The Rifleman (Season 5)

Waste (1) (Episode 1)

Writer: Robert Culp

Air date: 1962-10-01

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Marshal Torrance is heading home from a cattle sale with Lucas and Mark when the old lawman mysteriously disappears. They trace him to a nearby Mexican ghost town. (Part 1 of 2)

Waste (2) (Episode 2)

Writer: Robert Culp

Air date: 1962-10-08

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Conclusion. After Alphonso's wife gives birth, the bandits holding Marshal Torrance relax their guard, enabling Lucas and Mark to rescue the old man.

Lou Mallory (Episode 3)

Air date: 1962-10-15

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Red-headed Lou Mallory arrives in North Fork and soon arouses the townpeople's suspicions.

Quiet Night, Deadly Night (Episode 4)

Air date: 1962-10-22

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Townspeople brace for the worst when a new girl arrives—with symptoms of smallpox.

Death Never Rides Alone (Episode 5)

Air date: 1962-10-29

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: A gunslinger rides into North Fork for a meeting with Lucas.

I Take This Woman (Episode 6)

Air date: 1962-11-05

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Lou looks for a way out when the man her dying father promised her to arrives.

The Assailants (Episode 7)

Writer: Herman Groves

Air date: 1962-11-12

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: An assassination plot unfolds as four gunmen disguised as cavalrymen enter North Fork. Their target: Sen. Jim Borden. Their weapon: a Gatling gun.

Mark's Rifle (Episode 8)

Writer: Oliver Crawford

Air date: 1962-11-19

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Sharpshooter Marty Blair tries to persuade Lucas to buy Mark a rifle.

The Most Amazing Man (Episode 9)

Air date: 1962-11-26

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Fast-draw artist Wade Randall is less than anxious to display his prowess.

Squeeze Play (Episode 10)

Writer: Ed Adamson

Air date: 1962-12-03

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: A speculator will stop at nothing to grab Lucas's land.

Gun Shy (Episode 11)

Writer: Cyril Hume

Air date: 1962-12-10

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Mark blames himself for a friend's accidental death.

The Anvil Chorus (Episode 12)

Air date: 1962-12-17

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: A blacksmith-turned-deputy sets the stage for trouble when he demands that all townspeople turn in their weapons.

Conflict (Episode 13)

Writer: Ed Adamson

Air date: 1962-12-24

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Lucas's self-confidence begins to slip away when he misses an easy shot.

Incident at Line Shack Six (Episode 14)

Air date: 1963-01-07

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: A railroad gang boss frames an Apache.

Suspicion (Episode 15)

Air date: 1963-01-14

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: A peddler is implicated in a series of murders.

The Sidewinder (Episode 16)

Writer: Robert Lewin

Air date: 1963-01-21

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Gridley Mau is gunning for Lucas, who killed his father during an attempted robbery.

The Sixteenth Cousin (Episode 17)

Air date: 1962-01-28

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: A Japanese nobleman seeks revenge when his servant is insulted.

Hostages to Fortune (Episode 18)

Air date: 1963-02-04

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: At Halloween, rustlers take advantage of the seasonal disguises to raid a cattle ranch.

And the Devil Makes Five (Episode 19)

Air date: 1963-02-11

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: A snake crawls into Lucas's bed, and Mark must lure it away before it strikes.

End of the Hunt (Episode 20)

Air date: 1963-02-18

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Lucas is thrown into jail to stop him from murdering an old enemy.

The Bullet (Episode 21)

Air date: 1963-02-25

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Lucas is baffled when the marshal of a neighboring town refuses to hold a gambler who just attempted murder.

Requiem at Mission Springs (Episode 22)

Air date: 1963-03-04

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Lucas begins a trek to find a cure for Mark, who is paralyzed after a bad fall.

The Guest (Episode 23)

Writer: Ed Adamson

Air date: 1963-03-11

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: New arrival Mario Arsatti becomes very friendly with Lucas, but this turns out to be merely pleasure before business: he's been hired to kill Lucas.

Old Man Running (aka The Wanted Man) (Episode 24)

Air date: 1963-03-18

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Lucas, who blames his wife's death on his father-in-law, refuses to help the old man elude gunmen.

Which Way'd They Go? (Episode 25)

Air date: 1963-04-01

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: The notoriously lazy Jackman brothers discover their mortgage has been foreclosed.

Old Tony (Episode 26)

Air date: 1963-04-08

Runtime: 30 min

Overview: Mark and his girlfriend Laurie discover that an old hermit is very lonely.