Il sergente Preston

With these words, Sergeant Preston and his loyal dog, Yukon king always got their man. Played by Richard Simmons, Sergeant Preston patrolled the western reaches of the Canadian frontier in the 1890s. Action and justice in such locales as Yellowknife, Dawson, and Whitehorse were seen each Saturday morning by the same kids who had just finished watching The Lone Ranger and Sky King.

The series episodes featured stories set against the harsh extremes of the Yukon winter and summers in the Canadian Rockies. To match the climate, Preston would trade his dogsled for his horse, Rex. King was along wherever the good sergeant went.

Simmons was the perfect embodiment of Sergeant Preston, the pride of the Northwest Mounted. To this day (despite Due South) when I picture a Mountie......it's always Sergeant Preston. And of those of who watched the show as kids, who can forget that stirring theme music and the words with which Sergeant Preston closed each episode, "Well King, this case is closed."

I remember watching this program as a kid. There were no fancy special effects, no blood and gore, just edge of your seat excitement. There was a clear distinction between the good guys and the bad guys, and the good guys won. The dedicated Sargent Preston, and his faithful dog King, fighting the elements and the bad guys. You always knew who the hero was, and the bad guys always got what they deserve. Perhaps if there were shows like this today, children would have a better sense of right and wrong. Clear definitions of right and wrong, where the objective is to bring the wrongdoer to justice, not smash, mutilate or destroy them. No super powers, no high technology, just plain old fashioned using your brain. Clear values and no gratuitous violence.

Sergeant Preston Of The Yukon like The Lone Ranger created from the minds of George W. Trendle and Fran Striker was a staple of radio for many years. When series radio was coming to an end, the Sergeant brought his team of huskies led by his lead dog King to television and week and after week for three years kids got snow blind watching those wintry episodes. Of course in the tradition of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the sergeant never failed to get his man.

As it was from the folks who gave you the Lone Ranger the show did emphasize clean living and strict family values. Of course what those folks in the frozen north did to get a little comfort on those cold winter nights is best left unsaid.

King was as helpful to Preston as Rin Tin Tin was to Rusty and the rest of the US Cavalry. And during the winter months he was essential. I can't conceive of Richard Simmons ever being forced to eat King as say Polar explorers like Scott, Nansen, Peary, and Amundsen being forced to eat their transportation to prevent starvation.

I may be a bit to jocular and humorous, but Sergeant Preston Of The Yukon was a decent show and for more than just the kid trade. It did evoke some fond memories after seeing some episodes recently.

And still he and Nelson Eddy have in their images set a kind of standard for the men of the RCMP to live up to.

I have had the great privilege of watching daily episodes of Sergeant Preston on "Grit TV" for the last couple of months. It was one of my all-time favorite TV shows when I was a kid in the '50's. Millions of other kids loved it too -- so much so that Milton Bradley issued a "Sergeant Preston" board game. My brother and I and the neighborhood kids used to play that game all the time. Fast-forward to today: Shortly after I started watching the show on "Grit", I went to eBay and found a copy of the game. It is now in my possession, and will be a cherished possession of mine for the rest of my life. As for the show itself: for those who might remember -- Dick Simmons WAS Sergeant Preston, in much the same way that Clayton Moore WAS the "Lone Ranger". In fact, the two made personal appearances in costume together from time to time. With his handsome good looks, pencil-thin mustache, and resonant voice ("On, You Huskies!!"), no one else could have pulled off that role the way that Dick Simmons did. He was awesome. But of course, the real star of the show was "King". Seeing this show for the first time in color (we only had black-and-white TV in the fifties), I was truly taken by how gorgeous and lovable this animal truly was. You can see it in every scene he is in -- a true scene stealer. It is no wonder that the kids of the 1950's loved him so much. I have read that once the series ended, King went on to a long and happy life in retirement. He earned it for sure.

I happened to tune into the Norm McDonald TV show for the first time last week (9-99). In it someone made a passing reference to Sgt. Preston. (It's how I ended up on the IMDb reading about it and writing this.) A comment I'm sure was not noticed by many. It hit home with me. I used to love catching the re-runs of Sgt. Preston and his dog, Yukon King. I couldn't have been more than 6 or 7 but I loved the show. My memories aren't as clear as BOOKWUS (another commenter), but I would like to compliment BOOKWUS on wonderful and complete comments that really bring the show back into view for us Sgt. Preston fans. Great job and I can't add anything else. I would love to see the show again to see what passed for entertainment to me as a child. The simplicity of old TV is lost now, but man, we were "living".