| Lone Ranger | |
|---|---|
 Clayton Moore as the Lone Ranger | |
| Publication information | |
| First appearance | WXYZ (January 31, 1933) |
| Created by | |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | Ranger John Reid |
| Team affiliations | Texas Ranger Division |
| Partnerships | Tonto |
| Abilities | Expertmarksman[6] Above-average athlete,horseman,hand-to-hand combatant, andmaster of disguise |
TheLone Ranger is a fictionalmasked formerTexas Ranger who foughtoutlaws in theAmerican Old West with his Native American friendTonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture.[7]
He first appeared in 1933 in aradio show onWXYZ (Detroit), conceived either by station ownerGeorge W. Trendle[3][4][5] or byFran Striker,[8] the show's writer.[9][10] Test episodes aired earlier on radio stationWEBR inBuffalo. The radio series proved to be a hit, and spawned a series of books (largely written by Striker), an equally populartelevision show that ran from 1949 to 1957, comic books, and several films.
The title character was played on the radio show byEarle Graser for some 1,300 episodes, but two others preceded him, according toThe New York Times: "a man named Deeds, who lasted only a few weeks; a George Stenius [actuallyGeorge Seaton according to theLos Angeles Times]. After Graser died in 1941,Brace Beemer assumed the role after serving as the program's narrator.[11][8] On the radio, Tonto was played byJohn Todd and Roland Parker, among others.
Clayton Moore portrayed the Lone Ranger on television, although during a contract dispute, Moore was replaced for a season byJohn Hart.Jay Silverheels, aMohawk from the Six Nations Indian Reserve inOntario, Canada, was cast as Tonto.
While details differ, the basic story of the Lone Ranger's origin is consistent in most versions of the franchise.[8] The Lone Ranger is the sole survivor of a group of six ambushedTexas Rangers.[12] A posse of six members of the Texas Ranger Division, led by Captain Dan Reid, pursue a band of outlaws led by Bartholomew "Butch" Cavendish but are betrayed by a civilian guide who was secretly working with Cavendish, and who led the unsuspecting rangers into an ambush at a canyon known as Bryant's Gap.[13]
Later, a Native American named Tonto stumbles onto the grisly scene. He discovers one of the rangers, Captain Reid's younger brother John, barely alive, and he nurses the man to health. In some versions, Tonto recognizes the lone survivor as the man who had saved his life when they both were children. According to the television series, Tonto gave Reid a ring and the nameKemo Sabe, which he said means "trusty scout".[14] John Reid then tells Tonto that he intends to hunt down Cavendish and his men and to bring them tojustice. To conceal his identity and honor his fallen brother, Reid fashions a blackdomino mask using cloth from his late brother's vest. To aid in the deception, Tonto digs a sixth grave and places at its head a cross-bearing John Reid's name so that Cavendish and his gang will believe that all the Rangers have been killed.
In many versions, Reid continues fighting for justice as the Lone Ranger even after the Cavendish gang is captured.
As generally depicted, the Lone Ranger conducts himself by a strictMoral Code based on that put in place by Striker at the inception of the character. It read:
I believe that to have a friend,
a man must be one.
That all men are created equal
and that everyone has within himself
the power to make this a better world.
That God put the firewood there
but that every man
must gather and light it himself.
In being prepared
physically, mentally, and morally
to fight when necessary
for what is right.
That a man should make the most
of what equipment he has.
That 'this government,
of the people, by the people
and for the people'
shall live always.
That men should live by
the rule of what is best
for the greatest number.
That sooner or later...
somewhere...somehow...
we must settle with the world
and make payment for what we have taken.
That all things change but truth,
and that truth alone, lives on forever.
In my Creator, my country, my fellow man.[15]
In addition, Fran Striker and George W. Trendle drew up the following guidelines that embody who and what the Lone Ranger is:[16]
Although the Lone Ranger's last name in the radio shows was given as Reid, his first name was never specified in any of the radio or television shows. Various radio reference books, beginning withRadio's Golden Age (Eastern Valley Press, 1966), give the Lone Ranger's first name as John.[17] Some cite the 20th-anniversary radio program in 1953 as the source of the name, but the Lone Ranger's first name is never mentioned in that episode.[18]
In the final chapter of the 1938 RepublicThe Lone Ranger movie serial, he is revealed to beTexas Ranger Allen King. In the second serial,The Lone Ranger Rides Again, he identifies himself as Bill Andrews.
The Lone Ranger's first name is also thought to have not been mentioned in contemporary Lone Ranger newspaper comics, comic books, and tie-inpremiums, though some have stated that the name John Reid was used in an illustration of the grave marker made by Tonto, which appeared in either a comic-book version of the character's origin story or in a children's record set.
The name John Reid is used in the 1981 filmThe Legend of the Lone Ranger. The Lone Ranger is also John Reid inDynamite Entertainment's licensed Lone Rangercomic-book series that began in 2006, and in the 2013 Disney filmThe Lone Ranger.
The name Luke Hartman was used in the 2003TV-movie/unsold series pilot.
The character made his initial appearance in the 11th episode of the radio show. Fran Striker told his son that Tonto was added so the Lone Ranger would have someone to talk to.[15] He was named byJames Jewell, who also came up with the term "Kemosabe" based on the name of a summer camp owned by his father-in-law in upstate Michigan. In the local Native American language, "Tonto" meant "wild one".[19]
The character spoke in broken English that emphasized Tonto had learned it as a second language.
Becausetonto means "stupid" or "ignorant" in Spanish, the character is renamed "Toro" (Spanish for "bull") or "Ponto" in Spanish-speaking countries.[19]
Dan Reid was introduced on the radio series in 1942 as a juvenile sidekick to the Masked Man; the character is Captain Reid's son, and the Lone Ranger's nephew. When Trendle and Striker later createdThe Green Hornet in 1936, they made this Dan Reid the father of Britt Reid, alias the Green Hornet, thereby making the Lone Ranger the Green Hornet's great-uncle.[20] InThe Lone Ranger radio series, Dan was played by Ernest Winstanley, Bob Martin, Clarence Weitzel,James Lipton, andDick Beals.
The Lone Ranger's nephew made his first appearance in "Heading North" (December 14, 1942) under the name Dan Frisby, the grandson of Grandma Frisby. The two lived in an area described as "the high border country of the northwest" near the town of Martinsville close to the Canada–US border. This and the following four episodes ("Design for Murder", December 16, 1942; "Rope's End", December 18, 1942; "Law of the Apex", December 21, 1942; and "Dan's Strange Behavior", December 23, 1942) centered on a plot to steal the valuable Martin Copper Mine and Dan's being fooled by a Lone Ranger impostor into helping him steal it. The Lone Ranger and theMounties foil the plot and capture the impostor and his gang.
In the final episode of the arc, "A Nephew Is Found" (December 25, 1942), dying Grandma Frisby reveals to the Lone Ranger Dan's true identity and how he came to be with her. Fifteen years previously, Grandma Frisby had been part of a wagon train travelling toFort Laramie. Also on that wagon train had been Linda Reid, wife of Texas Ranger Captain Dan Reid, and her six-month-old son, Dan Jr., who were travelling from their home in Virginia to join her husband. Before the wagon train could reach Fort Laramie, Indians attacked it and Linda Reid was among those killed. Grandma Frisby took charge and care of Dan Jr., but upon reaching Fort Laramie, found two messages waiting, one that Captain Reid (voiced in this story byAl Hodge) had been killed in an ambush at Bryant's Gap and the other that her own husband had been killed in an explosion. Taking Dan and certain items concerning his identity (including a small gold locket containing a picture of Dan's parents and a picture of Captain Reid's brother), Grandma Frisby travelled to Martinsville and raised Dan as her grandson.
On hearing this story, the Lone Ranger reveals his true identity and his own story to Grandma Frisby, and promises that he will care for Dan like his own son. Before Grandma Frisby dies, the Lone Ranger removes his mask and lets her see his face. Her last words are, "Ride on, Lone Ranger ... ride on forever ... with Danny at your side." The Lone Ranger takes the grieving Dan outside the cabin, gives him the locket, and reveals their true relationship. Dan Reid Jr. went on to be a recurring character throughout the remainder of the series, riding with the Lone Ranger and Tonto on his own horse Victor.
Eventually, Dan Reid Jr. was sent East to gain an education, making infrequent appearances on the series whenever Fran Striker wanted to remind the audience of the family connection, and later became part ofThe Green Hornet radio series, first appearing on October 22, 1936, establishing the connection between the Lone Ranger and the Green Hornet in the episode "Too Hot to Handle" (November 11, 1947) and being played throughout the series by John Todd, who played Tonto onThe Lone Ranger radio series.
According to the episode "The Legend of Silver" (September 30, 1938), before acquiring Silver, the Lone Ranger rode a chestnut mare called Dusty. The Lone Ranger saves Silver's life from an enraged buffalo, and in gratitude, Silver chooses to give up his wild life to carry him.
The origin of Tonto's horse, Scout, is less clear. For a long time, Tonto rides a white horse called White Feller. In "Four Day Ride" (August 5, 1938), Tonto is given apaint horse by his friend Chief Thundercloud, who then takes White Feller. Tonto rides this horse and refers to him simply as "Paint Horse" for several episodes. The horse is finally named Scout in "Border Dope Smuggling" (September 2, 1938). In another episode, however, the Lone Ranger, in a surge of conscience, releases Silver back to the wild. The episode ends with Silver returning, bringing along a companion that becomes Tonto's horse Scout.
In an echo of the Lone Ranger's line, Tonto frequently says, "Git-um up, Scout!" (The phrase became so well embedded in the Lone Ranger mythos thatInternational Harvester used it as an advertising line to promote theirScoututility vehicle in the 1970s.) In theFormat Films animated cartoon, which ran from 1966 to 1968, Tonto also had an eagle he called Taka, and installments that focused exclusively on him or had him team up with the Lone Ranger ended with his saying, "Fly, Taka! On, Scout!" (Those where he teamed with the Lone Ranger had the Ranger following this up with the customary "Hi-yo, Silver! Away!")
| Created by | George Trendle |
|---|---|
| Written by | Fran Striker |
| No. of episodes | 2956 |
The creators of the character were George Trendle (manager of WXYZ radio station) and writer Fran Striker.[21]
The first of 2,956 radio episodes ofThe Lone Ranger premiered onWXYZ, a radio station servingDetroit, Michigan, on January 31, 1933.[22][23] As Dunning writes inOn the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio:[23]
There may have been a few late-night on-air shakedown shows prior to the official January 31, 1933, premiere date. Lacking concrete evidence, [Lone Ranger authority Terry] Salomonson is inclined to doubt it. "There is nothing in any of the Detroit papers to indicate this, but that in itself doesn't mean much. The papers didn't even list the show in their radio logs at first."
The show was an immediate success.[4] Though it was aimed at children, adults made up at least half the audience.[4][8][24] It became so popular, it was picked up by theMutual Broadcasting System and, on May 2, 1942,[25] by NBC'sBlue Network, which in time becameABC.[26]
By 1939, some 20 million Americans were listening to the program.[21] It also had numerous listeners in other countries.[27]
An announcer introduced each episode with the following, which was sometimes changed to reflect the storyline of the episode:
In the early days of the western United States, a masked man and an Indian rode the plains, searching for truth and justice. Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear, when from out of the past come the thundering hoofbeats of the great horse Silver! The Lone Ranger rides again!
By the time it was on ABC at 7:30 pm Eastern, the introduction, voiced byFred Foy, had become "Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear", followed by, "From out of the west with the speed of light and a hearty 'Hi-yo, Silver!'" The intro was later changed to:[28]
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 western United States! Nowhere in the pages of history can one find a greater champion of justice! Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear! From out of the past come the thundering hoofbeats of the great horse Silver! The Lone Ranger rides again!
This was followed by Earle Graser's voice, declaring, "Come on, Silver! Let's go, big fellow! Hi-yo, Silver! Away!"
The Lone Ranger was played by several actors:
Tonto was played throughout the run by actorJohn Todd (although in a few isolated occasions, he was replaced by Roland Parker, better known as Kato for much of the run of sister seriesThe Green Hornet). Other supporting players were selected from Detroit area actors and studio staff. These included Jay Michael (who also played the lead onChallenge of the Yukon, orSgt. Preston of the Yukon), Bill Saunders (as various villains, including Butch Cavendish), Paul Hughes (as the Ranger's friend Thunder Martin and as various army colonels and badmen), future movie starJohn Hodiak, Janka Fasciszewska (under the name Jane Fae), and Rube Weiss and Liz Weiss (later a married couple, both actors in several radio and television programs in Detroit, Rube usually taking on villain roles on the "Ranger", and Liz playing damsels in distress). The part of nephew Dan Reid was played by various child actors, including Bob Martin,James Lipton, andDick Beals.
The theme music was primarily taken from the "March of the Swiss Soldiers" finale ofGioachino Rossini'sWilliam Tell Overture, which thus came to be inseparably associated with the series. The theme was conducted by Daniel Pérez Castañeda,[30] with the softer parts excerpted fromDie Moldau, composed byBedřich Smetana.
Many other classical selections were used as incidental music, includingWagner'sFlying Dutchman Overture,Bizet'sSymphony in C,Mendelssohn'sFingal's Cave Overture,Emil von Řezníček'sDonna Diana Overture,Liszt'sLes préludes,Tchaikovsky's1812 Overture and music bySchubert.[31] Classical music was originally used because it was in thepublic domain, thus allowing production costs to be kept low while providing a wide range of music as needed without the cost of a composer.
In the late 1930s, Trendle acquired the rights to use incidental music fromRepublic Pictures motion picture serials as part of a deal for Republic to produce a serial based (loosely) on the Lone Ranger. This music was then modified by NBC radio arranger Ben Bonnell and recorded in Mexico to avoid American union rules. This music was used in both the radio and later television shows.[30]
The radio series inspired a spinoff calledThe Green Hornet, which depicts the son of the Lone Ranger's nephew Dan,[32]Britt Reid, originally played byAl Hodge, who in contemporary times, fights crime with a similar secret identity and asidekick,Kato. One major difference between the two characters is that everyone considers the Green Hornet to be a bad guy. Reid embraces this persona, thus enabling him to infiltrate real crime syndicates, while secretly aiding the police.
Rights to The Lone Ranger and The Green Hornet have been acquired by separate owners and the familial link has been ignored in the Western character's various incarnations. The Lone Ranger–Green Hornet connection is part ofPhilip José Farmer'sWold Newton Universe, which connects disparate fictional characters.
At the beginning of each episode, the magnificent white stallion, Silver, would rear up with the Lone Ranger on his back, then they would dash off, the Ranger encouragingly shouting, "Hi-Yo, Silver!"[33] Tonto could occasionally be heard to urge on his mount by calling out, "Get-um up, Scout!" At the end of each episode, mission completed, one of the characters would always ask the sheriff or other authority, "Who was that masked man?" When it was explained, "Oh, he's the Lone Ranger!", the Ranger and Tonto would be seen galloping off with the cry, "Hi-Yo, Silver! Away!" catching the attention of one of the townspeople crossing the street.
Tonto usually referred to the Lone Ranger as "Kemo sabe", described as meaning either "faithful friend," or "trusty scout".[13][34] It is more likely the word derives from theAnishinaabe language. Gimoozaabi is said to mean "he looks out in secret."[35] Thesecatchphrases, the Ranger's trademark silver bullets, and the theme music from theWilliam Tell Overture have become tropes of popular culture.[citation needed]
Republic Pictures released twoserials starring the Lone Ranger. The first, released in 1938, used several actors playing different Texas Rangers, one of whom was also the masked hero, like Don Diego de la Vega was also Zorro. Unlike Vega/Zorro, however, the Lone Ranger's true identity remained unknown to the audience until the conclusion. The character played byLee Powell is ultimately revealed to be the Lone Ranger.
The second serial,The Lone Ranger Rides Again, was released in 1939 and starredRobert Livingston.
Tonto was played in both by Victor Daniels, billed under his usual stage name,Chief Thundercloud.
A feature version of the first serial, with added footage, was released by Republic in 1940 asHi-Yo Silver.
The Lone Ranger is a TV show that aired for eight seasons, from 1949 to 1957, and starredClayton Moore as the Lone Ranger andJay Silverheels as Tonto. Only five of the eight seasons had new episodes. It was theABC television network's first big hit of the early 1950s.[21] Moore's tenure as the Ranger is probably the best-known treatment of the franchise.[36] Moore was replaced in the third season byJohn Hart,[37][38] but he returned for the final two seasons. The final season was shot in color. A total of 221 episodes were made.
After the series ended, Moore continued to make public appearances as the Lone Ranger. In 1979,Jack Wrather, then owner of the rights to the character, obtained a restraining order against Moore, enjoining Moore from appearing in public in his mask.[39] The actor began wearing oversized wraparoundFoster Grant sunglasses, as a substitute for the mask. Moore later won a countersuit, allowing him to resume his costume.[39]
In 1961CBS producedReturn of the Lone Ranger, starring Tex Hill, as the pilot episode for a proposed TV series.[citation needed]
An animated series ofThe Lone Ranger ran from 1966 to 1968 on CBS. It was produced byHerbert Klynn andJules Engel ofFormat Films, Hollywood, and designed and animated at theHalas and Batchelor Cartoon Film studios in London, England. The show lasted thirty episodes; however, these were invariably split into three separate shorts, with the middle segment being a solo adventure for Tonto, so that there were actually 90 installments in all. The last episode aired on March 9, 1968.
These Lone Ranger adventures were similar in tone and nature to CBS'sscience fiction Western,The Wild Wild West, in that the plots were bizarre and had elements of science-fiction andsteampunk technology thrown in. Even the Lone Ranger's greatest enemy in the animated series was a dwarf, similar to James T. West's greatest enemy,Dr. Miguelito Loveless. He was called Tiny Tom, and was voiced byDick Beals. This animated cartoon was credited as being a Jack Wrather production, and it provided the first exposure many 1960s children had to the characters.
The Lone Ranger's voice was provided byMichael Rye, who had portrayedJack Armstrong, the All-American Boy on radio.Shepard Menken played Tonto. The narrator in the opening title wasMarvin Miller. Other "guest voices" were provided byPaul Winchell,Agnes Moorehead andHans Conried.
The Lone Ranger was featured, along withZorro andTarzan, inAdventure Hour cartoon shorts in the early 1980s, produced byFilmation. These episodes featuredWilliam Conrad as the voice of the Masked Man, although he was listed in the credits as "J. Darnoc" (Conrad spelled backward). This series took a more realistic tone with a heavily historical context to include an educational element to the stories, even though there were several episodes that did feature elements of science fiction (much like the earlier cartoons from the 1960s). There were 14 episodes, combining two adventures in each episode, for a total of 28 stories. Though Conrad was the main voice featured, other noted voice actors in the Filmation series include an uncreditedLou Scheimer,Frank Welker, andMichael Bell.
In 2003, theWB network aired a two-hour Lone Ranger TV movie, starringChad Michael Murray as the Lone Ranger. The TV movie served as the pilot for a possible new series. However, the movie was greeted unenthusiastically; the name of the secret identity of the Lone Ranger was changed from "John Reid" to "Luke Hartman", and while an empty grave was still alongside those of the five dead Rangers, its supposed occupant was unidentified, and the hero maintained his unmasked identity, as well, becoming a cowboy version ofZorro, as in the first film serial. Ultimately, the project was shelved, with the pilot aired in telefilm form during the summer season due to Murray's popularity with the target audience of the network.
Clayton Moore appeared in character in an episode ofLassie in 1958. John Hart appeared in an episode ofHappy Days.An episode ofThe Greatest American Hero, titled, "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys," had a special appearance by John Hart as The Lone Ranger. In the story, superhero Ralph Hinkley is despondent over his failures, and considers giving up, until he is encouraged by Hart's retelling of the Lone Ranger's exploits.[citation needed]
After the end of the television series, Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels starred in two feature films,The Lone Ranger in 1956 andThe Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold in 1958.
In 1958 the Lone Ranger appeared in the eight-minute-long documentary, "The Lone Ranger and the Peace Patrol". Presented and narrated by Clayton Moore, it revolves around purchasing U.S. Savings Stamps, a child's version ofSavings Bonds. The main focus is to get children to invest in the stamps. The narrated segment culminates with the inaugural ceremonies on the grounds of the Washington Memorial before a crowd of thousands of children and their parents.[40]
At the time of the 1981 release of the filmThe Legend of the Lone Ranger, the company that owned the rights to the character, Wrather Corp., filed a lawsuit and obtained a court injunction to prevent Clayton Moore from appearing as the Lone Ranger,[41] and then gave a cameo to his TV replacement,John Hart. The film itself was a critical and commercial failure. It starredKlinton Spilsbury in his only motion picture appearance. His lines were overdubbed byJames Keach.[42] The part of Tonto was played byMichael Horse.
Moore, who never appeared publicly without his mask, was enjoined in the lawsuit from wearing it and, in protest, he began wearing oversized sunglasses that were the approximate size and shape of the mask.[43] In a sequence in the movie, John Reid, a newly graduated attorney, is travelling west in a stagecoach to meet his brother. Another passenger announces his intent to make his fortune from his invention of sunglasses. The stage is robbed and the inventor killed. As John Reid lays the dead man on the floor with the broken dark glasses, yet another passenger says, "So much for American opportunity."
In 2013,Walt Disney Pictures releasedThe Lone Ranger, starringArmie Hammer as the Lone Ranger andJohnny Depp asTonto.[44] Directed byGore Verbinski, the film is anorigin story of the two characters and explores the duo's efforts to subdue the immoral actions of the corrupt, and to bring them to justice, in the American Old West. The film, produced with an estimated budget of $225 million, was received negatively by American critics and performed poorly at the box office.[45]
The series also inspired numerous books, comic books, and records.
The first Lone Ranger novel appeared in 1936, and eventually 18 volumes were published, as listed below. The first book was written byGaylord Du Bois, but the others were written by the character's primary developer, Fran Striker. Striker also re-edited and rewrote parts of later editions of the first novel. First published between 1936 and 1956 in hardback byGrosset and Dunlap, these stories were reprinted in 1978 byPinnacle Books.
In 2012,Moonstone Books published the novelThe Lone Ranger: Vendetta, written by Howard Hopkins.
Not considered part of the 18 series:
From 1935 to 1950, 13Big Little Books were published.
ThreeLittle Golden Books were published.
In 2012,Moonstone Books published the anthologyThe Lone Ranger Chronicles, edited by Matthew Baugh with stories by Johnny Boggs,James Reasoner,Mel Odom,Bill Crider, Matthew Baugh, Tim Lasiuta,Joe Gentile,Paul Kupperberg,Dennis O'Neil, Kent Conwell, David McDonald, Thom Brannon, Troy D. Smith,Chuck Dixon, andRichard Dean Starr, stories incorporating famous characters of the western, such asCisco Kid,Wyatt Earp andDoc Holliday.
Moonstone followed this up in 2018 with a second anthology, also edited by Matthew Baugh,The Lone Ranger and Tonto: Frontier Justice. This volume featured stories bySpur Award winners Troy D. Smith and Johnny Boggs, as well as Matthew Baugh, Frank Schildiner,Chuck Dixon, Joe Gentile,Richard Dean Starr, Tim Lasiuta,Bill Crider,Win Scott Eckert, and Thom Brannon. Troy D. Smith’s story, “The Lake Spirit”, won Western Fictioneers’ Peacemaker Award for Best Short Western Fiction.
In, 1993, Perennial published the anthologyThe Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, a collection of linked short stories bySherman Alexie. Despite the title, these stories are not authorized Lone Ranger adaptations or focused mainly on the characters. Rather, the Lone Ranger and Tonto are symbols for white and Native-American identity, respectively, along with other cultural references.
In 1938,King Features Syndicate debuted acomic strip about the Lone Ranger, initially written by Fran Striker, himself. When the time involved proved too much, Striker left the strip and it was turned over to Bob Green, later followed byPaul S. Newman and others.[46] The strip began with art by Ed Kressy. In 1939, art chores were handed over to Charles Flanders, who remained with the strip until 1971, when the strip ended.[47]
In 1981, the New York Times Syndicate launched a second Lone Ranger strip, written byCary Bates with art byRuss Heath.[48] It ran until 1984. In 1993 Pure Imagination Publishing collected two of the storylines and put them in a comic book.
Western Publishing, with its publishing partner Dell Comics, originally published some stand-alone "Lone Ranger" stories in 4 of Dell's "Large Feature Comics" (1939–1941) and in 7 issues of Dell's "Four Color Comics" series (1945–1947). ("Lone Ranger" stories also appeared in miscellaneous issues ofAce Comics,March of Comics,Future Comics,King Comics andMagic Comics, all anthology-type comic book titles.[49])
In 1948, Dell launched an actual "Lone Ranger" comic book title which began with No. 1 and lasted for 145 issues. This series originally consisted of reprints from the newspaper strips (as had all previous comic book appearances of the character in various titles fromDavid McKay Publications and from Dell). However, new stories by writerPaul S. Newman and artistTom Gill began with issue No. 38 (August 1951). Some original content was presented as early as No. 7 (January 1949), but these were non-Lone Ranger fillers. Newman and Gill produced the series until its final issue, No. 145 (July 1962).[50]
Tonto got his own spin-off title in 1951, which lasted 31 issues. Such was the Ranger's popularity at the time that even his horse Silver had a comic book,The Lone Ranger's Famous Horse Hi-Yo Silver, starting in 1952 and running 34 issues; writerGaylord DuBois wrote and developed Silver as a hero in his own right. In addition, Dell also published three bigLone Ranger annuals, as well as an adaptation of the 1956 theatrical film.
The Dell series came to an end in 1962. Later that same year, Western Publishing ended its publishing partnership with Dell Comics and started its own comic book imprint,Gold Key Comics. The new imprint launched its ownLone Ranger title in 1964. Initially reprinting material from the Dell run, original content did not begin until issue No. 22 in 1975, and the magazine itself folded with No. 28 in 1977.[51] Additionally the same year,AB published a three-part Swedish Lone Ranger story inHemmets Journal.[citation needed]
In 1994,Topps Comics produced a four-issueminiseries,The Lone Ranger and Tonto, written byJoe R. Lansdale and drawn byTimothy Truman.[52] One of the major changes in this series was the characterization of Tonto, who was now shown to be a very witty, outspoken, and sarcastic character, even willing to punch the Lone Ranger during a heated argument, and commenting on his past pop-culture depictions with the words, "Of course,quimo sabe. Maybe when we talk I should use that 'me Tonto' stuff, the way they write about me in the dime novels. You'd like that, wouldn't you?".[53]
The first issue of a new Lone Ranger series fromDynamite Entertainment byBrett Matthews andSergio Cariello shipped on September 6, 2006. It was started as a six-issue miniseries; but due to its success, it has become an ongoing series by the same team. On September 15, 2006, Dynamite Entertainment announced thatThe Lone Ranger No. 1 had sold out its first printing. A second printing of the first issue was announced; a first for the company.[54] The series has received an Eisner Awards nomination for best new series in 2007.True West magazine awarded the publication the "Best Western Comic Book of the Year" in their 2009Best of The West Source Book! And in 2010 Dynamite released "The Lone Ranger Avenges the Death of Zorro".
The second volume of the series by Dynamite was issued in January 2012. Written byAnde Parks and drawn by Esteve Polls, it ran for a total of 25 numbers, with the last issue being released in June 2014.[55]
Apart from the ongoing series, Dynamite released several miniseries starring the Lone Ranger, such asThe Lone Ranger and Tonto (4 issues, written by Brett Matthews; John Abrams with art by Mario Guevara) in 2008;Snake of Iron, a 5-part byChuck Dixon and Steve Polls published in 2012, andVindicated, 4 issues byJustin Gray and Rey Villegas in 2014.
In 2016, The Lone Ranger teamed-up with theGreen Hornet in a 5-part miniseries written byMichael Uslan with art by Giovani Timpano.[56][57]
A Dynamite "Lone Ranger" third volume, written byMark Russell and drawn by Bob Q, was released in October 2018 and ran 5 issues.[58]
All of them from Dynamite Entertainment, include:
In 1937, eight issues ofThe Lone Ranger Magazine (pulps) were published by Trojan Publishing, with stories written by Fran Striker.[59] The series was recently reprinted as facsimiles by Adventure House Publishing.[60][61]
In late 1930s Roy Meredith produced the first-known animated film based on Lone Ranger, in this silent film The Lone Ranger and Tonto capture a band of cattle rustlers and save the life of the rancher.[62]
This cartoon was produced byPathegrams on16mm film and sold to the home market and libraries, which often showed cartoons as a prelude to the feature films they would play for children, much as they do videos now. It was a silent film, like most films produced for the home market in those days, and had dialog written on title cards, just as films of the silent era.
A video game version ofThe Lone Ranger was released byKonami for theNintendo Entertainment System in North America in 1991. It is anaction adventure game featuring three different perspectives: side-scrolling, overhead, and first-person exploration. The game loosely follows the plot of the 1981 filmThe Legend of the Lone Ranger, with the ultimate goal being the rescue of the President of the United States, whom the Lone Ranger's nemesis, "Butch" Cavendish, has kidnapped.
The Lone Ranger was added as its own play set mode inDisney Infinity at its release in 2013.
The Lone Ranger program offered manyradio premiums, including the Lone Ranger Six-Shooter Ring and the Lone Ranger Deputy Badge. Some used a silver bullet motif. One ring had a miniature of one of his six-guns atop it, with a flint and striking wheel, as used in cigarette lighters, so that "fanning" the miniature pistol would produce a shower of sparks. DuringWorld War II, the premiums adapted to the times. In 1942, the program offered theKix Blackout Kit.
Some premiums were ratheranachronistic for a 19th-century hero. In 1947, the program offered the Kix Atomic Bomb Ring, also known to collectors as the Lone Ranger Atom Bomb Ring.[63] This ring was a miniaturespinthariscope that actually had a small amount ofpolonium-210 in it, which emittedalpha particles to produce scintillations on thezinc sulfide outer part of the ring. With its tailfin piece removed, though, the "bomb" body looked like a silver bullet.
The sponsor wasGeneral Mills, with itsbreakfast-cereal products:Cheerios,Wheaties, and Kix. In 1947, Cheerios produced a line of Frontier Town cereal boxes with the Lone Ranger likeness on the front of the box. Different versions of the boxes would have Frontier Town buildings on their backs to cut out. One could also send in ten cents and a box-top to get each of the four map sections of the town. These, as well as nine different boxes, were needed to complete the cardboard Frontier Town.
Besides the premiums offered in connection with the radio series, there have been many Lone Ranger commercial toys released over the years. One of the most successful was a line of 10-inch action figures and accessories released byGabriel Toys in 1973. Board games were released by Parker Brothers:The Lone Ranger Game, in 1938,[64] andThe New Lone Ranger Game, in 1956.[65]
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In the 1939Looney TunesThe Lone Stranger and Porky, supervised byBob Clampett, the masked man comes to the rescue of stagecoach driver in distress,Porky Pig.[66]
In 1940,Hugh Harman made a Lone Ranger parody forMGM Cartoons titledThe Lonesome Stranger.[67]
Jay Silverheels appeared as Tonto onThe Tonight Show starringJohnny Carson in a comedy sketch in which Carson is interviewing Tonto for employment. The audio portion of this sketch was included in the LPHere's Johnny: Magic Moments from the Tonight Show, released byCasablanca Records in 1974.
Both Clayton Moore and Silverheels appeared as the Lone Ranger and Tonto in a commercial forJeno's Pizza Rolls produced by ad man/satiristStan Freberg. The commercial was a spoof of a then-current commercial forLark cigarettes which also used theWilliam Tell overture theme music.
A recorded routine by comicLenny Bruce formed the basis for the 1971 animated cartoon,Thank You Mask Man, produced by John Magnuson Associates. This was an adult humor routine, comically implying a homosexual relationship between the Ranger and Tonto.
Parody versions of The Lone Ranger (called Lonely Rider) and Tonto appear as main characters in the 1971 Finnish western comedyThe Unhanged (Hirttämättömät). They were played byVesa-Matti Loiri andSimo Salminen.
The Top Ranger is a parody produced by Disney starringMickey Mouse (Top Ranger) andGoofy (Tonto-lone), with the story and illustrations by Marco Gervasio and published in an Italian comic book,Topolino #3005 (July 2, 2013).[68]
"The Provolone Ranger", an episode of theSuper Mario Bros. Super Show, featuredMario donning a mask to fight outlaws alongside of a speedy companion named Pronto. In a spoof of the Lone Ranger's habit of leaving before those whom he has helped can thank him, the episode ends with Mario returning to collect a reward of pasta.
In "Wild West Rangers", a two-part episode ofMighty Morphin Power Rangers,Pink RangerKimberly Hart (Amy Jo Johnson) falls backward through time to the Old West, where she meets look-alike ancestors of her fellow Power Rangers and other characters in the show. A hero called the White Stranger, a mask-less duplicate of Kimberly's boyfriendTommy Oliver, theWhite Ranger (played byJason David Frank) rides to the rescue on more than one occasion when danger threatens.
In "Who Was That Mashed Man", a 1987 episode from the fifth season ofNight Court, an old actor who had played a Lone Ranger-esque character named the Red Ranger was being sued to prevent his appearing in public in costume by a movie company seeking to release a new movie based on the Red Ranger.
InThe Land Before Time VI: The Secret of Saurus Rock (1998), the sixth film inThe Land Before Time franchise, Littlefoot's grandfather tells the children, the legend about "The Lone Dinosaur", a legendary Longneck who protected the Great Valley from the most ferocious Sharptooth to ever live.
InVeggieTales, there is an episode that is a retelling of the story ofMosesleading the Hebrews out of Egypt from theBook of Exodus, a sequel to "The Ballad of Little Joe" and a parody of the Lone Ranger called "Moe and the Big Exit" withLarry the Cucumber as the Lone Stranger, who is the parody of the Lone Ranger and is the episode's equivalent to the biblical Moses.
MusicianFrank Zappa occasionally featured brief references to the Lone Ranger in some of his songs, usually an exclaimed "Hi Yo Silver!". This habit started in the 1980s after an on-stage joke from band memberIke Willis.[69]
From its inception, George W. Trendle had legal ownership of the Lone Ranger and characters associated with the Lone Ranger through his company, The Lone Ranger, Inc. Trendle sold The Lone Ranger, Inc. to oil man and film producerJack Wrather in 1954 for $3 million (equivalent to $27,720,000 in 2024). After Wrather died in 1984, his widow,Bonita Granville, sold the Wrather Productions properties to Southbrook International Television Co. in 1985 for $10 million (equivalent to $24,690,000 in 2024).[70][71][72]Broadway Video acquired the rights in 1988.Classic Media acquired the rights in 2000.DreamWorks Animation acquired Classic Media in 2012 and renamed the divisionDreamWorks Classics.[73] This was later acquired byNBCUniversal in 2016 for $3.8 billion (equivalent to $4,854,000,000 in 2024). ItsUniversal Pictures unit currently has the rights to the Lone Ranger.[74]
The character was originally believed to be inspired by Texas Ranger CaptainJohn R. Hughes, to whom the bookThe Lone Star Ranger byZane Grey was dedicated in 1915.[75] John R. Hughes was born on February 11, 1855, inHenry County, Illinois. At 14 years old, he made his way intoIndian Territory and lived among theChoctaw,Osage, andComanche.[76] In 1886, at 31 years old, Hughes killed a number of men forstealing his and a neighbor's horses, and for a number of months, trailed the ones whom he did not kill. This would mark his first time actively participating inbounty hunter-like activities. Not long after that in 1887, Hughes assisted Texas RangerIra Aten in tracking and killing anescaped murderer. A month after, he was persuaded to join the ranks of the Rangers and served along the southwest borders ofTexas, and at 38 years old, Hughes became the captain ofCompany D. Frontier Battalion. He went on to retire in 1915, after serving 28 years as a Ranger. He was dying and chose toend his own life at 92 years old on June 3, 1947, and was buried inAustin, Texas.[77]Many could relate John Hughes to being the Lone Ranger due to his career as an actual Texas Ranger, and because he actually lived in Texas, unlike others who have been cited as possibilities. He learned thelanguages of the Native American tribes that he lived among for some time, which could make him a more competent ranger when traveling familiar territory to track down criminals and give him the ability to communicate with other native people. He went on to capture and kill many criminals without ever being injured in his 28 years as a Ranger.[78]
In his 2006 Reeves biographyBlack Gun, Silver Star, historian Art T. Burton suggests one possible historical inspiration wasBass Reeves, the first Blackdeputy U.S. Marshal west of theMississippi River.[79] After escaping slavery during the Civil War, Bass Reeves spent the remainder of the war inIndian Territory, in what would become Oklahoma.[80] After the Civil War, Reeves was appointed as a U.S. Marshal in Indian Territory, and then worked as a Marshal for 32 years. Burton suggests that Reeves's career as a lawman was widely known in his time and cites similarities with the Lone Ranger, including wearing disguises, having a Native American partner, riding a white or grey horse, giving out silver keepsakes, and possessing legendary marksmanship and horsemanship skills.[81][82] Burton's theory is disputed for a number of reasons. Reeves was never a Ranger nor did he ever live in Texas,[83] and it was a common practice of U.S. Marshals working in Indian territories to have Indian assistants and to use silver dollars as payments or tributes. Critics of the Bass theory also point out that it was common for pulp fiction writers to portray heroes as masked individuals.[84][85] Ultimately, Burton notes that it is not possible "to prove conclusively that Reeves was the inspiration for the Lone Ranger", but he is "the closest real person to resemble [him]".[79]
Other suggested inspirations wereZorro andRobin Hood.[86]
Although the premiere was scheduled for Monday, January 30, the program was pushed back to Tuesday, January 31, as part of [WXYZ]'s 90-minute dedicatory program.
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