| The Lone Ranger |
 |
| Network |
| ABC 1949 - 1957 |
| Drama |
| 30 Minutes |
Set in the Southwest of the late 19th
century, this was the story of Texas Ranger John
Reid (Clayton Moore/John Hart), a lone survivor
of an ambush by the Cavendish Gang who was found
by an Indian named Tonto (Jay Silverheels) and
nursed back to health
Recovered from his injuries, the ranger donned a black mask,
vowing to avenge the death of his fellow rangers. Attaining his
goal, he continued traveling with his faithful Indian companion to
lead a fight for law and order in the early days of the Old West.
"A
fiery horse with the speed of light, a cloud of dust and a
hearty hi-yo Silver! The Lone Ranger! With his faithful Indian
companion, Tonto, the daring and resourceful
masked rider of the
plains led the fight for law and order in the early West. Return
with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear. The Lone Ranger
rides again!"
The Lone Ranger and Tonto
Listen to Opening Theme
The Lone Ranger was a friend to decent people everywhere. To
protect them and himself he wore two six-shooters Especially made for
him. He never shot to kill but wounded if necessary.
Silver bullets
were his ammunition of choice; he used the bullets as a means of
identifying himself to local law enforcement.
When the Lone Ranger needed to go undercover he donned a variety
of disguises, often that of a bearded, or mustachioed character.
Memorabilia
TRIVIA NOTE:
The Lone Ranger character was created by Fran
Striker and George W. Trendle and debuted on
WXYZ Detroit radio on January 30, 1933 and ran
until episode No.2596 entitled "Cold Spring
Showdown" that aired on September 3, 1954.
The
television adaptation ran on ABC-TV from
September 15, 1949 through September 12, 1957.
The idea for the Lone
Ranger can be traced back to a program written
by Fran Striker called "Covered Wagon Days' that
aired in Buffalo, New York on WEBR as early as
1929.
During the 1952-54 season, John Hart played the
role of the Lone Ranger. Clayton Moore who played the role
of the Lone Ranger on the TV series was a
stuntman, horseman and expert gun twirler. Born
in Chicago on September 14, 1914, Clayton Moore
spent his youth as a circus trapeze artist and
later in his career became known as "King of the
Serials" at Republic Pictures starring in
Jesse
James Rides Again (1947), The Adventures of
Frank and Jesse James (1948), G-Men Never Forget
(1948), and Ghost of Zorro (1949).
In 1954,
George W. Trendle, the owner of the Lone Ranger
character, sold his interests to Texan Jack
Wrather for the sum of three million dollars.
The Wrather Corporation purchased the entire
Lone Ranger property including all of the radio
programs, 182 half-hours
Trendle black & white
produced programs as well as all merchandising
and related rights.
During the 1956-57 season
the Wrather Corporation produced the thirty-nine
new LONE RANGER adventures (these were produced
in color).
In August of 1955, the color feature
film The Lone Ranger began production at Warner
Brothers Studios followed by a second feature
film The Lone Ranger and The Lost City of Gold
(1958) released through United Artist. Both
films starred Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels.
The Animated
Series
The Wrather Corporation later produced a
Saturday morning cartoon series THE LONE
RANGER/CBS/196-69 as well as the box-office bomb
of a remake The Legend of the Lone Ranger (1981)
starring Klinton Spilsbury as the Lone Ranger
and Michael Horse as Tonto, his faithful Indian
companion (Michael Horse was part Cree Indian
and part Caucasian).
Obituaries: Clayton Moore: 12/28/1999; Jay
Silverheels: 03/05/1980;
Lane Bradford: 06/07/1973; Gerald Mohr: 11/09/1968;
Chuck Courtney: 01/19/2000.
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