ABC Television

Hi-Yo, Silver…Away! Yes, the Lone Ranger rides again, this time on the small screen, in full color, no less! It’s Clayton Moore as “that masked man”, along with his faithful Indian sidekick, Tonto (played by Jay Silverheels), fighting for truth, justice and the American Way!

To quote from my book, “Hollywood’s Railroads: Volume Two”, by Larry Jensen: “It (The Lone Ranger) was the first TV series to shoot on the Sierra Railroad. The Twisted Track episode used No. 3 and cars that were still brightly painted from a recent appearance in the Alan Ladd movie, The Big Land.” Hmmm…I might have to check that movie out…

In this installment (season 5, episode 12), two ex-Confederate brothers have a grudge against the DamnYankee owner of a railroad. Mostly, their revenge consists of train robbery. Filmed along the aforementioned Sierra Railroad, we are treated to two separate attacks, and famous Sierra 4-6-0 #3 (1891 Rogers) pulling a motley assortment of rolling stock. Let’s check it out.

Pow! With an impressive puff of smoke, a bad guy offs the engineer who drops to the deck, giving us a good look at the consist and cab interior.

Behind #3 is a shorty baggage/combine (possibly #5), flat car, another baggage/combine, full coach and caboose.

Today’s feature starts right out with #3 and train rounding a curve and towards the camera under a magnificent plume of black smoke. Meanwhile, two bad guys wait trackside. Black hat guy places a warning torpedo (BANG!) on the rail to slow down their quarry.

Nice 3/4 view of Sierra #3 still lettered, “Kansas Pacific” from use in a previous movie.

Well. Look who just happened to ride up and save the day. How convenient!

As the train slows, the outlaws break from their hiding place and approach the train. White hat guy exchanges gunfire with the engineer.

As the engineer tumbles to the floor, he manages to get the locomotive going again. Spooked by the appearance of LR & T, the bad guys turn tail and gallop off into the sagebrush. Cowards!

More smoke (sand those flues!) as Lone Ranger rides alongside #3 and transfers from Silver to the cab steps. Once in the cab, he tends to the fallen hogger and stops the train.

Meanwhile, back at Miller’s Junction: “We cruise for them in our tight slacks, which give us great bulges!”

The local telegrapher is sending in his report to the main office. “Be sure to drink your Ovaltine.”

I WANT that green eyeshade. Essential for western movie telegraphy and dealing cards at the casino.

Most of episode left off HERE

Finale. Tonto and Kemosabe demonstrate the Old West version of revving up your sports car. Bad guy needs to get out of town tout suite, so he hops onto Sierra #3.

Good view of the depot (Jamestown, CA freight house perhaps?)

At gunpoint, Bad Guy White Hat forces the engineer to NOT stop at Jamestown…er…Miller’s Jct.; The Lone Ranger reaches the depot in the nick of time and runs alongside the caboose.

BGWH bares his great, sneering teeth. As L.R. LEAPS from car to car, the outlaw climbs up to face his adversary. Out of bullets? No problem! Throw your gun at Lone Ranger and see what happens!

BIG FIGHT! Yeppers, it’s a hats-on donnybrook atop a speeding train. Notice the really crappy roof on this car – quite the patch job. Passing the water tower, it looks like Kemosabe is getting the worst of it, until (Yaaaaahhhhh!!!), he dispatches the bad boy over the side with a judo flip. Justice and clean living has once more prevailed.

I’ll close this review with the last going-away shot of the train as well as Lone Ranger & Tonto showing their behinds to the camera. Hi-Yo Eddie! Away!

If you’d like to watch it yourself, the link is here:

That is, if it’s still on YouTube…

Here’s what IMDb has to say about The Twisted Track:
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0635510/

If you have ANY information about this movie you’d like to share, please contact me at: Lindsay.Korst@gmail.com, or leave a comment.  Thanks and enjoy the blog!

THE END