Cowboy Directory Newsletter

                             Stan Paregien Sr., Editor          Issue 26          May 26, 2008
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Peggy and I had a really nice time at this year's Wrangler Awards at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. We ate dinner (we actually say supper, here in Oklahoma) with Mike and Martha Armitage (ranchers from Claremore, Oklahoma) and with newspaper/magazine publishers J. Leland Gourley and wife Vickie. Leland currently is the publisher of the Oklahoma City metro magazine called Friday.


We chatted with friends Guy and Phyllis Logsdon (Tulsa, OK), Robert Conley (currently in Norman, OK, but moving soon to Cherokee, North Carolina to teach in a university there), and with new friend H. Grant Irwin of the Irwin Auto Company in Woodward, Oklahoma. We also saw but did not get a chance to visit with David Dary (Norman, OK), Johnny Western (Wichita, Kansas) and Bob Gerling of the Museum.

Here are a few photos that I took during the evening:


      Singers and Wrangler Award winners Lynn Anderson and R.W. Hampton





            B. Byron Price signs a copy of his award-winning book

                 Long-time rodeo announcer Clem McSpadden
                               holding his Wrangler Award

Lisa and R.W. Hampton

                                          Stan's Articles

I recent posted these articles on my other web site,  www.paregien.net . Go there and click on "Stan's Articles" and access these four:                         

Subject:      Mark Barragar: A King-Sized King
Mark Barragar of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma is an Elvis tribute artist. He has developed a vocal presence strongly suggestive of The King. And he does it despite the obvious physical differences between himself and Elvis, as Mark stands about 6' 6" high and weighs over 300 pounds.

Subject:      Ralph Chain: A Cowboy's Cowboy 
The historic family-owned Chain Ranch west of Canton, Oklahoma is a highly successful farming and ranching operation. Come along as we visit the ranch and the current boss man, Mr. Ralph Chain.

Subject:      Les Gilliam: The Oklahoma Balladeer 
Singer and recording artist Les Gilliam grew up near Berwyn, Oklahoma. He was present the day in 1941 when Gene Autry came to town for a ceremony changing the name of the town to Gene Autry, Oklahoma. Gilliam went on to become a gifted singer and guitar player in his own right.

Subject:     Clara Luper: The Mother of the Civil Rights Movement in Oklahoma   Stan conducted this interview with Clara Luper in 2006 at the "Freedom Center" she established on Martin Luther King Boulevard in Oklahoma City. In the late 1950's she led her own children and a few other teenagers on a campaign to have the right to sit down and eat at drugstore lunch counter in Oklahoma City. She would wind up walking with Martin Luther King and others in marches in Selma, Alabama and Washington, D.C., to secure greater Civil Rights.     

 


                                       Bits & Pieces

April 22
Actor Jack Nicholson, who starred with Marlon Brandon in the Western movie "The Missouri Breaks," was born on this date in 1937.  This date was also when singer and occasional actor Glen Campbell was born in 1936. He appeared ("acted" would be a bit too generous) with John Wayne in the Western movie "True Grit".

April 28
Actress and singer Ann-Margret was born on this date in 1941. She was in the 1966 version of "Stagecoach," stinker that it was.

April 30
Singer and some-time actor ("Red Headed Stranger") Willie Nelson was born on this date in 1933.

May 8
Eddy Arnold, one of the most popular and best-selling singers of all time, died on this date in 2008. He had a chart hit with "Cattle Call" in four different decades, the last being a duet with LeAnn Rhymes in the late 1990s.

May 12
Off-color comedian George Carlin was born on this date in 1937. He appeared in the made-for-TV Western, "Streets of Laredo," a film based on another of Larry McMurtry's books. This is also the birthdate of actor Bruce Boxleitner in 1950.

May 13
Actor and artist Buck Taylor, best known as "Newly" on the TV Western "Gunsmoke," was born on this day in 1938.

May 17
Actor Dennis Hopper, who is among my most "unfavorite" performers, was born on this day in 1936. He performed in such Westerns as True Grit, Hang 'Em High, The Sons of Katie Elder, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, Giant, and Johnny Guitar.

May 18
Actor Pernell Roberts, best known as the oldest brother in the early years of the TV show "Bonanza," was born on this date in 1928.

May 20
Actor Dean Butler was born on this date in 1956 in Prince George, British Columbia, Canada. He is best known for his role as Almanzo Wilder on the "Little House on the Prairie" TV show.

Our ol' pard Jim Gough (Liberty Hill, TX) was one of the featured performers at the recent Texas Western Swing Hall of Fame concert. And Jim also narrated the video featuring the life of cattleman Howard C. Haythorn for Haythorn's introduction into the Hall of Great Westerners at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum's annual Wrangler Awards. Nice job, my friend.

Dara Hill, daughter of Debra and David Hill (Chelsea, OK), graduated from high school on May 17th. I remember when little Dara would show up at a cowboy poetry festival and liven it up with her clogging. She has turned out to be a chip off the ol' cowchip, as she is quite a hand around the ranch. Congratulations to all.

Congratulations are also in order for cowboy/singer/musician Fred Hargrove (Monte Vista, CO). Seems like I can remember in the past seeing his poetry on more than one restroom wall. But now the lyrics to his song, "A Monte Vista Moon," are on display at the Denver International Airport. And not in the restroom, either. Fred's lyrics were chosen from among thousands of entries. The display is part of an art exhibition called "Colorado, See the New West Like a Local". Way to go, Fred. Oh, one more thing: Fred has a new CD for sale called "Cowpoke Folk". It contains 14 songs, all written by him. Call him at 316-617-9219 or write to him at :
PO Box 730, Monte Vista, Co.  81144

 You may now purchase a DVD set of three of actor Tom Selleck's Westerns made for TNT. Those include "Monte Walsh," Crossfire Trail," and "Last Stand at Saber River". They are marketed as the "Tom Selleck Western Collection".

                                    Other Web Sites

My sister -- Robert Paregien Fournier -- has a really nice web site featuring information on record collecting. She and husband Norm ran used record shops for several years, so she knows her stuff. She also has a huge Elvis collection that has been the subject of newspaper and TV reports. Her web site also features photos of her with many entertainment stars -- Jimmy Rodgers, Johnny Crawford, Hank Ballard, Sonny Curtis,  and others. Her web page can be found at: http://www.freewebs.com/music-facts/  Be sure to see her page titled "Web Store". She and husband Norm Fournier manufacture and sell oxyginated water. One brand ("Aqua Supreme") is for us human types. And the other ("Noah's Ark Pet Water") is for everything elses that breathes. They can even produce the water under your own label. Check it out.

Finally, the photo below comes under the title of "And you thought you had musical talent".

Adios, my friends, until next time.

--Stan Paregien Sr