The Safe Guard

"The Safe Guard" is the 8th episode of The Rifleman Season One and the 8th episode overall. Directed by Joseph H. Lewis and written by David Swift, it aired on November 18, 1958.
==Synopsis==
A new bank opens up in North Fork and hires a former Texas gunfighter with a sordid past to act as safe guard.
==Watch==
==Plot==
Lucas McCain and Mark are having breakfast on the ranch when a stranger, Floyd Doniger, arrives on horseback. Lucas invites him to eat, and Floyd mentions he's heading to North Fork for a new job and hopes to settle down, but is secretive about the details. Floyd’s impulsive reaction to a bucket falling reveals him to be a skilled gunfighter.
Downtown, Judge Hanavan is holding a ceremony for the opening of the Bank of North Fork. As three drifters Gavin, Witcherly, and Walkerman watch, he introduces its president, John Hamilton. To combat bank robberies, Hamilton has hired Floyd as a guard, and demonstrates his sharpshooting skills to the citizens of North Fork.
Judge Hanavan later asks Lucas in private to deposit money to instill trust in the bank among the townspeople, but Lucas declines due to a past experience with a bank failure that caused him and his wife to lose their savings.
That evening, Floyd finds Gavin, Witcherly, and Walkerman—who are shown to know Floyd from his sordid past—in his hotel room. They try to recruit him for a bank robbery. Initially resistant because he had hopes to settle down, Floyd eventually agrees.
The next day, Gavin, Witcherly, and Walkerman hold up the bank. John Hamilton desperately looks to Floyd to act, but he does nothing and lets them continue. Right as the three are about to leave with the money, he shoots all three of them, then turns on Hamilton, steals the money himself, and decides to leave town.
As Floyd attempts to escape, he kills a bystander and then encounters Lucas. The two have a quick draw and Lucas kills him. In the aftermath, John Hamilton, regretful, offers the townsfolk the chance to withdraw their money. Contrarily, Lucas announces he will deposit money, showing a newfound trust in the bank and inspiring the other citizens of North Fork to follow suit.
==Cast==
===Main===
*Lucas McCain - Chuck Connors
*Mark McCain - Johnny Crawford
===Recurring===
*Judge Hanavan - Sidney Blackmer
*John Hamilton - Harlan Warde (debut)
*Hattie Denton - Hope Summers
===Guests===
*Floyd Doniger - Claude Akins
*Gavin - Marc Lawrence
*Witcherly - Dennis Cross
*Walkerman - Mel Carter
*Townsman - Fritz Ford
Category:Episodes
Category:Season One episodes
Category:Episode pages with completed plot sections
Category:Episodes where Micah is out of town
Category:Episodes where Lucas kills someone