Sixth Grade
Worksheets
You've Come a Long Way, Kemosabe
Jay Silverheels
Reading Comprehension for May 26
"'Hi-yo Silver! Away!' With his faithful Indian companion Tonto, the daring and resourceful masked rider of the plains led the fight for law and order in the early West. Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear. The Lone Ranger rides again!"
Each week, these dramatic words began one of the most popular television shows ever. Kids everywhere loved Tonto and the Lone Ranger. They admired the duo's never-failing ability to bring the bad guys to justice. Both roles were blatant stereotypes (too-simple, distorted images of a group or person). That didn't matter to the kids who waited each week to see the two triumph over evil.
Jay Silverheels spent years as the Lone Ranger's "faithful Indian companion." Tonto spoke in grunts and broken English. "Me do now" or "Um, that right, Kemosabe" were typical lines. Many people thought that was the way Native Americans really spoke.
Tonto was by far Silverheels' most well-known role. Even after The Lone Ranger ended, Silverheels played many similar roles. People tended to typecast him (put him in the same type of role over and over again). He was already strongly linked with the "Indian" role of Tonto. His striking features spoke of his Native American lineage. He was, in fact, what was then known as "Indian." (Native peoples in the U.S. prefer to be called Native Americans. In Canada, people of native tribes are referred to as "First Nations" people.)
