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Until I was ten years old I had been raised on a farm
in Missouri. We were very poor financially, but a close, happy
family. In 1957 we moved to California and got our first television.
A new world opened up to me, but my parents monitored what we
watched very carefully. One of the shows we were allowed to watch
was "The Rifleman". I was hooked from the very first episode! I
remained a very faithful viewer and became a huge fan of Johnny,
looking forward to each new episode.
I turned 18 in December 1965, and Vietnam was raging. I
enlisted in the Navy. My first real experience in that process
involved going to the Armed Forces Induction Center in Los Angeles
for a full day of testing and physical exams.
I remember seeing Johnny standing across the room that
morning and thinking how nice it would be if I could meet him. Later
I found myself standing next to him in line. I introduced myself. I
spent much of that day standing next to Johnny Crawford. We talked
about "The Rifleman" show as well as show business in general. We
also talked about Vietnam. I knew he had been drafted. I had joined
the Navy to avoid Vietnam. Unfortunately they assigned me to a
construction battalion and I spent two years there - I guess that
was just meant to be.
I had only met one other celebrity up to that point,
Hugh O'Brien, at Los Angeles International airport. I finally got the chance to meet and chat with
someone I really cared about. Under the circumstances, it made the
day enjoyable and memorable. I remember him to be a very nice and
interesting person. The thing I remember most was how open and
"ordinary" he was.
I never saw Johnny again and did not see any of the
training films he worked on during his Army tour.
- Robert T.
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