The Rifleman
"Welcome to The McCain Ranch"
Sammy Davis Jr.

Sammy Davis Jr. played Tip Corey in Two Ounces of Tin, he was the guy who wanted the Marshal out of North Fork by sundown ― The Most Amazing Man as Wade Randall, he's the cowboy who claimed to have killed Red Morgan.

He was one of Chuck's favorite guest stars and a close friend. He was well known for his saying
"Here come d' judge" on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In and his song The Candy Man.....
♫ Who can take a sunrise, sprinkle it with dew
Cover it with choc'late and a miracle or two
The Candy Man, oh the Candy Man can.....♫

Sammy Davis Jr. was often billed as the greatest living entertainer in the world. The son of vaudeville star Sammy Davis Sr., he was known for his singing, dancing, he played instruments, acting, did stand-up comedy.

He helped break down racial barriers in show business in the 1950s and 1960s, especially in Las Vegas, where he often performed; he started that in the early 1950s, he was not allowed to stay in the hotels he played in, as they refused to take blacks as customers.

Sammy lost his left eye in a car crash when he was his way to record the theme song for the Tony Curtis film, Six Bridges to Cross (1955).

He was a member of the Rat Pack with Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop. All appear in Ocean's Eleven (1960).

I have talked to several people who knew Sammy and said that in his prime he was one of the fastest in America with the western fast draw.    "No brag.....just fact!"

Sammy Davis Jr. bought two of Joe Bowman's famous customized Ruger Single Action pistols - Joe was in
When the West was Fun

 *There has been a rumor through the years about Sammy Davis Jr. wanting a Rifleman's Rifle for doing the two episodes of The Rifleman.

I had Asked Arnold Laven about this.....
The William Morris Agency, who represented Sammy, called Levy-Gardner-Laven to say he would like to do an episode.  We promptly negotiated a contract.  The rifle was not part of the negotiation, but aware that he wanted a rifle, we gladly gave him one.  It was after Sammy saw the first episode that he expressed the desire to do another.

Arnold Laven one of the producers of LGL Productions / The Rifleman had this to say about Sammy Davis Jr. .....A couple of years before The Rifleman I directed Anna Lucasta with an all black cast (starring Eartha Kitt)...Sammy Davis (his first acting job) was cast in a colorful supporting role....most the better black actors were in New York where there was a modest amount of work along with several black theater companies...in those years there were very few parts for the black actors in movies...so I went to New York to do most of the casting...at the same time Sammy Davis was appearing at the Apollo Theater in the Harlem area...The Apollo was a huge theater which would show a movie plus a stage show, usually featuring a well known black performer....Sammy was, at that time, at the top of his game, the number one song and dance man in the business....so when he performed before a jam packed theater, the applause was thunderous after each number...around the middle of his show he went off stage and returned a few minutes later dressed as a cowboy...a black cowboy at that time didn't make much sense and a black cowboy who looked that far from John Wayne made even less sense...so when Sammy reappeared with two six guns strapped onto his belt the theater went silent...waiting for some kind of explanation and Sammy began by explaining that some day he hoped to get a job in a western and the first thing would be to learn how to handle guns..."so when I started to learn the fast draw" he said as he demonstrated with a quick move to the gun, it fell in the floor before he could get it fully drawn...(moans from the audience)...he went on from there showing how with time and a lot of practice (demonstrating as he talked) he did, indeed, improve...."improve" is a huge understatement because in short order he was doing those remarkable, dazzling tricks with both guns twirling in the air.... thrown behind his back, under his legs all being caught amid exploding gunshots...not only did the guns explode but so did the audience...screaming and yelling...I was truly overwhelmed...and that is how come his facility with guns was worked into the Two Ounces of Tin episode.

Sammy Davis Jr. was big into the early fast draw completions and was a master in all the fancy pistol twirling tricks. 

Be sure and checkout Robert Wise: The Motion Pictures by Joe Jordan.
Robert Earl Wise (September 10, 1914 – September 14, 2005) was an American film director, producer and editor.
What a great book about Robert Wise's movies career and the legacy he left behind.
Also included in this book is Sammy Davis Jr. and many other great interviews.