"The Rifleman" Mail Order Groom (TV Episode 1960) Poster

(TV Series)

(1960)

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8/10
The good story comes through in this nice episode.
kfo94948 February 2014
Isabel Dent, a homely looking woman, has a piece of land that the Profit brothers, Jess (John Anderson) and Jim (Sandy Kenyon) are keen on getting anyway possible. They have been causing trouble for Isabel even since.

It just so happens that Isabel is expecting to meet an Eastern man, John Jupiter (Peter Whitney), on the morning stage as the two have been corresponding and thinking about getting married. Jupiter, a large man, arrives and immediately is harassed by the Profit brothers. But the strong Jupiter is afraid to fight the brothers because he does not know his own strength and came close to killing a man back east. But it seems the Profit brothers are set on making sure that Isabel and Jupiter never have a life together.

Peter Whitney is perfect as the larger-than-life John Jupiter that is searching for a mate. But there is a concern with the pick of John Anderson as the villain. We all know that the selection of each episode is done sometime after the actual filming of a show but it was kind of odd that the previous episode also featured John Anderson as a villain. So two episode in a row had Mr Anderson cast as the bad guy which does not make for the best decision by producers. But because of the good story this odd occurrence can be quickly overlooked and the episode enjoyed.
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8/10
True Love
gordonl562 September 2013
Warning: Spoilers
THE RIFLEMAN – Mail Order Groom – 1960

Local woman, Alice Backes asks Chuck Connors and his son, Johnny Crawford for a favour. The rather plain-jane woman has a "mail order groom" coming in on the noon stage. Would Connors meet the man, Peter Whitney, and check him into the local hotel. The couple will meet the next day for the first time. The only contact they have ever had is through the mail.

Connors agrees and meets the stage. Also waiting at the stage stop are brothers, Sandy Kenyon and John Anderson. The pair are ranchers who are after a piece of land Backes owns. The two have been pressuring Backes to sell to them. They want to see who her new husband is.

When Whitney exits the stage everyone gets a good laugh of the "eastern store bought duds" he is wearing. The two brothers decide Whitney is a softy who will be no problem.

Connors introduces himself and takes Whitney to the hotel. Connors tells him where and when he is to meet Backes. The next day, Whitney exits the hotel and starts for Backes' house. Kenyon and Anderson lasso Whitney and tie him to hitching post, then, they pour half a bottle of cheap whiskey over him. Connors and Crawford find the man sometime later and cut him loose. They then give him a buggy lift to meet Backes. Whitney and Backes quickly take a shine to each other.

Several days later, Whitney has bought a small fixer up house in town. He intends to spruce it up and move Backes in after they get married. This idea is quickly ended when Kenyon and Anderson douse the place in coal oil and light it ablaze. They have pushed a little too hard on Whitney. He turns out not to be the bookish type at all. He tosses Anderson through a saloon window and fires Kenyon up onto the saloon sign. Connors pulls Whitney off Anderson before he kills him.

Kenyon and Anderson now want some payback of their own. They grab up Backes at gunpoint and wait for Whitney. Young Crawford sees the play and tells Whitney and his father, Connors. Crawford is sent off to summon Sheriff Paul Fix. Whitney and Connors go to the Backes rescue. Whitney and Anderson are wounded in the battle before Backes is freed. Anderson and Kenyon are soon rotting in jail while Whitney and Backes become man and wife.

A quick and easy to watch episode of the popular 1958 to 1963 western series, THE RIFLEMAN..
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9/10
Just replace newspaper with dating app
c_e_tripp17 January 2021
With a couple of tweaks in your head this is a modern progressive story. Two people find love before meeting in person through mail.

This is a fun episode with two great character actors that are often seen in westerns and in fact several times each in The Rifleman
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