Gene Autry

Gene Autry and Gail Davis

Gene Autry (born September 29, 1907 in Tioga Springs , Texas , † October 2, 1998 in Los Angeles , California ) was an American country singer and actor. He is the only artist to have stars in all five categories ( film , television , theater , music and radio ) on the Hollywood Walk of Fame . He became famous for his roles as a "singing cowboy".

Life

youth

Autry started playing guitar and singing as a child . He gained his first musical experience at a "Medicine Show" that went from fair to fair. After graduating from school, Gene Autry worked as a temporary telegraph operator at the St. Louis - San Francisco Railway since June 18, 1925 , where he was employed by dispatcher Jimmy Long. Both were enthusiastic about music and intensified their collaboration in the music sector. Jimmy Long was the professional head of Gene Autry and a private mentor for Autry, who was 18 years his junior, who contributed the compositions and took care of the vocal harmonies.

Country singer career

Frankie and Johnnie , 1929

In early 1929 he went to New York with a free ticket from his railroad company to audition for the local record companies. But only his second visit to the east coast was successful. While Autry had been making music recordings since October 9, 1929, Jimmy Long recorded his composition That Silver Haired Daddy of Mine with Cliff Keizer on December 1 or 2, 1930 in a duet in a small recording studio in Richmond (Indiana) . The single was released by the small record label Champion Records (# 16190). Long / Keizer are therefore considered to be the interpreters of the original. It is unclear whether Autry and Long composed the piece together or whether Long is the sole author. The ARC managing director and music producer Arthur E. Satherley assumed Long was the sole composer. Autry probably contributed a little - if at all - at least he is registered as a co-author with ASCAP . Autry told the Chicago Tribune in 1983 that he got the idea for the song through a song called Dear Old Daddy, You've Been More Than a Mother To Me .

In 1931 Autry took turns recording for several record labels, because initially he recorded six songs for Gennett Records on January 29, 1931 , on February 17, 1931 he recorded four tracks for the American Record Corporation (ARC) February 1931 he stood in front of the microphone with four songs for the Victor Talking Machine Company . On February 25, 1931 six recordings were made for ARC.

Gene Autry - That Silver Haired Daddy of Mine

During the recording session on October 29, 1931, three pieces were created in the ARC Studios in New York before Autry recorded That Silver Haired Daddy of Mine . On this and two subsequent pieces, Autrey and Long sang in a duet. As another occupation were Roy Smeck (banjo, steel guitar) and Frank Marvin (steel guitar) present. Three additional songs were recorded for ARC on the subsequent October 30, 1931. On the same day Autry changed the recording studio and recorded six pieces for Victor together with Long as The Long Brothers , four more he sang during this session with only his guitar for Victor. Recording for several labels was not unusual at the time, because only big stars were exclusively bound to one label.

Finally, in 1933, he signed with ARC, which was owned by the department store group Sears Roebuck . Gene Autry's photos soon appeared in mail-order catalogs and helped make him known nationwide. He also appeared regularly on the most popular radio show of the time: The National Barn Dance .

Autry's musical breakthrough came in January 1932 with That Silver Haired Daddy of Mine . This single had sold over five million copies by 1940. The label tried to make journalistic use of this success and covered a record with a gold-bronze coating to attract the public when a total of 500,000 copies had been sold at the end of 1932. The first unofficial gold record in music history was made. A long series of other hits followed. Gene Autry was one of America's most popular singers in the mid-1930s. For his film The Singing Hill he recorded a cover version of Blueberry Hill on August 20, 1940 , which later became a classic in the cover versions of artists such as Louis Armstrong , Fats Domino , Elvis Presley and Little Richard .

Acting career

Red River Valley , 1946

In 1934 Hollywood tried to create a new type of western film in which a " singing cowboy " was in the foreground. The stars of the time did not have sufficient vocal skills (including John Wayne's early career as a singing cowboy), and so Gene Autry was from the studio, which was connected to his RAC label, for the Ken Maynard Western In Old Santa Fe hired. Although Gene only appeared in one scene, the experiment was a resounding success. Other films followed with increasingly important roles. Over the next several years he starred in about 90 films. A new western was produced every six weeks. Gene Autry had become the main star of the B-Westerns , whose popularity rivaled that of established actors like Clark Gable .

In 1942 he took part in the Second World War for several years and fought as a pilot in North Africa and the Far East. Meanwhile, his rival Roy Rogers had gained ground and overtook him in popularity. Autry continued to produce films, but could no longer build on the earlier successes. But his music career hadn't suffered. In 1945 he had a number one hit on the country charts with At Mail Call Today ; In 1949 he played his most successful single, Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer , which sold over nine million copies. In the mid-1950s, it was finally supplanted by the emerging rock 'n' roll .

Business successes

In 1946 Autry was one of the founders of the film town of Pioneertown . In the following years, numerous episodes of the Gene Autry Show were created here .

Gene Autry focused mostly on his business activities in the later years. He bought several radio and television stations, started a music publishing company, and even acquired a baseball team, the California Angels . He also owned a hotel chain. He was considered one of the wealthiest personalities on the country scene. In 1969 he received the greatest honor that country music has to bestow: he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame , an honor which very few had received during their lifetime.

Gene Autry died on October 2, 1998 at the age of 91.

Freemasonry

Autry was a Freemason and was trained at Catoosa Lodge No. 185 promoted to master.

Filmography (selection)

actor

• 1934: In Old Santa Fe (uncredited)
• 1934: Mystery Mountain (uncredited)
• 1935: Five years and a day after ( Tumbling Tumbleweeds )
• 1935: Gold Ducats of the Ghost ( The Phantom Empire )
• 1935: Melody Trail
• 1935: Sagebrush Troubadour
• 1935: The Singing Vagabond
• 1936: Comin 'Round the Mountain
• 1936: Dynamite for lock 5 ( Red River Valley )
• 1936: Guns and Guitars
• 1936: Oh, Susanna!
• 1936: Ride Ranger Ride
• 1936: The Big Show
• 1936: The Old Corral
• 1936: The Singing Cowboy
• 1937: Boots and Saddles
• 1937: The Black Gold ( Git Along Little Dogies )
• 1937: The Jodel boy from the pine forest ( Yodelin 'Kid from Pine Ridge )
• 1937: A Cowboy in Africa ( Round-Up Time in Texas )
• 1937: Manhattan Merry-Go-Round
• 1937: Public Cowboy No. 1
• 1937: Rootin 'Tootin' Rhythm
• 1937: Springtime in the Rockies
• 1938: Three Louts in Texas ( Prairie Moon )
• 1938: Gold Mine in the Sky
• 1938: Man from Music Mountain
• 1938: Rhythm of the Saddle
• 1938: The Old Barn Dance
• 1938: Western Jamboree
• 1939: Blue Montana Skies
• 1939: Bombs on Texas ( In Old Monterey )
• 1939: The Great Colorado Milk War ( Colorado Sunset )
• 1939: Home on the Prairie
• 1939: Mexicali Rose
• 1939: Mountain Rhythm
• 1939: Rovin 'Tumbleweeds
• 1939: South of the Border
• 1941: Ridin 'on a Rainbow
• 1949: The Cowboy and the Indians
• 1950–1955: The Gene Autry Show (91 episodes)

Discography

Albums

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)		Remarks
		US	Country
1976	South of the Border, All American Cowboy	-	Country42 (6 weeks) Country	Republic
	Cowboy Hall of Fame	-	Country44 (4 weeks) Country	Republic
2003	Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer And Other Christmas Classics	US21 (13 weeks) US	Country1 (13 weeks) Country

Singles

year	Title album	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes)		Remarks
		US	Country
1944	I'm Thinking Tonight of My Blue Eyes	-	Country3 (... weeks) Country
	I Hang My Head and Cry	-	Country4 (... weeks) Country
1945	Gonna Build a Big Fence Around Texas	-	Country2 (... weeks) Country
	Don't Fence Me In	-	Country4 (... weeks) Country
	At Mail Call Today	-	Country1 (... week) Country
	I'll be back	-	Country7 (... weeks) Country
	Don't Hang Around Me Anymore	-	Country4 (... weeks) Country
	I want to be sure	-	Country4 (... weeks) Country
	Don't live a lie	-	Country4 (... weeks) Country
1946	Silver Spurs (On the Golden Stairs)	-	Country4 (... weeks) Country
	I wish I had never met sunshine	-	Country3 (... weeks) Country
	Wave to me, my lady	-	Country4 (... weeks) Country
	You Only Want Me When You're Lonely	-	Country7 (... weeks) Country
	Have I Told You Lately that I Love You?	-	Country3 (... weeks) Country
	Someday (You'll Want Me to Want You)	-	Country4 (... weeks) Country
1947	You're Not My Darlin 'Anymore	-	Country3 (... weeks) Country
1948	Here Comes Santa Claus (Down Santa Claus Lane)	US8 (... weeks) US	Country4 (... weeks) Country	Re-entry every year at Christmas time
	Buttons and bows	US17 (... weeks) US	Country6 (... weeks) Country
1949	Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer	US1 gold (… Where.)US	Country1 (... week) Country	with The Pinafores
1950	Peter Cottontail	US5 (... weeks) US	Country3 (... weeks) Country
	Frosty the Snow Man	US7 (... weeks) US	Country4 (... weeks) Country	with The Cass County Boys
1951	Old Soldiers Never Die	-	Country9 (... weeks) Country

more publishments

• 1931: A Face I See at Evening
• 1933: The Last Round-Up
• 1934: Cowboy's Heaven
• 1935: That Silver-Haired Daddy of Mine (with Jimmie Long)
• 1935: Tumbling Tumbleweeds
• 1935: Mexicali Rose
• 1935: Take Me Back to My Boots and Saddle
• 1937: Gold Mine in the Sky
• 1939: South of the Border
• 1939: Back in the Saddle Again
• 1941: Blueberry Hill
• 1941: You Are My Sunshine
• 1941: Lonely River
• 1946: Over and Over Again
• 1949: Ghost Riders in the Sky
• 1952: Up on the Housetop
• 1957: Nobody's Darlin 'but Mine

literature

• Erlewine, Michael u. a. (Ed.): All Music Guide to Country Music. The experts guide to the best recordings in country music . San Francisco, Cal .: Miller Freeman Books, 1997, pp. 19-22.
• Dellar, Fred / Thompson, Roy: The Illustrated Encyclopedia Of Country Music . Foreword by Roy Acuff. 2nd edition London: Salamander Books, 1979, pp. 16f.
• Shestack, Melvin: The Country Music Encyclopaedia . London: Omnibus Press, 1977, pp. 15-17.
• Whitburn, Joel: The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits 1944-2006 . New York: Billboard Books, 2006, pp. 34f.

swell

1. ↑ Tony Russell, Country Music Records: A Discography 1921-1942 , 2008, p. 511.
2. ↑ Holly George-Warren, Public Cowboy No. 1: The Life and Times of Gene Autry , 2007, p. 72.
3. ↑ Jack Hurst: Gene Autry: The Apprenticeship of One Smart Singing Cowboy . Chicago Tribune August 7, 1983.
4. ↑ Don Cusic, Gene Autry: His Life And Career , 2007, p. 20
5. ↑ Tony Russell, Country Music Records: A Discography 1921-1942 , 2008, pp. 75 f.
6. ↑ Don Cusic, Gene Autry: His Life And Career , 2007, p. 23
7. ↑ Movie Celebrities to Launch Development of 'World's Most Unusual City' on Desert Today , The San Bernardino County Sun, September 1, 1946 (PDF)
8. ^ William R. Denslow, Harry S. Truman : 10,000 Famous Freemasons from A to J, Part One . Kessinger Publishing, ISBN 1-4179-7578-4 .
9. ↑ ^{a b} Chart sources: US
10. ↑ Music Sales Awards: US
11. ↑ https://www.billboard.com/charts/the-billboard-hot-100/2018-12-29

Web links

Commons : Gene Autry  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Literature by and about Gene Autry in the catalog of the German National Library
• Gene Autry in the Internet Movie Database (English)
• Gene Autry Discography (Music City)
• Gene Autry Oklahoma Museum (English)