The Lone Ranger, that masked righter of wrongs who rode the West with his Indian companion Tonto, was the creation of Francis "Fran" Striker, a radio writer who introduced the character in 1933. The first Lone Ranger adventures were broadcast over WEBR in Buffalo, New York, before landing at Detroit's, WXYZ. Aimed at children, The Lone Ranger was a big hit with Depression era adults, who took comfort in the chance to "return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear." The show was acquired by ABC in 1942, by which time Republic Pictures had already adapted the material for two serials. An ABC-TV series followed in 1949, starring Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels. A big ratings winner (to the point where Moore sat out the third season over salary disputes), the series begat two feature films, the first of which was Stuart Heisler's The Lone Ranger (1956). Produced by Jack Wrather (whose wife Bonita Granville appears in a supporting role) and scripted by Have Gun - Will Travel creator Herb Meadow, The Lone Ranger added Warnercolor to the mix. Wrather produced the fourth and fifth seasons of the TV series in color before The Lone Ranger went off the air. A number of latter day revivals have been attempted - the latest being Gore Verbinski's 2013 reboot with Johnny Depp - all of which have fallen short of the immortality long ago afforded Clayton Moore and Jay Silverheels.

By Richard Harland Smith