I saw an excellent documentary on Hoppy not too long ago. The claim was that Wm Boyd took his role as Hoppy very seriously, knew he was a role model for kids, and never did anything (in public, anyway) to tarnish that image. He rode in the Rose Parade until in his 70's or 80's, astride Topper (who apparently lived to an increbibly venerable age) and seemed in all things to be a genuinely honerable human being and all around mensch.

Hoppy was certainly my hero. I never missed a program, sitting on the floor in front of our humongous TV set with an 8 inch screen. I thot Topper was the most beautiful horse I'd ever seen, and that Lucky was very handsome (the sidekick Snuffy, or whatever his name was, seemed thrown in for comic relief). For a long time I wanted to be a cowboy when I grew up. My cowboy boots, hat and cap pistols (with holsters) were my most prized possessions. Though I prayed fervently, my parents refused to buy me a horse, or even a pony and their reasons, that we lived in an upstairs duplex and couldn't afford it, seemed weak and trifling in the face of my desperate need.