Why Chuck Connors of TV’s ‘The Rifleman’ Stopped Playing For the Chicago Cubs?
What To Know
- Chuck Connors left his baseball career to pursue a more stable income in acting.
- He became a television icon as Lucas McCain on The Rifleman.
- Beyond his athletic and acting achievements, Connors was known for his generosity.
Chuck Connors was larger than life. Everything about him, from his stature to his athletic accomplishments … well, they just seemed pretty darn big. Of course, Chuck is best known as Lucas McCain from the classic TV western television series, The Rifleman, which ran on ABC for five seasons during the late 1950s and early 1960s, but before that he played for both the NBA and MLB!
Kevin Joseph Connors was attending Seton Hall on a sports scholarship when Major League Baseball scouts started taking notice of him. Kevin, who preferred to be called Chuck, was truly gifted. He was one of those guys who, if he wanted to, could play multiple major league sports.
Credit: George Long/TV Guide/Everett Collection
Being a lifelong Brooklyn Dodgers fan, Chuck dropped out of college and decided to play a handful of minor league games with a Dodgers farm team. However, before he could really get his athletic career going, Chuck felt that his efforts were needed elsewhere. So, he joined the United States Army following America’s entrance into World War II.
During most of the war, Chuck served as a tank warfare instructor at Fort Campbell, located on the Kentucky-Tennessee border. After his military service ended, he returned to sports, but instead of playing baseball, he opted to join the fledgling Boston Celtics during the 1947–48 NBA basketball season.
But you know what? Baseball really was his first love, and he found it impossible to resist the siren call of America’s favorite pastime. After playing with the Chicago Cubs in 1951, Chuck was sent back to the minors. At that point, he was married, he had a young son, and he realized that he needed to find a way to provide a steady income for his young family. Because of that, Chuck decided to make a few phone calls.
During his sports career, he had been approached by casting directors many times. With his size and rugged good looks, these folks were certain that he could make it big in the entertainment industry. And, as we all know, they were right.
Pat and Mike (1952) Credit: Everett Collection
Chuck’s first role was in the Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn flick, Pat and Mike. Not a bad way to start a career! After that, role after role came Chuck’s way. I’m not going to talk about everything that Chuck was in. His TV and movie filmography is extensive. Instead, I’m going to focus on the television show that he is best known for, The Rifleman.
Writing for INSP TV in 2024, journalist and television historian Maria Schulz pointed out one of the things that made that program truly special: “The Rifleman was the first network television show to feature a single parent raising a child alone.”
Johnny Crawford, the actor who played Mark McCain on The Rifleman, has talked at length about the special relationship that he had with Chuck on that show.
Johnny Crawford and Chuck Connors (Feb 1959). Credit: Richard Hewett / TV Guide/Everett Collection
However, unlike the TV show, it wasn’t a father-and-son-like relationship; Johnny had parents, so there was no need for that. Instead, Chuck was his hero. And just like he was for many others, for Johnny, his costar was larger than life, an amazing athlete who would throw the ball and shoot hoops with him during breaks in filming. Despite their age difference, Chuck was incredibly kind and always interested in what was going on in Johnny’s life; and because of that, their friendship would last a lifetime.
As long as we’re talking about the kind of guy that Chuck was, I should probably mention that, for a number of years, he hosted an annual invitational golf tournament. Proceeds from that event, which took place in Palm Springs, California, went directly to the Angel View Children’s Foundation, whose mission is to enable both youth and adults with various disabilities.
Although he was a great athlete for much of his life, Chuck was also a heavy smoker. Sadly, in 1992, that habit caught up to him. Kevin Joseph “Chuck” Connors died on November 10 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles at the all too young age of 71, due to complications from pneumonia stemming from lung cancer.
At the time of his passing, Variety shared that in 1983, Chuck had said that he didn’t mind being remembered most for The Rifleman. It’s a fitting sentiment from a feller who wore plenty of different hats throughout his career but is ultimately remembered for the landmark TV show where he played a father who loved his son more than life itself.
Remind 
Top Cowboys
February 2026
Who were the best Top Cowboys of the past? Saddle up for our fond look back.
Buy This Issue