The Silver Eagle is generally considered the last of the significant juvenile radio adventures. It was cast in the image of Sergeant Preston of Challenge of the Yukon (producer James Jewell worked with Challenge owner George W. Trendle during the formative years of that classic show), and its theme enclosed a typically shrill "wild northwest" opening: A cry of the wild! A trail of danger! A scarlet rider of the Northwest Mounted, serving justice with the swiftness of an arrow! THE SILVER EAGLE

Like Sergeant Preston, Mountie Jim West was a ruthless tracker of criminals and lawbreakers. Wedely known for never giving up on a case, he was aided by a mammoth sidekick, Joe Bideaux. To a vivid 10 year-old mind, Joe Bideaux was an unwashed superman, a towering Canadian of French ancestry who could batter down doors with his fists and crush a man's neck between his fingers. He slurred words in realistic bursts of dialogue, colofully mixing "sacre bleu" and a "sonobagun" in a single sentence and constantly referring to Jim West as "mon ami." In keeping with the image, Jack Lester, who played the role, was billed as "Jacque Lestair." _{John Dunning}