Ken Curtis' Colorado accent helped make his acting career

His accent helped define the character.

The Everett Collection

Ken Curtis’ character, Festus Haggen, on the 1955 series Gunsmoke, had a face only a true Western die-hard could love. Known for being both stinky and a stinker, Festus became popular among fans for his quirks and qualities. 

Though he wasn’t always the smartest or cleanest, he had a great relatability factor with viewers. His gruff exterior and unpolished manner were balanced by a deep loyalty to his friends and a natural sense of justice.

Fans loved Festus for his humor, quirky charm, and unexpected insights, often reflecting simple but weirdly profound truths.

Part of his character’s relatability, he believed, was due to Curtis’ own humble upbringing and country roots. In a 1965 interview with the Philadelphia Daily News, Curtis said he knew his character would be popular even in the early days of his role on Gunsmoke.

"I knew the character had popular appeal. How popular I was soon to discover," Curtis said. "Some fans wrote saying they liked Festus even better than Chester and it is a matter of record."

The only thing more iconic than the character was the story behind Festus. Curtis said he created the character of Festus back in 1956 for the movie The Searchers. Director John Ford heard him imitating an accent famously known as the "Colorado drylander" accent.

Curtis himself was born in the dryland country of Colorado and became an expert in the accent that was close to both his heart and his home.

"The accent made the part, and that's the way Charlie McCorry talked all through the film," Curtis said.

The film gave rise to Festus, who was born out of the accent. Not only did fans across the country appreciate the accent, but so did Hollywood. It helped Curtis get cast in other Western roles, including his most famous on Gunsmoke.

"You can't lose with a good character," Curtis said. "I was lucky to have been born and raised in the dry land area. Festus is really a lot of people I've known and remembered."

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12 Comments

CarolKelley 6 days ago
I loved the character of Charlie McCorry in The Searchers. "I'll thank you to unhand my fi- ancee!"
BuckeyeBeth 6 days ago
I was never a Festus fan. When I was younger I just thought he was dumb and argumentative and didn’t like him. When I got older I realized a lot of time he was dumbing it up and purposely being argumentative just to tease the hell out of Doc. I like him a bit better once I realized that but still wasn’t a fan.

Then I saw on MeTV the early Festus episodes, or as a lot of fans seem to call it his Wolfer Festus days. The accent was not quite as exaggerated, he wasn’t crushing his hat over his ear to make it flop over, no squinting like Popeye, he had a few episodes with Quint and even one Quint, Chester and Festus, and honestly he seem to have more trail smarts then when he became the later exaggerated Festus. THAT guy I love! No idea if it was Ken Curtis’s idea to tweak Festus or if he did it on the orders of the studio, but original wolfer Festus is the version I’m a fan off. I know there are a couple of us out there because I’ve chatted with them on Gunsmoke’s Reddit page before!😄

Other than the wolfer version episodes I think my favorite Festus episode was the one where the whole town was was involved in a court case concerning a very smart kid, his father and his school teacher. The part in the packed bar where Festus admits to Doc that while he doesn’t think his illiteracy has really hurt him that much he acknowledges his life would probably be easier if he did know how to read. For some reason that always seemed like a very heartwarming scene between the two of them.
Inthe25th 6 days ago
As far as Chester goes, he was too unsung. He fake limp is loved now, though then, it was thought needed to make him less than Marshall Dillon. Goober from The Andy Griffith Show brings a "glory" to Chester he lacked while on Gunsmoke. I loved Chester on Gunsmoke actually better than Festus. Ken Curtis actually ate in my hometown many many years ago.
Inthe25th 6 days ago
I pegged Festus from the Hills like West Virginia or somewhere.
DeannaT 7 days ago
I like the episode where he helped a ghost girl cross over. Love me some Festus ❤️
slim115W 8 days ago
Festus was a great character, really enjoy him. Love it when he gets on Doc's nerves!
deltadart 8 days ago
Festus was always good to the children!
CarolKelley deltadart 7 days ago
I loved when he made that rocking mule for those orphaned kids.
Lantern 8 days ago
Didn't know there was such a thing as a "Colorado accent".
McBear Lantern 7 days ago
The show often indicated he was from the Missouri Ozarks, aka hill country. All his Haggin relatives too.
Runeshaper 8 days ago
I liked Festus better than Chester. Ken Curtis was AWESOME and his accent definitely helped make his characters more unique.
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