I watched an interesting program about movie cowboys on the History Channel a while back. It brought back a lot of memories. Even the parts about the '30s stars were meaningful, since many of these movies were recycled on television in the early fifties. They showed film footage of 1930s star, Tom Mix, driving his white '37 Cord 812 convertible. This was the same car in which he died near Florence, Arizona (southeast of Phoenix) in 1940. A flagman had stopped him and warned about roadwork in progress to repair a washed-out bridge. Ignoring the flagman, Mix drove on and plunged into a ravine; the convertible flipped, resulting in instant death. The gully has since been renamed Tom Mix Wash.
Movie cowboy Buck Jones (real name: Charlie Gebhardt) was a war hero and even fought in the Boxer Rebellion. He died trying to save people in the infamous 1942 Coconut Grove nightclub fire.
Hopalong Cassidy (William Boyd) was a '30s cowboy star who bought all his old movies and rights in the late 1940s and, as a result, was almost broke. But Hoppy became famous again from the new medium of television and some very clever marketing on Boyd's part. Two years later, Boyd made $17 million in merchandising royalties alone! Originally a hard-drinker who lived fast offscreen, Boyd gave up drinking and remade himself into a wholesome role model. He did a lot of charity work as well, visiting sick children in hospitals, appearing at non-profit fundraisers, etc.
As a kid, I had a lot of cowboy stuff, including the obligatory twin six-shooter cap pistol set with holster. I was a big fan of Roy Rogers and, for my Confirmation, chose "Roy" as my middle name. Of course, my parents vetoed that idea.
My bedside lamp was a Hopalong Cassidy Roto-Vue motion lamp. After the 15-watt light bulb warmed up, the lithographed inside tube would slowly revolve so that the western scene (of Hoppy chasing bad guys and a stagecoach) would move like a movie. It was very colorful with a red plastic top and base. Sometimes I wish I still had it.
Gene Autry also bought all his movies after World War II - and became one of the richest men in Hollywood. He didn't have to pay for the rights to his name, since Gene Autry was his real name.
Roy didn't do nearly as well - the studio owned the Roy Rogers name. Roy (real name - Leonard Sly) only made $150 per week and had to pay out of his own pocket to have fan mail answered. Roy and Dale Evans had to make tons of personal appearances just to make ends meet. Finally, he was given merchandising rights for Roy Rogers paraphernalia and then started to make significant money.
Roy personally owned Trigger, his horse - purchased from the studio in the 1940s for a whopping (at the time) $2,500. His daughter said that, as a nine year-old, she used sneak out, ride Trigger into town and buy Cokes and mayonnaise sandwiches to feed him - they were his favorite foods!
Growing up, I thought Roy Rogers and Hopalong Cassidy were the best of the cowboys. Gene Autry always seemed like a lightweight to me (too much singin' - not enough shootin' and fightin'). The Lone Ranger was good - but too much of a loner. And, he didn't have a funny sidekick.
Interesting trivia: perennial sidekick Gabby Hayes was a trained Shakespearean actor but made his fame and fortune by removing his false teeth, dressing in buckskins and speaking unintelligibly. Consarnit! Dagnabbit! And, here's more trivia: the actor who played Red Ryder in the '30s-40s serials was the voice of the horse, Mr. Ed, in the '60s TV show.
