This is Amy Wagenaar from the Historical Society of Michigan with a Michigan history moment. It was 1933, in the depths of the Great Depression. Americans needed hope. They needed a new hero. At WXYZ Radio in Detroit, station owner George Trendall had an idea. Trendle imagined an Old west hero who fought for justice, a man of mystery who had to conceal his identity. A former Texas Ranger, Trendle and writer Francis Stryker created the Lone Ranger, the masked Rider of the plains, and his Native American friend, Tonto. The Lone Ranger was the sole survivor of a group of Texas Rangers who were murdered by the villainous Butch Cavendish gang. The show, with its theme music from the William Tell Overture, was an enormous hit. It ran for nearly 3,000 episodes from 1933 to 1954. Trendle and Stryker set the rules for the Lone Ranger episodes. The masked man always used perfect grammar, and he never drank or smoked. If forced to use his guns, he never shot to kill. He was never unmasked, and he never revealed his true name. Instead, he confirmed his identity by presenting people with a silver bullet, leaving them to wonder, who was that masked man? Voice actors for the show were from Detroit. George Stines played the Lone Ranger for the first few episodes. Station manager Brace Beamer succeeded him. But when he left wxyz, actor Earl Grazier took over. Grazier played the part until his death in a car accident in 1941. Brace Beamer returned to the role and continued until the series ended in 1954. Beamer was an ideal fit. Unlike the slightly chubby Grazier, Beamer was tall and handsome, an expert rider and a crack shot. He made personal appearances at rodeos, circuses and benefits. Several Native American tribes adopted him as a tribal member, and he was deputized in Texas. Tonto was played by a former Shakespearean actor named John Todd. Unlike Beamer, Todd was in his mid-60s, heavyset and balding. Station owner George Trendle wanted to replace him with a true Native American. But the college educated actor selected for the role refused to speak Tonto's scripted pidgin English lines. So John Todd stayed on for the show's entire run. The Lone Ranger was also the subject of movies, novels, children's books and a TV show. So who was that masked man? He was our ideals and our dreams, and he lives on as an immortal part of American popular culture. This Michigan history moment was brought to you by michiganhistorymagazine.org Sam.