Western movie star Clayton Moore died of a heart attack on Tuesday, December 28, 1999. He was 85. He died after being taken to the emergency room at West Hills Hospital, some 20 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles.
Moore was born Sept. 14, 1914 in Chicago. His real birthname was Jack Carlton Moore. His father was a wealthy real estate developer. Moore worked in a circus trapeze act (remember, so did Burt Lancaster) for a time, working without a net and sometimes working over large bodies of water. But when he was injured in a fall in 1934, he decided to try to become an actor on Broadway. He managed to do some modeling in New York City, but never got the call for the big stage. So he headed for Hollywood in 1938.
His first acting roles were in movie serials such as ``Dick Tracy Returns.'' And for a time he used the name, "Jack Moore". He even wore a black hat and played the bad guy in some early Gene Autry and Roy Rogers films. For a complete filmography, as well as dozens of great photos, please visit the links below. Suffice to say that he played in many, many movies before he landed his dream role of The Lone Ranger.
Going back to "those exciting days of yesteryear," you will recall the story of how The Lone Ranger came into being. A gang of outlaws ambushed a group of Texas Rangers. An Indian named Tonto found the carnage and was able to nurse the lone survivor back to health. And this lone Ranger decided to wear a mask to prevent others--especially those particular outlaws--from knowing his true identify.
Clayton Moore early in his career.
The first episodes did not feature the famous Lone Ranger outfit or costume. The fact is that Moore himself designed the clothing he wore. The shirt and pants were dark grey on the black and white film sets, while he wore a powder blue outfit for color movies.
Anyway, Clayton Moore starred in "The Lone Ranger'' from 1949 to 1952* and from 1954 to 1957. He fought for law and order on the Western frontier. And he was a huge success, thanks to his horse, Silver, and "he faithful Indian companion, Tonto". Tonto, of course, was the actor Jay Silverheels (he died in 1979).*That gap in service as Lone Ranger, happened when his agent and the producers couldn't agree on a contract. He was briefly replaced by John Hart during part of 1952, all of 1953 and part of 1954.)
While John Hart was starring in 52 programs of The Lone Ranger, Clayton Moore was not sitting around crying in his, ...uh, sarsaparilla. He appeared in several serials, including: "Radar Men from the Moon," "Son of Geronimo," "Jungle Drums of Africa," "Gunfighters of the Northwest" and as Buffalo Bill in "Tomahawk Territory. "
You can see Clayton Moore as the Lone Ranger in your imagination, can't you? You can see him riding "a firey horse with the speed of light" around that dusty road and up the trail to the noll where Silver rears toward the sky. All to the heart-pumping music of the "William Tell Overture." And then there was his authoritative command, "Hi-Yo, Silver!'' It was enough to make you wish you were old enough to enlist in his fight for "truth and justice".
