Sergeant Preston of the Yukon
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Sergeant Preston of the Yukon was a title change from Challenge of the Yukon, a long-run radio series that began on Detroit's WXYZ 3 February 1938 with an adventure storyline featuring Sergeant William Preston (Jay Michael) of the Northwest Mounted Police and his dog, Yukon King, as they encountered evildoers in the Northern wilderness. Other actors portraying Preston on radio were Paul Sutton and Brace Beemer. Von Reznicek's Donna Diana Overture was the pulsing theme music.
Sponsored by Quaker Oats, the series moved to the networks in 1947, airing on ABC from 12 June 1947 to 30 December 1949. It was then heard on Mutual from 2 January 1950 to 9 June 1955. The title changed from Challenge of the Yukon to Sergeant Preston of the Yukon in November 1951. The title was sometimes parodied as Sergeant Prestone of the Anti-Freeze.
The Sergeant Preston of the Yukon television series starred Richard Simmons in the title role. Mainly filmed at Ashcroft, Colorado, the Wrather Corporation series was telecast on CBS from 29 September 1955 to 25 September 1958. "Sergeant Preston of the Yukon" was a song written and performed by Ray Stevens. The producers of the program objected to Stevens' use of their characters without permission and threatened him with a lawsuit. Unaware that he had committed copyright infringement, Stevens agreed to pull the record, and King dropped the suit.