Gene Autry --- 1946 to 1956
Stan Paregien, Editor
Gene Autry's first movie after World War II ended was "Sioux City Sue" in 1946. It was during this time that he was in a contract dispute with Republic Pictures. The studio maintained that the contract he had signed before the War should be extended for the same number of years he was away in the service, while he argued in court that his contract had ended as scheduled and he should be treated as a free agent.
Gene was a sharp businessman. He finally got Republic Pictures to agree, while the lawsuit was being argued, to let him make five movies for them. Only this time he would make a percentage of the profits on each film (That is a widespread practice now, for big stars, but it was a novel idea then). He and the studio also agreed that if he won the lawsuit, he was a free agent. However, if he lost in court then he would return under contract.
1947 Autry won his case in court and set up his own production company. He left Republic Pictures and inked a contract with Columbia Pictures on April 1, 1947. That deal gave him complete artistic control of the films and 50% of the profits. Columbia also agreed to put about a third more money into each film than had Republic Pictures.
Gene's original movie horse, "Champion," was bought from a breeder in Ardmore, Ok., by the name of Hardy Murphy. This Champion died in 1947. It had been a dark brown horse with three white stockings on its legs (none on the right front leg) and a blaze face.
Autry replaced that horse with "Champion, Jr.," a horse with four white stockings, a blaze face, a lighter body color and much lighter colored mane and tail. Gene's horse trainer for many years was the highly respected John Agee.
In 1947 he had five films released: "The Last Round Up," "Robin Hood of Texas," "Saddle Pals," "Trail to San Antone," and "Twilight on the Rio Grande". Over the following years Gene often mentioned "The Last Round Up" as being one of his personal favorites. From now through 1953 he would produce his own movies, some five or six a year, and release them through Columbia Pictures.
In 1947 he released a Christmas novelty song titled, "Here Comes Santa Claus". It became a smash hit and has remained one of the best-loved of the standard Christmas songs.
1948
He only made two movies in 1948: "Loaded Pistols" and "The Strawberry Roan." The latter was the first of only two of Gene's films done in color. And it featured Gene riding a beautiful pinto horse, one that would show up later as the mount for The Cisco Kid and called "Diablo".
But he did do something else that added significantly to his already considerable wealth. In 1948 he recorded-- much against his own preferences --and released "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer".
The only reason he recorded it was because his wife, Ina, liked it and thought kids would like it.
How right she was! It, too, has become a Christmas classic.
Gene Autry had an inner drive, a motivation to be the best at whatever he did. He was not the prettiest cowboy star in town, and he had no formal acting education. So he overcame the formidable odds against him by outworking most everyone else and by working smart.
For example, he used his radio program, "Melody Ranch," to promote his personal appearances and his movies and numerous endorsements (products). Then when he went on the road for concert tours, he would stop in at radio stations along the way and meet the staff and go on air with them. When he made movies, he also made it a point to meet the writers and the executives behind the scenes and to befriend them. We call all this "networking" today, and Gene was a master at it.
He regularly used a two-engine Beechcraft airplane to commute between performances. Gene was the pilot and and his booking agent, Herb Greene, was the co-pilot.
Gene was a prolific songwriter. He wrote independently and in partnership with others, but mainly with Fred Rose.
1949
In 1949 Gene Autry had six movies released. "The Big Sombrero" was the second of only two of his movies filmed in color. He also released "Riders in the Sky," "Riders of the Whistling Pines," "Rim of the Canyon," "Sons of New Mexico," and "The Cowboy and the Indians." It was in that last film that Gene sang "Santa Claus is Coming to Town".
Gene's friend Smiley Burnett played his comic sidekick in 58 movies.
In 1949 Gene released another song which was to become a children's classic, still loved and sung by children around the world. It was "Peter Cottontail".
Gene once said of the music business, "It occurs to me that music, with the possible exception of riding a bull, is the most uncertain way to make a living I know. In either case you can get bucked off, thrown, stepped on, trampled--if you get on at all. At best, it is a short and bumpy ride" (quoted by David Roth, The Gene Autry Book, p. 96).
The Christmas card Gene Autry sent out sometime
in the late 1940's or early 1950's.
In 1949, as was the custom for big stars, Gene Autry impressed his boot prints in the cement slab in front of the famous Grauman's Chinese Theatre. Even Champion got into the act, as his hoof prints are there, too.
1950
Gene Autry was an early believer in the new-fangled medium called "television". So much so that he started "The Gene Autry Show" on July 23, 1950, on CBS-TV. His own company, "Flying A Productions," produced the show and he retained the rights to the films. His long-time friend, Pat Buttram, played his sidekick in most of the episodes (except for a period when Buttram was injured by the explosion of a cannon and either Chill Wills or Fuzzy Knight stood in for him). It ran for six years.
A third "Champion" came on the scene in 1950, for the TV series. That horse had a wider blaze on its face than the previous two. And there was even a fourth "Champion," nicknamed "Little Champ," that Gene used in several movies and for personal appearances. It was, in fact, a smaller horse than the others.
During 1950, Gene released five of his movies: "Beyond the Purple Hills," "The Blazing Sun," "Cow Town," "Indian Territory," and "Mule Train".
Besides having a passion for baseball, Gene also liked to golf. He often told people that he always wore boots, except on the golf course, and that the only pair of "shoes" he had was his golf shoes.
Good pals Roy Rogers & Gene Autry at play in 1950.
1951 1951 saw six more of Gene's films released: "The Hills of Utah," "Valley of Fire," "Silver Canyon," "Texans Never Cry," "Gene Autry and the Mounties," and "Whirl Wind". That last film featured a bit role by songwriter Stan Jones. He was the gent who wrote "Ghost Riders in the Sky," a song which was featured in Gene's 1949 movie, "Riders in the Sky".
1952 Gene Autry starred in and produced six movies in 1952: Barbed-Wire, "The Old West," "Blue Canadian Rockies," "Wagon Team," "Apache Country," and "Night Stage to Galveston".
One of the actors in "Apache Country" was silent screen star Francis X. Bushman. He had been in the original "Ben Hur" movie filmed in 1926.
1953
Gene took his touring company on the road to England in 1953. They spent four weeks at the 8,000 seat Empress Hall theatre. And they sold it out--all 8,000 seats--twice a day for four weeks.
Gene released the last of his own movies in 1953. In them he was reunited with his original comic sidekick, Smiley Burnette. "Goldtown Ghost Riders," "Pack Train," "Saginaw Trail," and "Winning of the West," and his last film with the telling title, "Last of the Pony Riders" An era had passed. There would be no more movies starring Gene Autry. He would never get back in the saddle again, not to film a movie.
Armand "Mandy" Schaefer also put in his last day's work for Gene, after 19-years as his personal supervisor for film production. They had met in 1934 and he went to work for Autry shortly after that.
According to David Roth in The Gene Autry Book (p. 89), Gene liked to read and collect poetry. He also liked to have a drink now and then, particularly shots of scotch and water, and made newspapers headlines for at least two arrests for driving while intoxicated.
Gene was also a person who could take brief naps, in between movie takes or other business, and wake up refreshed and raring to go. He made it a practice of reading at least three newspapers every day.
Gene reportedly said, "I am secure about who I am and what my place has been. I was the first of the full-time singing cowboys. I am not sure I was the best but when you are first it really doesn't matter. Even if everyboy else is better, no one can ever be first again" (quoted by David Roth, The Gene Autry Book, p. 96).
1954
April, 1954 comic book
1956 The Gene Autry Show ran through the summer of 1956. Those 91 episodes of about 27 minutes running time each (15 were in full color) were then stored in Gene's private vaults. No one saw them for nearly forty years. Then they were digitally remastered and aired on the Encore Westerns cable TV channel in May of 2000.
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