Secrets Of TV’s The Rifleman: More Than Just Guns And Good Times

#6. Character Development

Famous writer/director Sam Peckinpah originally wrote The Rifleman pilot for the popular Western Gunsmoke three years earlier but it had been turned down. Peckinpah tweaked the Gunsmoke script by changing the lead character’s name from John McCain to Lucas McCain and added a son to the script. And more changes were in the works…

#7. Adding Drama

Producer Arnold Laven decided to add a twist or two before going into full production. He made Lucas McCain a widower who was raising his son alone, and also changed McCain from a pistol sharpshooter to a dead shot with a rifle. The first change resulted in Lucas McCain ranking #32 on TV Guide’s list of the “50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time” published in the June 20, 2004 issue.

#8. Awesomely Ambidextrous

Not only did Lucas McCain hit his intended target 99.99 percent of the time, he could apparently make those shots with either hand. In some of the show’s episodes, McCain would just randomly change hands as he shot, never losing sight of his mark. This talent was never mentioned onscreen or off by Connors or his fellow actors.

#9. Coffin Nails

Cigarettes weren’t viewed as the devil incarnate back in the 1950s when The Rifleman was shot but Lucas McCain was only shown smoking a cigarette once on the show. In real life, Chuck Connors smoked 60 cigarettes a day. He died at age 71 in 1992 from complications of lung cancer and pneumonia.

#10. Manly Spin-Off

Lucas McCain had a lot of long conversations with his son Mark about morality and always doing the right thing. But he had some adult buds too, including a plainsman. Michael Ansara appeared as his “Plainsman” character in two installments of The Rifleman and was then given his own show, Law of the Plainsman in 1959.

Secrets Of TV’s The Rifleman: More Than Just Guns And Good Times

#6. Character Development

#7. Adding Drama

#8. Awesomely Ambidextrous

#9. Coffin Nails

#10. Manly Spin-Off

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