Singer, actor. Born Orvon Gene Autry, on September 29, 1907, in Tioga, Texas. Best known as the "Singing Cowboy," Autry got his start in 1926 while singing and playing his guitar to pass the time at his telegraph operator's job. One night, a customer overheard him and told Rogers that he had enough talent to get a job on the radio. The meddling customer turned out to be Will Rogers, and Autry soon quit his job to find work in the music business.

Autry was a popular radio figure in the early 1930s and performed regularly at the W.L.S. National Barn Dance in Chicago, the oldest of the radio barn dances. In 1935, he moved to California permanently to break into the film business. Later that year, Autry signed with Republic Pictures and made his major film debut with The Phantom Empire. Autry, who also starred in Tumbling Tumbleweeds (1935), the first Western plotted around the main character's ability to sing, is credited with creating the musical Western.

When Roy Rogers also joined Republic Pictures, in 1938, the two actors became the country's best-loved cowboy team. Autry's other films included The Singing Cowboy (1937), Rhythm of the Saddle (1938), Sioux City Sue (1942), and The Strawberry Roan (1948). In 1950, Autry produced his own television series, The Gene Autry Show, which enjoyed six successful seasons on the air. By the early 1960s, Autry had retired from acting and devoted time to his numerous real estate and media ventures.

The winner of two Grammy Hall of Fame Awards, in 1985 and 1997, Autry is the only entertainer who boasted five stars on Hollywood's Walk of Fame for his work in motion pictures, radio, music recording, television, and live theater. Autry died on September 2, 1998; he was 91 years old.

1934 Mystery Mountain 1934 In Old Santa Fe 1935 Sagebruch Troubador 1935 The Singing Vagabond 1935 Tumbling Tumbleweeds 1935 Melody Trail 1935 The Phantom Empire 1936 The Old Corral 1936 Comin' Round the Mountain 1936 Ride, Ranger, Ride 1936 The Big Show 1936 Guns and Guitars 1936 Oh, Susanna! 1936 Red River Valley 1936 Singing Cowboy 1937 Springtime in the Rockies 1937 Yodelin' Kid From Pine Ridge 1937 Rootin' Tootin' Rhythm 1937 Manhattan Merry-Go-Round 1937 Public Cowboy No. 1 1937 Round-Up Time in Texas 1937 Boots and Saddles 1937 Git Along, Little Dogies 1938 Prairie Moon 1938 Man from Music Mountain 1938 Gold Mine in the Sky 1938 The Old Barn Dance 1938 Western Jamboree 1938 Rhythm of the Saddle 1939 In Old Monterey 1939 Rovin' Tumbleweeds 1939 Home on the Prairie 1939 Mexicali Rose 1939 Blue Montana Skies 1939 South of the Border 1939 Mountain Rhythm 1939 Colorado Sunset 1940 Gaucho Serenade 1940 Carolina Moon 1940 Ride, Tenderfoot, Ride 1940 Men with Steel Faces 1940 Rancho Grande 1940 Shooting High 1940 Melody Ranch 1940 Rodeo Dough 1941 Back in the Saddle 1941 The Singing Hill 1941 Down Mexico Way 1941 Sunset in Wyoming 1941 Under Fiesta Stars 1941 Ridin' on a Rainbow 1941 Sierra Sue 1942 Cowboy Serenade 1942 Bells of Capistrano 1942 Heart of the Rio Grande 1942 Stardust on the Sage 1942 Call of the Canyon 1942 Home in Wyomin' 1946 Sioux City Sue 1947 The Last Round Up 1947 Twilight on the Rio Grande 1947 Robin Hood of Texas 1947 Trail to San Antone 1947 Saddle Pals 1948 The Strawberry Roan 1948 Loaded Pistols 1949 Riders of the Whistling Pines 1949 Rim of the Canyon 1949 The Big Sombrero 1949 The Cowboy and the Indians 1949 Riders In the Sky 1949 Sons of New Mexico 1950 Indian Territory 1950 Mule Train 1950 Beyond the Purple Hills 1950 The Gene Autry Show (TV series) 1950 The Blazing Sun 1950 Cow Town 1951 Texans Never Cry 1951 The Hills of Utah 1951 Gene Autry and the Mounties 1951 Whirl Wind 1951 Valley of Fire 1951 Silver Canyon 1952 Apache Country 1952 Blue Canadian Rockies 1952 Night Stage to Galveston 1952 The Old West 1952 Barbed-Wire 1952 Wagon Team 1953 Saginaw Trail 1953 Winning of the West 1953 Last of the Pony Riders 1953 Goldtown Ghost Riders 1953 On Top of Old Smoky 1953 Pack Train 1956 Hollywood Bronc Busters 1959 Alias Jesse James 1968 Silent Treatment