THE CLOSING OF THE ROY ROGERS MUSEUM

I wrote a blog post about Roy Roger's on his birthday (9 month's ago) and another one about Trigger in 2010 (one of the first posts I wrote!) Today, I report the sad news that the Roy Rogers Museum in Barnson, MO has closed its doors and all the wonderful items in the collection have been auctioned off. 

Mike Fry wrote this piece about the event and posted it on facebook. I found it very interesting and hope you will, too. However, I don't come to the same conclusions he did about my generation. We, as a general rule, failed at our most important job...raising the next generation! We over-indulged them and didn't pass on the morals and values that we were taught. One example is our television programming and movies. Hollywood once felt the obligation to improve society. Now they seem bent on destroying it.

Mike Fry

THE END OF AN ERA.......

The Roy Rogers Museum in Branson, MO has closed its doors forever.

The contents of the museum were sold at a public auction.

Roy Rogers told his son, if the museum ever operates at a loss,

close it And sell the contents. He complied.
Note the follow-on article truly the end of an era.

Here is a partial listing of some of the items that were sold at auction...

Roy 's 1964 Bonneville sold for $254,500, it was estimated to Sell between 100 and 150 thousand dollars.

His script book from the January 14,1953 episode of This Is Your Life sold for $10,000 (EST. $800-$1,000).

A collection of signed baseballs (Pete Rose, Duke Snyder and other greats) sold for $3,750.

A collection of signed bats (Yogi Berra, Enos Slaughter, Bob Feller, and others) sold for $2,750.

Trigger 's saddle and bridle sold for $386,500 (EST. 100-150 K).

One of many of Roy 's shirts sold for $16,250 and one of his many cowboy hats sold for $17,500.

One set of boot spurs sold for $10,625.
(He never used a set of spurs on Trigger).

A life size shooting gallery sold for $27,500.

Various chandeliers sold from $6,875 to $20,000.
Very unique and artistic in their western style.

A signed photograph by Don Larsen taken during his perfect game in the world series against The Dodgers on Oct. 8, 1953, along with a signed baseball to Roy from Don, sold for $2,500.

Two fabulous limited edition BB guns in their original boxes with numerous photos of Roy, Dale,
Gabby, and Pat sold for $3,750.

A collection of memorabilia from his shows entertaining the troops in Vietnam sold for $938.
I never knew he was there.

His flight jacket sold for $7,500.

His set of dinner ware plates and silverware sold for $11,875.

The Bible they used at the dinner table every night sold for $8,750.

One of several of his guitars sold for $27,500.

Nellybelle sold for $116,500.

A fabulous painting of Roy, Dale, Pat, Buttermilk, Trigger, and Bullet sold for $10,625.

One of several sets of movie posters sold for $18,750.

A black and white photograph of Gene Autry with a touching inscription from Gene to Roy sold for $17,500.

A Republic Productions Poster bearing many autographs of the people that played in Roy 's movies sold for $11,875.

Dale 's horse, Buttermilk (whose history is very interesting) sold below the presale estimate for $25,000. (EST. 30-40 K).

Bullet sold for $35,000 (EST. 10-15 K). He was their real pet.

Dale's parade saddle, estimated to sell between 20-30 K, sold for $104,500.

One of many pairs of Roy's boots sold for $21,250.

Trigger sold for $266,500.

Do you remember the 1938 movie The Adventures of Robin Hood, With Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland?

Well Olivia rode Trigger in that movie.

Trigger was bred on a farm co-owned by Bing Crosby.
Roy bought Trigger on a time payment plan for $2,500.

Roy and Trigger made 188 movies together.

Trigger even out did Bob Hope by winning an Oscar in the movie Son of Paleface in 1953.

It is extremely sad to see this era lost forever. Despite the fact that Gene and Roy 's movies, as well as those of other great characters, can be bought or rented for viewing, today 's kids would rather
spend their time playing video games.

Today it takes a very special pair of parents to raise their kids with the right values and morals.

These were the great heroes of our childhood, and they did teach us right from wrong, and how to have and show respect for each other and the animals that share this earth.

You and I were born at the right time.

We were able to grow up with these great people even if we never met them.

In their own way they taught us patriotism and honor, we learned that lying and Cheating were bad, and sex wasn't as important as love.

We learned how to suffer through disappointment and failure and work through it.

Our lives were drug free.

So it 's good-bye to Roy and Dale, Gene and Hoppy, The Lone Ranger and Tonto.

Farewell to Sky King and Superman and Sgt. Friday and don't forget Pat Butrum and Gabby Hayes.

Thanks to Capt..Kangaroo, Mr. Rogers and Capt. Noah and all those people whose lives touched ours, and made them better.


It was a great ride through childhood.

HAPPY TRAILS MY FRIENDS

Anyone under 50...won't understand or care!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ROY ROGERS

Today is Roy Rogers' birthday! He was truly the "King of Cowboys". Did you know that he is the only person to be elected twice to the Country Music Hall of Fame? He was first elected in 1980 as one of the original members of "sons of the Pioneers" and second in 1988 as a solo artist. As a person, performer and equestrian, they don't get any better than Roy Rogers. Have fun riding your Unicorn, Roy!

You can read more about his wonderful horse, Trigger, in a post I wrote in 2010. Just click here:

 https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=2018440477024256751#editor/target=post;postID=8936750939955106209;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=1;src=postname

Do you now or have you ever owned a noble and great horse that deserves to become a unicorn? Write to me and tell me about him/her: mjevansbtm@gmail.com

Trigger - The Smartest Horse in the Movies

In Behind the Mist, Book One of The Mist Trilogy, the reader learns that the Noble and Great horses are given the training and skills needed to become unicorns in the after-life and earn their horns. This blog is dedicated to the Noble and Great horses in our lives and throughout history.


1953This was Roy RogerRs favorite poem, it was written by his friend Mike Bright.

Trigger by Mike Bright

You've heard the tales of man and beast

Of how they rose to fame

Here's the story of a horse, that's true,

And Trigger was his name.

A Stable horse - that's what he was;

Just a horse on a movie lot.

But he caught the eye of a cowboy star,

And that horse won't be forgot.

He was a steed of rarest beauty

As he raced across the plain;

That golden palomino

With the flowing tail and mane.

We watched him at the rodeo

As he would rear and bow and prance

You've never seen a horse like that.

Why, that horse could even dance.

We watched him on the movie screen;

The greatest horse of all.

With the king of the cowboys on his back,

He held his head so tall.

When the outlaws got the upper hand

And there seemed to be no hope in sight;

When it seemed his master's doom was sure.

Ole Trigger took up the fight...

The smartest horse in the movies,

that's what they used to say.

But he's the smartest horse that ever lived

And ever came our way...

The Golden Palimino that was owned and ridden by Roy Rogers in his western movies was born in 1932. He was 15.3 hands (a hand is four inches and the measurement is taken at the withers-where the shoulders meet.) He was originally named Golden Cloud. He made his movie debut as Maid Marion's mount in The Adventures of Robin Hood. Roy Rogers bought him in 1938, renamed him "Trigger," and they were together ever since. Rogers even proposed to his wife, Dale Evans while riding Trigger.

Trigger had 150 trick cues and could walk on his hind legs for 50 feet. There was also a Dell comic book made for him and a Breyer horse as well!

Of interest: when Trigger died in 1965, his hide was stretched over a plaster cast and placed in the Roy Rogers, Dale Evans museum in Victorville, CA and latter moved to Branson, MO. When the museum was closed in late 2009, Christi's Auction House sold it in July 2010 for $266,500 to RFD-TV. (If you haven't found this cable station yet, look for it. It has some cool horse programing!) RFD-TV is planning to make a western museum.

Shema, one of the unicorns in Behind the Mist - Book One of The Mist Trilogy, is a beautiful palimino. A palimino is a color of various breed (although they have started their own registry, now.) Trigger was sired by a thoroughbred out of a palimono mare of mixed breed (called a grade.)

Tell me your story of the Noble and Great horse in your life that you think deserves to become a member of the Legion of the Unicorn. Email me at:

mjevansbtm@gmail.com

To purchase the first book of The Mist Trilogy, Behind the Mist, go to:

www.behindthemist.com