This is a spoken-word narrative that is so serious that it almost descends into self-parody; however, the narrative is entertaining enough that I managed to listen to the whole thing without snickering very much.
Lorne Greene (1915-1987) was Canadian and started his career during the Second World War as an announcer for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. He became known as "The Voice of Doom" because he was responsible for announcing what was then increasingly distressing war news. He also founded The Academy of Radio Arts and invented a stopwatch that counted down from a specified time limit to zero, which was useful for announcers who had a set amount of time in which to provide a narration.
Greene relocated to the United States in 1952. He was cast as O'Brien in the CBS presentation of George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four and then landed the role of Ben Cartwright in Bonanza, which ran from 1959 to 1973 and made him famous.
"Ringo" was loosely based on the life of outlaw Johnny Ringo. Greene recorded it before Ringo Starr became famous; there were likely some teenagers who bought the song thinking it was about the Beatles' drummer. Either way, it reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 late in 1964 and also reached #1 in Canada and New Zealand; it did less well in Toronto.
After Bonanza, Greene continued his acting career. Among other things, he co-hosted the NBC Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade broadcast with Betty White and appeared in the 1986 mock-documentary The Canadian Conspiracy. He also hosted Lorne Greene's New Wilderness, highlighting his interest in environmental issues.
Created April 23, 2026.