Webone primary motivation for festus’ replacement was simply keeping gunsmoke fresh; Webfestus haggen (played by ken curtis) is matt dillon's deputy marshal and one of the main characters of gunsmoke who would first appear in the season 8 episode us haggens. However, in 1975, ken curtis made the decision to.

Webfestus was the lovable deputy to marshal matt dillon and quickly became a fan favorite for his unique personality and humor.