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Sergeant Preston of the Yukon
Created by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker - the masterminds behind The Lone Ranger and The Green Hornet - Sergeant Preston of the Yukon was first dunned Challenge of the Yukon (the name change didn't take place until 1951). The program was sponsored by Quaker Puffed Wheat and Puffed Rice, and featured the great Northern adventures of Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer Sergeant Frank Preston, his swift malamute pal Yukon King and his trusty horse Rex. They made a perfect team, and, even with the odds stacked against them higher than an avalanche of mountain snow, they always managed to nab the bad guy. They got their start on Detroit station WXYZ, where they had nearly 10 years of crime-fighting heroism. Liars, cheaters, robbers, smugglers, spies, all-out murderers...there was little Sergeant Preston and his pals hadn't seen by the time the series moved to ABC in 1947. It then moved on to Mutual in 1950, where it remained until 1955. 1955 may've have signaled the end of Sergeant Preston's radio run, but he still had three more years of adventure on CBS television. In the series, Richard Simmons starred in the title role (no, not Sweatin' to the Oldies Simmons), and the blustery excitement of the Northwest was brought to life in a whole new sort of way. As you can probably imagine, premiums and collectibles galore resulted from Sergeant Preston's long run - including one 1955 deed, found in boxes of Quaker Puffed Wheat and Puffed Rice, to a one-square-inch tract of land in the Yukon! To this day, Quaker Oats, the Yukon Lands Branch and the Yukon Department of Commerce still get letters and phone calls from Sergeant Preston fans, now long grown up, wondering if they still own their little square-inch of land. Other items include comic books, cards, photos, buttons, toys, box-backs and so much more. “Well King, looks like this case is closed!"
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