Now this is GREAT circus history!!!!!! The King Charles Troupe

From Lane Talburt:

Albert Owens, 61, who originated the concept of playing basketball on unicycles, died on July 5 in NYC. The following video link will unfold the largely untold troubled early life of this King Charles trouper, who was unable to make his debut with the rest of the team in Madison Square Garden in 1969 because he was serving time on Rikers Island. I was able to interview 'Cuts,' as he was known by his teammates, in Crotona Park in The Bronx last June, along with other troupe members and the original manager of KCT, Rev. Bill Minson, who lead the funeral service for Albert last Saturday in Harlem.

American Eagle

Knowing of my affection and admiration for Roy Rogers, the great costume designer for Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, Mr. Don Foote incorporated Roy's American Eagle motif into the costumes he designed for me. He called it, "Uptown Cowboy" LOL Don, his long time assistant Mel, and I had a great laugh over that. The costume above was built by Mirille Arnosi, and the costume below was built by JoAnn Wilson, with help from her sister, Trudy, and the late, great Bill Strong.

Roy Rogers auction fetches $ 2.9 million

Roy's favorite, and most photographed plastic saddle, the American Eagle, fetched $50,000.

Edward H. Bolin parade saddle was sold to a British buyer for $US386,500.
Dale Evans red and white plastic parade saddle, expected to bring $20,000 to $30,000, sold for $104,500.
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All of the items in the auction of Roy Rogers memorabilia at Christies this week were sold, fetching a total of $US2.9 million.

On the first day of the sale, Rogers' mounted horse, Trigger sold for $US266,500.

A CF Martin acoustic guitar fetched $27,500; two wrought iron wall medallions expected to sell for $200-$300 fetched $11,250; a pair of rare Kelly Bros Diamond Dick pattern spurs overlaid with Navajo silver and mounted with turquoise fetched $10,625.

Among the many pairs of boots sold was a pair of colourful boots attributed to Nudie Taylor which fetched $21,250, far in excess of their pre-auction estimate of $1000 to $2000. A blue gabardine lace-up top made by Nudie for Roy sold for $11,875. The shirt features a Native American theme with embroidered headdresses on the white leather fringe yoke, tomahawks on the sleeves and arrows on the collar and pearl buttoned fringed cuffs, a large embroidered headdress adorns the back, and is embellished with rhinestones throughout.

Another shirt of Roy's, a brown wool lace-up top featuring a Trigger theme with embroidered horse heads on the suede fringed yoke and back, saddles on the sleeves and spurs on the pearl buttoned cuffs, embellished with rhinestones throughout, fetched $16,250.

The 1946 Willys CJ-2A Jeep known as Nellybelle and used on Roy and Dale's TV show, fetched $116,500.

A framed photograph of Gene Autrey, with a message from the singing cowboy to Roy written in 1976, fetched $17,500. Its estimate was $300-$500.

Buttermilk, Dale Evan's horse, who died at the age of 31, fetched $25,000, less than his pre-auction estimate of $30,000 to $40,000. Buttermilk was a young colt when he was rescued by a cattle farmer on his way to the slaughterhouse. The farmer bought him from a horse trader and he had been severely abused which resulted in a very unkind demeanor. The new owners quickly began to work with him, and through lots of dedication and care he eventually came around to become a friendly, affectionate and playful horse.

After renaming the bubbly Quarter Horse Soda, Randall introduced Soda to Dale Evans because her movie horse Koko was too much to handle and also resembled Trigger too much. Dale fell in love with Soda and bought him immediately. He was renamed Buttermilk after Dale saw a cloud pattern in the sky that reminded her of the Hoagy Carmichael's song, "Ole Buttermilk Sky." Dale rode Buttermilk in almost all of Roy's movies and in all but six of The Roy Rogers Show television episodes that aired from 1951-57. A true Quarter Horse, Buttermilk displayed bursts of speed and could out run Trigger. On the set, Roy asked Dale to please hold Buttermilk back when riding along side of him since Trigger, always had to lead.

The horse Trigger Jr was expected to fetch $30,000 to $50,000 but realised $18,750. Trigger Jr. (1941-1969) was a purebred Tennessee Walking Horse named Allen's Gold Zephyr who was bred by C. O. Barker of Readyville, Tennessee. Paul K. Fisher of Souderton, Pennsylvania, who claimed to be the world's largest breeder and dealer in yellow horses, sold Trigger Jr. to Roy Rogers in 1948 when he was still registered as Allen's Gold Zephyr. Fisher often took his horses to the Madison Square Garden Rodeo to show or sell and Roy stated that it took him six years to buy Trigger Jr. - finally succeeding after Fisher was forced into a well publicized dispersal sale in 1947. Trigger Jr. had beautiful conformation and a very stylish way of going. He was perfectly schooled and could accomplish a variety of difficult tricks including high stepping dances - always a crowd pleaser on Roy's national tours and the perfect protege to Trigger.

Bullet was expected to fetch $10,000 to $15,000 but sold for $35,000. He was an AKA Registered German Shepherd originally given the name of "Bullet Von Berge". He was billed as the 'wonder dog', and made his debut in the Roy Rogers film Spoiler's of the Plains in 1951, produced by Republic Pictures. Bullet was a regular on The Roy Rogers Show on NBC television from 1951-1957 and CBS from 1961-64. In real life the German Shepherd that played Bullet had the same name, and was also the family's pet.

"This highly anticipated event brought out thousands of Roy and Dale fans whose emotions and memories flooded our galleries," said Cathy Elkies, Director of Iconic Collections at Christies.

"We were privileged to handle a collection that resonated so deeply with so many people."

Linda Kohn and Joseph Sherwood of High Noon Western Americana added: "We were thrilled that the collection has found its way into homes of Roy and Dale fans around the world insuring that their legacy continues. The highlight of the week was the saleroom's spontaneous round of "Happy Trails" sung at the conclusion of the auction."

One of Roy and Dale's nine children, Roy Rogers Jr, said the sale of the Roy Rogers Museum was the most difficult decision for our family to make.

"Dad acknowledged many years ago that if the museum ever became difficult to maintain after he died, then we should let it go. We thought we'd always be able to keep it open, but my dad, smart as he was, knew that some day his fans would get older and they would slowly become unable to travel to Missouri," Rogers jr said.

"With the economy the way it is, and visitor traffic slowing dramatically, the expenses of operating the museum eventually outweighed the profit. Without being able to break even, we simply couldn't support it anymore," he said.

He also spoke of the bond his father had with Trigger. "Dad and Trigger were both young when they started - Trigger was only four years old, and Dad was 26 - and on some level I think they both felt this was the start of something special. Over their years together, they established a bond of trust and mutual respect.

"When Trigger passed, my dad was so distraught he didn't tell the family for over a year (we didn't know, because he was kept in another stable off our ranch). I think to him it was like losing a child. He told my mom, 'I can't just put him in the ground.'

"He had Trigger beautifully mounted and installed in the museum. A lot of people were upset about that, but I think he made the right choice. Trigger was one of the most popular attractions at the museum," Rogers Jr said.

Courtesy of Dianne Olds Rossi

Hawthorn's Nudie costume

When I first went to work for John Cuneo and Hawthorn in 1976 we wintered in California. John, never being one to "scrimp" on costuming "back in the day" had two costumes made for me at by Nudies. They had the exact same label in them as the picture above. The famous label is in all Nudie costumes. If I know John, he probably still has the costumes in a locker someplace. The boot's in this photo, taken in 1976 with the lion Solomon, were made for me in 1975 by the great American wild animal trainer, Pat Anthony when we were together on a show in Mexico City. Memories, what kind of price do you put on them?

Nudie Cohn shirts and boots made for Roy Rogers and sold at the recent High Noon auction.

Sold for $11,850
Sold for $21,250
Sold for $16,250

Nudie Cohn--Rodeo Tailor to the Stars

Nudie Cohen

Nudie and Elvis Presley

Nudie and Gram Parsons

Nudie Cohn--Rodeo Tailor to the Stars

Nudie Cohen, the famed "Rodeo Tailor to the Stars," first gained prominence in the early 1950s as the personal tailor for Roy Rogers and Dale Evans, making national headlines with the $10,000 gold lamé suit he created for Elvis Presley in 1957. From the 1950s to the 1980s, requests for Nudie's work piled up from a multitude of top stars, ranging from Gene Autry to ZZ Top.

By the early 1960s, Nudie added his signature treatment to a number of Cadillacs and Bonnevilles - eventually creating a total of 18 Nudiemobiles. This indescribable vehicle is one of only nine that are known to exist today, each one uniquely personalized with its own arsenal of non-functional but authentic armaments and chrome-plated embellishments.
Beginning with a stock 1964 Pontiac Bonneville Convertible, Nudie removed all traces of the original interior material and carpeting, replacing it with exquisitely hand-tooled leather. Then came the application of hundreds of genuine collectible silver dollars, along with chrome-plated pistols, horseshoes, miniature horses and rifles. Some of these items acted as functional replacements for interior and exterior door handles, switches and controls. Nudie worked out the mechanics of six-shooters to the point where the pull of a trigger on the gear shift works the gears, other pistols open the doors and two more pistols on chrome stands replace the front seat arm rest. Still another pistol sounds the horn and two more open the doors from the outside. Two derringers are also employed replacing the emergency brake release and the other works the directional lights. In all, Nudie has used 14 guns in Roy's western car. Externally, the six-foot wide Texas longhorns on the front end of the vehicle leave an imposing first impression, while the rear of the car has a full Continental trunk treatment. Natural-stocked rifles are mounted on the rear of the car, one on each fender and one mounted on the trunk lid. The six-foot wide Texas longhorns on the front end of the vehicle leave an imposing first impression, while the trunk of the car is emblazoned with the name ROY ROGERS.
For an extra front-seat rider, Nudie has placed a fabulous silver saddle between the bucket seats, decorated with rhinestones and 150 silver dollars.
Nudie gave this car to Roy in the 1960s as a token of their friendship wanting Roy to know "how much he loved and respected him." Roy and Dale rode in their Nudiemobile in several parades over the years before it was returned to its permanent home at the museum.