Smiley Burnette

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Burnette's grave in Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Hollywood Hills

Smiley Burnette (* 18th March 1911 in Summum , Fulton County , Illinois as Lester Alvin Burnett , † 16th February 1967 in Encino , California ) was an American actor and country musician .

life and career

Smiley Burnette taught himself various instruments in his youth and began his show career in the late 1920s with vaudeville shows. He also worked in radio, including playing the accordion on the National Barn Dance radio show .

In 1934 Burnette made his film debut in the western In Old Santa Fe . Total Burnette stepped up in 1953 in more than 150 feature films, which is almost exclusively in these Western of B-category concerned. He became known as the comical sidekick of Gene Autry (who also made his film debut in In Old Santa Fe ) in over 80 films: While Autry was the hero, Burnette played his clumsy, friendly, sometimes simple-minded companion Frog Milhouse . Alongside George "Gabby" Hayes , he was considered the most successful sidekick actor in the history of the B-movie western. When Autry took up his post in World War II , Burnette also worked as a sidekick for other western actors at Republic Pictures such as Eddie Dew , Sunset Carson and Robert Livingston . From 1944 he was under contract with Columbia Pictures , where he - now mostly announced with the role name Smiley - was support for actors like Charles Starrett and Jock Mahoney . He also worked with Roy Rogers , Autry's longtime competitor.

Burnette could also be heard as a singer in many of the westerns. Sales of his records weren't exactly high, but Burnette's films automatically made his songs known. When the success of the B-Westerns waned due to the increasingly popular television with his western series, Burnette withdrew from the film industry in 1953 and concentrated more on his music career. In total, he is said to have written over 400 songs. He was only back in front of the camera in the 1960s: from 1963 until his death, he played one of the leading roles as railway engineer Charley Pratt in the television series Petticoat Junction with Edgar Buchanan and Bea Benaderet .

Smiley Burnette was married to Dallas McDonald until his death, the couple had adopted four children. He died of leukemia in February 1967 at the age of 55 .

Awards

Burnette received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the film category for his cinematic work . In 1971 he was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame , and later also became part of America's Old Time Country Music Hall of Fame .

Filmography (selection)

  • 1934: In Old Santa Fe
  • 1935: Gold Ducats of the Ghost (The Phantom Empire)
  • 1936: The Big Show
  • 1936: Oh, Susanna!
  • 1936: Undersea Kingdom
  • 1937: Dick Tracy
  • 1937: Boots and Saddles
  • 1937: Round-Up Time in Texas
  • 1938: Under Western Stars
  • 1938: Billy the Kid Returns
  • 1941: Ridin 'on a Rainbow
  • 1942: The men of the Golden West (Heart of the Golden West)
  • 1943: King of the Cowboys
  • 1949: Riders of the Whistling Pines
  • 1952: The Kid from Broken Gun
  • 1953: Last of the Pony Riders
  • 1963–1967: Petticoat Junction (TV series, 110 episodes)
  • 1965–1967: Green Acres (TV series, 7 episodes)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Smiley Burnette | Biography & History | AllMusic. Retrieved September 8, 2018 .
  2. ↑ Don Cusic: The Cowboy in Country Music: An Historical Survey with Artist Profiles . McFarland, 2011, ISBN 978-0-7864-8605-2 ( google.de [accessed January 3, 2019]).
personal data
SURNAME Burnette, smiley
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Burnette, Lester Alwin (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION US-American actor
DATE OF BIRTH March 18, 1911
PLACE OF BIRTH Summum , Fulton County , Illinois
DATE OF DEATH February 16, 1967
Place of death Encino , California