# The Rifleman (1958)

> A widowed 1880s New Mexico rancher and his young son face the frontier's troubles with a rifle and a steady code.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/12916

## Facts

- Seasons: 5
- Episodes: 168
- Episode runtime: 30 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: western, family
- Created by: Sam Peckinpah
- Network: ABC
- Cast: Chuck Connors, Johnny Crawford, Paul Fix, Paul Mantee, Tommy Cook, George Macready, Les Tremayne, Ross Elliott
- TMDB rating: 8.3/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051308/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: mild
- Complexity: simple
- Violence: mild
- Tone: earnest, wholesome, nostalgic, gentle, restrained

## What critics say

Audiences rate the series as well-liked classic television, valuing its straightforward frontier storytelling and the father and son bond at its center.

## Synopsis

The Rifleman (1958-1963) is an American black-and-white western series created by Sam Peckinpah for ABC, produced by Four Star Television. Chuck Connors plays rancher Lucas McCain, a widowed father in the 1880s town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory, who raises his son Mark (Johnny Crawford) largely on his own. Paul Fix plays Micah, a steady presence around the ranch. Each half-hour episode follows a self-contained frontier problem: a land dispute, a stranger with trouble on his heels, a hard-pressed townsperson, all resolved through McCain's skill with a modified rifle and a firm sense of right. The engine is a man who prefers to settle things with words and reason, yet must keep his family safe in a town where the law is thin. The show runs five seasons across 168 episodes, a classic case-of-the-week western with a family core. Its tone is earnest and wholesome, with a quiet, dusty frontier atmosphere. Fans of Gunsmoke, Little House on the Prairie and The Big Valley will find resonance in its mix of rough justice and domestic warmth.

## Shows like The Rifleman

- [Have Gun, Will Travel (1957)](https://ember.film/tv/10215)
- [Laramie (1959)](https://ember.film/tv/12952)
- [The Rebel (1959)](https://ember.film/tv/12903)
- [Branded (1965)](https://ember.film/tv/12878)
- [Bonanza (1959)](https://ember.film/tv/955)
- [The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin (1954)](https://ember.film/tv/10039)
- [Wagon Train (1957)](https://ember.film/tv/5721)
- [The Big Valley (1965)](https://ember.film/tv/10770)
- [Fury (1955)](https://ember.film/tv/3074)
- [Little House on the Prairie (1974)](https://ember.film/tv/1679)

---

Site overview: https://ember.film/llms.txt