I started writing pretty young, but that was three years before I was born. Autry tried, but he never really took to being a cowboy and never could ride very well. When you read about some of the jokes the stuntmen played on him, you kind of have to feel sorry for the guy. Still, even though he's no Roy Rogers, I enjoy his movies for the most part.
Like James, who was also 3 years earlier than this, I was never a huge Autry fan, though I admit to sometimes watching his TV series and, regularly, Philadelphia TV station WCAU's "Roy Rogers-Gene Autry Theater" every weekday afternoon, which was alternated Roy and Gene movies before dinnertime.
My paternal grandfather took my younger brother and me to see Autry's show at the Philadelphia Arena (year unknown--though we'd have probably been no older than 7 and 4). In any case, before intermission we went to the snack area where we encountered and chatted with a very friendly Pat Buttram, Gene's sidekick. At that tender age I somehow made it a point to omit diplomatic mention that I was wearing my Roy Rogers gun belt and cap guns.
In my old age, I have to say that, for me, William Boyd's Hopalong Cassidy eclipses both Roy and Gene (in that order). On the other hand, if you want some great hokey fun, check out Gene's cliffhanger serial "The Phantom Empire" (if you can put up with the singing), at least some of which you can find on YouTube.
9 comments:
I read a ton of these when I was a kid, but not this one, at least as far as I recall. Thanks! It's not bad. I wonder who actually wrote it.
Wouldn't surprise me if it was Little Jimmy Reasoner.
Never cared for Autry when I was a kid. He didn't look like a cowboy to me. More like a dentist.
True that, Steve.
I started writing pretty young, but that was three years before I was born. Autry tried, but he never really took to being a cowboy and never could ride very well. When you read about some of the jokes the stuntmen played on him, you kind of have to feel sorry for the guy. Still, even though he's no Roy Rogers, I enjoy his movies for the most part.
Like James, who was also 3 years earlier than this, I was never a huge Autry fan, though I admit to sometimes watching his TV series and, regularly, Philadelphia TV station WCAU's "Roy Rogers-Gene Autry Theater" every weekday afternoon, which was alternated Roy and Gene movies before dinnertime.
My paternal grandfather took my younger brother and me to see Autry's show at the Philadelphia Arena (year unknown--though we'd have probably been no older than 7 and 4). In any case, before intermission we went to the snack area where we encountered and chatted with a very friendly Pat Buttram, Gene's sidekick. At that tender age I somehow made it a point to omit diplomatic mention that I was wearing my Roy Rogers gun belt and cap guns.
In my old age, I have to say that, for me, William Boyd's Hopalong Cassidy eclipses both Roy and Gene (in that order). On the other hand, if you want some great hokey fun, check out Gene's cliffhanger serial "The Phantom Empire" (if you can put up with the singing), at least some of which you can find on YouTube.
I liked Gene well enough. He might not have been as good a cowboy star as Roy and Hoppy, but he ended up dying rich.
And he owned a baseball team. That's enough to make him my hero.
And radio stations. My dad was in the radio business and may have met him, I don't recall.
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