Roy Rogers was the perfect personification of a cowboy with his silver hatband and hand tooled boots. He was born in Ohio in 1911 and was named Leonard Slye. He turned out to be a very famous singer and was often referred to as the King of the Cowboys.
The young chap shifted to California in the quest to become a singer. He created “Sons of the Pioneers”, a group which was considered as a western cowboy, in 1934. This group was very popular among music lovers with songs like “Tumbling Tumbleweeds” and “Cool Water” becoming all time favorites The band continued gaining fame and popularity till the 1950’s even when Rogers was no longer a part of the group. In 1995, Rogers was inducted again into the band.
Roy Rogers was also a cowboy actor and he made his debut in the movies in 1935. All along, he devoted himself to western movies and was a singing cowboy. He has worked with Gene Autry as Leonard Syle. Rogers was an idol and an American legend for the audience who loved to see him on the big screen. He was the most loved singing cowboy among children and adults.
Roy Rogers turned out to be a well known actor working with his third wife, his Palomino, Trigger, and German Shepherd Dog named Bullet. They worked together in over a hundred movies as well as in The Roy Rogers Show. The show used to run on radio and aired for nearly nine years from 1951 till 1957. In 1962, there was another show by the couple on ABC, but it could not strike too many people and hence it was pulled off.
Rogers earned fame and money both through his films and also through public appearances. In 1940 he signed a contract with a studio in which he was provided the rights to use his name for merchandising, cowboy adventure novels, action figures, a comic strip, and the Comics comic book series (Roy Rogers Comics) by Gaylord Du Bois.
Rogers was also very active in operating and supporting charities for children. He and his wife adopted many children because he was deeply struck by the death of his daughter. There were many streets, building and highways in their name, because of their endless efforts for homeless children.
The talented actor and singer was also the owner of a Hollywood production company that produced his own series. The production house created another series called “Brave Eagle” with Keith Larsen cast as a youthful passive Cheyenne Chief. To sign off the television show Roy and Dale had a very famous theme song called.”Happy Trails” and their shows always ended with this song.
The talented actor will always be remembered for his great contributions. He received 3 stars at the Hollywood Walk of Fame on 1752, 1733 and 1620 vine streets. Unfortunately, this great legend died as a result of heart failure in 1998.
Franck Benedittini
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