Red Ryder was an American radio western series based on the popularity of the comic strip Red Ryder by Stephen Slesinger and Fred Harman. It debuted on February 3, 1942 on the NBC Blue Network[3] and was broadcast three days a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.[2][self-published source] After the sixth episode Langendorf Bread became its prime sponsor.[1] The final episode was broadcast in 1951.[4]
Since "Red Ryder" aimed a young audience the violence was toned down a bit. Unlike the comics Red was not active as a lawman, but mostly worked as a cowhand. Only when the stories asked for it did he get involved in acting like a (deputy) sheriff.[1] Red also never killed his enemies, only shot their guns out of their hands. Another difference was the name of Red's sweetheart. In the comics her name was Beth Wilder, while on the radio she was named Jane Bruce.[1]
Originally the show was successful enough to beat its rival, The Lone Ranger, in radio ratings. However, when the network sold the series to the Mutual Broadcasting System it was no longer broadcast in the east side of the United States.[2][self-published source] Mutual and Langendorf continued the series on the West Coast Don Lee Network through the 1940s at 7:30pm on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, always with the familiar organ theme, "The Dying Cowboy" ("Bury Me Not on the Lone Prairie"). The introduction of television also meant the end of the radio series and its transfer to the small screen.
The Red Ryder Victory Patrol, a club founded in 1942 to encourage people in conservation practices that would help the war effort, was directly inspired by the radio show's popularity. Young listeners could get application cards from their local grocery stores and mail them in. In return there would receive a membership card, a certificate, a secret decoder and a 32-page comic book about "Red Ryder".[1]
In 1944, Warner Bros. produced a parody of the character in the short Buckaroo Bugs: Red-Hot Ryder (whom the narrator described as "Brooklyn's famous fighting cowboy"). The character was portrayed as a bumbling simpleton, harassed by Bugs Bunny.
↑ Cox, Jim (2008). This Day in Network Radio: A Daily Calendar of Births, Debuts, Cancellations and Other Events in Broadcasting History. McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN978-0-7864-3848-8.
The Lone Ranger is a fictional masked former Texas Ranger who fought outlaws in the American Old West with his Native American friend Tonto. The character has been called an enduring icon of American culture.
The Mutual Broadcasting System was an American commercial radio network in operation from 1934 to 1999. In the golden age of U.S. radio drama, Mutual was best known as the original network home of The Lone Ranger and The Adventures of Superman and as the long-time radio residence of The Shadow. For many years, it was a national broadcaster for Major League Baseball, the National Football League, and Notre Dame Fighting Irish football. From the mid-1930s and until the retirement of the network in 1999, Mutual ran a highly respected news service accompanied by a variety of popular commentary shows. Mutual pioneered the nationwide late night call-in talk radio program in the late 1970s, introducing the country to Larry King and later Jim Bohannon.
Red Ryder was a Western comic strip created by Stephen Slesinger and artist Fred Harman which served as the basis for a wide array of character merchandising. Syndicated by Newspaper Enterprise Association, the strip ran from Sunday, November 6, 1938, through 1965.
Lum and Abner was an American network radio comedy program created by Chester Lauck and Norris Goff that was aired from 1931 to 1954. Modeled on life in the small town of Waters, Arkansas, near where Lauck and Goff grew up, the show proved immensely popular. In 1936, Waters changed its name to "Pine Ridge" after the show's fictional town.
The year 1942 saw a number of significant happenings in radio broadcasting history.
The Life of Riley is an American radio situation comedy series of the 1940s that was adapted into a 1949 feature film, a 1950s television series, and a 1958 comic book.
Captain Midnight is a U.S. adventure franchise first broadcast as a radio serial from 1938 to 1949. The character's popularity throughout the 1940s and into the mid-1950s extended to serial films (1942), a television show (1954–1956), a syndicated newspaper strip, and a comic book title (1942–1948).
Land of the Lost was a 1940s radio fantasy adventure, written and narrated by Isabel Manning Hewson, about the adventures of two children who traveled underwater with the fatherly fish Red Lantern. Each week, the show opened with the line, "In that wonderful kingdom at the bottom of the sea..." and then Red Lantern showed Billy and Isabel where different lost objects were stored beneath the waves.
The Sea Hound is an American radio adventure series that ran from June 29, 1942, to August 7, 1951. It began on the Blue Network June 29, 1942 – September 22, 1944, as a 15-minute serial for young audiences, featuring Ken Daigneau as Captain Silver of the ship The Sea Hound. Other members of the cast were Barry Thompson as Captain Silver, Bob Hastings as Jerry, and Alan Devitt as Kai. Doug Browning was the announcer.
The Adventures of Dick Cole was a 1940s comic book series, created by Bob Davis. It was published by Novelty Press, and later, Star Publications. Dick Cole is a heroic cadet at the fictional Farr Military Academy. The character was introduced in the "Origin of Dick Cole," in the first issue of Novelty Press' Blue Bolt Comics.
The year 1943 saw a number of significant happenings in radio broadcasting history.
The year 1941 saw a number of significant happenings in radio broadcasting history.
The year 1938 saw a number of significant events in radio broadcasting.
Wild Bill Elliott was an American film actor. He specialized in playing the rugged heroes of B Westerns, particularly the Red Ryder series of films.
Gene Autry's Melody Ranch is a Western variety radio show in the United States. A 15-minute pilot show aired on December 31, 1939. The program ran from January 7, 1940 to August 1, 1943, and from September 23, 1945 to May 16, 1956. The show's entire run was broadcast over the CBS radio network, sponsored by Doublemint gum. The approximately two-year interruption resulted from Autry's enlistment in the United States Army to serve in World War II. Initially titled Doublemint's Melody Ranch, the show's name was changed to Gene Autry's Melody Ranch in early 1941. Episodes were 30 minutes long except for a 15-minute version that ran from September 23, 1945 to June 16, 1946. The theme song was "Back in the Saddle Again".
Black Hood was an American radio serial based on the popularity of the US superhero comics series Black Hood. It was broadcast on the Mutual Broadcasting System July 5, 1943 – January 14, 1944.
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century was a radio drama series based on the popularity of the popular novel and comics series Buck Rogers. It aired from 1932-1936, 1939, 1940 and 1946-1947, and it was notable for being the first science fiction radio show.
The Black Castle is an old-time radio mystery-terror program in the United States. The 15-minute program was broadcast on Mutual in 1943 and 1944.
Chick Carter, Boy Detective is a 15-minute American old-time radio juvenile crime drama. It was carried on the Mutual Broadcasting System weekday afternoons from July 5, 1943 to July 6, 1945.
Hop Harrigan is an American old-time radio juvenile adventure program. It was broadcast on ABC from August 31, 1942, until August 2, 1946, and on Mutual from October 2, 1946, until February 6, 1948. General Foods began sponsoring the program on October 2, 1944; it had previously been unsponsored.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
