Welcome back to Rotten Ink. As you can see, we are now at the final update for Cowboy Month 2024, and I think that today’s western topic is very iconic and has a huge legacy behind him for many decades now as his name is all over the most purchased BB gun in history. I am sure you know by now I am talking about Red Ryder, the cowboy hero that has been the star of comic strips, films, radio and merchandise. This has been an update that I have wanted to do for many years now as Red Ryder was still kind of popular with kids my age growing up in the 1980’s and 1990’s mostly thanks to one holiday movie that we will talk about a little later on. So with that introduction, let’s grab some Frito corn chips, a bowl of chili and our trusty BB guns as it’s time to hit the planes with Red Ryder and his buddy Little Beaver.
Fred Harman was a real life cowboy and a great artist who worked not only on paintings, for Disney’s animation, but also started working as a comic strip artist, and in 1933 he created the western strip called “Bronc Peeler” that was a self syndicated project that ran until 1938. And in 1938, while Harman was trying to find newspapers to run the Bronc Peeler strip, he met Stephen Slesinger who was at the time looking for an artist to work on a strip he was writing called Red Ryder that was a western comic and the two hit it off and started working on it together. Even efore it was published in papers, they knew they had something special and lots of other great ideas were put into action to promote the strip and most importantly the character. They had movies, public appearances, radio shows and novelty items in place to help get Red Ryder as one of the most popular comic strip characters ever. The comic strip would be syndicated by Newspaper Enterprise Association and would be run in many papers and would be the most popular western comic strip of all time and proved that doing multi media for your character can grow and make them even more important in pop culture. The strip would run until 1965 and truly was a very iconic strip as the young and young at heart enjoyed reading the western adventures of Red Ryder and his friend Little Beaver as they fought for what was right around their home at the Painted Valley Ranch. And this was just a very quick crash course on the history of Red Ryder, and we will get into the character and the things he spawned a little later in this update. But I am sure most of you reading this update know the name Red Ryder one way or another.
Red Ryder is a cowboy who lives on Painted Valley Ranch along with his trusty horse Thunder as well as his aunt Duchess. Also on the ranch are Red’s sidekick the Native American youngster named Little Beaver and his horse Papoose. Red is also a very skilled rider as well as a great shooter and has a lovely girlfriend named Beth Wilder. Red Ryder is a fighter for what he finds to be right and is always brave and caring to those who cannot protect themselves or are being cheated. His main two rivals are Ace Hanlon and Buckskin Blodgett, both whom of Red has had many run in’s with over the years. Red is most skilled with his six-shooter but also talented with a rifle and is well respected by the townspeople and those he helps. In other words, Red Ryder is your typical Western Hero from this era and was just so well written and drawn that he was destined to be a pop culture icon in America.
Daisy Outdoor Products started in 1882 out of Michigan and was the leader in making airguns as well as BB Guns, and in 1940 they would team with the creative minds behind the comic strip Red Ryder to make a line of BB Guns that would carry the Red Ryder name and be marketed towards young males, as it was used to teach them how to safely handle a firearm as well as learn to shoot at a young age. The Red Ryder BB Gun was a very popular seller and would have big ad campaigns in magazines as well as comic books with the store displays featuring Red Ryder and Little Beaver and would go on to be Daisy’s top seller even to this day as they are being made even though the Red Ryder comic strip ended in 1963. And what is crazy to think is that the Red Ryder BB Gun is also very popular among adults now who grew up with them and on Daisy’s official website they sell starter kits, targets and all the Red Ryder BB gun rifles and accessories you could ever need. Growing up, we always had a Daisy BB gun in the garage but sadly it was not the Red Ryder brand, and I can remember sneaking and firing it at the ground. Now as an adult I have found myself wanting to get a Red Ryder BB Gun and might just get one sooner than later…even though I have heard that the quality of the BB Gun is not as great as they use to be.
Red Ryder was a superstar when it came to comic strips and even radio shows, but he also made an impact in the world of cinema as he had a total of 27 films as well as serials that would air at the local theaters. The first 12-chapter film serial was called “The Adventures Of Red Ryder” and was released in 1940 with the final film in the Republic Pictures coming out in 1947 and was called “Marshal Of Cripple Creek” and after that Eagle-Lion Films would take up production of Red Ryder films and would make a total of four with their final film being the 1950 film “The Cowboy And The Prizefighter”. Red Ryder would also try to make is way onto TV with three pilot attempts that just for some reason did not stick with television watchers. Over the years such actors have played the role of Red Ryder and those names are Don “Red” Barry, Jim Bannon, Wild Bill Elliot and Allan Lane. These films were very popular at the time of release as Red Ryder was a household name and the idol for many of youngsters. The films over the years can now be found on home media from VHS to DVD and some can also be viewed on YouTube. I myself own a few of these Red Ryder films on DVD and they are very enjoyable if you like classic style cheesy westerns.
The Red Ryder BB gun was one of the most popular style of BB guns in all of America when it was introduced to the market in 1940 and is still being made to this day by the Daisy Outdoor Products. And in 1983 the BB gun got even more of a bust and became a must have item for kids after it was the ultimate Christmas gift for Ralphie Parker in the film “A Christmas Story” and because of this film the phrase “You’ll Shoot Your Eye Out.” became a way for parents to tell kids no. In the film Ralphie really wants a Red Ryder BB gun and even has daydreams of using it to save his parents and brothers from outlaws and is looking forward to shooting targets in his backyard. And the crazy part is that the BB gun made for the film was custom and would not get made closer to it until 2020. And when you look back at it back in the day BB gun rifles were a very popular item for young boys to get for Christmas and while they have lost a little steam now they still remain a popular item for households. And you know that still to this day when kids watch A Christmas Story, they ask their parents for a Red Ryder!
Red Ryder over the decades has had all types of merchandise for his fans to collect and many of the vintage stuff is super collectible and can fetch high prices. Stuff that Red Ryder has graced over the years besides the BB gun and comics include coloring books, cups, toys, posters, standees, trading cards, pocket knives, books, home media and shirts to name a few! And over the years I have not sadly had much in the ways of merchandise of Red Ryder besides a pocket knife as well as some of the comics and films on DVD. One day soon I do plan on getting a Red Ryder BB Gun just for the fun of having it. But say what you will about Red Ryder and his creators but one thing is for sure they knew how to market him.
So as you can see, I would say next to Lone Ranger I would say Red Ryder is the second most iconic cowboy that came from the pages of comics, radio, movies and shows. And now I think its time that we take a look at one of the comic books that was released that collect some of his comic strip adventures. And I would like to thank Bell Book And Comic for having this comic in stock and making this update possible. I would also like to remind you all that I grade these comics on a star scale of 1 to 4 and am looking for how well the comics stay to the source material, its entertainment value and its art and story. So if you are ready, let’s head on down to the Painted Valley Ranch and see what Red Ryder is up to.
Red Ryder # 1 ***
Released in 1989 Cover Price .10 Red Ryder # 1 of 1
Red Ryder and Little Beaver come across The Devil Hole Gang who are trying to rob the stagecoach and they have already killed the driver and are about to Beth Wilder when Red scares them off and with the help of some near by miners the gang leaves empty handed. Red and Beaver escort Beth into the lawless town of Devils Hole and meet Ace Hanlon who runs the town and hires Red to be the new sheriff as all the others have been killed. Once Red is sworn in as sheriff he punches out Ace in front of the town as the corrupt man was pushing around Little Beaver, and this causes Ace to get his friend Lash to get the Devil’s Hole Gang to come after Red and they come up with a plan to take over the gold mine of Jack Adams and his father Ben and once Red gets there they plan on using gun powder to blow up the cabin…and they do just that! But unknown to them Red Ryder, Little Beaver, Jack and Ben all made it safely inside the mine and out of the range of the explosion. Red the next day gets to town and orders all of the Devil’s Hole gang to leave town for good, and this makes Ace really mad and he comes up with a plan that has the town people think that Red Ryder robbed the towns bank and killed the teller and this goes off smoothly as the town wants to hang Red who barely escapes in time. But things get bad when Ace captures Little Beaver and starts beating him up to try and get answers, Red rushes back to town and saves his friend and they both head to the hideout of the gang in order to try and clear Red’s name. But Ace gets a posse together and they track Red down who tells his side of the story and exposes Ace as the leader of the gang and the one who gave the orders to rob the bank and kill the teller…and after some back and fourth and evidence found Ace and his men are locked up and Red Ryder’s name is clear of all charges.
What a fun read and you cannot beat that classic western feel as the story is very basic as has a happy ending for our hero. The plot is this Red Ryder stops a robbery in progress and helps a pretty young lady back to her hometown that is over run with corruption and quickly becomes the towns new sheriff and tries his best to ride the town of crime and criminals and becomes the target of the towns crime shot caller…and after being framed he is able to clear his name and bring all the baddies to justice. Red Ryder is a hero who stands up for not only what he thinks is right but also for those who can’t protect themselves, he is very smart and skilled in fighting as well as shooting (sadly we don’t get to see him use his gun). He is also one who does not run away from issues and will come up with a good game plan in order to seek the finish of what he starts. The ladies also seem to really like him and the criminals all seem to want to see him dead. His friend the young Native American named Little Beaver tries to help the best he can but also at times seems to be in the way and cause issues for Red like he always seems to be getting captured or bullied by someone. But you can look past that as his young age makes him make some real rookie mistakes, but to be fair he does also help out lots like getting help when needed as well as listening to the enemy’s plans. The main villain of this issue is the rich and sleazy Ace Hanlon who plays the town like fools and is the one truly calling the shots for the Devil’s Hole Gang, as he gives orders not only to rob places but also to murder people that are in his way or just to be used as a tool in his plots. Ace also is racist against Native Americans and is just a pure scumbag character, the kind you just want to punch in the face. The plot while simple does draw you in as the reader as you go along the ride as Red cleans up the town, gets framed and hunted by the town to by the end getting the full respect of the town. I also like how Red Ryder just enters a town and becomes the sheriff and from the start is making changes and knocking out baddies. The one downside to this issue is that it is a reprint and some of the scan quality is a little rough as dialogue boxes are fuzzy and the words are small…making for a semi challenging read if you are not in a bright enough room. The cover is great and very eye catching if you are a Red Ryder or western fan and the interior art by Fred Harman and is amazing classic comic strip work and you have to love the way he draws the wild west. Over all this was a very fun read and while the scans had some issues the story made up for it. Checkout the artwork bellow to see the style used by Fred Harman for this comic strip comic reprint.
As you can see, Red Ryder really is a fantastic comic strip character and is a true icon in American Pop Culture and I for one am really happy that I was able to get this comic and make this update possible as covering Red Ryder was long overdue. And with this update Cowboy Month 2024 also comes to an end and that means our time at the Rotten Ink Ranch as well has came to an end and before he head out of the range I should let you know that next month with find us at the Rotten Ink Arena as WWE Wrestlemania Month will once more be taking place and our first wrestler will be Lucha Libre Legend La Parka! So until next time, read a comic or three, watch a western film or two and as always support your local Horror Host. See you next update as the Chairman of WCW has lots of Lucha Stuff to show us.
