Ken Curtis is best remembered for his role as Festus Haggen on the long-
running CBS western TV series Gunsmoke (1955 – 1975). Curtis was a
singer before moving into acting and combined both careers once he
entered films, performing with the popular Sons of the Pioneers from 1949
to 1953 as well as singing with the Tommy Dorsey band. Curtis replaced
Frank Sinatra as vocalist for the band. Curtis’ last acting role was as the
aging cattle rancher "Seaborn Tay" (above) in the Turner Network TV
production Conagher (1991).