Secrets Of TV’s The Rifleman: More Than Just Guns And Good Times
Crawford Wasn’t Acting; He Was Really Sick

Crawford added, “I knew that if the lady who taught me on the set, who was also a welfare worker – it was her responsibility to see that if I was ill, I was removed from the set until I was in proper health. I didn’t want to hold up production and all that, so I tried to keep it a secret from her, but I guess it became somewhat obvious. The particular scene that we were doing when she discovered or decided that I was really ill, was when they’re supposed to be packing me in ice. I have a very high fever and they’re trying to bring it down and I think that was the first scene we actually photographed for that episode.”