clarence.

All right, uh, Henry.

Well, you ready to roll, Carl?

Yeah, Marshal,
just a few minutes.

Good. Well, good luck, Hope.

My luck will be riding with
me, Marshal, but thank you.

- Have a good trip, Kitty.
- We will, Matt.

When will you be coming back?

I'll be gone long enough
for you to miss me.

(chuckles) I'll miss you.

Here you are.

Be back through in
about four days, Marshal.

So long, Carl.

Hyah! Get! Get!

(shouts, whistles)

♪♪

♪♪

We're traveling together.
Might get to know each other.

Might not, too.

Well, I...

I was talking to the
young lady. (chuckles)

You're dealing with this one.

You some kind of China doll?

You don't seem that you'd break.

Ow! Hey, woman!

You're lucky you caught me
on one of my genteel days.

Now just sit back and
rock yourself to sleep.

Well, ain't she old
enough to talk for herself?

Or can't she talk?

KITTY: She talks
better than you hear.

Well, I was just figuring,

you know, to shorten
the trip, why, we might...

We can. Sit back and shut up.

Oh.

Hmm.

Hyah! Hyah!

Come on.

(gunshots)

Hyah!

(bullet ricochets)

Get down. Stay down.

Hyah! Hyah!

(gunshots)

♪♪

(coughing)

No. No, please.

Here it is, just waiting for us.

Women are dead, too.

Hey, this one carried
a fat roll of bills.

Come on, let's get out of here.

(wind whistling softly)

Hope?

Hope?

Oh, Miss Kitty.

(sighs)

We're gonna be all right, honey.

What happened?

Oh, we had some callers.

You just... you just lie
right here for a minute.

I'm sorry, mister.

♪♪

Hope?

Can you sit up?

I'm trying.

(Kitty grunts)

We've got a...
canteen and a gun.

What about the
driver and the man?

They're dead. Here,
drink some of this.

Oh, Miss Kitty, it's awful.

It's all just so awful.

Yeah, I guess you deserve
to shed a few of those.

We don't want to drown in them.

But you wouldn't even
be here if it weren't for me.

We're both here.
We got to face it.

How badly are you hurt?

I don't know.

I guess we better try
and figure that out, too.

Come on, try and get up.

I think I'm hurt.

Yeah, I... I know you are.

But we got to walk out of
here, even if we have to crawl.

I know.

I'd rather walk, wouldn't you?

Yes.

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

Well, it's nothing
but a root cellar.

Looks like a palace to me.

You've got a wonderful
spirit, Miss Kitty.

You get spirit from needing it.

Well, that's been in
the family a long time.

(quiet thud)

No need for a bucket or a
rope when there isn't any water.

This canteen will have to do us.

I-I'm not thirsty.

Course not. You're not
tired and hungry, either.

Come on.

I just had to lie down.

You're down for the night.

What about the pain?

It isn't bad.

And it's not all the time.

Well, you can forget about
coffee with your supper.

As a matter of fact,
you might as well

forget about supper, too.

Well, now. This
looks like an old friend.

(sniffs)

Whiskey.

Was once.

Not exactly a lifetime supply.

Miss Kitty.

Oh, don't tell me it isn't bad.

(panting softly)

Here. Drink some of this.

(coughs) Oh, it's awful.

Well, if everybody felt that
way, I'd be out of business.

Drink some more.

Oh, it burns.

Let it.

Oh, Miss Kitty,
I'm such trouble.

I'm sorry.

Look, it's gonna be dark soon.

And we got to move
on in the morning.

So just try and get
some sleep, please.

♪♪

You all right?

I'm dizzy and my head
feels a little strange.

I shouldn't have let you carouse
with that whiskey all night.

Can you keep going?

I'll try.

Where are we, do you suppose?

I don't know, but
I got a word for it.

Wait a minute.

Look.

We sure are somewheres.

How far ahead
do you think it is?

It's a ways.

Let's get going.

♪♪

Drink it easy. Just easy.

(sighs)

What do you want?

Besides swilling my water.

We need help.

(chuckles)

Yeah.

Yeah, you do look pretty seedy.

She's tired... sick.

She needs a bed.

We both need some food.

This is a relay station; I
ain't much for sick women.

We were on the Garden City
stage a couple of days ago.

It was attacked.

We been reeling
around ever since.

Mm-hmm.

I was wondering what
happened to that stage.

Right, come on in. Come on.

You can bunk in there.

Thanks.

Mm-hmm.

There we go.

There.

Things will be better now.

Bed feels so good.

Little food will feel good, too.

That man, he's... not
very friendly, is he?

You just leave that man to me.

(sighs)

She gonna last?

I hope so.

A little food will help.

Well, there's some meat,
bread, coffee over there.

You want some, go fix it.

I get the, uh...

feeling that you're
all alone out here.

Mm-hmm. I was.

You two all that's
left off that, uh, stage?

Yup.

Driver and the only other
passenger were killed.

Mm-hmm. That Garden City
stage don't run all the time,

and I thought they might
not get a full load in Dodge.

You know, you might
clean up pretty good.

Getting clean is the
last thing on my list.

Ain't gonna be a
stage through here

for at least two or three days.

Hadn't we better start
getting used to each other?

Let's don't.

- You got any money?
- No.

Well, how do you figure
on paying for all this?

She needs the food.

Mm-hmm.

Well, now you know it
ain't free, give it to her.

Put it on the tab.

Mm-hmm.

(horse approaching)

♪♪

(door opens)

Been in town spending
your money, Furnas?

I got plenty left.

Anyway, uh... I
brought you something.

One for you and one for me.

SPECTER: Looks like you've
about had yours, don't it?

FURNAS (chuckles): All right.

Two for you, Specter.

You're a very friendly fella.

Been friendly in town?

Well, uh... yeah,
you might say that.

Buying a little of this,
buying a little of that,

talking around a little.

I talked pretty in
a woman's ear.

- That all?
- That's all.

Hey, what's gnawing you?

You know those dead
women we left at the stage?

Well, they walked in here today.

They're in there.

They was dead. You saw.

They're in there.

They... recognize you?

One of them's laid up in bed.

The other didn't give any sign.

Now, you're the one that
walked around where they was.

If they know
you... We'll kill 'em.

I guess we will.

But I'll say when.

Now put your horse away.

HOPE: Miss Kitty?

Right here, Hope.

I heard voices.

Did I dream that?

Mm-mm.

Someone rode up
a little while ago.

They were just talking
in the other room.

Oh...

I'm afraid I'm going
to lose this baby.

Not if you want it, you won't.

I do want it.

I don't know why,
really, but I do.

I don't know who you call on
for strength when you need it,

Hope, but you grab
hold and hang on,

because you're gonna need it.

We're both gonna need it.

Something's happened.

What's wrong?

What's wrong is
that nothing's right.

You just hang on.

I'll take care
of the rest of it.

♪♪

Been giving that dolly in
there a lot of mothering.

That bad off?

She wouldn't be lying
in there if she wasn't.

(door opens)

Morning, Furnas.

Specter was telling me
you was on that stage

a couple days back.

I was for a while.

We were wondering
what happened to it.

I don't know much about it.

How can that be?

Oh, women got a way of

forgetting the
unpleasant things.

I didn't forget.

I was thrown from the
stage and knocked cold.

I came to, the men were dead.

Knocked cold's a lot like
being dead for a while.

Your, uh, friend in
there, was she out, too?

Little longer than I was.

You know, Furnas,

kind of nice to have a couple
of women around the house.

(stagecoach approaching)

That's the westbound, ain't it?

Right on time.

I thought you said there
wouldn't be a stage through here

for at least a couple of days.

For you and your friend
in there, there won't be.

Keep her quiet, Furnas.

(grunting)

She's a regular wildcat.

What's the matter with you?

That's no way to treat a woman.

(Kitty moaning)

When you get one,
you-you don't knock 'em out.

Not the first thing.

(Kitty grunting)

(panting)

Beginning to get the idea?

Call it woman's intuition.

Sorry, honey.

We got plenty of time.
You're not going anywhere.

Oh!

(door closes)

(hisses)

Hope.

(whispers): Hope.

- What? What is it?
- Shh!

Listen to me.

We've got to get out of here.

But it's dark.

I know. We're prisoners here.

Now, I know it's gonna be
hard, but you've got to try.

All right.

Come.

Come on. Take-take a few steps.

(moans)

I can't.

I want to, but...
but I just can't.

Okay, honey.

Come on. Get back to bed.

You go on. You go.

Oh, sure, I will.

Come on.

I'm sorry.

(chuckles softly)

Don't worry about it.

Every now and then,
I get a very bad idea.

♪♪

♪♪

That was Furnas just rode off.

Guess you'd like to be
riding off, too, wouldn't you?

I guess I would.

Want to fix it so you can.

You go pick yourself
out a horse and leave.

Nothing's that easy.

You don't please easy, do you?

Last night, you said we
weren't going anywhere.

Oh, she ain't.

Oh.

I can go, but she stays, huh?

Well, she's bound to be...

softer and friendlier.

She's a sick girl.

Before I lose my patience,
go pick yourself out a horse

and get out of here.

Will you let her go
when she feels better?

I'm not gonna marry her.

She'll be free to go.

I guess I'll have to
take your word for it.

You don't have much choice.

I'll take any horse you say.

I'll say good-bye to Hope.

There's no need for that.

Well, I don't want to
leave without her knowing!

I'll tell her.

Please, I want to tell her.

Can't you understand that?

And besides, I'd like
to get my handbag.

Fine.

Go on.

How do you feel, honey?

I walked a few steps.

It didn't hurt.

That's good.

Do you think you could ride?

Well, I don't know.

Are you willing to try?

Sure.

Do you think he'll let us go?

He just offered me a horse.

I'm gonna see to it that
he offers you one, too.

What are you going to do?

No matter what you hear

and no matter what happens,
you're not to be afraid.

Do you understand?

No. No, I don't understand.

You will. Just trust me.

The odds are about even now.

Come on.

Well, how long's it take
you to find your handbag

and say good-bye
to... (gun cocks)

I want two horses.

(laughs)

You been hiding
that thing all along?

I didn't want to have to use it.

I don't think you got the nerve.

No woman has.

You let us go, and I
won't need the nerve.

Ah, you're being a fool.

I was gonna let you go.

We're both leaving.

Stand back!

(Hope screams)

(crying hysterically)

It's all right!

It's okay!

Hope, stop it!

Hope!

(panting)

I know.

I know it's been hard.

It's all over now.

Come on.

We're going home.

Kitty, I don't know
how to thank you

for being a friend.

Well, Nettie,

well, if you turn out to
be a good grandmother,

I'll consider
myself paid in full.

Well, now, I'm not old enough
to be any kind of grandmother.

Everybody knows that.

Well, he'll be able
to defend himself

after all he's been through.

Oh, it's a boy already, hmm?

Well, it'd have
to be, Miss Kitty.

No woman could go through that.

Except you.

You're just some
extra kind of woman.

Ah, I'm just hard as nails.

Everybody knows that.

Well, I guess I'd
better be on my way.

Good-bye, honey.

You're a pretty good
woman yourself.

Thanks, Miss Kitty.

Kitty, don't you think you
ought to stick around and rest up,

after all you've been through?

Saloon full of cowpokes is
gonna look mighty fine to me.

Well, I won't
forget you for this.

Good-bye, Nettie.

Bye-bye.

Kitty?

I don't believe it.

You all right?

What are you doing here?

Well, it took me awhile
to hear about your stage.

I followed along
behind and found it.

I found the dead man
at the relay station, too.

I didn't know whether
I'd find you or not.

Well, I'm sure glad you did.

Matt, that man... His
name was Specter.

I killed him.

There was another man
by the name of Furnas.

I don't know where he is.

They held up the stage

and killed the driver
and the other passenger.

Well, don't worry,
Kitty, we'll find him.

Hope gonna be all right?

Kitty, I'm proud of you.

(sniffles)

(crying): Guess you can do
anything when you have to.