The Steel Guitar Forum

Sheb Wooley,a/k/a/ "Pete Nolan" of "Rawhide" fame,& the 50's # 1 hit,"Purple People Eater",passed away,at his home in Gallatin,Tn.,this morning. He was 82. I spoke w/ his wife,Linda,& she said that he went very peacefully. Sheb was a dear friend of mine,as,I worked w/ him back in the early 80's,on the road. He was a wonderful gentleman to know,& to work for. I was fortunate enough to visit w/ him,at his house,about 2 weeks ago. He was in very good spirits. He will be sadly missed.
P.S.
Of course,let us,also,not forget Sheb's "alter ego", the wild & crazy,"Ben Colder".("Fifteen Beers Ago")
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<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Smiley Roberts on 16 September 2003 at 12:35 PM.]</p></FONT><FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Smiley Roberts on 16 September 2003 at 01:14 PM.]</p></FONT>

Hard to imagine he and Roger Miller growing up together. Would have liked to been around for that...

From Roger's bio:

"Roger was a dreamer and his heart was never in pickin' cotton. He said, "We used to raise cotton ankle high." Most days his daddy would catch him daydreaming. "It's really a good thing that he made it in the music business 'cause he would have starved to death as a farmer," says entertainer Sheb Wooley, an Erick native who married Roger's cousin, Melva Laure Miller.

Fifteen years older than Roger, Wooley's career would lead him to Hollywood and the movies. One of Wooley's biggest hits was "The Purple People Eater." In those days, Wooley and little Roger would ride out "fixin fence, chasing steers and talking about stardom," Wooley recalls. The two would listen to the Grand Ole Opry on Saturday nights and the Light Crust Doughboys on Fort Worth radio by day. Miller came to idolize Bob Wills and Hank Williams, but it was Wooley who taught Roger his first chords on guitar, bought him his first fiddle, and who represented the very real world of show business that Roger wanted so much for himself."
<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by John Macy on 16 September 2003 at 01:05 PM.]</p></FONT>

I really liked that guy and his sense of humor.
And as an actor he rubbed elbows with some big names, appearing in High Noon, The Outlaw Josey Wales, Silverado, Giant, The War Wagon, Hoosiers and many other films.

David, what parts did Sheb play in some of those movies? I've seen most of them.

Sheb Wooley—of "High Noon," "Purple People Eater" Fame—Dead at 82

Edward Morris

Singer, songwriter and actor Sheb Wooley—who also recorded a series of parody hits as Ben Colder—died Tuesday (Sept. 16) at Skyline Medical Center in Nashville. He was 82. Wooley had suffered from leukemia for the past five years, his widow, Linda Dotson, told CMT.com. But she said he had been strong enough to go with her to Johnny Cash’s wake on Sunday (Sept. 14). While there, she continued, he seemed to falter: "It was like God laid His hand on his shoulder and said, ‘You’ll be the third [country music figure] to go,’" Dotson observed. (TV actor John Ritter, son of Country Music Hall of Fame member Tex Ritter, died the day before Cash.)

Shelby F. Wooley was born April 10, 1921, near Erick, Oklahoma. While a teenager, he worked as a rodeo rider and formed his own band. In the mid-1940s, he performed on radio stations WLAC and WSM in Nashville and subsequently had his own show on the Calumet Radio Network. He signed to Bullet Records in 1946, then moved on to MGM Records two years later, where he remained until 1973. Wooley was a major musical influence on Roger Miller, who was related to him by marriage. Miller was only 11 when Wooley gave him his first fiddle.

Wooley began acting in movies in 1950, appearing first in Rocky Mountain with Errol Flynn. In 1952, he played killer Ben Miller in the Gary Cooper-Grace Kelly classic western, High Noon. Altogether, he acted in more than 60 films, among them Giant (1956) and Hoosiers (1986). Prominent in television acting as well, he played the role of Pete Nolan in the popular Rawhide series from 1959 to 1966.

As a recording artist, Wooley had his first success on the pop charts. His "Are You Satisfied?" barely made a dent in 1955, reaching only the No. 95 spot. But three years later, he unleashed a monster with the novelty tune, "The Purple People Eater." It went No. 1 on the pop listings and stayed there for six weeks. "That’s My Pa," another novelty effort in 1962, was his first country hit. It also reached No. 1.

As "Ben Colder," Wooley scored six country and five pop hits with such parodies as "Don’t Go Near The Eskimos" (a takeoff on "Don’t Go Near The Indians"), "Still No. 2," "Almost Persuaded No. 2," "Detroit City No. 2" and "Harper Valley P.T.A. (Later That Same Day)." His last charted country song came in 1971 with "Fifteen Beers Ago," a sendup of Conway Twitty’s "Fifteen Years Ago." Fittingly enough, Wooley wrote the theme song for the Hee Haw series. In 1968, the Country Music Association honored Wooley/Colder with its comedian of the year award.

On Oct. 9, 2002, then Tennessee senator Fred Thompson saluted Wooley as an "American treasure" by reading a catalog of his achievements into the Congressional Record. "He never strayed far from his roots," Thompson said, "and always knew how to rope in an audience."

Wooley’s funeral will be held Monday (Sept. 22) "at high noon," Dotson said, at First Baptist Church in Hendersonville and will be open to the public. He is survived by his widow; two daughters, Christie Wooley and Shauna Dotson; and two grandchildren.

I apologize for the "typo". I assumed,when speaking to Sheb's wife,that he was at home when he passed. While we spoke,she made no mention of where he was,so that was the reason for my error. Sorry.

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David, in Hoosiers he played Cletus, (I remember him fairly well in that role) in Silverado he was a cavalry sargent, in Josey Wales he was Travis Cobb, in The War Wagon he was Dan Snyder, in Giant he was Gabe Target, and in High Noon he was Ben Miller. I did a search on Sheb that took me to movies.com for this.

I did a show playing guitar for Sheb about six years ago and had a blast. He asked me why the monitors were humming and and I told him it was cause they didn't know the words. I thought he was gonna flip. He couldn't stop talking about it thru the show. He kept looking back and saying, "Don't know the words, Ha."

Funeral will be held on Monday, September 22nd, at 12 Noon at the First Baptist Church in Hendersonville, Tn.

Visitation will be held at the following times:

Visitation-Sunday-Sept. 21, 2003
2-4 PM
6-8 PM

Hendersonville Memory Gardens Funeral Home
353 Johnny Cash Parkway
Hendersonville, Tn.


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©¿© It don't mean a thang,
mm if it ain't got that twang.
www.ntsga.com</pre></font>

Traveling to St. Louis with smiley for the ISGC show,we spoke of Sheb.Smiley just a few days before I arrived had gone over to visit Sheb at his house. He had said how he was in good spirits then. Some years ago when Smiley was with "Quick Change" he called me to let me know he was playing a Fair in our area. I attended the show and Smiley introduced me (and his Mom and Dad)to Sheb and we talked for several minutes. I invited him to our club after the show, however he informed me that they were heading out shortly after.He did say maybe another time. I never thought there would be another time but the following year later almost a year to the date,same fair.Kieth Bradford informed me that Sheb would be out to our club after the show. Sheb came with the whole band and did his show (they played some two hours)and talked with everyone.Thank you Smiley for making it possible for me to meet Sheb.He truly was one of a kind.I emphasize KIND.Thank you for the call last night informing me about Shebs passing.Sheb may have left us for a better place,however continue looking for him on the Classic western movies. Sheb has left us more than memories.

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<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by Joe Casey on 18 September 2003 at 09:02 AM.]</p></FONT>

I played bass with Eddie Fukano on a tour with the HeeHaw show in 1970 thru the Carolinas and Sheb and I ended up being roommates. He taught me to play the Sugarfoot Rag on the guitar. Thanks, Sheb, I still remember most of it. I'll never forget how an old pro made a novice feel like he was as much a part of the show as anyone else.