December 26, 2007: "The Greatest American Hero" with John Hart! Those of you who have an affiliate station of the RTN (Retro Television Network), might check to see if your local affiliate currently carries episodes of the "The Greatest American Hero" television show. My local affiliate station is scheduled to broadcast the episode "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys" on Saturday, January 5, 2007 at 6:00 p.m. CST. This episode stars John Hart.
December 23, 2007: John Hart spurs on auction! The auction of John Hart memorabilia is continuing with many unusual and one-of-a-kind items. One item that might interest fans is a set of John Hart owned Edward Bohlin spurs. A signed letter goes along with the spurs, hand written by Beryl Hart and signed by both John and Beryl and gives the history of the spurs, which includes John using them when he worked on The Lone Ranger and in other westerns. Check out these spurs and be sure to check out all the other items which are currently on auction on Ebay. I can attest that Mick LaFever is very good in running these auctions, as his 100% positive feedback rating shows. I have purchased items from Mick and have been very satisfied with my auction winnings. Check out the spurs and then check out the other items which are added to every Sunday, as the previous auctions come to an end: John Hart spurs on Ebay
December 20, 2007: More Lone Ranger movie news! Joe Southern of the Lone Ranger Fan Club brought to my attention that there is a bit more news on the Lone Ranger movie. You can read about it here: "Jerry Bruckheimer on The Lone Ranger movie" Thanks for passing on the bit of good news Joe!
December 13, 2007: Happy Birthday John Hart! Today is the 90th birthday of John Hart and I wanted to wish him a happy birthday.
December 7, 2007: Winter 2008 issue of "Nostalgia Digest Magazine" now available! Nostalgia Digest Magazine has a photo of Clayton Moore as the Lone Ranger on the cover of their Winter 2008 magazine. One of the topics that is brought up in this issue is their salute to the 75th anniversary of The Lone Ranger. You can get the details here: "Nostalgia Digest Magazine" Winter 2008 issue If you order a copy, please tell them that you heard about it from this web site. You can get a 1 year subscription (4 issues) for $15 or just one issue for $4.50.
December 7, 2007: Addition to the Chuck Courtney page: I have now added some pictures from all of the Lone Ranger episodes in which Chuck Courtney appeared in. You can find Chuck's page by clicking on the Internal Links button on my front page and then scrolling down to near the bottom of the page and clicking on the Chuck Courtney button.
November 10, 2007: "Music of the Lone Ranger" CD! There is a "Music of The Lone Ranger" CD on auction on Ebay which ends at about 7:18 p.m. CST on November 11th. They hard to find: Ebay Auction. *NOTE: This CD eventually sold for $51.55!
November 6, 2007: The New Adventures of The Lone Ranger and Zorro! I ran across a DVD release of some of the old Lone Ranger Filmation Studios animated cartoons with some of the Zorro animated cartoons as well. This set runs for a total of 374 minutes. CD Universe has a pre-order price of $10.04 and their regular price will be $10.29 with the set having a suggested retail price of $14.98. According to the Amazon web site, there are 11 Lone Ranger adventures and 6 Zorro adventures in this set, Volume 1. The release date is set for December 18, 2007 and the releasing company is Brentwood Home Video. You can probably find it other places but I'll include the link for CD Universe: CD Universe *NOTE: Deep Discount will carry this same DVD set for $8.30 and they offer free shipping: "Deep Discount"
October 8, 2007: "The Lone Ranger # 4" has been published by Pulpville Press! The fourth and final volume of the Lone Ranger novels from "The Lone Ranger Magazine" will have an official release date later this week from Pulpville Press. However, it is now available for order by clicking on the following link: Lone Ranger # 4 from Pulpville Press . From issues #6, #7, and #8 of The Lone Ranger Magazine and available in hardcover or trade paperback, comes these three titles: HERITAGE OF THE PLAINS, LONE STAR RENEGADE, and DEATH'S HEAD VENGEANCE.
September 28, 2007: Memphis Film Festival guest list to date! If you haven't checked out the Memphis Film Festival web site lately, you might be interested in seeing the confirmed guests as of this date. More guests will be added as they are confirmed: Memphis Film Festival
September 20, 2007: New Corriganville Movie Ranch book is available now! Jerry L. Schneider has published a new book about the Corriganville Movie Ranch history and ...it contains a fairly good section on The Lone Ranger/Wrather's control of the ranch. As some of you might recall, Jack Wrather had a lease for the Corriganville Ranch for a while and in some television episodes of the Lone Ranger, you will see in the ending credits, the words filmed at The Lone Ranger Ranch. The 500 page book is available in hardcover or paperback versions. The hardcover book can be found at: "Corriganville" - hardcover or for the paperback version, go here: "Corriganville" - paperback
September 20, 2007: Pulpville Press! In response to a question I received, I have learned that Pulpville Press will indeed publish the 4th and final book which will contain the final 3 Lone Ranger pulp novels. Stay tuned for the date when this final book will be available.
September 14, 2007: WHT has changed their broadcast time of The Lone Ranger! A spokesman has confirmed that they have changed their broadcast time of The Lone Ranger back to 4:30 p.m. (Eastern)/ 3:30 p.m. (Central), until further notice. No reason was given for the change.
September 14, 2007: Clayton would have been 93 today! Clayton was born on September 14, 1914 and he is truly missed!
September 10, 2007: Nostalgia Digest Magazine and the 75th Anniversary of The Lone Ranger! Eric French made an entry in the guest book in regards to an article that is to appear in an upcoming issue of "Nostalgia Digest Magazine". I've done a little more checking and from what the publisher tells me, the Winter issue of Nostalgia Digest will be on sale on their web site, in early December. The winter issue actually covers January through March, 2008. A 1 year subscription (4 issues) is $15 but you can also purchase single issues, for $4.50, once they become listed on their web site. I was told that: The Winter issue will feature a story about the Lone Ranger--particularly his origins at WXYZ.... Funny Valentine Press publishes "Nostalgia Digest Magazine" and you can view their web site here but be advised the Autumn issue is currently on their web site and don't expect anything on the winter issue until early December: "Nostalgia Digest Magazine" Thanks for the tip Eric!
September 7, 2007: Hake's Auction # 192 includes Lone Ranger Items! There are 39 Lone Ranger items up for auction in the Hake's Auction which is currently open for bids and begins closing on September 25th. There are several interesting items, including a very nice set of Hartland Lone Ranger & Silver and Tonto & Scout figures. These items "...were presented by Jay Silverheels as sales awards to Merita salesmen for superior sales in their region." according to the description on the auction page.: "Hake's Auction"
September 3, 2007: The Lone Ranger Rides Again - RESTORED EDITION! I was reminded by Leo Pando, that a restored version of the 1939 Republic serial, "The Lone Ranger Rides Again", is available from The Serial Squadron. This restored serial has had the Spanish subtitles removed, the chapter openings and beginings have been restored and are now in English, noise reduced sound, and more. Your purchase of this serial also includes the Lone Ranger home movie cartoon and "30 minutes of on-camera commentary by serial authors Len Kohl and Richard Hurst and Squadron members Zorro, HiYo Silver, Durango Kid, Brick Bradford, Barcroft, Dr. Satan, Daredevil, Ace Drummond, Red Racer, Dr. Grood and Pa Stark ( filmed at SerialFest 2007)!" Check out The Serial Squadron for all details: "1939 Lone Ranger serial"
August 23, 2007: Lone Ranger broadcast time is changing on WHT! Beginning on September 3rd, the broadcast time of The Lone Ranger show on the WHT channel will change from 4:30 p.m.(Eastern)/3:30 p.m.(Central) to 6:00 p.m.(Eastern)/5:00 p.m. (Central). The time change is being made to better serve West Coast viewers. Along with the time change, there will also be a change made as to which episodes will be broadcast. I don't have any additional information on the episode title changes yet, but stay tuned!
August 9, 2007: John Hart Memorabilia Auction on Ebay! Mick LaFever has been selected by John & Beryl Hart to auction off John's lifetime collection of Hollywood memorabilia. In this collection are many of John's personal momentos & items. There is something for every level of collector & fan. Mick will be adding new items every week on Thursday, until the collection is gone. John started his lifelong acting career in Hollywood in the 1930s, so there are some really great items to be offered. All items will come with a certificate of authenticity and full lifetime guarantee issued by Mick, John Hart's agent. Mick has been John's agent for many years. Mick's Ebay ID is: Bigmick45 . An easy way to find the items is to do a search on Ebay with the words: John Hart Lone Ranger Hawkeye . Here is the first item up for this special auction: "John Hart on Ebay"
August 6, 2007: 75th Anniversary of The Lone Ranger Celebration! Joe Southern of the Lone Ranger Fan Club has offically announced that the club's celebration of the 75th anniversary of The Lone Ranger wil be held in conjunction with a 70th anniversary of Superman. Festivities will be held at the Memphis Film Festival on June 5, 6 and 7th, 2008 at the Whispering Woods Hotel and Convention Center in Olive Branch, Mississippi. You can check the following two web sites for details as they are finalized in regards to the guest list and events. The Memphis Film Festival is an annual event and has had great guests in the past. Stay tuned and start making your plans for June 5, 6 & 7, 2008. Check both web sites for details periodically in the coming months: "Lone Ranger Fan Club 75th Anniversary" and "Memphis Film Festival"
July 29, 2007: Mother Goose & Grimm Lone Ranger cartoon! It's time for another Mother Goose & Grimm cartoon in today's newspaper. See it here: "Mother Goose & Grimm"
July 13, 2007: Robert Livingston fan? Short notice, but I just found out that you can watch a short film at about 8:40 a.m. CDT on Saturday, July 14th, on TCM (Turner Classic Movies), Saturday, July 14th which has Bob Livingston in the role of a detective. The film is titled "Buried Loot" and it runs for about 19 minutes. "Buried Loot" should appear shortly after the feature film "Billy the Kid" comes to an end.
July 6, 2007: Will the Lone Ranger ride again for Walt Disney Pictures in 2010? Jim Hollaert has posted an interesting article about a possible new Lone Ranger movie. There are some details that I have not read anywhere else and you might find it an inviting read. You might browse around Jim's store for Lone Ranger and other items as long as you're there too. To find the article, click on the link and then click on LR News at the top of Jim's web site and scroll down a bit to find the article: "Disney Lone Ranger Movie?"
July 5, 2007: Ever seen the yacht, formerly known as the "Lone Ranger IV"? Things are a bit slow in the News department so I figured it was a good time to share this bit of trivia with you. At one time, Jack Wrather had a 72 foot motor yacht built for himself, and he named it the "Lone Ranger IV". The yacht has since been renamed the "Calypso" and if any of you watched the Donald Trump show "The Apprentice", the yacht was seen in an episode of that show. The yacht is available for charter, in case you were wondering. Check out the pictures of it here: Formerly known as the "Lone Ranger IV"
June 23, 2007: "The Lone Ranger # 3" is published by Pulpville Press! Thanks to Al Dittrich for passing on the information about "The Lone Ranger # 3". Al says: "Pulpville has released # 3 in the series covering Issues # 4 and # 5 from the pulp magazine. They are July 1937 and August 1937 issues, and the book has been published June 2007. " Available in either paperback or hardback at: "Pulpville Press"
June 17, 2007: John Hart is doing good! I learned from John's daughter today that John is "chugging along" and doing quite well considering his health problems. John and Beryl are enjoying their new residence.
May 31, 2007: Dabbs Greer Died: Many of you probably remember Dabbs Greer for his role as Reverend Alden on the "Little House on the Prairie" series. Dabbs appeared in one episode of "The Lone Ranger" titled "Through the Wall", episode # 83, first broadcast on October 9, 1952. Dabbs died on April 28, 2007, at the age of 90. Dabbs made many appearances in television, including a lot of westerns such as Gunsmoke, Bonanza, The Wild Wild West, The Virginian, Rango, Wagon Train, Rawhide, Lawman, Laramie, the first episode of The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp and more. My deepest sympathy to the family and friends of Dabbs.
May 27, 2007: "The Lone Ranger # 2" is published by Pulpville Press! Thanks to S. Jorgenson and G. Davenport for passing on the information about "The Lone Ranger #2". G says "It contains the Lone Ranger stories from issues #2 and #3 of the Lone Ranger pulp magazine. Interestingly, these stories were written when Tonto still rode White Feller and before the story of the ambush of the Texas Rangers began. In the first story, to quote one sentence: “Tonto never asked about the Lone Ranger’s past or his reasons for his chivalrous deeds.” The Lone Ranger tells Tonto that someday he will explain to him why he hates crime so. I thought your readers would like to know about the book. It looks as though the Press may be planning to republish all the stories from the short lived magazine." Available in paperback or hardback at: "Pulpville Press"
May 27, 2007: One Lone Ranger movie gone but another one coming? The Red Wagon Productions planned Lone Ranger movie bit the dust but there have been rumors of another movie being planned. Thanks to "the youngest Lone Ranger fan in Texas!", Eric in Baytown, TX for directing me to another web site with information from Variety: "Another Lone Ranger movie rumor"
May 23, 2007: Chuck Courtney in "77 Sunset Strip"! I have added a new page with some screen saves of Chuck in his appearance on "77 Sunset Strip" in an episode titled "The Court Martial of Johnny Murdo". A permanent link can be found under Chuck Courtney in my Internal Links page found on my front page. A quick link is to click on the following: "Chuck in 77 Sunset Strip"
May 22, 2007: Mother Goose & Grimm Lone Ranger cartoon! Another Mother Goose & Grimm cartoon in today's newspaper. See it here: "Mother Goose & Grimm"
May 21, 2007: Enter the WHT Lone Ranger Contest! You can enter the WHT Lone Ranger contest by going to the following web site and answering the questions and filling out the requested information. You can enter on-line or print out and mail it in via regular mail. Good Luck! "WHT's Lone Ranger Contest"
May 11, 2007: Hake's Auction # 191 now Open! Auction # 191 at Hake's just opened for bids on May 9th. Some of the items close for bidding on May 29th and other items (most of the Lone Ranger items) start to close on May 31st. I suggest you go to the Hale's web site and conduct a search on the words: Lone Ranger and then try Clayton Moore, Jay Silverheels, etc., so you don't miss any items. Some interesting items can be viewed, including a Lone Ranger belt, still on the card; a Lone Ranger button with a depiction of Gene Autry; a Kix Atomic Bomb ring; a gorgeous & mint Hartland Lone Ranger & Silver with the guns and other accessories still wrapped up in the celluloid wrapping and more. Check it out here: "Hake's Auction # 191"
May 10, 2007: Lone Ranger Festival 2007 Canceled! According to the Brace Beemer web site, the Lone Ranger Festival 2007 in Mount Carmel, Illinois, has been canceled. Instead, they are planning to celebrate in 2008, the 75th anniversary year of the creation of The Lone Ranger. "Brace Beemer & Mount Carmel, IL"
May 10, 2007: "When the West Was Fun" on DVD! I see that the TV special from 1980, When the West Was Fun - A Western Reunion in which Clayton appeared in as The Lone Ranger, was released on DVD on April 3, 2007. One reviewer at Amazon said the video quality wasn't the greatest, but considering that so many of the stars who appeared in it are now gone, it's worth picking up. Check your favorite DVD retailer as it seems to be everywhere on DVD seller web sites. Prices range from $12.99 + shipping down as low as $7.81 with free shipping. The DVD has the photo of all the stars on the front of it and Amazon's web site gives a nice picture of the DVD front cover.
May 10, 2007: Lone Ranger Fan Club Interview May 11th! Joe Southern of the Lone Ranger Fan Club was interviewed for WWUH radio, in West Hartford, CT. For you early risers, Joe informed me that you can listen to the interview which will run on Friday morning, May 11th, at 5:15 a.m. Eastern time. If you don't live in the broadcast area, you can also listen to the interview via the Web, at: "WWUH Radio"
May 1, 2007: WHT Lone Ranger Contest! WHT has informed me that fans should watch WHT for a trivia contest during the month of May. WHT will be giving away 10 free memberships to the Lone Ranger Fan Club. They will also be giving away 100 bumper stickers. Contestants will need to answer correctly, 4 trivia questions and be the first 100 contestants to do so. Stay tuned to WHT for the contest and other details. Thanks to Joe & Sandy Southern of the Lone Ranger Fan Club for their participation & contribution and to WHT for this interesting event.
April 21, 2007: John Hart Lone Ranger Episodes Coming to WHT! An update on the WHT broadcast of season 3 of The Lone Ranger is that all but the first 8 episodes of season three will be broadcast. I have updated the TV schedule page for May with the entire month of May episodes listed. An interesting addition, is that WHT is also planning a contest in conjunction with the season 3 broadcast, so those of you with WHT might watch for the details. My thanks to WHT for both broadcasting these episodes and for giving me the information to share with the fans!
April 21, 2007: Lone Ranger cartoon! Today's newspaper comic section had another Lone Ranger appearance in the Mother Goose & Grimm comic strip! You can see the color version here: "Mother Goose & Grimm"
April 19, 2007: John Hart Lone Ranger Episodes Coming to WHT! I have just learned that WHT will be running some of the episodes from season 3, with John Hart as the Lone Ranger, during the months of May and June. Not sure why they are doing this at this time nor why they won't broadcast the entire 3rd season either. The first episode to be broadcast on May 1st is scheduled to be # 87, "Delayed Action" as they appear to be skipping the first 8 shows of season 3. You might not see these episodes for a while, so take advantage of this opportunity!
April 11, 2007: Lone Ranger Clothing Sale! Jim at Jim n' I Enterprises wants fans to know that they are having a close-out sale on their Lone Ranger, Lake Matley T-Shirts, Camp Shirt & Vintage Lounge Pants clothing line. There is a limited quantity so don't delay in checking this out! "Jim n" I Enterprises"
March 23, 2007: Chuck Courtney's Cheyenne episode! I added a few pictures from the "Cheyenne" episode that Chuck Courtney appeared in titled "White Warrior". A 21 or 22 year old Michael Landon is another star making an appearance in this episode. If you get the American Life Network, you have an opportunity of watching this episode of Cheyenne on April 12th. Click here to go to the page to view the pictures: "White Warrior" . A permanent link to this page can be found in the Chuck Courtney button in the Internal Links section which is on my front page.
March 20, 2007: Clayton's Hopalong Cassidy episode on DVD: All 52 episode of the Hopalong Cassidy television show are available on DVD. Clayton's appearance in the episode "Lawless Legacy" is in set # 1 of the 2 set series. The best price that I've found is $24.98 for each set with free shipping at DeepDiscount.com They also sell paperback copies of Clayton's book, I Was That Masked Man, a DVD of "Jesse James Rides Again" with Clayton and a number of Lone Ranger t.v. episodes on DVD too.
March 13, 2007: The Silver Bullet is on the way! Joe Southern told me that the the current issue of the The Silver Bullet was mailed yesterday. It sounds like it will be another interesting issue, so if you aren't yet a subscriber, I'd urge you to sign up at the Lone Ranger Fan Club today! You can get a look at the front cover of the current issue on this web page too.
March 7, 2007: Lone Ranger selected Tuesday for preservation in a special sound archive: Joe Southern passed along an interesting bit of information tonight. Twenty-five culturally important recordings, including a radio episode of “The Lone Ranger", were selected to be preserved in the special sound archive in the National Recording Registry. The episode chosen was “The Osage Bank Robbery,” from December 17, 1937. Thanks for the information Joe!
March 5, 2007: Steve Mitchell Died: From a column by Bobby Copeland, in the latest issue of The Old Cowboy Picture Show newsletter, I've learned that actor Steve Mitchell died of cancer on January 23, 2007 in Los Angeles, CA. Steve appeared in episode # 107 of The Lone Ranger, titled "Mrs. Banker" and played a bank robber named Mike. Steve acted in a number of tv westerns and other television shows and in several movies.
March 1, 2007: Silver Bullet delayed: Joe Southern reports that the next issue of the Silver Bullet will be mailed in about 7 to 10 days. Joe reports the delay is the result of a computer crash and he is attempting to retrieve data from the damaged hard drive, so he can get the latest issue printed and mailed to subscribers.
March 1, 2007: New Lone Ranger Animation in the works: According to the ICv2 web site, Entertainment Rights, Classic Media and the Weinstein Company will co-finance a new animated children's production featuring The Lone Ranger. No time table was given for the making or release of the production. *March 2, 2007 - Additional information: Genius Products, LLC will be the distributor of the new Lone Ranger animation production in North America with both physical and digital distribution rights. ER will distribute the production internationally.
February 25, 2007: Season 3 of the Lone Ranger will not be shown on WHT! It appears from the advance schedule, that season 3 (The John Hart shows) will not be broadcast on the WHT channel again and that's a shame.
February 16, 2007: A fan's video tribute to Clayton: Another You Tube video that you might enjoy: Video tribute to Clayton Moore
January 24, 2007: Chuck Courtney fans: For the interest of Chuck Courtney fans, I purchased a DVD the other day which had 3 episodes of The Lone Ranger and 7 episodes of the television show "Buffalo Bill, Jr." starring Dick Jones & Nancy Gilbert. One of the Buffalo Bill episodes included "Trail of the Killer" which guest-starred Chuck Courtney as Billy The Kid. As far as I know, this is the only appearance that Chuck made on the "Buffalo Bill, Jr." show. I've added a few pictures from that show on Chuck's page, which you can find here: Chuck in Buffalo Bill, Jr. I bought this particular DVD, "Classic Western TV" from Deep Discount DVD for $5.99 and I haven't had time time to view the other episodes which had been put together for this DVD by a company called St. Clair Vision. Also included on the DVD is a Lone Ranger radio show, titled "Refund for Thunder".
January 15, 2007: TV DVD Planet Lone Ranger set: A Lone Ranger fan did finally receive the Lone Ranger set that TV DVD Planet was offering as the complete series. (See my News item on December 10, 2006 for those details) After examining the set, he said that he would not recommend the set to anyone who wants to acquire all 221 episodes. He said: First off, it is NOT complete, there are a number of episodes missing, both Clayton Moore & John Hart shows. It misses 2 episodes here, 3 episodes there, et. al. Also, the shows are not in the correct order of broadcast, which is extremely annoying. It moves along in order on a few discs, then with the next numbered disc, it jumps to shows that do not follow in the proper order from the previous discs. The fan informed me that the black & white shows, ranging in very good to excellent quality, had the Lone Star network logo on them. Lone Star is a television network in Canada that broadcasts The Lone Ranger and other western series. The fan went on to say that the color shows were excellent quality but there were 3 episodes missing from that season too. He also said: So all in all, I do not feel it is a good buy. There also seems to be a question as to whether this set was ever licensed from Classic Media. The reviewing fan told me that there is no mention of Classic Media, anywhere on the set and is quite sure the set wasn't licensed. Here is a picture of the packaging and of two discs in the set as an example: Picture of TV DVD Planet set*ADDED 1/30/2006: The fan reports the episodes are all edited versions, running only 22 minutes each and there are even more missing episodes than he originally thought, far short of 221 episodes as advertised as being in this set.
January 15, 2007: ER has acquired Classic Media Holdings! On 11th January 2007, Entertainment Rights Plc announced that the Company completed the acquisition of Classic Media Holdings, Inc. You can get a few more details here: ER acquires Classic Media & The Lone Ranger You can also see that on the Classic Media web site, it now sports the ER logo and the words, A Division of Entertainment Rights, Plc.
January 8, 2007: VCI's Lone Ranger license has expired! I hope all of you have picked up VCI's The Lone Ranger (1956) and The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958), as their licenses to produce and sell both movies have now expired. VCI does sell other movies with Clayton Moore: The Far Frontier, Riders of the Whistling Pines and The Legend of the Lone Ranger which is a compilation of the first 3 episodes. They also have 3 movies in which John Hart had roles in: VCI Entertainment You might find a few copies of both Lone Ranger movies at other resellers but once their inventories are depleted, there won't be any more of these excellent Lone Ranger movies.
January 7, 2007: Lois Hall Died: I've learned that actress Lois Hall died on December 21, 2006 at 80 years of age. Lois appeared in two episodes of The Lone Ranger in season 3 during an acting career of 57 years. Belated sympathies to the family of Lois Hall.