I watched Gunsmoke this evening and the episode featured Festus Hagen, the big-hearted, somewhat scruffy, illiterate deputy. I Googled his name (Ken Curtis) to find a picture of him without his Gunsmoke getup. I found out things about him I never knew.
I've seem him in many westerns and never recognized him. He looks much different without the scraggly beard and half squint.
He started out as a singer. A good singer. I don't think I ever heard him sing on Gunsmoke, but he sang with the Dorsey band and was a singing cowboy in movies and sang with the Sons of the Pioneers. For you young kids that don't know good music when you hear it, thems impressive credentials.
While I was searching, I found a site for Bob Nolan. According to this site, Bob Nolan created "Western" music. He wrote Tumbling Tumbleweeds, a classic. He also wrote Cool Waters, a haunting story about a mirage and a desert and a yearning deep in the soul. It's still being recorded today and you can hear dozens of recordings here from recording artists. To name just a few - Gene Autry, Burl Ives, Roy Rogers, Randy Travis, Willie Nelson, Joni Mitchell, Fleetwood Mac, Patti LaBelle, Bob Dylan, The Foggy River Boys, Red River Dave and Sula's Texas Ranger. And don't miss Walter Brennan's rendition. (You can skip Bob Dylan and Patti LaBelle though. They were never meant to sing cowboy songs. Even Tom Jones did a better job.)
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