The Lone Ranger



The Lone Ranger is a character who originated on the radio in the 1930s and went on to become one of the most iconic fictional cowboys. The Lone Ranger, a masked man who was the sole survivor of an ambush on his Texas Ranger troop, rides the range with a cloud of dust, his faithful Indian companion Tonto, silver bullets, and a hearty "Hi, ho, Silver!" to his trusty steed. The program debuted on Detroit station WXYZ in January 1933 and remained on the air until 1956. Its theme song, the strains of the "William Tell Overture," would become forever identified with the Lone Ranger, following him into movies, TV, and commercials.

The Ranger's adventures were black and white morality plays, thrilling but with unusually fastidious habits and a minimum of bloodshed and mayhem. The radio series, though broadcast regionally, gained national interest and, as other individual stations picked up the program, led to the formation of the Mutual Broadcasting System. The Lone Ranger was soon adapted for comic books, film serials, and a television series, as well as inspiring countless parodies and becoming an iconic symbol of the idealized Old West, a sterling knight amongst the sagebrush. As such, the Ranger has been the target of spoofs and joking asides, including several in the Muppet universe.