Original subtitles

Starring James Arness as Matt Dillon.

Ain't we ever goin' to get out of this town?

What's the matter? Don't you like it here?

No, I don't like it here.

What's the matter? You homesick?

What's funny?

Your being homesick, Creel. Homesick for what?

Now, what does that mean?

I can just picture the rat's nest you was born in.

You want to get your eye gouged out, Brady?

Oh, take it easy, will ya, Creel.

We're all in the same boat here.

It's not my fault, is it?

You're supposed to do the thinkin' around here.

How much money we got?

Oh, about $25, I guess.

Isn't that enough to get us to Pueblo?

Nope.

If we don't get there pretty soon, Clay, they're gonna call the fight off.

Why should they? You're the big attraction there.

If he's such a big attraction,

how come they can't send us some advance money?

I've already thought about that.

Oh. Then let's do it.

I telegraphed them two days ago.

- You did? - Mm-hmm.

The answer came back this morning. No.

Ah, for the love...

Now you look here, Clay.

I ain't goin' to stay in this town much longer.

Now, you get us out of here, or I'm goin' to get me a new manager.

Oh, you are, are you?

Well, you just go right ahead and get yourself a new manager.

Well, I just think I will.

Well, that's good.

And when you do, you tell him what a dirty fighter you are.

Tell him how he's got to get you out of town

just one step ahead of a lynching party every time you have a fight.

And while you're at it, Creel, tell him how ugly you are.

Ugly all over.

Shut up, you understand? Shut up!

Lie down, will ya?

Where are you going?

I'm goin' out. Out anywhere where I can breathe some fresh air.

I can't stand this dump.

Well, just don't start findin' no saloons to start breathin' in.

Don't forget we still got to eat once in a while.

And I'm hungry now.

I may not be back.

Excuse me.

You all right?

Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine.

What's the matter? You drunk?

Drunk, no.

I ain't had a drink in over a month.

Wait a minute.

When did you have your last fight?

Fight?

What fight are you talkin' about?

A prizefight, in the ring, with bare knuckles.

You don't fool me, not with an ear like that.

Say, you must've seen me.

No. I've never seen you.

I would've remembered though.

I ain't fought in two or three years.

I... I kind of retired.

Mm-hmm. You live here in Dodge City?

Been here two years.

Just kind of takin' it easy. You know how it is.

Yeah. I know how it is.

Retired, huh?

I got enough of fightin'. A man can't go on forever.

No, of course he can't.

Since you're retired, are you doing all right?

You got a good job?

Oh, I got no complaints.

Well, uh, where do you work?

Oh, here, there. I take whatever comes along.

I don't think I got your name.

My name is Clay.

Cran Clay from St. Louis.

Tom Burr.

Nice to know you, Tom.

Same here.

You know, I'd like to know more about you, Tom.

It isn't very often I get to talk to a real prizefighter.

Say, you wouldn't have a drink with me, would ya?

No, I seldom drink.

Well, only one wouldn't hurt.

I'd be mighty proud, Tom.

I guess it wouldn't hurt to do a little talkin', would it?

Of course it wouldn't, especially about prize fighting.

You know, I never missed a prizefight if I could help it.

Got great admiration for men like you.

Fightin' there in the middle of the ring,

round after round, takin' it, givin' it out.

Must've paid real well, huh?

Yeah.

You must've been a great fighter.

How about that drink, huh?

Oh, I hit him with a right, and it was all over.

Tell us some more, Tom.

I'm gonna have a little drink, and then I'll tell you

how I whooped that fighter in Denver.

What's going on here, Jim?

It's Tom Burr. He's on the juice and relivin' old times.

Looks like he's got everybody here reliving it with him.

Yeah.

I got to see this.

I knocked him kickin' with one punch!

In the 23rd round, one punch,

and we was covered with blood, both of us.

Boy, what a fight.

Clem, ain't you got any more whiskey?

Your friend left, Tom.

What friend?

The man you come in with... Clay.

Where'd he go?

I don't know.

Hmpf. Oh, well.

I'll buy you another drink, Tom.

Clem, bring another bottle.

All right.

Come on, Tom. Tell us some more.

Yeah. 23rd round.

We stepped out, and I caught him with a left hook.

Down, and it was over.

Oh.

Clay: Come on, Tom.

Ah...

Where you been?

Just took a walk.

So you're Tom Burr, huh?

That's right.

Sounds like you must've been a pretty good fighter, Tom.

I was a strong fighter.

Too bad you're all soft and broken down now, Tom.

Broken down?

Yeah. I'd sure liked to have seen you fight.

But I guess it's too late now, huh?

It's hardly too late.

I'll fight again.

Tom, Tom, you've been gone too long.

You couldn't beat nobody now.

I couldn't, huh?

Well, you just find somebody. I'll fight him.

You will?

You bet I will. Anybody.

Fight to a finish. Winner take all?

Fight to a finish. Winner take all.

Said I'll fight anybody, and I will.

Where is he? I'll fight him right now.

He's coming, Tom. He's coming.

Good.

Anybody at all.

What about me, Tom?

Can you whip me?

I can whip anybody in this room.

You'd better turn around, Tom.

It's Hob Creel.

Creel... I beat you before, remember?

In San Francisco.

You beat me... Not clean, not in a fair fight.

I beat you blue.

I beat you until you crawled away.

A foul and dirty fight!

What's the matter, Tom? Scared to fight him?

A clean fight, I'll fight him!

- Winner take all? - Winner take all!

Boys, we got ourselves a deal.

There's going to be a fight tomorrow night

right here in the saloon between Hob Creel and Tom Burr.

So you'd better get your money out and get it out quick

because Brady and I will take care of everything for ya.

Come on.

Oh, Tom, come in.

Good morning, Doc.

Sit down.

How are ya?

Well, I... I guess I need a little doctorin'.

Well, that don't seem reasonable to me.

You look fine. What's your trouble?

I don't know.

Sometimes it happens, and then it goes away.

What goes away?

These dizzy spells.

Sometimes when I stand up, I can't walk straight.

And then sometimes it happens when I'm walkin'.

I see. Well, unbutton your shirt there.

Have a little trouble breathin', do ya?

Once in a while.

Uh, how long you had this trouble?

Well, just a couple of months.

Well, you can give me a pill or somethin', huh, Doc?

You just keep quiet now, Tom. Breathe naturally.

Take a deep breath, Tom.

Take another, and then hold it now.

All right, let it out.

I'm all right, ain't I, Doc?

You can just give me a little pill or something?

Well, I...

Yes, I'm going to give you some pills, Tom,

but I'll tell you what I want you to do.

I want you to go to your room and you get in bed.

And you stay there for, oh, two or three days.

I'll be lookin' in on you from time to time.

I want you to get a lot of rest.

Sure, Doc. Tomorrow.

I got to fight a man first.

You're gonna what?

I'm gonna fight Hob Creel tonight.

You mean a prizefight?

Sure.

No.

No, Tom, I'm afraid you've had your last fight.

You call it off.

I can't do that.

Well, you'd better.

You listen to me, Tom.

I don't like to tell you this,

but I don't think that I have ever heard

a heart any worse than yours.

If you fight anybody, it just might kill you.

I got to fight this man, Doc.

Why?

Because he beat me once.

He was the dirtiest fighter I ever met.

He beat me 'til I crawled.

'Til I crawled right out of the ring.

It's been stuck in my belly ever since.

And I ain't gonna crawl no more...

no matter what happens.

Thanks for the pills, Doc.

I'll pay you.

Step right up, men. Step right up.

There it is.

Big fight tonight. Don't you miss it.

Only $1.00 to get in.

Chance for each and everyone of you to make some money,

if you're willing to back Dodge City's own Tom Burr.

And I'll personally cover all bets myself.

And if Tom Burr wins, there's a chance

for each and every one of you to retire.

Looks like we got company. Step aside, boys.

Let the marshal through.

Nothin' that says the law can't place a bet or two.

Of course, the admission's free.

I take it you're Cran Clay.

At your service, sir.

I'd like to talk to you for a minute, if I can, alone.

Well, certainly, certainly.

Here, I want you to take over, Brady.

My partner here will take care of all of your problems,

large and small.

I'll take that dollar bet.

Marshal, you... you're not goin' to tell me

it's against the law to gamble in Dodge City, are ya?

Nope. I'm not gonna tell you that.

What is it, then?

Tom Burr is not a well man.

I just talked to Doc Adams.

And he tells me this might cost him his life.

So he's tryin' to back out, huh?

No. He's not trying to back out.

He wants to go through with it.

Marshal, I've got an idea.

Would you mind coming with me?

What for?

I'd like to show you something.

This way, Marshal.

Creel, this is a United States marshal.

He wants to call the fight off.

What?

I thought that'd stop you.

What's this about callin' the fight off?

Tom Burr is not a well man.

Doc says he can't fight. He says it would kill him.

Tom Burr never could fight.

I near killed him the last time we met.

Yeah, I understand you're quite a fighter.

Care to try your luck?

You see, Marshal,

there's really no reason to call the fight off.

I think saving a man's life is a pretty good reason.

There's nothing wrong with Tom Burr exceptin' he's a coward.

He wants to fight you.

I don't believe it.

How much did he pay the doctor to say he was sick, Marshal?

What'd you bring me over here for?

To meet him.

All right. We've met.

That badge don't mean a thing to me, Marshal.

I could roll it up in a little ball and throw it away.

You see, Marshal, there's really nothing you can do

without making a fool of yourself.

You're wasting my time.

What do you think he's gonna do, Clay?

Oh, he ain't gonna do nothin', Creel.

This whole town wants this fight.

He can't stop it.

Here.

You go feed your face.

I got some work to do. Got to make some money.

Well hello, Marshal. Chester.

Dillon: Hello, Tom.

Come in.

Sit down.

How you feelin'?

Me? Oh, I'm feeling fine, Marshal. Fine.

Mm-hmm.

Tom, I just got through talkin' to Doc Adams.

Oh?

And I talked to that promoter and Hob Creel, too.

Creel.

He's the dirtiest fighter I ever met.

He beats men to death and enjoys doing it.

Doc says you can't fight him, Tom.

He says it'll kill you if you do.

I got to fight him, Marshal.

He had me crawlin' once, and he laughed at me.

But not this time.

No more.

Mr. Dillon, I don't understand why you just don't call the fight off,

say it's off, and that's that.

No, you can't do that!

I'll fight Creel anyway.

If I don't fight him here,

I'll find him, and I'll fight him without a crowd.

Tom, you're under arrest.

What?

You heard me.

I ain't done nothin'.

Well, I don't know. You were pretty drunk last night,

and you were swinging pretty wide the way I hear it.

There ain't nothin' to that.

I didn't cause no damage.

You did, too. You were disturbin' the peace.

You fell down twice tryin' to get home last night, Tom.

Well, that wasn't the liquor. That was...

Let's go, Tom.

You can't do this, Marshal.

You got to let me fight this man.

No, I don't.

Come on.

Be glad to get you a cup of coffee, Tom.

Tom Burr here yet?

I ain't seen him.

It'll give us a chance to cover a few more bets.

Look, why don't you go in there and warm up?

And don't show off, will ya?

It'll just hurt the odds.

You tell me your business, and I'll tell you mine, huh?

Howdy, ma'am.

You're a little early, Marshal.

Maybe you'd like to make a bet.

There isn't gonna be any fight tonight, Clay.

I got Tom Burr locked up in jail.

All right, break it up, boys. Come on. Step back.

Give me a little room here.

I got a very special announcement I want to make to you.

Your marshal here just informed me

that he's going to stop the fight.

Seems that he locked up Tom Burr in jail.

Now listen.

Doc Adams tells me that Tom Burr's got a very serious heart condition.

This fight here tonight could kill him.

All right, you boys came in here

to put your money down to see a fight.

You didn't put it down to a see a murder, did ya?

Tom Burr's a coward, and you're tryin' to cover for him.

Ain't that the truth, Marshal?

No, it's not. But the fight's off anyway.

Now, you can be kind of meddlesome, can't ya?

Especially when you're wearing a gun,

and it's a good thing you're wearing one.

Seems the marshal's got a stripe up his back, boys.

What's the matter with you, Marshal?

You got a bad heart, too?

Man: Yeah, Marshal, why don't you fight him?

All right, let's get it over with.

Dillon: You gonna get up?

All right, then you crawl out of here.

Go on, crawl!

Hold it, Clay.

Now get out of here.

Man: Boy, did you see him go through that window?

Kitty: Okay, come on. Get back.

Give him some air. Drinks on the house.

Some way to stop a fight.

Thanks, Kitty.

Are you all right, Mr. Dillon?

Yeah, I guess so.

Doc wanted to see you over at the jail.

Tom Burr tried to escape.

- He did? - Yeah. Yeah.

He... He tried to pull the bars apart.

I guess the effort was just too much for him.

Well, I guess I'd better get over there, then.

Kitty, would you see that everybody gets their money back?

I sure will.

Okay.

- We'll see ya later. - Okay.

How is he, Doc?

What happened to you?

Tom: Marshal.

Yeah, Tom.

It's good you locked me up.

I couldn't have done much good.

You fought him?

Yeah, I fought him.

You beat him?

Made him crawl, Tom.

That's good, Marshal.

That's good.

Well, he sure wanted to make that fight.

He died tryin' to get there.

Well, nobody could say that he was a coward.

That's for sure.

No. I don't think they ever will.

Not ever again.