Johnny Crawford, Young Star of 'The Rifleman,' Dies at 75
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Johnny Crawford, the original Mouseketeer who starred as the young son of the Civil War veteran portrayed by Chuck Connors on the 1958-63 ABC series The Rifleman, died Thursday, it was announced. He was 75.
In 2019, it was revealed that Crawford had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, and a GoFundMe campaign organized by Paul Petersen — the advocate for former child actors and onetime star of The Donna Reed Show — was set up to help the family deal with expenses.
Crawford was 12 when he appeared for the first time as Mark McCain, son of the widower Lucas McCain, on The Rifleman. The Four Star Television series, set in the New Mexico Territory with storylines crafted by Sam Peckinpah, ran for five seasons, from September 30, 1958, to April 8, 1963, and then for decades in syndication and reruns.