Bob Nolan 1946-1949

BOB NOLAN: EARLY LIFE AND CAREER (1946-1949)

THE CLASSIC SONS OF THE PIONEERS REUNITED AFTER THE WAR

Lloyd returned in early January of 1946 and Pat returned shortly afterward. Ken Carson remained for awhile longer but it was necessary for Shug to leave the group. With the return of Lloyd and Pat, the group became the Classic Sons of the Pioneers again.

On the Republic lot again, back in working gear.

Between 1943 and 1945, due to wartime restrictions, the Pioneers made no recordings. In 1945, they signed with RCA Victor and recorded several songs into early 1946 with Bob, Tim, Ken Carson, the Farr Brothers and Shug Fisher.

RCA luncheon, Philadelphia PA, September 1946

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

RCA luncheon, Philadelphia PA, September 1946

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

RCA luncheon, Philadelphia PA, September 1946

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

RCA luncheon, Philadelphia PA, September 1946
(The Calin Coburn Collections ©2004)

Rodeo Fans of America Banquet and Party, September 14, 1946

Velma & Tim Spencer, Martha Retsch, Emma Hackett, Hugh Farr, Pat Brady, Karl Farr, Bob Nolan, Lloyd Perryman and Sons of the Pioneers secretary, Terry Sevigny (Roy Rogers on the dais)

(The Martha Retsch Collection)

Phila. Penn. Rodeo, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, September 1946
Lloyd Perryman, Hugh Farr, Bob Nolan and Pat Brady

Chicago Rodeo October 10-27, 1946
Back row: Jack Spaulding (Bareback Bronc Riding Champ), Col. Jim Eskew (Arena Director), Jess Like (Steer Wrestling Champ), Roy Rogers (Rodeo Producer), Wayne Loukes (Saddle Bronc Riding Champ), Arthur Wirtz (Exec. VP Chicago Stadium), Jeff Goodspeed (Calf Roping Champ), Tuffy Williams (Bull Riding Champ)
Front: Pat Brady, Hugh Farr, Lloyd Perryman, Madonna Eskew, Bob Nolan, Tim Spencer, Mickey Clements. (Karl had to catch a plane.)

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

The Nelson Eddy Show Sunday, June 2, 1946

(Martha Retsch Collection)

Tim Spencer, Hugh Farr, Bob Nolan, Roy Rogers, Lloyd Perryman and Karl Farr at the Las Vegas, NV, locale for "Heldorado", 1946

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

After the war, the Sons of the Pioneers were in even greater demand and, for the first time, hired a booking agent. Up until now, Tim had been able to handle their affairs but now they were getting so many requests for appearances that they had to turn many down. They toured the United States, appearing in almost every state at fairs, rodeos, nightclubs and one-night stands in large and small towns.

Roy Rogers started a Saturday night weekly radio series on NBC, similar in content to the first in 1944. The sponsor was Miles Laboratories. Dale Evans, Gabby Hayes, Bob Nolan and the Sons of the Pioneers, Pat Buttram, Country Washburne and his Orchestra were featured on the programs. This show was also canceled at the end of the season.

The Sons of the Pioneers (and other artists) appeared on a series of programs sponsored by the government to inform returning veterans of their rights under the GI Bill - "Here's to Veterans". The group did not appear; one of them would talk about GI rights and then play one of their recordings. These programs continued into, possibly, 1952.

Often there were a lot of people around the house and P-Nuts would cook for everybody. Bob would sit there and think and, apparently, if he thought about something he wanted to work on, he'd take a chair, go out into the yard and sit in the corner, facing the corner of the yard. It was a silent admonition, "Don't disturb me right now." He'd do that when the house was full of people! (Roberta Nolan Mileusnich)

1949 Christmas Card

1949 Christmas Card (close)

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

1950 Christmas Card

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

Bob's business card

(Courtesy of Fred Sopher)

(Courtesy of Buddy Bryant)

A magazine ad advertising Fruit of the Loom

(Courtesy of Fred Sopher)

Bob throwing up clay pigeons for the sharp shooting part of Roy's show at a rodeo. Roy rarely missed.

(Courtesy of Fred Sopher)

In 1947, on location for the shooting of a Republic film (Roll On Texas Moon) the script called for Roy to fall into the Kern River. This scene would be handled by a stunt man but the river was cold and fast and the stunt man decided he needed double pay for the stunt. As the stunt man was putting his case before the director, Bob Nolan came floating down the river on his back with his clothes folded on his chest. He'd been upstream fishing with Lloyd Perryman and chose the quickest way to return to camp. The stunt man lost his case and didn't forget it, retelling the story to Dick Goodman many years later.

Late in 1946 and early in 1947, a series of transcriptions were recorded in conjunction with Teleways Radio Productions Inc of Hollywood, California, and syndicated across the country. The series ran five days a week for about one year - approximately 260 programs. Bob was the host and the others entered into the amusing and good-natured conversation typical of all their programs. Both Lloyd and Ken Carson were part of the recording group until Ken left the Pioneers in late 1947 - two first class tenors. The whistled theme throughout the ad part of the show was "Stardust Trail".

COMIC BOOKS
Although there were dozens of editions of Roy Rogers comic books while the Sons of the Pioneers were appearing with him in the Republic movies, only one issue rated their photograph - The back cover is a scene from Eyes of Texas, 1948

Front of April 1949 Volume 1 No. 17 Roy Rogers Dell comic.

The back cover is a scene from Eyes of Texas 1948
The Calin Coburn Collections ©2004)

On tour in Cheyenne Wyoming for their 1947 Frontier Days celebration, posing with three fans.

(Courtesy of Judith Kruse)

Back: Lloyd Perryman, Bob Nolan, Pat Brady and Tim Spencer

Front: The Rosalie Allen Show, June 1947, New York City

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

The Hoagy Carmichael Show was broadcast by KNX (Hollywood) by CBS from October 26, 1946 until June 26, 1948. Luden Cough Drops sponsored the 15-minute program until June 1947. Two clippings from unidentified newspapers print the same image (reversed in one) of Bob Nolan and Hoagy Carmichael singing a duet.

Bob Nolan with Hoagy Carmichael.

The caption under the clipping reads:

"Bob Nolan, encouraged by composers like Hoagy Carmichael, decided to devote his time to writing songs himself."

Courtesy of Josie Shapira

c. 1947

The caption under the clipping reads:

"Hoagy Carmichael and Bob Nolan warbled duet when H. hosted Rep's Dale Evans and Sons of Pioneers on his CBS Sunday show."

Bob Nolan with Hoagy Carmichael.

Courtesy of Terry Sevigny

c. 1947

Hawaii

On January 7, 1948, Bob and P-Nuts embarked on that long-awaited cruise to Hawaii, arriving in Honolulu on January 12, 1948. Intending to remain for only a few weeks, they found the people so friendly and hospitable that they stayed for two months. One after another, people they met would ask them to spend a few days with them. From this visit came Bob's South Seas love songs.

Bob and P-Nuts with her parents.

In recalling this voyage, Bob had the date wrong (they left a year before he retired) but he certainly remembered Hawaii:

            As soon as I retired, we started planning the trip. I’d always wanted to go to Hawaii and I don’t like to fly so we took the boat. It started out to be just a two-week vacation. You have to remember I’d just retired and my name and my face was still pretty prominent with the general public. Well, on this boat so many people recognized me who were Island residents that, by the time we got into port, I had several invitations to come and stay a few days at different people’s homes. I didn’t want to offend anyone by turning them down so I accepted everybody’s invitation.
            By the time we headed home, those two weeks had stretched into a couple of months.   We had a wonderful time and I made it a point to not over-stay our welcome at any one place. We’d stay at one house and visit for three or four days and then move on to the next until I’d satisfied all the invitations.
            One home we stayed at even had a nice little guest house out beside a pool and I’d spend hours relaxing by that pool. It was also during this trip that I was inspired to write those Hawaiian songs.

That was the one and only cruise he could ever afford to take. If he had been able to retain the rights to Tumbling Tumbleweeds, he could have traveled all the rest of his life but he and P-Nuts were forced to live simply on the royalties from the other songs.

In the Spring of 1949, the Sons of the Pioneers toured the Southwest from the end of February through the beginning of April with shows in Southern California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. They were accompanied on this tour by Carolina Cotton and The Oklahoma Sweethearts. Ken Curtis and Shug Fisher were with them this time. Pat Brady was now acting on the Roy Rogers television show.

The Sons of the Pioneers, Carolina Cotton and The Oklahoma Sweethearts, March 14, 1949, at Sweetwater, Texas.

Terry Sevigny and Bob Nolan at the Cowboy Park, Newhall, CA, 1948

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

Bob with unidentified boy in a Texas Scottish Hospital bed. The Sons of the Pioneers made countless appearances at children's hospitals.

For Bob, one disappointment followed another and disgruntlement became disillusionment. Bob's roles in the Roy Rogers movies were progressively smaller. Comparatively few of his songs were used although he was still writing full time. More and more he would appear at the Republic lot late, with his lines unlearned. Night Time in Nevada marked the end of the Sons of the Pioneers' Republic film career.

On May 7, 1948, Herbert Yates wrote to Tim Spencer that "because of the foreign market conditions and the shrinkage of domestic box office receipts, the Studio Executive Committee decided to discontinue the services of the Sons of the Pioneers in line with the general economy that we are compelled to pursue in order to stay in business...."

About the same time, Bob had a personal disagreement with Herbert Y. Yates that culminated in the owner of Republic Studios banning Bob from the lot. Bob replied that he would never enter the grounds again and he never did. Many years later, when he still refused to tour the old Republic grounds for "old time's sake", he was asked why he wouldn't. Yates was dead and the area was under new ownership. But to Bob, it was simply a matter of principle and he would not consider it.

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

Yates hired Foy Willing and the Riders of the Purple Sage for the next film (The Far Frontier) although the promotions were already in place, complete with photo of the Pioneers. And so the Sons of the Pioneers went on the road again for a year of personal appearances across America.

The first annual "Hoss Opera" took place on November 28, 1948 at Olympic Auditorium, 18th & Grand, L. A. and the guest list of singers and actors was long. The Sons of the Pioneers took their place alongside of William "Hopalong Cassidy" Boyd, Tex Williams, Hoot Gibson, Allan "Rocky" Lane, Charles Starrett, Roy Rogers, Duncan Renaldo, Andy Parker & the Plainsmen, Cindy Walker, etc. Admission price was $1.00 plus tax, Children 50¢ for a 2PM matinee and evening show at 8PM.

"In honor and in memory of such great western heroes as Art Accord, Harry Carey, Dustin Farnum, William S. Hart, Buck Jones, Tom Mix, Will Rogers, Fred Thompson and others, a cavalcade of stars have banded together to promote a great western show for the purpose of raising funds for the construction of a western museum to be known as the WESTERN HALL OF FAME dedicated to the preservation of the Old West and the private collections of the men who have and will in the future contribute to its history. This museum will be dedicated to the people of the West and will house and display personal properties of the cowboys - past, present, and future - their historical documents, trophies, souvenirs, songs, records and films of the West." (from Tim Spencer, Chairman, to Gordon Browning, Station KRKD, on November 16, 1948, under the letterhead "Western Hall of Fame First Annual Hoss Opera", courtesy of Fred Goodwin.)

Tim Spencer was Chairman, Bill Elliott was Secretary-Treasurer and Russ Hayden Director of Events. The Committee was comprised of (alphabetically): Spade Cooley, Dale Evans, Monte Hale, Red Harper, Susie Hamblen, Bob Nolan, Doye O'Dell, Pat Starling, Glenn Strange, Max Terhune, Jimmy Wakely, Cindy Walker and Tex Williams. On the Advisory Board were: Gene Autry, Bill Boyd, Andy Devine, Hoot Gibson, Stuart Hamblen, Roy Rogers and Charles Starrett. Publicity Director was Don Hix.

First Annual Hoss Opera, 1948.

Left to right back: Tex Terry (heavy), Pat Starling (actress), William "Hopalong Cassidy" Boyd and Bob Nolan.

Front: Roy Rogers, Ginny Jackson and Spade Cooley.

Bob, Cindy Walker, Max Terhune and William Boyd

A few of the 1948 Hoss Opera performers, courtesy of Tom Owen

Back: Tim Spencer, Tex Terry, Monte Hale, Jan Starling, Hoot Gibson, Russell Hayden, Bob Nolan, (? looks like Pat Brady), Glenn Strange.

Front: Ginny Jackson, Max Terhune, Jimmy Wakely, Cindy Walker, Roy Rogers, William Boyd and Spade Cooley.

The pressure of being the leader of the Sons of the Pioneers was now weighing heavily on Bob. He fronted, or was spokesman for the group in all their appearances and eventually he needed a bracer just to go on stage. Once there, he was fine but he was increasingly reluctant to face the crowds. He began drinking heavily and would occasionally disappear for a day or two. The Sons of the Pioneers were in much demand with a huge audience familiar with them from radio, movies, transcriptions, and recordings.

At the same time, Bob was having trouble keeping the Sons of the Pioneers current with the demands of the public. Some members of the group refused to make the necessary changes to keep up with the times.

The last tour on their 15th anniversary.

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

The 1948 de Soto limo seated seven passengers and cost $2,631.00 brand new. (John Fullerton)

From the NBC Radio 15th Anniversary kit.

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

15th Anniversary Tour, April 1949

Back: Karl Farr, Tim Spencer, Lou Mitnick (program sales), Bob Nolan

Front: Lloyd Perryman, Hugh Farr and Pat Brady

Sons of the Pioneers 15th Anniversary Tour

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

Sons of the Pioneers, just before Bob Nolan retired, with the Canadian trio, The Rhythm Pals

Back: Hugh Farr, Bill Rea (CKNW owner), Bob Nolan, Jack Jensen, Lloyd Perryman and Karl Farr

Front: Marc Wald, Tim Spencer, Pat Brady and Mike Ferbey

(Photo courtesy of Anne & Peter Greb)

Note: In 1948 The Rhythm Pals (Mike, Mark and Jack) were invited to guest on the Spade Cooley Show in the Santa Monica Ballroom in California, making them the first Canadian singing group to appear on U.S. television.

Sons of the Pioneers 15th Anniversary Tour

Martin Wagner (Advanceman), Lloyd Perryman, Bob Nolan, Karl Farr, Manager Gee, Pat Brady

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

Bob and Lloyd with manager Gee (see above) and Velma Spencer.

Portland, OR, 1949

Courtesy of Josie Shapira.

Portland, OR, 1949

Photo by Josie Shapira.

San Jose Civic Auditorium, 1948

(Jan Scott Collection)

Thanks to Sean Michael Lisle for identifying the location for us.

After that long and tiring year of touring, his agent absconded with most of Bob's earnings - over $100,000 - and left for the new country of Israel. He was never heard of again.

The last year I was with the boys, I was only home nine days. Plus the fact that when come the time for income tax, my agent said, ‘We’re going to have to find a way for you to borrow some money.’ Now I’d just had a whale of a year. $179,000! And I had to pay income taxes on it and I didn’t have the money to do it. That dirty son was stealing me blind.

Being naïve and trusting is the reason the shysters are drawn to us, see? We are so darn trusting and they know it. So I’ll tell you it was that old Omar Khayyam deal that I used to accuse the agents of. They’d say, ‘These guys are dumb. They don’t need the money. All they need is enough money to buy a bottle of whiskey a day and enough to buy a roof for the girl they’re shacking up with.’ That’s how most of us got our start, our first heartbreak, to find out that we couldn’t trust those we were supposed to trust.

In a garage fire during the late summer of 1948, Bob lost all his notes and the rough copies of his songs and poems that he had kept in his garage in Studio City.

The final straw was Tim Spencer's retirement in early 1949. Utterly discouraged, Bob followed him shortly after.

The load was too damn much for me to carry. I was fronting the group, not organizing but fronting, see, which is one hell of a job trying to keep them on their toes. Most of our work at that time was personal appearances and we were doing an awful lot of traveling and that’s a hard job. I was just getting my one-sixth and it was just too much for me. I was carrying the whole damn load.

Once Tim quit, for God’s sake.... I mean, he was the brains behind the whole damn thing, so I just lost interest. I just lost all heart in the whole thing when he left and he left for the same reason I did.

There was just too many people dragging their feet, see, and not giving their utmost. We’d been used to people just contributing everything they could to the improvement of the act. It was a wonderful group to work with when it was young, when we were all working on it real hard. But in later years, as I say, a few of them began to drag their feet and the people who were working hard at it like Tim and I, we got disgusted with it and more or less said, "If that’s the way you want it, you have it. Do it by yourselves. I don’t want no part of it." And I know Tim didn’t, either. Some wouldn’t attend rehearsals for anything. Just thought they knew it all and the result was, well, they thought they were too good to attend rehearsals and ended up doing the same thing ten years after they’d done it, see? This was a little bit tough to take because we was constantly getting new material and we couldn’t get them to attend rehearsals. They were good musicians, of course. They were the very best at that time and people loved them but they just didn’t want to go ahead. They just wanted to sit on their butts and ride along, see?

Well, that didn’t suit Tim at all so he quit and I quit shortly after. I stayed with them with the recordings and everything and presented my new material to them and they liked it and recorded it.

Karl E. Farr Collection

Ken Curtis replaced Tim Spencer in the trio. Pat Brady had joined Roy Rogers for the TV series.

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

An unwell Bob Nolan, escorted at Tim's request by secretary Terry Sevigny to the car.

San Fernando Valley, 1950

(Terry Sevigny Collection)

And so Bob Nolan retired from the group he had helped to form and to which he had given his all for so many years. Lloyd "Tommy" Doss was hired to replace him in the trio and the unusual timbre of Tommy's voice, so essential to the classic Sons of the Pioneers sound, made the vocal transition seamless. Even long-time fans couldn't tell the difference from sound alone. When the Sons of the Pioneers appeared on television or in person, countless fans were astonished to see Tommy Doss and they realized with a shock that Bob Nolan had left the group. The leadership was left in Lloyd Perryman's capable hands.

The rest of Bob's life, from 1950 - 1980, is found in The Final Years.

Bob Nolan was not only the greatest songwriter that ever lived, but a great poet. Bob was a deep-thinking kind of man. When you had Bob for a friend, you had a good one. (Rex Allen)

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