"The Lone Ranger" (1949) TV series 1949-1957

User Rating:

8.1/10   

Creator:

George W. Trendle

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

Release Date:

15 September 1949 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Western | Family

Plot:

The adventures of the masked hero and his Native American partner.

Plot Keywords:

Indian | Hero | Texas Ranger | Texas | Native American

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Jay Silverheels	...	Tonto (217 episodes, 1949-1957)
Clayton Moore	...	The Lone Ranger / ... (169 episodes, 1949-1957)

Runtime:

30 min (221 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White (1949-1956) | Color (1956-1957)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Australia:PG | Argentina:Atp

Filming Locations:

Bronson Canyon, Griffith Park - 4730 Crystal Springs Drive, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Apex Film Corp.

Trivia:

On 11 August 2009 the US Postal Service issued a pane of twenty 44¢ commemorative postage stamps honoring early USA television programs. A booklet with 20 picture postal cards was also issued. On the stamp honoring "The Lone Ranger" is a picture of star Clayton Moore as The Lone Ranger with his horse, Silver . Other shows honored in the Early TV Memories issue were: "The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet" (1952), "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" (1955), "The Dinah Shore Show" (1951), "Dragnet" (1951), "The Ed Sullivan Show" (originally titled "Toast of the Town" (1948)), "The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show" (1950), "Hopalong Cassidy" (1952), "The Honeymooners" (1955), "The Howdy Doody Show" (original title: "Puppet Playhouse" (1947)), "I Love Lucy" (1951), "Kukla, Fran and Ollie" (1947), "Lassie" (1954), "Perry Mason" (1957), "The Phil Silvers Show" (1955), "The Red Skelton Show" (1951), "Texaco Star Theater" (titled "The Milton Berle Show" (1948), 1954-1956), The Tonight Show (which began as "Tonight!" (1953)), "The Twilight Zone" (1959), and "You Bet Your Life" (1950).

Quotes:

[earliest episodes]
The Lone Ranger: Only you, Tonto, know I'm alive. To the world, I'll buried here beside my brother and my friends... forever.
Tonto: You are alone now. Last man. You are lone ranger.
The Lone Ranger: Yes, Tonto, I am... the Lone Ranger.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "SexTV: Legacy of the Cowboy/Blazing Saddles/Pony Play (#7.5)" (2004)

Soundtrack:

Finale from 'William Tell Overture'

A Classic

The 221 episodes of "The Lone Ranger" were originally broadcast on ABC from 1949 to 1957; and then for many years they played in local syndication. For most of the original broadcast years the series was ABC's most watched piece of programming.

The new DVD set from Pop Flix contains the first 16 episodes (15 Sept-29 Dec 1949) and for some reason unknown to me episode 22 from the fifth season, for a total of 17 episodes (the same 17 available on last year's Mill Creek Entertainment release so these are probably in the public domain). These sets pretty much render "The Legend of the Lone Ranger" movie superfluous as all three episodes that were combined in 1952 to form the movie are included in these releases.

The early episodes hark back to radio as there is considerably more voice-over narration used as an introduction and to introduce key plot moments.

The series itself was pure kiddie western with clear-cut good and evil distinctions and no romance. The title character (played by Clayton Moore) started out Texas Ranger John Reid. The first three episodes provide the background for his transformation to Lone Ranger status, his partnering with the Indian Tonto (Jay Silverheels), and the taming of his horse "Silver".

There is an unambiguous code of positive morality infusing each episode. The Lone Ranger is totally good but he adopts the guise of evil. While a masked man in the west was normally feared by the good citizens and an Indian was distrusted, the Lone Ranger is feared by those who would do evil. One persistent theme is that when the Lone Ranger and Tonto first encounter an average citizen they are greeted with suspicion, and by the end of the episode the citizen has been convinced of their value. The trademark ending was a secondary character asking the question: "who was that masked man?".

To really enjoy the series you must accept it for the simplistic morality tale it was intended to be. If you don't take it seriously and keep wishing for some self-reflexive campy parody elements you will only get frustrated.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.