June 25: Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys star in 1940s’ cowboy movies

Published 3:00 am Thursday, June 25, 2020

Kosse native Bob Wills and his band, the Texas Playboys, performed in a series of movie Westerns in the mid-1940s.

All starred Russell Hayden and Dub Taylor in stories of good guys beating nasty outlaws. One of the films, “The Last Horseman,” was in theaters on this date in 1944.

Wills and his band had hits in the 1940s that popularized Western swing music. 

 In the Spotlight

— 2018: Terrell native Jamie Foxx appears on “Extra.”

— 2017: Terrell native Jamie Foxx appears on the “BET Awards” telecast.

— 2014: Adam Mayfield, who grew up in Texarkana, begins a featured role on the TV series “Mystery Girls.”

— 2011: Terrell native Jamie Foxx’s “Best Night of My Life” (featuring Wiz Khalifa) peaks at No. 12 on Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. 

— 2011: Mitchel Musso, who grew up in Rockwall, is a guest on Disney’s “So Random.”

— 2007: Marshall native George Foreman is a guest on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.”

— 2003: Ellen DeGeneres, who grew up in Atlanta, stars in the HBO special “Ellen DeGeneres: Here and Now.”

— 1996: Jerry Hall, who grew up in Mesquite, has a role in “Savage Hearts.”

— 1993: Honey Grove native Bill Erwin has a role in “Dennis the Menace.”

— 1986: Tyler native Sandy Duncan and Tommy Tune, who attended Lon Morris College in Jacksonville, appear on the TV special “All-Star Salute to Ford’s Theater.”

— 1966: Wood County native Ray Price’s “A Way to Survive” peaks at No. 7 on the Billboard country chart. 

— 1966: As a member of The Temptations, Texarkana native Otis Williams scores a No. 1 hit on the Billboard R&B singles chart with “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg.”

–1977: “Life in the Fast Lane” by the Eagles, featuring Linden native Don Henley, peaks at No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.  

— 1966: “Poor Boy Blues” by Cherokee County native Bob Luman, peaks at No. 39 on the Hot Country Songs chart.

— 1952: “Wish You Were Here,” a musical written, directed, produced and choreographed by Texarkana native Joshua Logan, opens on Broadway. 

— 1952: Honey Grove native Bill Erwin appears in “Holiday for Sinners.”

— 1947: Wills Point native Lee “Lasses” White appears in “The Trouble With Women.”