Gunsmoke STILL Beats Law & Order

The cancellation of the original Law & Order series after 20 seasons has TV writers everywhere comparing the run of the Dick Wolf series to Gunsmoke, which also ran for 20 seasons on TV.

Of course, everybody (?) knows that Gunsmoke began on radio, and ran three seasons before also becoming a TV program (albeit with a different cast). By this count, Gunsmoke handily beats Law & Order for longest running primetime series with a 23-year run.

Heck, if we start counting combined radio & TV runs, there are probably other shows that beat Gunsmoke (like the Jack Benny Program, for instance).

I realize this is a silly argument, but it would be nice to see the radio origins of Gunsmoke called out by a current media writer someplace, if only for additional accurate context. Once again, I am reminded of the bizarre wire story from last year that said the radio-and-then-TV soap opera Guiding Light "predated television."

Until then, I guess there's only one way to handle the killers and the spoilers . . . with a U.S. Marshal and the smell of . . . quality media criticism!