User Reviews

THE RIFLEMAN – The Stand-In - 1961

Chuck Connors headlines this 1958 to 1963 western series that ran for 168 episodes. Connors is a world class hand with a Winchester rifle. This of course ends up getting him in no end of trouble. This is episode 114.

A couple of men, Richard Devon and Dabbs Greer are transporting a condemned man, Charles Cooper, to Yuma to be executed. The two have been hitting the bottle a tad heavy and are three quarters loaded. They pull the prison wagon over at Connors' ranch and ask for a bottle. Connors is not amused and tells them to hit the road.

They stop a few miles short of North Fork and set up camp. Greer rides into town and returns with a couple of bottles of rot-gut. Devon and Greer make quick work of the first bottle and Devon passes out. Greer is then fooled by the prisoner, Cooper, into opening the locked prison wagon. There is a quick struggle and Cooper makes a break into the night. Greer manages to get off a few shots after the escapee. He then passes out as well.

The next morning, Greer and Devon decide that they need a prisoner to deliver or lose their jobs. Greer suggests they backtrack to the ranch they passed and grab up Connors. Seems like a good plan answers the still half cut Devon. They ride back to Connors and soon apply some pistol butt to Connors' head.

After loading Connors in the locked wagon they resume the journey to Yuma. Once Greer sobers up, he has second thoughts about the whole idea. Devon however has an idea of his own. He pulls his gun and blasts Greer. He now plans on letting Connors escape and likewise killing him. He will tell the Prison Officials that the prisoner was killed while escaping after he had murdered Greer. This does not quite go to plan with the not so sober Devon botching his play. Connors quickly reverses the situation and soon has Devon locked in the cage. He then turns the wagon for North Fork.

While all this has been going on, the escaped prisoner, Cooper had been hiding in the barn at Connors' ranch. One of Greer's wild shots had got Cooper in the gut. He is slowly dying. After Connors son, Johnny Crawford finds the man, he rides to North Fork to fetch Sheriff Paul Fix. Crawford and Fix return to the ranch and find Cooper has expired of his wounds. The two take a quick look around and soon turn up clues as to what happened to, Connors. Fix and Crawford mount up and ride off in pursuit. They quickly catch up with Connors and all is explained.