January 3, 1939; 86 years ago (1939-01-03) onWXYT (WXYZ at the time)
Challenge of the Yukon is an Americanradio adventure series that began onDetroit'sWXYZ and is an example of aNorthern genre story. The series was first heard on January 3, 1939.[1][2] The title changed fromChallenge of the Yukon toSergeant Preston of the Yukon in September 1950, and that title was retained through the end of the series and intoa television adaptation.[3]
Following the success ofThe Lone Ranger andThe Green Hornet on Detroit'sWXYZ (now WXYT), the station owner,George W. Trendle, asked for a similar adventure show with a dog as the hero. According to WXYZ staffer Dick Osgood, in his history of the station, Trendle insisted that it not be "a dog like Lassie because... this must be an action story. It had to be a working dog."[1] Writer Tom Dougall, who had been influenced by the poems ofRobert W. Service, chose a Husky. The dog was originally called Mogo, but after criticism by Trendle, Dougall re-christened the canine King. Dougall likewise created Sgt. Preston and the French-Canadian guide.Fran Striker, who also wrote forThe Lone Ranger, contributed show scripts.
However, Trendle's criticism of Dougall may have had another reason behind it. Shortly before the two Trendle series aired (Lone Ranger andChallenge of the Yukon), popular authorZane Grey had a book in circulation (The Lone Star Ranger) about aTexas Ranger like theLone Ranger and a comic book series in circulation (King of the Royal Mounted) about the adventures of Sgt. King, a Royal Canadian Mounted Policeman like Sgt. Preston. From 1922 a series of novels byLaurie York Erskine featuringRenfrew of the Royal Mounted warranted enough popularity to begin a radio series of the same title in 1936 and afilm series beginning in 1937; the latter featuring a canine sidekick.
Challenge of the Yukon began as a 15-minuteserial, airing locally from 1938 until May 28, 1947. Shortly thereafter, the program acquired a sponsor,Quaker Oats, and the series, in a half-hour format, moved to the networks. The program aired onABC from June 12, 1947, to December 30, 1949. It was then heard onThe Mutual Broadcasting System from January 2, 1950, through the final broadcast on June 9, 1955. In September 1950, when the show moved to three broadcasts a week, the title was changed toSergeant Preston of the Yukon.
The program was an adventure series about Sergeant William Preston of theNorth-West Mounted Police and his leadsled dog,Yukon King, as they fought evildoers in the Northern wilderness during theGold Rush of the 1890s. The serial began on radio in 1938 and continued through 1947, after which the series moved totelevision. The original television program ran from 1947 through1949 onABC and was sponsored byQuaker Oats. In January 1951, the radio version was resurrected, running until1955, when the show moved once again to television asSergeant Preston of the Yukon.[1] The show starredRichard Simmons.[4][5]
The theme music wasEmil von Reznicek's overture toDonna Diana, an old opera, though the overture remains a concert staple to this day. The show's episodes ended with the official pronouncement, "Well, King, this case is closed."
Preston, according to radio historianJim Harmon, first joined theRoyal Canadian Mounted Police to capture his father's killer, and when he was successful, he was promoted to sergeant. Preston worked under the command of Inspector Conrad, and in the early years was often assisted by aFrench-Canadian guide named Pierre. During the course of the series, Preston successfully puts down a rebellion, and captures assassins. Each episode has him battling a new crisis, whether it be tracking down a murderer, a gang of thieves, orclaim jumping miners.
Preston's side-kick and ally (and arguably the true star of the show), was the braveAlaskan husky, Yukon King. Yukon King had a keen instinct for sensing criminals, and was equally valuable dealing with wild animals, once saving a small child from a wolverine. In the radio version, King's barks were usually provided by animal imitators, usuallysound effects artist Dewey Cole, and later, actor Ted Johnstone. The radio series supplied King with a back story. As radio historian Jim Harmon recalled, King had been a Husky puppy raised by a mother wolf. When a lynx attacks the wolf and her cub, Sergeant Preston arrives in time to save King. Preston then raised the animal as his owndog team captain. On television, Yukon King was still a vital element, though the dog was now played by anAlaskan Malamute trained by Beverly Allen. The dog received star billing right after Preston, and alongside his horse, Rex. There is some confusion regarding King's actual breed. The writers seemed to usemalamute andhusky interchangeably. At least once, Preston answered "malamute" to the question from another character. In one radio episode Preston indicates King's mother had been a wolf, which would make him awolfdog.
Typical plots involved the pair helping injured trappers, tracking down smugglers, or saving cabin dwellers fromwolverines. Sergeant Preston's faithful steed was Rex, used primarily in the summer months, but generally Yukon King and his dog team were the key mode of transportation (as signaled by Preston's cry of "On, King! On, you huskies!)".[6] In the early radio shows, the cry of "On, you huskies!" would alternate with "On, you malamutes" from show to show.
Sgt. Preston – The part of Sgt. Preston was played by different actors over the course of the long run. Jay Michael, who had often played villain Butch Cavendish onThe Lone Ranger, originated the role, and played the brave Mountie from1939 through the mid-1940s. Former movie actorPaul Sutton took over the role, followed briefly byBrace Beemer whenThe Lone Ranger ended in1954. Sutton took over again, however, by the time of the final broadcast.
Yukon King – The barks, whines, and howls of Yukon King were supplied by one of the station'ssound effects men, Dewey Cole, and following Cole's death, by actor Ted Johnstone.
Narrator and supporting players – The originalannouncer/narrator wasBob Hite, also a narrator forThe Lone Ranger,Green Hornet andThe Shadow. Hite was replaced by former star Jay Michael when Sutton took over.Lone Ranger narratorFred Foy also filled the role from time to time.John Todd was heard occasionally as Inspector Conrad, and Frank Russell played Pierre. Episodic performers came from the same talent pool as the other WXYZ shows.
In 1955, the same year the radio show ended,Sergeant Preston of the Yukon premiered as a television series.Richard Simmons starred as Sgt. Preston, and was supported by Yukon King and Rex, now played by real animals. The dog cast as King was not a husky, however, but a large purebredAlaskan Malamute. Charles Livingstone, who had worked on the radio version, directed several episodes. Some plot lines were re-used from the radio show, and stories original to the series were generally built upon the same themes. The same few buildings were regularly seen as part of many settlements in the shows. The additional visual component of the snowyYukon, however, did give the television version a different feel but like all such films when filmed on a stage set, the frosty breath of people in Arctic conditions could not be simulated. Generally, however, there was an outdoor feel though a few times shadows on the skyline could be seen. Genuine outdoor scenes were added to give the show some reality though the viewer could not help but notice a sameness to them[citation needed] as they were all filmed in the same area and reused at times.
Mainly filmed atAshcroft,Colorado, the series was telecast onCBS from September 29, 1955, to September 25, 1958. The first two seasons were produced by Trendle-Campbell-Meurer, and the show was broadcast in the same time slot asABC'sThe Lone Ranger. In its last season,Sergeant Preston of the Yukon was purchased and produced by theJack Wrather Corporation.
In 1955, theQuaker Oats company gave away land in theKlondike as part of theKlondike Big Inch Land Promotion which was tied in with the television show. Genuine deeds each to one square inch of a lot in Yukon Territory, issued by Klondike Big Inch Land Co. Inc., were inserted into Quaker'sPuffed Wheat andPuffed Rice cereal boxes.[7]
Timeless Media Group released a 2-disc best-of set featuring 10 episodes from the series on DVD in Region 1 on November 21, 2006.[8]
Infinity Entertainment has released all 3 seasons of the series on DVD in Region 1.[9][10][11]
After filming concluded, the dog, named King, went to live with the family of the president ofJack Wrather Productions after retirement. Wrather had produced theLassie andLone Ranger television shows. King eventually was housed on acreage belonging to Texas ex-governorWilliam Carey Graves. King lived to an advanced old age well into the 1960s. He was a loving, obedient, long-discussed pet remembered with much affection.[12]
From 1951 to 1958Dell Comics published 29 issues ofSergeant Preston of the Yukon. The first four issues appeared biannually, then quarterly, in the weekly catch-all seriesFour Color Comics (#344, 373, 397, 419), then assumed its own numbering with issue #5, most often as a quarterly but also bimonthly.
The Dell comic book covers were paintings portraying drama or action, featuring Yukon King and Sergeant Preston in exciting scenes. Once theSergeant Preston of the Yukon television series premiered, the comic book featured photo covers of the TV series star in character as Sergeant Preston.
^abcOsgood, Dick; 1981;Wyxie Wonderland: An Unauthorized 50-Year Diary of WXYZ Detroit;Bowling Green University Press; Ohio.
^Script #1, dated January 3, 1939, received January 6, 1939 in the U.S. Copyright Office and assigned Registration #DU6107 as reported in"Radio Recall", February 2019, Vol. 36, No. 1
