A producer of The Rifleman snuck his family name into the show multiple times

Do you recognize the name "Merar"?

Film and television producer Arthur Gardner was born in Marinette, Wisconsin, in 1910. He was close with his extended family who lived nearby, including his maternal grandparents Dr. and Mrs. Merar. His grandfather was the local optometrist.

After high school, Gardner moved to California, hoping to become an actor. He worked steadily, mostly in small, uncredited roles, until World War II. During the war, he joined the First Motion Picture Unit, making training films for the Army Air Forces. He decided, along with fellow unit members Jules Levy and Arnold Laven, to become a producer after the war.

Sure enough, in 1951, Levy-Gardner-Laven Productions was born. They produced noir and science fiction films before hitting it big with their first TV effort, The Rifleman. They followed the popular Chuck Connors Western with others, including The Big Valley in 1965.

Through all his success, Gardner never forgot his family back in Wisconsin. He showed his love by putting tidbits in his productions that they would recognize. One example seen in many of his projects is the family name "Merar" taken from his grandparents but also the name of many cousins.

In The Rifleman, the "Merar Ranch" is mentioned numerous times. In "The Score is Even," Lucas sends Mark to the Merar Ranch for help, and Abe Merar (played by Joe Benson, a frequent Rifleman extra and good friend of Chuck Connors) comes to Lucas' aid at the end.

A character named Tom Merar appears in the episode "First Wages" and the Merar Ranch is mentioned yet again in "Ordeal."

Perhaps the most notable use of the name "Merar" in The Rifleman is in season four's "The Debt." The episode sees Micah transporting a dangerous prisoner. Lucas and Mark meet up with them when Mark realizes the prisoner is the same man who saved his life years ago. With that in mind, Mark lets the prisoner, a man named Renolds, escape without sounding the alarm. Lucas is furious with Mark and brings him to the Merar Ranch while he and Micah go after Renolds. This time Abe Merar is played by Hank Patterson, best known as Fred Ziffel from Green Acres. When Renolds shows up at the ranch, Mark has to face the consequences of his decision to let him go!

Arthur Gardner also slipped the name "Merar" into his later series The Big Valley. In fact, he paid direct homage to his grandfather with the character Dr. Merar, who appeared in multiple episodes. The doctor’s wife on the show was played by fellow producer Arnold Laven's wife, Wallace Earl Laven (sometimes credited as Amanda Harley).

The doctor wasn't limited to the small screen either. In the 1974 John Wayne detective movie McQ, also a Levy-Gardner-Laven production, the movie legend orders, "Get Doc Merar over there!" after learning a friend has been shot early in the film.

Though this little detail might slip by most casual viewers, it's interesting to know the sentimental reason why the name "Merar" showed up so many different times in classic entertainment.

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7 Comments

WhiteRook 45 months ago
The countryside around the McCain ranch looks a lot like the The Big Valley, except for the Barkley mansion. Doc Adams office and Marshal Dillon's jail show up a lot on the The Big Valley.
Jeffrey 46 months ago
You told us stuff that is meaningless to most people, even big The Rifleman fans, which I am not.
vonstockhoff Jeffrey 17 months ago
Your comment is totally useless. If you are not a fan of the show, and you found the info useless, why did you not only read it but then feel compelled to comment on it? Seems you spent an inordinate amount of time on something you found useless about a program of which you are not a fan.
texasluva 46 months ago
Sometimes you learn about people that have been significant in the cinema and TV industry through MeTV. I knew little about film and television producer Arthur Gardner. Born in 1910 and deceased in 2014. Yes that would be 104 years old. Just looking at all his credits on IMDb made me dizzy.
Everything from TV series
McQ, The Big Valley, Safari 3000 to The Monster That Challenged the World and of course The Rifleman. Has over 60 credits as producer, actor and extra crew. Plenty enough for one life time
MW1018 46 months ago
Isn’t that Fred Ziffel from Green Acres?
DUH!!!!!
Did you even bother to read the story? Both the character Fred Ziffel and the actor who portrayed him, Hank Patterson, are mentioned!
How very kind of you! Please forgive my oversight. May God bless you and those you love.
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