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Chuck Connors and Johnny Crawford had a ''Rifleman'' reunion by hanging out and herding cattle together
The on-screen father and son were just as close as they were on camera.
There are actors who wear a role in a Western as uneasily as one might put on a cowboy costume, and then there are some actors who rush onto the screen like they were destined for such a role. For Chuck Connors, it seems like he was simply meant to play Lucas McCain in The Rifleman, and Johnny Crawford his son, Mark.
Nowhere else is this better proven than in a 1985 interview with the Press Journal. The interview features a conversation with Connors, who, even with his long and storied acting career, hadn't forgotten about the role that The Rifleman played in his life. More importantly, he also hadn't forgotten the friendships forged on the set of the series either.
Connors revealed that not only did he and his onscreen son, Crawford, keep in touch after The Rifleman had ended its run on television, but the two also came together for a reunion of sorts, with an activity that was very fitting of the McCain men. "We went down and herded cattle for a rancher in Oklahoma," Connors said.
Crawford spoke to The Copley News Service about his relationship with Connors, who he saw not only as a friend but as someone to look up to in the acting business.
"It was a fascinating part of my education listening to Chuck telling his baseball stories or he'd be reciting Casey at the Bat or he'd be doing speeches from Shakespeare," Crawford said. "This always surprises people, that Chuck Connors knows Shakespeare."
