As the father of four boys in real life, playing a strong father figure came naturally to Chuck Connors. Standing 6'5", Connors' physical stature, rugged build and good looks also made him ideally suited for the role. He learned to shoot and do his own stunts to prepare for the role.

Did Chuck Connors really ride horses?

One must learn to ride a horse before accepting the full responsibility of being an Old West hero. Connors did end up buying a horse, a $50 horse to be exact, and he became pretty good at riding him too.

Who was Chuck Connors stunt double?

Young, stuntman for Chuck Connors, Clark Gable and a plethora of others. Jack N. Young, a member of the Hollywood community as a stunt man, location scout and later in his life, screenwriter, passed on today at the age of 91.

Was that a real rifle in The Rifleman?

The rifle used on the set of The Rifleman, an 1892 Winchester caliber . 44-40 carbine with a standard 20-inch barrel, was an historical anachronism, as the show was set in 1881, 12 years before John Browning had designed the rifle. It appeared with two different types of levers.

Where was The Rifleman actually filmed?

The Rifleman Locations

The make-believe town of North Fork was vividly realized on a CBS sound stage. However, most outdoor sequences were shot at the 20th Century Fox Ranch in Malibu Creek State Park and Iverson Ranch in Chatsworth, Los Angeles.

The Rifleman (Number of rifle shots at the beginning of the show)

How many acres was Lucas McCain's ranch on The Rifleman?

On the first season of the 60s TV show The Rifleman, Lucas Mcain says his small cattle ranch is 4400 acres. On a real life cattle ranch, how many cows or cattle would he probably have? Probably not as many as you might think. The fictitious setting for the McLain ranch is Northern New Mexico.

Why did The Rifleman always wear gloves?

Some say it was because actor Chuck Connors had injured his hands in a hunting accident which made it difficult to grip a rifle without gloves.

What kind of jeans did The Rifleman wear?

Anachronisms. In this and many episodes, Lucas McCain is wearing Wrangler jeans as depicted by the W on the back pockets and the rivets on the pockets. While the series was set in the 1880s, Wrangler jeans were not invented until 1947.

Where is Chuck Connors' rifle today?

The Rifleman - The Riflemans Rifle On Display - YouTube. An actual rifle used by Chuck Connors while filming the western tv series The Rifleman. This is on display at the NRA Museum in Northern Virginia.

Why did The Rifleman end?

As it turns out, the series' star was also the one who ended it all. He cited three primary reasons why The Rifleman ended its run. In a 1963 interview, Connors provided an Associated Press reporter with his list of grievances. Predictably, the network was at least partially to blame for the kerfuffle.

Did Chuck Connors and Johnny Crawford get along in real life?

Rehearsals took Crawford at least 28 hours per week, and school kept him busy for at least three hours each day. By spending as much time together as a real father-son duo would per week, the two coworkers became like family. "I treat him just like I would my own kids," Connors said.

How did Chuck Connors pass away?

Chuck Connors

He appeared in more than 45 films and television shows, including a memorable role in the miniseries Roots. He died of lung cancer at age 71, in 1992.

How much did The Rifleman make per episode?

Salaries. The Rifleman (1958) - $3,000 per episode.

Was Chuck Connors a big smoker?

He smoked three packs of Camel cigarettes a day until the 1970s. He fronted anti-smoking campaigns in the mid-1970s. In a 1987 interview he said he was still smoking, but claimed to ration himself to only one cigarette a day.

Did Johnny Crawford go to Chuck Connors' funeral?

The two remained incredibly close after the series ended and Crawford even gave a eulogy at Connors' funeral in 1992.

Did Chuck Connors own a ranch?

Connors became a real-life Lucas McCain.

Connors utilized the 20-acre ranch to its utmost potential, as the article stated that he "spends much of his time raising prizewinning horses and doing other chores around the ranch — just like Lucas McCain did on our screens 25 years ago."

Where was Lucas McCain's ranch on The Rifleman?

Fork, New Mexico. Territory)

How many bullets did Chuck Connors rifle hold?

Connors cranks off 12 shots in slightly less than six seconds during the show's opening sequence. This mesmerizing feat was made even more miraculous by the fact that the Winchester 1892 carbine only holds 10 rounds.

What was the real rifle from The Rifleman?

Chuck Connors, as the Rifleman, used his “Hogleg”. It was the 1892 Winchester in ,44-. 40 Caliber.

How big was The Rifleman?

If the 6-foot-6 McCain wasn't intimidating enough to rabble rousers, his expertise with a trick-lever Winchester 1892 saddle ring carbine was the convincer. Indeed, the rifle was the show's gimmick.

What color were Chuck Connors' eyes?

The casting of the tall, blond, blue-eyed Chuck Connors as a Native American Indian was widely criticized even when the film was made in 1961. Chuck Connors later married his co-star in this film, Kamala Devi. Chuck Connors tried wearing brown contact lenses but said they hurt his eyes.

Did Lucas ever marry on The Rifleman?

Mark suggested such a woman would be "kinda hard to find". Lucas agreed: "Very hard to find, son". As it turns out, Lucas did not remarry during the run of the program. However, in the last season, he was for a time smitten by a beautiful hotel owner named Lou Mallory.

How tall was actor Chuck Connors?

Following his military discharge in 1946, the 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) Connors joined the Rochester Royals (now the Sacramento Kings) of the National Basketball League for their 1945–1946 championship season.

How old was Johnny Crawford when he made The Rifleman?

Between the ages of 12 and 17, Crawford played Mark McCain, son of Lucas McCain, the title character in The Rifleman. Together with his onscreen father, Mark McCain spent five seasons standing up for what was right in the fictional town of North Fork, situated within what was then the New Mexico Territory.

Why was The Rifleman discontinued?

Why was the television series “The Rifleman” cancelled in 1963 after only 5 seasons? Two main reasons; a steady drop year-over-year in the ratings, plus Johnny Crawford (who played the son) was aging out of the role as a young boy.