Clayton Moore is back as the Lone Ranger with Tonto (Jay Silverheels) as his sidekick, and they hear shots ring out.
They rush to the scene and find someone has killed three Indians. While they try to determine what happened, Silver (the Lone Ranger’s horse) finds an unharmed baby.
The heroic duo take the infant to a nearby mission and turn him over to Padre Vicente Esteban and a pretty girl named Paviva (Lisa Montell).
They also learn that a gang of hooded bandits have been terrorizing the area around the town of San Doria.
Of course, they set out to determine who’s behind all the trouble, with the Lone Ranger donning the disguise of a southern gentleman named Regan as part of that endeavor.
They soon learn that some of the killings seem linked to medallions worn by some of the local Indians.
And the Lone Ranger begins to suspect that the people who can provide the most information include Frances Henderson (Noreen Nash), the pretty woman who owns the local telegraph station, and her boyfriend, Ross Brady (Douglas Kennedy).
Clayton Moore as the Lone Ranger, showing up at a mission with an orphaned infant in The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958)
Jay Silverheels as Tonto being helped to the doctor’s office by Padre Esteban (Ralph Moody) in The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958)
Review:
This film is most noteworthy as Clayton Moore’s final starring appearance as The Lone Ranger. The TV series that made the character famous was ABC’s first big hit and ran from 1949 to 1957, followed by a film called “The Lone Ranger” and this movie.
As for the film, it’s more clever in places that you might suspect, complete with a female villain with a single-minded purpose — collecting the five medallions that will reveal the location of a city of gold she and her husband have been trying to locate for years.
The romantic subplot focuses on Paviva, who wants to adopt the orphaned baby boy, and James Rolfe, the town doctor she loves. He’s the grandson of an Indian chief, but passes himself off as white so he’ll be accepted in the town of San Doria.
He has a noble intent — to raise enough money to build a mission where the Indians can have access to the medical care they need. But Paviva pushes him to quit living a lie.
There’s plenty of Lone Ranger hokeyness too, but you sorta have to expect that.
Noreen Nash as Frances Henderson, the woman seeking five medallions in The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958)
Douglas Kennedy as Ross Brady, leader of the hooded outlaws in The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958)
Directed by:
Lesley Selander
Cast:
Clayton Moore … The Lone Ranger
Jay Silverheels … Tonto
Douglas Kennedy … Ross Brady
Charles Watts …. Sheriff Oscar Matthison
Noreen Nash … Frances Henderson
Lisa Montell … Paviva
Ralph Moody … Padre Vincente Esteban
Dean Fredericks … Dr. James Rolfe
John Miljan … Chief Tomache
Maurice Jara … Redbird
William Henry … Travers
Lane Bradford … Wilson
Bell Mitchell … Caulama
Runtime: 80 min.
Dean Fredericks as Dr. James Rolfe revealing his Indian heritage to the residents of San Doria in The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958)
Lisa Montell as Paviva with the orphaned infant in The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958)
Memorable lines:
Dr. Rolfe: “I’m afraid Tonto found out rather painfully what kind of a man our sheriff is.”
Tonto: “Bruises on body go away. But sheriff have sickness in head that can’t be fixed with medicine.”
Frances Henderson, reacting to words of flattery: “Padre, I bet you were a devil 20 years ago.”
Padre: “Hardly a devil.”
Frances Henderson: “You’re not only handsome, you’re clever.”
Reagan (the Lone Ranger in disguise): “I’m also fond of living.”
Tonto, to the sheriff: “You have the tongue and courage of a coyote. You speak much, but say nothing.”
Clayton Moore as the Lone Ranger, pretending to be a southern gentleman named Regan in The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958)
Maurice Jara as Indian leader Redbird confronts racist sheriff Oscar Matthison (Charles Watts) in The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958)
Ralph Moody as Padre Esteban with Lisa Montell as Paviva in The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958)
layton Moore as The Lone Ranger and Jay Silverheels as Tonto, investigating the killings in The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958)
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