The Lone Ranger and the Gold Robbery

The Lone Ranger #3

by Fran Striker

The Lone Ranger and the Gold Robbery

Genres: Westerns, Pulp, Adventure

Paperback

First published January 1, 1939

About the author

Fran Striker (born Francis Hamilton Striker) (August 19, 1903 – September 4, 1962) was an American writer for radio and comics, best known for creating The Lone Ranger, The Green Hornet, and Sgt. Preston of the Yukon

Series:
* The Lone Ranger Magazine & Romantic Western
* The Lone Ranger
* Tom Quest

Reviews

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good Lone Ranger adventure.
Both The Lone Ranger and Tonto find themselves in a bit of a jam fairly early on.
Attempting to prevent a gold robbery, they instead find themselves hunted by the local sheriff (who is not crooked for a change) and his posse. They get trapped and there seems to be no way out....
Later on, The Lone Ranger again finds himself in hot water when one of his disguises is seen thru rather quickly.
Tonto is on the sidelines a lot in this one. But he does play a key part at the end in proving The Lone Ranger's theory.
A quick moving story.

[John Peel · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a typical Lone Ranger plot - a robbery with murder in which he and Tonto become the prime suspects (well, he will go around wearing a mask...), a well-meaning sheriff determined to bring him in and hang him for the crime and hidden villains who (of course) actually did the robbery. Our heroes manage to clear themselves and unveil the real crooks. Nothing at all surprising.

But, then, you don't go to the Lone Ranger if you want anything but the old formula, and Frank Striker tells the tale well, so it's good fun all round.

[Kevin Findley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun, adventure tale of Tonto and the Lone Ranger. This is the better of the paperbacks I've read, and falls more in line with the original radio plays than the TV series. Tonto is more of a partner / Alfred type assistant, but his awful "you take-um" dialogue is still intact. It should not stop you from enjoying the book however, so enjoy it if you can find a copy.

Read it!

[Anthony Ordille · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a childhood fan of the TV show, I enjoyed reading the book after all these years. It was a typical story for the duo characters of the Lone Ranger and his Indian friend Tonto. All-in-all, a good, fun read.

[Carolynn England · Rating 5 out of 5]

always just realistic enough to believe. can't wait to read the next 'episode'.

[Michael P. · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a disappointment. On every level except detail. The story isn't especially interesting, nor are the characters or the style. Because the book was written by Fran Striker, co-creator of the character and writer of the vast majority of the radio scripts, it is interesting to read how Striker handled those things that can't be effectively done on the radio, such as having a narrator tell readers the thoughts, hopes, and fears of the characters. The story also revels in the dirt and grit of dusty trails and foul-smelling bogs, something rarely if ever touched in the radio and other incarnations of the Lone Ranger and Tonto.

The concept is still essentially racist, Tonto always follows the leader, there is no development of the relationship between the two protagonists other than the practical matters of camping and stopping criminals, and everybody except the Lone Ranger and Tonto are essentially stupid, otherwise they would not need the Lone Ranger to solve the crime. A repeated problem with the concept is that darn mask the LR insists on wearing. It gets him into so much trouble that anybody with half a brain would have lost it years before.

This is in many ways a bad book, but reading it was a curiously enjoyable experience. Striker writes readable prose, if nothing else, and for many people that will be good enough.

[R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was in a box of books given to me as a gift by my aunt Patty and uncle Rich, around 1983 or 1984...along with many, many volumes of Tom Swift. I did, indeed, read some of the Tom Swift books...but title-recall fails me in this case. However, this Lone Ranger novel, with its simple brick-red hardback binding and silhouette of a man on horse (the lone ranger and trigger!) is unforgettable. I do remember being mildly disappointed that Tonto made only a cameo appearance. I could be wrong. Hell, it's been over 20 years since I read the damned thing.

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun, quick read. Seemed very much like an episode of the TV show (even though it was written well before the TV days), so it's probably a good adaptation of the radio show. I found it interesting that the Lone Ranger uses a disguise in this book, as I've always assumed that was a TV invention because of Clayton Moore's talents. It was also interesting to read about the Lone Ranger's normal attire -- dark trousers, fawn colored shirt, dark neckerchief and of course the mask and white hat. No mention at all of the iconic powder blue outfit. All-in-all, a good, fun read.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

A simple tale, much like the old t.v. show. My childhood idol.