Chuck Connors and Johnny Crawford made a thoroughly believable father and son duo in "The Rifleman" for its 168 episodes during its five season run. Lucas McCain was a widowed rancher whose expertise with a Winchester repeater was phenomenal. As it turned out, "The Rifleman" broke new ground as the first prime time series about a widower and his son. Mark and he moved to North Folk, New Mexico, and he bought a ranch sprawling over 4000 acres. Virtually everybody in North Fork admired Lucas, and he was instrumental in helping the town drunk, Micah Torrance (Paul Fix), recover his position of town marshal. Indeed, whenever Micah is away, Lucas serves as the interim lawman. In one episode when North Fork landed their first bank, Judge Hanavan (Sidney Blackmer) drove out to see Lucas and try to convince him to invest his money in the bank. Apparently, Hanavan met many North Fork residents who were reluctant about putting their money in the bank because Lucas refused to get a bank account. Reportedly, Sam Peckinpah originated the show after "Gunsmoke" producers rejected his teleplay. Director Arnold Laven tweaked the idea by giving Lucas a son. Each episode depicted the moral lessons that Lucas taught his son as well as adhered to western conventions. The exciting opening scene where Lucas storms down main street rapid firing with his Winchester was always electrifying material as was composer Herschel Burke Gilbert's orchestral music. Gilbert's music never left you in doubt about what was about to transpire. Often the producers repeated the same musical cues, but Gilbert's music was so exemplary that it didn't matter. Some gifted directors called the shots on "The Rifleman," including Sam Peckinpah of "The Wild Bunch," Paul Wendkos of "Guns of the Magnificent Seven," Richard Donner of the "Lethal Weapon" franchise, Ted Post of "Hang'em High," Arthur Hiller of "Love Story," Arnold Laven of "Rough Night in Jericho," James Clavell of "To Sir, With Love,"and Joseph H. Lewis of "Gun Crazy." Actually, Lewis helmed the largest number of episodes, approximately 52, while Laven came in second with 22 episodes. Mind you, all 168 episodes were lensed in black & white and broadcast by ABC-TV. According to the Neilson Ratings, "The Rifleman" started out strong during its initial season, claiming 4th place. However, the show slipped in its successive seasons to 13th and didn't crack the top 3o during its final season.
Review of The Rifleman
