Show Cancellation
The Rifleman was reportedly canceled over low ratings and because actor Johnny Crawford was aging (which kids tend to do). The actor later talked about the end of the series, explaining in an interview on The Rifleman: The Chuck Connors Page, “You know, I never did know exactly why and I wasn’t too concerned at the time, because after having done it for five years, I was anxious to do something else. I felt personally that the show was getting a little stale and that the scripts were not as good as they had been. The first season, I still think, was our best, and that was our best season in the ratings.”
Another Character
During the ‘50s, there was a shortage of men who could portray cowboys on the small screen. Paul Fix, who eventually played Marshal Micah Torrance on the show, appeared on the show as a doctor who patched up Hopper.