George Trendle was a lawyer who specialized in Movie and theatrical contracts. As with any lawyer, he was never short of money. However, he would often be a key negotiator in some big money deals which must have left him wondering if he was on the right side of the fence. His chance to jump came in 1928 when John King offered Trendle a 25% stake in his Kunsky Theaters company. King wanted Trendle on board for a good reason. He knew that Trendle was a hard, ruthless and obstinate negotiator and King was looking for a buyer for this business. And so it was, a year after Trendle's arrival, that Kunsky Theaters was sold for a cool $6 million. This made George Trendle a millionaire at the age of 44 at a time when a millionaire was a rarity.
Both John King and George Trendle had been witness to - and had be come rich because of - the great popularity of Movies. They must also have been aware of the rise of their greatest competitor for audience - the radio. They therefore continued their association by forming King-Trendle Broadcasting and purchased radio stations WOOD and WGHP in 1930. At the time of the purchase, much of the evening peak air-time on WGHP was used to broadcast Columbia network (CBS) output. Trendle found this arrangement stifling as it left the station as nothing more than a relay in the evenings. Potential local advertisers had little influence over show content and few sponsorship opportunities were available when the shows were not locally produced. On the other hand WXYZ (its new call sign) did have access to quality shows that included the best entertainers, orchestras, scripts and produc tion techniques that Columbia had to offer. Trendle tried to curtail the Columbia content in favour of locally produced shows, but they could not agree to Trendle's ideas. Perhaps another sign of his stubborn nature, or perhaps because of the confidence of an overflowing bank balance, negotiations with Columbia broke down and the WXYZ went independent. Now there would be plenty of local shows!
This may have been liberating for George Trendle but it was surely a little scary as the station's fixed overheads were suddenly starved of the regular income from the Columbia deal. Cutting costs was only a partial answer to the problem. Trendle and King knew that shrinking a business to fit financial realities is a short term necessity. They also knew that, in normal times, the longer term trend should be the other way. Suddenly though, the early 1930's were not normal. This was the start of the Great Depression. Although not a full depression first, both men could see all aro und them evidence of bad times to come. Haemorrhaging money at the rate they were would not have been such a serious problem had the outside world remained stable. The trouble was, the outside world was in a financial meltdown. Severe cost-cutting was the order of the day, but, even during a depression, Trendle and King were looking for light at the end of the tunnel.
They needed a new idea. Something home-grown. Something that would have wide appeal, wider even than WXYZ's local audience - but something that would cost very little.
Having thought long and hard about it, George Trendle realized that they should major on drama. It was relatively low cost and he was lucky enough to have access to talented and prolific writer Francis Striker and Jim Jewell's drama group. Trendle also realized that they needed a hero. One day he grabbed Fran Striker and asked him to come up with some ideas around the theme of a wild west hero who would appeal to kids; someone how wou ld be wholesome - and be on the right side of the law. Jim Jewell was also asked to pitch in. Trendle encouraged his team to think big. A lot was at stake.
Many on the station had been let go; others were on a reduced salary while many worked on a promise without even being on the payroll. Revenue had slumped as the big national shows were no longer being aired and, worst still, advertising budgets were being slashed as the recession was turning into a depression. Trendle thought the hero of the new show should be a lone, mysterious figure; someone who is strong enough to fight for his principals but who is kind at heart. He had a vision of Robin Hood and Zorro and wanted someone in between the two, set in an historic western setting.
Striker was set to work on a number of sketched stories. Each sketch was taken to Trendle and each time was sent back for re-working. Too much violence - Trendle didn't want to alienate advertisers and sponsors; the hero was too you ng - the kids needed someone to look up to. Striker thought that the hero should be a little mysterious and aloof. Eventually, Fran Striker, Jim Jewell and studio manager Harold True came up with the masked Texas ranger - the Lone Ranger. With Trendle's eye for a good business prospect, it must have soon occurred to him that the mask would mean that no one actor could monopolise the character. This may have been radio, but Trendle was always aware of the potential for merchandising and Movies.
Jim Jewell was appointed as the show's director and supplied the actors from his own repertory company, including George Seaton who played the Lone Ranger. With minimum rehearsal and preparation, the show first aired in January 1933. In the first few weeks George Trendle had no idea how popular the show was, until , that is, the audience started to write in. Letters arrived in their hundreds and then in their thousands as it soon became clear that Trendle had a hit on his hands. The Lone Ranger was not only a hero in the fictional sense, he also happened to be the saviour of WXYZ. At first the show had no sponsor, but soon there were no shortage of takers.
Trendle milked the cash cow that the Lone Ranger became by having the show syndicated on radio stations WOR in New York and WGN in Chicago (later, along with WXYZ, to collectively become Mutual Broadcasting System). A successful spin-off series, Green Hornet, was also aired and toys and comics were licensed to use the Lone Ranger concept. In 1949 the show was brought to ABC television and lasted for eight years - a very long time in television terms. During the Tv ru n, Trendle sold the rights to the Lone Ranger, probably at the height of the character's stock.
It could be said that the Lone Ranger saved George Trendle's WXYZ radio station just in time. This is far too simplistic. Trendle was a good businessman who knew when to invest and when to sell out. He had to balance this ability with his obvious stubborn ways. It was this very stubbornness that drove him to go it alone and make a success of producing his own shows and it was his business sense that brought about his ruthless cost cutting (a trait he never shook off even in more affluent times). He had a vision and nobody was going to knock him off his horse. He was a great leader who had a knack of getting the best out of his people at least cost. If the Lone Ranger saved him then it should never be forgotten that it was George Trendle who created his own saviour.
Vernon Stent is the content writer for BygoneTv.com, a we site all about old Tv shows. Here you can read about the Lone Ranger
Author:: Vernon Stent
Keywords:: Lone Ranger,Old TV Shows
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