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of the Lone Ranger Fan
Club. Click on the links
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source of information on the
Web about the Lone Ranger
and Tonto. Be sure to click
on the "Join the Fan Club"
button to learn how to
become a Lone Ranger
Deputy and receive The
Silver Bullet newsletter!
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TM
| Riding the rails with the Lone Ranger |
By Joe Southern
The Silver Bullet
The Lone Ranger and Tonto have been busy riding to the rescue of train passengers threatened by bandits.
Three historic railroads are featuring Lone Ranger themed rides this year. Building on the success of rides done
last year, the Texas State Railroad held a Lone Ranger weekend on April 25-26 and plans for another June 13.
The Lone Ranger is scheduled to appear on steam excursions on the following Saturdays: June 6, 20, 27 and
Aug. 1, 8, 15, 22, and 29 — though those events are appearances only and do not include Tonto and the horses.
Not to be outdone by Texas, the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad in Bryson City, N.C., will have it’s train rescued
by the Lone Ranger and Tonto — featuring our own Lone Ranger look-alike. The first event was held May 30-31.
The event returns the last two weekends in August (without our look-alike).
Hopping aboard the Lone Ranger bandwagon is the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad and Museum
in Colorado. Its Lone Ranger event will be July 18 at 10:30 a.m. and noon.
The Lone Ranger Fan Club held a gathering on April 25 at the Texas State Railroad that turned out to be a
Southern family outing, as no one else came. Still, the adventure was quite a thrill. We arrived too late to catch the
first of the three trains that day. Just before we were to board, the Lone Ranger and Tonto posed for photos in front
of the steam engine, which was on a different train then the one used for the Lone Ranger ride.
Once aboard, passengers are taken for a scenic, 25-minute ride. During that time, cowboys chat with
passengers, asking about gold shipments and other loot reported to be onboard. The train comes to a stop, and the
William Tell Overture begins playing. The Lone Ranger and Tonto ride in on Silver and Scout. They board the train,
make their way down the cars and exit in pursuit of the outlaws. There is a brief but exciting shootout which ends
with the bad guys being captured and the loot recovered by the Lone Ranger. All of this done in the time it takes to
play the Lone Ranger theme, complete with the radio narration by Fred Foy!
As the train heads in reverse back to the station, the Lone Ranger and Tonto move through the compartments,
shaking hands, posing for pictures and handing out silver bullet necklaces’ to the children.
At the train station in Rusk, Texas, (sometimes at the other end of the line in Palestine), there was a wild West
set up with games and activities for children and music to enjoy.
According to TSR Marketing Manager Lori Pennington, 550 people attended the first weekend. She attributed
the low numbers to it being early in the tourist season and the economy being weak. She said bigger crowds are
anticipated for the upcoming events.
“It was a really fun event this year,” Pennington said. “This was our third time to do the event.
She said the Lone Ranger theme event was created at TSR, licensed by Classic Media and is now being used in
Durango and Bryson City.
“We’ve prepped them on how we did our event,” Pennington said.
She said they hired their actors and extras from a local Cowboy Action Shooting group. Their Lone Ranger,
played by Bill Williams, already did a Lone Ranger part in the shooting club.
“I had white trousers and a white shirt, like he did when I was a kid,” Williams said, adding that he made a blue
outfit for the railroad gig.
He said he got the part pretty much on a fluke.
“I could ride and shoot and do everything they needed,” he said.
Even though he did mounted shooting, he still had to qualify to ride the horse the TSR had booked for the event.
The horse has been used in the movies, most notably it was the one Dennis Quaid rode as Sam Houston in “The
Alamo.”
“I had to go to the owner’s ranch to prove I could ride the horse,” he said.
In addition to being a good rider and shooter, there was one other thing that made Williams a good fit for the part.
“I have quite an extensive acting background,” he said.
Williams is from Conroe, Texas, and by day works as an electrical engineer at a chemical plant and also runs his
own auto repair business.
The actor who normally plays Tonto was injured and replaced by a man that Williams only knows as Justin.
Williams said he was surprised at how well people knew the Lone Ranger, especially the little children.
“They’re watching the Lone Ranger on DVD with their parents or grandparents,” he said.
At the Bryson City event, Chief T. Alligood took his son for the ride. This is what he had to say on the Lone
Ranger forum online: “Yes this event was focused on the children as it should be. I can only say one thing IF anyone
gets the opportunity to see the Lone Ranger look alike from Maryland, you have to see him. He truly has the spirit of
the Lone Ranger in his heart and a great attitude and message for kids.
“My 8-year-old liked the Lone Ranger but after this event the Lone Ranger was “cool” and he wants to go back in
August. That says a lot when the Lone Ranger has all this high tech competition in today’s world. Family fun for
everyone.”
Added Lone Ranger Fan Club member Ty Fuller: “This past Saturday, May 30, my wife and I travelled to Bryson
City, N.C., to see the look-alike Lone Ranger, Tex Holland, and his companion Tonto. The event was held on the
Great Smoky Mountain Railroad. A train robbery was staged with the Lone Ranger and Tonto coming to the rescue.
We had a great time and even received a silver bullet from the Lone Ranger himself. All the young
children on the train received one as well.”
The Silver Bullet
The Lone Ranger and Tonto have been busy riding to the rescue of train passengers threatened by bandits.
Three historic railroads are featuring Lone Ranger themed rides this year. Building on the success of rides done
last year, the Texas State Railroad held a Lone Ranger weekend on April 25-26 and plans for another June 13.
The Lone Ranger is scheduled to appear on steam excursions on the following Saturdays: June 6, 20, 27 and
Aug. 1, 8, 15, 22, and 29 — though those events are appearances only and do not include Tonto and the horses.
Not to be outdone by Texas, the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad in Bryson City, N.C., will have it’s train rescued
by the Lone Ranger and Tonto — featuring our own Lone Ranger look-alike. The first event was held May 30-31.
The event returns the last two weekends in August (without our look-alike).
Hopping aboard the Lone Ranger bandwagon is the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad and Museum
in Colorado. Its Lone Ranger event will be July 18 at 10:30 a.m. and noon.
The Lone Ranger Fan Club held a gathering on April 25 at the Texas State Railroad that turned out to be a
Southern family outing, as no one else came. Still, the adventure was quite a thrill. We arrived too late to catch the
first of the three trains that day. Just before we were to board, the Lone Ranger and Tonto posed for photos in front
of the steam engine, which was on a different train then the one used for the Lone Ranger ride.
Once aboard, passengers are taken for a scenic, 25-minute ride. During that time, cowboys chat with
passengers, asking about gold shipments and other loot reported to be onboard. The train comes to a stop, and the
William Tell Overture begins playing. The Lone Ranger and Tonto ride in on Silver and Scout. They board the train,
make their way down the cars and exit in pursuit of the outlaws. There is a brief but exciting shootout which ends
with the bad guys being captured and the loot recovered by the Lone Ranger. All of this done in the time it takes to
play the Lone Ranger theme, complete with the radio narration by Fred Foy!
As the train heads in reverse back to the station, the Lone Ranger and Tonto move through the compartments,
shaking hands, posing for pictures and handing out silver bullet necklaces’ to the children.
At the train station in Rusk, Texas, (sometimes at the other end of the line in Palestine), there was a wild West
set up with games and activities for children and music to enjoy.
According to TSR Marketing Manager Lori Pennington, 550 people attended the first weekend. She attributed
the low numbers to it being early in the tourist season and the economy being weak. She said bigger crowds are
anticipated for the upcoming events.
“It was a really fun event this year,” Pennington said. “This was our third time to do the event.
She said the Lone Ranger theme event was created at TSR, licensed by Classic Media and is now being used in
Durango and Bryson City.
“We’ve prepped them on how we did our event,” Pennington said.
She said they hired their actors and extras from a local Cowboy Action Shooting group. Their Lone Ranger,
played by Bill Williams, already did a Lone Ranger part in the shooting club.
“I had white trousers and a white shirt, like he did when I was a kid,” Williams said, adding that he made a blue
outfit for the railroad gig.
He said he got the part pretty much on a fluke.
“I could ride and shoot and do everything they needed,” he said.
Even though he did mounted shooting, he still had to qualify to ride the horse the TSR had booked for the event.
The horse has been used in the movies, most notably it was the one Dennis Quaid rode as Sam Houston in “The
Alamo.”
“I had to go to the owner’s ranch to prove I could ride the horse,” he said.
In addition to being a good rider and shooter, there was one other thing that made Williams a good fit for the part.
“I have quite an extensive acting background,” he said.
Williams is from Conroe, Texas, and by day works as an electrical engineer at a chemical plant and also runs his
own auto repair business.
The actor who normally plays Tonto was injured and replaced by a man that Williams only knows as Justin.
Williams said he was surprised at how well people knew the Lone Ranger, especially the little children.
“They’re watching the Lone Ranger on DVD with their parents or grandparents,” he said.
At the Bryson City event, Chief T. Alligood took his son for the ride. This is what he had to say on the Lone
Ranger forum online: “Yes this event was focused on the children as it should be. I can only say one thing IF anyone
gets the opportunity to see the Lone Ranger look alike from Maryland, you have to see him. He truly has the spirit of
the Lone Ranger in his heart and a great attitude and message for kids.
“My 8-year-old liked the Lone Ranger but after this event the Lone Ranger was “cool” and he wants to go back in
August. That says a lot when the Lone Ranger has all this high tech competition in today’s world. Family fun for
everyone.”
Added Lone Ranger Fan Club member Ty Fuller: “This past Saturday, May 30, my wife and I travelled to Bryson
City, N.C., to see the look-alike Lone Ranger, Tex Holland, and his companion Tonto. The event was held on the
Great Smoky Mountain Railroad. A train robbery was staged with the Lone Ranger and Tonto coming to the rescue.
We had a great time and even received a silver bullet from the Lone Ranger himself. All the young
children on the train received one as well.”
| Three railroads holding Lone Ranger themed events |
Texas State Railroad (above) Great Smoky Mountains Railroad (below).
|
