Spaeth died in 1985 from pneumonia, at only 45, and when he was breathing his last, he opened up to the press, saying that Blake had infected him with the virus. From Bruce Dern to Harrison Ford to Wiliam Shatner to Adam West to Cloris Leachman to Dennis Hopper, the Western town had a lot of visitors to keep things interesting in the show's 20 years on the air.. One of the guest stars on the show happened to make Amanda Blake, who played Miss . Blake, who smoked up to two packs of cigarettes a day, had, back in 1977, had surgery to treat oral cancer. William Shatner The Enterprise captain again entertains his darker side on Gunsmoke, portraying a con artist. She once played Mrs. Keller on Gunsmoke Season 17 Episode 24 called The Wedding in 1972. Davis and Blake allegedly became friends after her guest appearance on Gunsmoke. Despite playing a terrifying persona, others would describe her as down to Earth and easy to get along with. google_color_bg = "000000"; Amanda Blake (February 20, 1929 - August 16, 1989) Amanda Blake (born Beverly Louise Neill, February 21, 1929 [citation needed] - August 16, 1989) was an American actress best known for the role of the red-haired saloon proprietress "Miss Kitty Russell" on the western television series Gunsmoke. google_ad_height = 600; Stockley; "Big Wednesday" (1978) as Lucy; "Straight Time" She and her parents moved to Claremont, California, while Amanda was still in high school, and she graduated from Claremont High. ". She was primarily a television actress but had done some Although his character, Festus Haggen, was introduced to Gunsmoke (1955) in an episode called Us Haggens, in which he arrived in Dodge City to avenge the death of his twin brother, the fact that Festus had a twin was never again mentioned on the show. RELATED: Taking A Look At The Cast Of Gunsmoke Then And Now 2020. Before Gunsmoke, she was mainly a movie star. Amanda Blake lived a colorful life and held her own as a woman, actress, cancer survivor, and animal activist. Blake had the opportunity to see other stars come and go,such as Burt Reynoldsand Roger Ewing. Fran Ryan (1926-2000) Replaced Amanda Blake (Kitty) as Miss Hannah. The information in this article is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.