Clayton Moore (
September 14,
1914 –
December 28,
1999) was an
American actor best known for playing the fictional western character
The Lone Ranger.
Biography
Early years
Born as
Jack Carlton Moore in
Chicago, Illinois, Moore was a
circus acrobat as a boy, then later enjoyed a successful career as a
John Robert Powers model. Moving to
Hollywood in the late 1930s, he began working as a stunt man and bit player between modeling jobs. According to his autobiography, around 1940
Hollywood producer
Edward Small convinced him to adopt the stage name "Clayton" Moore. He was an occasional player in B westerns and Republic Studio cliffhangers, ultimately starring in more such films than serial hero
Buster Crabbe.
As The Lone Ranger
Moore's big break came in 1949, when George Trendle spotted him in
Ghost of Zorro. As producer of the radio show and creator of "The Lone Ranger" character, with writer Fran Striker, Trendle was about to launch the masked man in the new medium of television. Moore was cast on sight.
