Hopalong and Good Grammar

Howdy Pardners! Here's Hopalong Cassidy (courtesy of the Palm Desert Historical Society).

Hopalong Cassidy was an idol to millions of children for over sixty years. William Boyd played the role of the Western hero known for all time as, "The epitome of gallantry and fair play."

Hopalong Cassidy was a true hero. "With non-stop action and spectacular stunts, the legend lives on as "Hoppy," as he is known to his friends, battles crime and upholds justice with his quick-draw shooting, clear thinking, fists of steel, and steadfast character," says Hopalong's site.

He began as a character in novels written by Clarence E. Mulford. Cecil B. DeMille brought Hopalong to the screen. There were 68 "Hoppy" movies and all went on to be broadcasted in one hour increments on television.

Here's what Bill Boyd had to say about his character: "I played down the violence, tried to make Hoppy an admirable character and I insisted on grammatical English."

Grammatical English! Wow, if that were only the goal of television programming today.