Jay Silverheels a condemned criminal about to be executed. He played a substantial role as John Crow in "Santee" (1973), starring Glenn Ford. One of his last roles was a wise white-haired chief in "The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing" (1973). Jay Silverheels achieved his greatest fame as Tonto on "The Lone Ranger". The fictional story line maintains that a small group of Texas Rangers were massacred, with only a "lone" survivor. The Lone Ranger and Tonto then ride throughout the West to assist those challenged by the lawless element. Their expenses and bullets are provided through a silver mine owned by
Jay Silverheels a Mohawk. His father was wounded and decorated for service at the Battle of the Somme and Ypres during World War I, and later was an adjutant training Polish-American recruits for the Blue Army (Poland) for service in France, at Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. Silverheels excelled in athletics, most notably in lacrosse, before leaving home to travel around North America. In the 1930s, he played indoor lacrosse as "Harry Smith" with the "Iroquois" of Rochester, New York in the North American Amateur Lacrosse Association. He lived for a time in Buffalo, New York, and in 1938 placed second in the Middleweight class