Roy Rogers appeared in more than 100 films, starring in 87 of
them. He also starred in his own television series on NBC for six years from
1951 to 1957, with his wife Dale Evans. Reruns of The Roy Rogers Show turned up
on CBS's Saturday morning lineup in January 1961 and remained there until
September 1964.
He was the only man in the Country Music Hall of Fame twice.
He
was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1980 as a member of the
Original Sons Of The Pioneers and in 1988 as an individual artist. His fan club
once boasted 1.75 million members registered in the United States alone. His fan
mail peaked at 75,000 letters a month in 1945.
Roy Rogers was born Leonard Slye on November 5, 1911, in Ohio.
Rogers worked on his family farm until 1929. In the middle of the Great
Depression, Roy packed a guitar, which cost him $20, and headed for Hollywood.
Roy landed a well paying job of $75 dollars a week at Republic
Pictures.
Roy Quote on Getting a Job in Hollywood
"The funny part of it is, I say I must be where God wants me or I
wouldn't be here," Roy said. "I just got in the door and a hand
fell over my shoulder."
The first movie Roy appeared in was "Way up Thar" in
1935. By the late 30's he changed his name from Leonard Slye to Roy Rogers.
Through the 40's and 50's Roy Rogers was the number one
western star at the box for 12 straight years. Roy Rogers was second only to
Walt Disney in souvenir sales and licensing, including everything from cap
pistols to lunch boxes. There are nearly 600 restaurants with his name. Roy's
estate was once valued at over 100 million dollars.
Roy and Dale
It was while making the 1944 film "The Cowboy and the
Senorita" that Roy first met Dale Evans. They would marry three years
later, fourteen months after the death of Roy's first wife, Arlene.
Roy wasn't allowed to kiss Dale in the movies. Once he gave
her a little peck on the forehead and he received a ton of mail telling him to
quit the mushy stuff. Roy said, "So I had to kiss Trigger instead."
Trigger
Trigger appeared in all the films and
TV shows Roy Rogers
starred in. In 1965 when Trigger died at 33, Roy had him stuffed and put in Roy
and Dale's museum.
Dale wasn't very fond of the idea of stuffing Trigger at
first. Dale told Roy, "OK, when you die I'm going to stuff you and put you
on him."
Roy died at age 86 in 1998, and Dale recently passed on at age
88. Roy and Dale appeared in 35 movies together, plus their tv show. Roy and
Dale were together for 51 years, a great testimony to how, even in
Hollywood, two people can stay married and happy at the same time. I believe
that Roy and Dale's belief in God was their secret to success in their marriage
and lives.
It's too bad there are not more people like Roy and Dale
today.
