Jay Silverheels from Toronto and I speak Esperanto." In 1970, he appeared in a commercial for Chevrolet as a Native American chief who rescues two lost hunters who ignored his advice in that year's Chevy Blazer. The William Tell Overture is heard in the background. Silverheels spoofed his Tonto character in a Stan Freberg Jeno's Pizza Rolls TV commercial opposite Clayton Moore, and in "The Phynx", opposite John Hart, both having played The Lone Ranger in the original television series. He appeared in three episodes of NBC's "Daniel Boone", starring Fess Parker as the real life frontiersman. His later appearances included an
Contemporary Native American issues in the United States were first performed by European Americans dressed in mock traditional attire. Examples included "The Last of the Mohicans" (1920), "Hawkeye and the Last of the Mohicans" (1957), and "F Troop" (1965–67). In later decades, Native American actors such as Jay Silverheels in "The Lone Ranger" television series (1949–57) came to prominence. Roles of Native Americans were limited and not reflective of Native American culture. For years, Native people on U.S. television were relegated to secondary, subordinate roles relative to the white protagonists as shown in notable works like "Cheyenne" (1957–1963) and "Law of the Plainsman" (1959–1963). By the 1970s some