Jay Silverheels was born on a reservation in Canada to a Mohawk chief. He was a star lacrosse player and a boxer before he entered films as a stuntman in 1938. He worked in a number of films though the 1940s before he gained some notice as the Osceola brother in Humphrey Bogart's film Key Largo ( ... 1948). Most of his roles consisted of bit parts as "Indian." In 1949, he would work in a movie called The Cowboy and the Indians (1949) with another "B movie" actor named Clayton Moore. It was later that same year that Jay would be hired to play the faithful Indian companion, Tonto, in the television series "The Lone Ranger" (1949). This role, while still playing the "Indian," would bring Jay the fame that his motion picture career never did. As Tonto, on his horse Scout, Jay could show up where the Ranger could not and some of the time he would be shot at or beat up for his trouble. Jay would play Tonto in all the episodes except for those that he missed when he had his heart attack. In those episodes, he was replaced by the Ranger's nephew, Dan. However, Clayton Moore would miss the third season when he was replaced by John Hart. Jay would reprise the role of Tonto in two big-screen color movies with Moore, The Lone Ranger (1956) and The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (1958). After the series ended in 1957, Jay could not escape the typecasting of Tonto. He would continue to appear in an occasional film and television show, but he would become a spokesman to improve the portrayal of Indians on TV.
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| Organization | Category | Movie |
|---|
The Lone Ranger
as Tonto
Episodes: 221
First Aired: Sep 15, 1949
Rawhide
as Pawnee Joe
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Jan 09, 1959
Daniel Boone
as Sashona
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 24, 1964
Wanted: Dead or Alive
as Charley Red Cloud
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 06, 1958
Daniel Boone
as Latawa
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 24, 1964
Daniel Boone
as Chenrogan
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 24, 1964
The Virginian
as Den'Gwatzi
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 19, 1962
The Virginian
as Spotted Hand
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 19, 1962
Pistols 'n' Petticoats
Episodes: 2
First Aired: Sep 17, 1966
The Brady Bunch
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 26, 1969
Cannon
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Sep 14, 1971
Branded
Episodes: 1
First Aired: Jan 24, 1965
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 6 | 9 | 14 | 5 |
| 2024 | 7 | 14 | 25 | 5 |
| 2024 | 8 | 15 | 28 | 6 |
| 2024 | 9 | 11 | 24 | 3 |
| 2024 | 10 | 8 | 22 | 3 |
| 2024 | 11 | 5 | 10 | 1 |
| 2024 | 12 | 4 | 9 | 2 |
| 2025 | 1 | 9 | 20 | 4 |
| 2025 | 2 | 4 | 9 | 1 |
| 2025 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 1 |
| 2025 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 |