About Roy Rogers
Born Leonard Franklin Slye on November 5, 1911, in Cincinnati, Ohio, to parents Andrew and Mattie Slye. Known best as a singing cowboy, Rogers, with his trademark horse Trigger, appeared in nearly 100 films during the 1930s, '40s and '50s, many of them featuring his second wife Dale Evans.
About Dale Evans
Dale Evans was born on October 31, 1912, in Uvalde, Texas. She got her start singing on radio before appearing on film opposite Roy Rogers, the "King of the Cowboys." Eventually they married and became one of Hollywood's best-loved couples. They appeared together on television for decades and were well known for their theme song, "Happy Trails to You," which Evans wrote. She died in 2001.
In the late 1920s, Rogers' family relocated to California, where Rogers held various jobs, including fruit picker and factory worker. He got his start in the music business with his cousin Stanley, playing at square dances and local theaters. Shortly after, Rogers met Bob Nolan and Tim Spencer, and the trio began to play together, calling themselves the O-Bar-O Cowboys. The band went through various incarnations, performing as the Pioneer Trio, and the Sons of the Pioneers, and even appearing in several motion pictures.
Throughout his career, Rogers changed his name more than once. At the time of his stint with the Sons of the Pioneers, he was calling himself Dick Weston—the name he was credited with in his first film, Slightly Static (1935). In 1937, he became "Roy Rogers" after Republic Studio offered him a seven-year film contract. His big break came when he was cast to replace Gene Autry (following a contract dispute) in the starring role of Under Western Stars (1938). The film was a major hit with audiences, and Rogers went on to star in an average of seven singing B-Westerns every year until the early 1950s, all of which featured his trusty palomino, Trigger (which he purchased from the studio), and his dog, Bullet.
While Rogers was known as a singing cowboy, his rivalry with the better known Gene Autry was a boon to the careers of both men, even though in later years Rogers did surpass Autry at the box office. In an era when the musical Western was a popular film genre with audiences, Rogers became known as the "King of the Cowboys" after appearing in a film of the same name. Other films he made included Sunset in El Dorado (1945), My Pal Trigger (1946), and The Golden Stallion (1949). Espousing patriotism and heroism, he gained an enormous following of mostly young fans. With his endorsement of a multitude of products—from children's toys to cereal brands—Rogers, with Evans and Trigger, evolved into pop cultural icons.
In 1944, Rogers appeared in his first film with actress Dale Evans. The Yellow Rose of Texas sparked an irresistible on-screen chemistry between the two, and Evans quickly gained the nickname "Queen of the Cowgirls," to match the moniker of her on-and-off-screen sweetheart. Between the years of 1944 and 1951, they appeared in nearly 30 films together. Particularly in the mid-to-late 1940s, the duo appeared in a string of back-to-back productions, among them The Cowboy and the Senorita (1944), Utah (1945), and Apache Rose (1947).
From 1951-1957, Rogers starred in his own popular television series, The Roy Rogers Show, which also featured Evans. The song "Happy Trails," written by Evans, was the show's theme song. Following a revamping, the show aired again as The Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Show in 1962.
Dale Evans bio continues
Known for her down to earth, countrified warm personality,
actor/singer/songwriter, Dale Evans, born Frances Octavia Smith, on October 31, 1912, in Uvalde, Texas. Evans eloped with her high school sweetheart, Thomas Frederick Fox, when she was 14 years old, but the marriage ended in divorce shortly after the birth of their child, Tom, jr. She got her start singing on various radio programs (a station manager convinced her to take Dale Evans as her professional name) and in a Chicago supper club before earning a screen test in Hollywood and a one-year contract with 20th Century Fox Pictures.
Evans made two minor films for Fox before being released from her contract in 1943, whereupon she moved to Republic and appeared in her first western film, In Old Oklahoma (the film was later retitled The War of the Wildcats), opposite John Wayne. In 1944, she was cast in The Cowboy and the Señorita. Evans' leading man in that film was Roy Rogers, the rugged star of many well-known Westerns who had become known as the "King of the Cowboys."
n 1945, Evans divorced her second husband, the pianist Robert Dale Butts. The following year, Rogers' wife Arlene died after the birth of their third child, Roy Jr. Evans and Rogers costarred in eight films together in 1946 alone, including My Pal Trigger, Rainbow Over Texas, and Roll on Texas Moon. They soon fell in love, and were married in December 1947.
Dale Evans and Roy Rogers became one of Hollywood's best-known and best-loved couples. They appeared in numerous big-screen Westerns together and went on to costar in the extraordinarily popular 1950s television show The Roy Rogers Show (1951-57) as well as The Roy Rogers & Dale Evans Show in 1962. They appeared together on television throughout the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, and were well known for their theme song, "Happy Trails to You," which Evans wrote.
In addition to Evans’ son Tom Fox and Roy Rogers Jr., Rogers also had two daughters, Linda and Cheryl, from his first marriage. The couple's family life was tinged with tragedy, as their only biological child together, a daughter named Robin, died in 1952, shortly before her second birthday, of complications from Down's syndrome. In honor of her daughter, Evans penned the first of a number of inspirational books, the bestselling Angel Unaware. Evans and Rogers adopted or fostered four other children, but they experienced two more wrenching losses in the next decade, as their daughter Deborah died in a bus accident in 1964, and their son John David (Sandy) choked to death while serving in the U.S. Army in Germany in 1965.
vans, known to her legions of fans as the "Queen of the West," compiled an impressive portfolio of songwriting credits, including the top-selling single "Aha, San Antone." She also made 30 children's records, most notably Happy Birthday, Gentle Savior, which featured her own songs. In 1994, she and Rogers published Happy Trails: Our Life Story, a memoir of their years together.
Roy Rogers died in 1998 at the age of 86. Evans herself suffered a heart attack and a stroke, but remained active, hosting her own show, A Date With Dale, on the religiously oriented Trinity Broadcasting Network. She died at her home in California on February 7, 2001, at the age of 88.
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