Just as "Nitrate won't wait" became the rallying cry for film archivists, "Acetate won't wait" has become the mantra for collectors of old-time radio. Widely used for three decades (1930s through the 1950s), then slowly replaced with magnetic tape and other formats, radio broadcasts featuring comedy, music and drama were preserved for both commercial and historical purposes. Fans of old-time radio programs, and fans of The Lone Ranger in general, are fully aware of the 2,600 radio broadcasts from 1938 to 1954 that were preserved thanks to this format. Over 2,000 of those radio episodes have been released commercially thanks to companies like Radio Spirits, which commercially releases CD sets periodically through the months through licensing agreements.
The Lone Ranger was not recorded on a regular basis until February of 1938. Prior, the program aired live over the Michigan Radio Network, the Don Lee Network, and the Mutual Broadcasting System. Therefore, Lone Ranger radio broadcasts prior to February 1938 should not be considered “lost” because they were never recorded in the first place. Thankfully, almost every radio script exists from the series so we have an opportunity to fill the gaps with plot summaries.
Following completion of The Lone Ranger: The Early Years, 1933-1937, which included plot summaries for radio broadcasts pre-1938, Terry Salomonson and I have been routinely reading radio scripts to fill in the gaps beyond (and for a second volume to be published in the near future, spanning the years 1938 through 1942). The following are some of those missing adventures for which recordings are not known to exist.
Small note of interest: It was not until early 1940 that the radio scripts were titled. Therefore, any titles for Lone Ranger radio broadcasts prior are “collector titles,” and therefore not appropriate for historical documentation. This is why the entries below state “Title Not Given” instead of a script title as many collectors of old-time radio programs would come to expect.
Episode #814-39 [TITLE NOT GIVEN]
Broadcast April 15, 1938
Copyright Registration #56,504, script received at Registration Office April 20, 1938.
Plot: Ever since Grant Thorndyke opened the bank in San Carlos, the community prospered. Men were taught to save instead of squander, and there was capital available for those who wanted to run an honest business in an honest way. The Lone Ranger whisks away the bartender to have a private chat, verifying the bartender is responsible for the rumors that are circulating about town, how the bank is not a safe place, dissatisfied because the men did not have money to spend in the café. The masked man explains how the deposits are used to pay for the mortgages on the homes, and the calamity that would befall the town should multiple parties start closing their accounts and withdrawing hefty funds. When appealing to the bartender’s loyalty fails, the masked man breaks into the home of Abe Forman, the wealthiest man in town, to deposit his money into the bank. Meanwhile, the bartender continues to convince all the men in town that the bank was not a safe place for their money and everyone plans to withdraw their savings as soon as the bank opens in the morning. Knowing all of the men have withdrawn their funds from the institution, Scar and his gang, camped outside town, spend the next evening cleaning houses – literally. One house after another as attacked by the outlaws, and in every case the men and women were robbed of their savings. Tonto apprehends the outlaws and ropes them, guarding them in the woods while The Lone Ranger returns the money with stern advice: the security of San Carlos depends on everyone trusting Grant Thorndyke and his bank. Having seen the errors of their ways, all of the men are glad to see their money returned and promptly make deposits.
Episode #843-68 [TITLE NOT GIVEN]
Broadcast June 22, 1938
Copyright Registration #57,734, script received at Registration Office June 27, 1938.
Plot: Chet Goulding planned to marry Patricia Mayfair, the daughter of one of the biggest ranchers in the territory, for the money her father would leave her. Mayfair, learning through The Lone Ranger of Goulding’s criminal background, ordered him out of the house by the next morning. Patricia, however, did not know the truth. Goulding lead the girl to believe that her father had agreed to the marriage and when the next morning came, announced that Mayfair, during the night, had been killed. Patricia at once suspected the masked man with whom her father had talked the previous day. Hank, the impetuous foreman, would have shot and killed The Lone Ranger at Chet’s insistence, had it not been for Tonto arriving to save the day. The Lone Ranger tells Patricia her boyfriend is really Dan Chester, wanted in many states for stage coach hold-ups, murder and robbery. The deputy from Eagle Pass arrives, finding the masked man tied to a chair in the house, as every person tells their version of the story – with The Lone Ranger’s accusation the only one conflicting. The protective guard dog, Sandy, was rigged with a booby trap that would shoot the man who released the dog, The Lone Ranger explains, followed with the suggestion to release the dog and see who he goes after. Chet, scared of the vicious animal, panics as The Lone Ranger forces a confession in front of witnesses. To cinch his story, The Lone Ranger reveals a surprise – Mr. Mayfair is alive and well. But he would have been dead from the trap had the boy’s barking not attracted the masked man who kept watch on the house last night.
Trivia, etc. This episode was recycled from the broadcast of January 24, 1936, with but subtle changes such as the addition of the deputy and foreman Hank, and “Colonel Mayfair” in the 1936 version was murdered. For the most part, the remainder of the script, including dialogue and names of characters, remained the same.
Episode #849-74 [TITLE NOT GIVEN]
Broadcast July 6, 1938
Copyright Registration #57,901, script received at Registration Office July 11, 1938.
Plot: On the outskirts of the Western Frontier, people living around the town of Clayville cultivated land handed down from pioneers and settlers who had lived under the Spanish Crown, before the territory had become part of the United States. The Lone Ranger and Tonto are keeping tabs on John Wesley, recently released, who five years prior was sent to prison for stealing money. Judge Barrow was his accomplice and upon learning Wesley is in town, fears retribution. Wesley forces the Judge to grant him land under the Homestead Act, which contains salt deposits, with plans to fence it in and charge settlers for access. The Judge, threatened with exposure of his past, reluctantly agrees to the task. After a few weeks a mob is formed, men working themselves into a high pitch of excitement and shouts of defiance. Deciding to do the right thing, encouraged by the masked man, the judge cuts the wire and tells everyone that the salt is free. Angry, Wesley tells everyone that the judge stole money and was sentenced to jail, escaped and came here to pose as an honest man. Before the judge can return to prison, The Lone Ranger rides up with a full pardon from the governor – courtesy of The Lone Ranger who felt an honest man should receive a second chance.
Episode #893-118 [TITLE NOT GIVEN]
Broadcast October 17, 1938
Copyright Registration #59,717, script received at Registration Office October 19, 1938.
Plot: Having tried two other trails leading to Beaver Falls and forced to turn back at each one by armed men, The Lone Ranger and Tonto break through a third trail in the dead of night. The cattlemen in town have been plagued with rustling and cattle theft. The sheriff employed a desperate act to send deputies to lookouts to eliminate potential cattle rustling. In spite of the sheriff’s precautions, however, more cattle were stolen. The ranchers, believing the sheriff to be behind the rustling of their stock, threw him in jail and took the administration of the law into their own hands. The Lone Ranger and Tonto race into town to rescue the sheriff before the townsfolk take justice into their own hands. With the lawman’s cooperation, the three ride off to catch the train and force the conductor to back the locomotive back into town. Back in town, The Lone Ranger explains how the scheme was pulled off. Lee Dixon, a local rancher who sought to increase his stock, supervised the loading of others’ cattle into cars drawn up on a spur of the newly built railroad. Abe and Jed were hired by lee Dixon to commit the thefts. The cattle were not rustled from the fields as everyone suspected, but directly from the train that was stopped outside town. The guilty culprits quickly confessed and Lee implicates himself by venting anger at Abe and Jed.
Trivia, etc. This same radio script was recycled from the broadcast of July 17, 1936.
Episode #947-172 [TITLE NOT GIVEN]
Broadcast February 20, 1939
Copyright Registration #62,028, script received at Registration Office February 23, 1939.
Plot: At the opening of the Oklahoma territory for the homesteaders, Government troops guard the line over which none may step until the cannon on the morrow booms the signal that will start the great wagons thundering to drive their claim stake over their homestead. Homer Phelps and his wife Hester, emigrants from Illinois, followed Red’s lead into Grizzly Valley, but the prime acres of real estate that was promised were already taken. Red’s business associate, Bat, offers to sell what was staked for $1,000. The land was magnificent, as promised, but Homer and Hester were about to be conned out of their money. The Lone Ranger and Tonto intervene, preventing the transaction of cash, and while Tonto keeps everyone at bay, the masked man raced away to bring the marshal. Bat and Red insist they only heard of the property prior, but when The Lone Ranger reveals the location of a garden, the marshal realized Red and Bat were sooners in the territory, hoping to pocket extra cash in the process. After the marshal escorts his prisoners away, The Lone Ranger confesses the garden was not there prior, not planted – just transplanted – to give the sooners a position to incriminate themselves.
Trivia, etc. This episode opens with the narrator stating the year was 1889. This episode recycled the radio plot from the broadcast of December 12, 1934.
Episode #950-175 [TITLE NOT GIVEN]
Broadcast February 27, 1939
Copyright Registration #62,179, script received at Registration Office March 1, 1939.
Plot: It was pure luck that The Lone Ranger and Tonto happened upon the Flynn brothers, Earl, Ted and Chuck, convicted of the murder of Sam Harper, who fled the law. Tonto investigated the crime scene and found evidence to suggest the men were innocent. To find proof that Banker Kline of Fairmont was responsible for the crime, The Lone Ranger visited Clay Buhler, a former employee of Kline’s, who lived with his wife and daughter on a small farm a good six hours ride from Fairmont. Clay’s daughter, Alice, was suffering from fever so The Lone Ranger, Tonto and the Flynn brothers created a litter to carry the girl to Fairmont to see a doctor. The trip took a few hours but the men eventually reached the doctor. The sheriff wanted to jail the Flynn brothers, but The Lone Ranger insisted to Clay that the men were volunteers and never forced to oblige. Alice needed medical aid and in a sense of guilt, Clay confessed that he had a sense of loyalty at the time to his employer and lied under oath. Banker Kline caught Clay stealing and held it over his head, threatening jail. With a dislike towards Sam, Kline committed the crime and forced Clay to lie under oath. During this testimony, Tonto went out to apprehend, tie and bound Banker Kline, leaving him on the doorstep for the sheriff.
Episode #974-199 [TITLE NOT GIVEN]
Broadcast April 24, 1939
Copyright Registration #63,200, script received at Registration Office April 26, 1939.
Plot: Abe and Limpy, notorious gunmen who were led by Two-Gun Haley, send a false telegram to arrange for the Eastbound and Westbound to crash into each other. The former carried a gold shipment. The Lone Ranger and Tonto, arranging for an old woman to board one of the trains bound for Sierra City so she can visit a doctor, inadvertently discover Haley’s ruse. With the trains due to collide on the other side of Valley Junction, The Lone Ranger raced from Grantsburg in an attempt to intercept one of the trains. The sheriff in Grantsburg is unable to prevent the disaster from his end because Two-Gun cut the telegraph wires. With the guards firing at the masked man for assuming he was a gold robber, The Lone Ranger braves the terrain and the bullets to alert the conductor. When the train is halted, Two-Gun Haley boarded to force the trains to wreck in despite of recent developments. In the meantime, Tonto returned to Grantsburg, alerting the sheriff who called on a group of men to race for the point where they felt a collision was inevitable. While the masked man and the train guards cut off the flight of Two-Gun and his men in the one direction, the sheriff swept down upon the outlaws from the other. The outlaws, turning in desperation, attempted to deal with this new threat. But, hopelessly outnumbered, it did not take them long to realize the futility of resistance. They threw down their arms and yelled for surrender.
Episode #976-201 [TITLE NOT GIVEN]
Broadcast April 28, 1939
Copyright Registration #63,202, script received at Registration Office April 26, 1939.
Plot: Sam Wheeler was one of those unfortunate men consistently pursued by bad luck. He and his wife, Bertha, and his crippled daughter, Molly, occupied a small shack on a poverty-stricken homestead. But the day came when Sam Wheeler, brooding over the poverty from which there seemed no release, made an important decision. Having learned crooks committed a robbery and made off with a ton of cash, Sam covered his face with a crude mask and clothes that would keep him from being identified, and robbed Jeff Higgins, a store-keeper. The Lone Ranger, however, pays Sam a visit three days later, takes the money and promises to return it – with complete understanding that not everyone who steals is an evil person. A couple days later, Jeff figures out it was Sam Wheeler who robbed him. The sheriff quickly discovered to his distaste that his party had been swelled to the size of a posse when the news rapidly circulated through town that Sam Wheeler was to be arrested. The Lone Ranger called on an old friend, Martin Whitby, a public figure in town who commanded respect. The posse, however, dies down moments after they arrive at the Wheeler homestead. Whitby hands Sam a check for $300 and informs him that they can pay it off with a job on one of his ranches. Such charity extinguished the fire in the eyes of the posse members, especially when they learn at the same time that the money stolen from Jeff was returned. Sam had his punishment – the fear of punishment that he must have suffered since the day he stole.
Episode #977-202 [TITLE NOT GIVEN]
Broadcast May 1, 1939
Copyright Registration #63,326, script received at Registration Office May 1, 1939.
Plot: Glen Jordan was found guilty of the murder of Asa Sampson, a wealthy resident of Santa Rosa who was murdered recently. While sweating behind bars, Jordan awaits the tenth of August where he will be hanged by the neck. He is promised by The Lone Ranger to have faith until he brings Tonto back with evidence that will clear him of the crime he was falsely accused. Two criminals, Turk (a redskin), and Sig, were hired by Lefty Sampson, son of Asa, to catch and kidnap Tonto, who has evidence against the crooked Lefty. Arizona’s dog picked up the trail of the outlaws into a valley and a camp in the hills. The sheriff followed and during a confrontation the masked man explained how Lefty killed his father, making it look as though Glen Jordan was guilty. Pike Nugent was a witness to the crime. Pike was sent south of the border but Lefty wanted him killed because his silence could be bought cheaper. Tonto was kidnapped because he knew this. The Indian was freed and verified The Lone Ranger’s story, with the promise to bring Pike back across the border to testify in person, clearing the name of Glen Jordan.
