From: "Dik de Heer" Date: Tue Dec 31, 2002 7:21 am Subject: Born To Be With You : Rex Allen REX ALLEN Born Rex Alvie Allen, 31 December 1920, Willcox, Arizona Died 17 December 1999, Tucson, Arizona Singer / guitarist /actor. The last of the Singing Cowboys, Rex Allen started his showbiz career in radio, first in New Jersey (1944), then in Chicago, hosting The National Barn Dance (1945-49). His singing career took off with the hit "Afraid" (# 14 country in 1949) for Mercury Records. Red Foley was not interested when he was asked to replace the popular singing cowboy, Roy Rogers, at Republic Studios, but he recommended the good looking, well-spoken Allen instead. Republic named him The Arizona Cowboy, which was the title of the first of his 19 film starring roles between 1950 and 1954. During this time, he also had pop hits with covers of two Guy Mitchell hits, "The Roving Kind" (# 20 in 1951) and "Sparrow In The Treetop" (# 28, 1951), followed by a # 8 hit on Decca with "Crying In The Chapel", one of the five hit versions of that song in 1953. Allen transferred to television in 1954 with 39 episodes of his own TV series, "Frontier Doctor". When he returned to the US charts in 1962, it was with a song he disliked : "Don't Go Near The Indians" (# 17 pop, # 4 country). His own suggestion, a new Willie Nelson song, "Night Life", was vetoed by Mercury. Allen's clear diction enabled him to narrate documentaries for Walt Disney during the 60s and 70s. In 1968 he was elected to the Cowboy Hall of Fame. Each of Allen's three sons entered the entertainment business, and his eldest, Rex Jr., made a significant mark on the country charts, scoring 24 Top 40 hits between 1974 and 1984. A museum in his hometown Willcox was dedicated to Rex Allen, and the Governor of Arizona honoured him. Allen occasionally appeared at Western film fair, where he remained as popular as ever. He died three years ago, after his caretaker accidentally ran him over with a car. Autobiography: My Life, Sunrise To Sunset. As Told To Paula Simpson Witt and Snuff Garrett. Scottsdale, AZ : RexGarRus Press, 1989. (Out of print.) CD's: The Hawaiian Cowboy (Bear Family BDP 15192). Picture disc, deleted. Voice Of The West (Bear Family BCD 15284). 1972 recordings for Jack Clement's JMI label. Lonesome Letter Blues (Collectables)