Get out of Dodge

Origin of: Get out of Dodge

Get out of Dodge

Get out of Dodge is an American colloquial expression meaning that it's time to get out of a dangerous or compromising situation. It dates from the 1950s and was popularised by the Western TV Series Gunsmoke that ran for 20 years from 1955 to 1975, starring James Arness as the sheriff of Dodge City, Kansas, which during the 19th century was a cultural American icon for a typical lawless, western frontier town, the sheriff of which would often urge undesirables 'to get out of Dodge.'