Public Cowboy No. 1: The Life and Times of Gene Autry Review

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Public Cowboy No. 1: The Life and Times of Gene Autry ReviewGene Autry, my childhood hero and that of millions of others, finally has gotten his due, on the eve of what would have been his 100th birthday.
Autry was as unmistakably American as Will Rogers or Walt Disney, and every bit as remarkable. This book, the first full-length biography of Autry and superbly written by Holly George-Warren, explores every nook and cranny of his long, busy and productive life, telling of things that many of us already knew -- but in much more fascinating detail; exploding a few myths that Autry had encouraged about himself over the years; and adding more than a few revelations about his life that will shock the more naive of his fans.
Gene Autry got the name in Hollywood of being a tightwad -- but that's not the picture we get from this book. Yes, he loved money with the passion of many people who had little or none of it growing up. But once having amassed a fortune in show business, he was for the rest of his life a "soft touch" not only for charities, but for old friends down on their luck, people who had helped him when he really needed it as a young, struggling performer -- and family members such as his ne'er-do-well father and brother.
He spent countless hundreds of hours over the years visiting children's hospitals to chat with, sing to, and encourage the smallest of his fans, many of them with terminal illnesses. He enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Force in World War II when his studio had promised to get him a deferment so he wouldn't have to serve at all. He took flying lessons on his own time so he could qualify to be co-pilot of supply planes going to combat zones, when he could have spent his service time simply entertaining the other troops. Gene Autry was a giver, an extraordinarily generous man, first, last and always.
The portions of the book about Autry's drinking problem and his "steppin' out" with numerous women during his marriage, provide a human element to this great entertainer who wrote his own "Cowboy Code" but sometimes had trouble living up to all of it in his own life. Yes, folks, he was mortal after all, and not perfect. None of us are. If you look at the photo of a smiling Gene Autry on the cover, posed with his famous guitar, you'll note the two dark shadows he throws on the backdrop -- perhaps the author's deliberate choice to symbolize his twin demons of liquor and lust.
Far more important is what Gene Autry achieved, as documented meticulously by George-Warren. His records, movies, radio and TV programs, and personal appearances are discussed in intimate detail. Gene appears to have been an almost tireless human dynamo, on the go from morning to night. The less-admirable things he did were the other end of the equation -- he worked hard, AND played hard.
Aspects of his personality that are not well known are discussed, also. He was a gregarious person, a practical joker and teaser, witty at times, and a gifted mimic who became known in Washington circles before and during World War II for his perfect imitation of Franklin D. Roosevelt. A committed Democrat, he was friends with Lyndon B. Johnson, Sam Rayburn, and others prominent in government -- but never discussed his political activities in public. After all, there were a lot of Autry fans who were Republicans, too!
The only portion of the book which I found somewhat jarring and disquieting was his mother's final letter to him, written while she was slowly dying of pellagra in 1932. In the letter, which is disjointed and hard to understand, she seems to refer to something that Gene has done, or told her he was going to do, that she believes could get him into trouble. Had Gene confessed some dark secrets to her in his final visit home while she still lived? Or had he written them in a letter George-Warren said was mailed to her by Autry soon after he returned to Chicago where he was living then?
Obviously it is far too late to determine the answer, with all parties to the situation dead, and George-Warren wisely does not speculate. She merely lets the letter and other information stand for themselves, without comment, and moves on with her narrative.
Amazingly, personal reminiscences about Gene Autry from people who knew him when he was growing up are included in the book. In the acknowledgements in the back, George-Warren notes that there were people in Gene's childhood home of Tioga, Texas, and the surrounding area, who some years ago suspected that someday a biography of him would be written, and who were prudent enough to record and preserve the recollections of a number of elderly residents who had known Gene in his young days. Even some of the people who arranged the interviews were deceased by the time George-Warren began her research for the book. But their descendants were glad to share these interviews with George-Warren to help her add color and flavor to "Public Cowboy No. 1." Every biographer should be that lucky!
Holly George-Warren has done an exemplary job of gathering hundreds of strands of information, then weaving them together into a beautiful tapestry about one of the most unique Americans of the 20th Century. She has written a five-star biography of "America's Favorite Cowboy," Gene Autry. As a lifelong Autry fan, I heartily recommend the book.

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