Secrets Of TV’s The Rifleman: More Than Just Guns And Good Times

Doc Burrage (Ralph Moody)

Actor Ralph Moody had appeared in several Westerns before he landed the role of Doc Burrage on The Rifleman. Edgar Buchanan, Fay Roope, Rhys Williams, Jack Kruschen, Robert Burton and Bert Stevens also played the doctor. Moody later starred in Bonanza after The Rifleman ended. His very first acting role was in 1900 playing Heinrich in Rip Van Winkle. In the 1940s, he was frequently a radio cast member on The Roy Rogers Show. He also joined the Gunsmoke radio show in 1952. His first TV appearance happened in 1949 on the Lone Ranger. He appeared in three episodes, and each time played an Indian chief with a different name.