Butch Cavendish is the ruthless leader of a vicious band of outlaws.
History
Butch Cavendish is an outlaw leader and the most frequently used foe of the Lone Rangwer. He has appeared in somewhat different forms in radio broadcasts, TV episodes, comic books, print stories and movies. In all media, Butch Cavendish is a vicious outlaw who robs and kill just for the sake of doing it. His actions attracted the attention of the Texas Rangers and Dan Reid. Cavendish sent a man named Collins to Reid and his Rangers into an ambush (In some versions, Collins was a member of Cavendish's gang while in others he was a Ranger who Cavendish bribed.) Collins led the troop of six Rangers into a narrow pass called Bryant's Gap where Cavendish and 35 men were waiting in ambush.
Convinced that all six of the Rangers were dead, Cavendish went about his business. Unfortunately for him, one of the Rangers--Dan's younger brother, John Reid--was merely wounded. John was found by Tonto, who nursed him back to health. When he recovered John vowed to bring Cavendish and his gang to justice. He took on the identity of the Lone Ranger and set out after the outlaws. Over an unspecified perior of time, the Masked Man and Tonto pursued and captured many members of the gang, causing Cavendish's organization to crumble. Eventually, the Lone Ranger caught up with Cavendish himself, who was given a life sentence and jailed for his crimes.
Even imprisonment was not enough to stop Cavendish for good. In the twentieth anniversary of the radio program, Cavendish escaped and came looking for the Lone Ranger. The two adversaries met at rhe rim of Bryant's Gap where the Lone Ranger removed his mask, allowing Cavendish to see his identity. The startled outlaw accidentally stepped backward off the rim of the canyon and fell to his death.
Radio
The Lone Ranger, at first, had no origin story. But after the 1938 serial introduced the ambush idea, this origin was incorporated into the radio program. Butch Cavendish was not content to stay in prison however, and for the 20th anniversary of the program, he escaped for a final showdown with the Lone Ranger at Bryant's Gap. Bill Saunders played Cavendish on the radio program.
Glenn Strange as Butch Cavendish.
Television
Glenn Strange played Cavendish in the three-part origin story of the television show. After the ambush of the Rangers the Cavendish Gang embark on a plan to take over the town of Colby. The plan is foiled by the Lone Ranger and Cavendish is sent to jail.
Film
In 1981's "The Legend of the Lone Ranger," Christopher Lloyd acted out Butch Cavendish as a disgraced former Union Army major with the real name of Bartholomew Cavendish. After being court-martialed by General Ulysses S. Grant and dishonorably discharged from the Union Army, Cavendish forms an army of his own. He manages to kidnap the now-President Grant and hold him for ransom before the Lone Ranger arrives to save the President.
Christopher Lloyd as former Union Army Major Bartholomew "Butch" Cavendish.
Dynamite Entertainment
Dynamite Entertainment's Butch Cavendish
In the 2006 Dynamite Entertainment comic book series Butch Cavendish likes to run things more behind-the-scenes. This version of Cavendish is a politician and railroad magnate who orders the ambush of the Rangers from several states away. The Lone Ranger is able to piece together enough information to trace it all back to Cavendish, however.
The Lone Ranger 2013
Trivia
- In the 2013 movie, he's portrayed by William Fichtner.
- He was responsible for The Lone Ranger's transformation because he killed his brother, Dan Reid Sr..
- Unlike the old films and T.V. shows, he dies in the 2013 movie.
- In the 2013 movie, he's the brother of Latham Cole.