Who could ever forget the king and queen of Westerns, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans? The dynamic duo had been the signature voices and faces in countless films and TV shows and series back in the day. Not to mention that they also had their very own highly successful series, The Roy Rogers Show, which ran from 1951 until 1957. They just had this undeniable and incredible harmony and chemistry on stage and on-screen.
But that did not come as a surprise as they were totally and actually in love and married off-stage and off-screen. The two first met in 1944 on the set of a movie, and Evans developed to be Rogers’ cowgirl co-star. It was only two years later that their love fully bloomed after Rogers’ third wife Grace died of complications from giving birth. Rogers proposed to Evans during a rodeo at Chicago Stadium, and they married on New Year’s Eve in 1947 at the Flying L Ranch in Davis, Oklahoma, where they had just finished working on a film.
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The two went on to become one of the most popular and successful singers in the music industry, and they also found the same success in their marriage. They were together for 51 years before Rogers died in 1998.
To commemorate their legacy and their love, let’s revisit these three duet performances of theirs that will surely make us nostalgic about so many things. (But for the young country music fans who haven’t had the chance to ‘meet’ them yet, then this is a good opportunity to get to know them!)
Western Favorites Medley on ‘The Muppet Show’
The Muppet Show was a half-hour variety show starring Kermit the Frog and the Muppets in a weekly musical/comedy revue at The Muppet Theatre. And every episode, they bring in a famous celebrity to help them out. And during one of their Western-themed episode in 1979, they invited Roy Rogers and Dale Evans as their special guests.
The duo didn’t just sing a Western song but a medley of it! They did a couple of classic Western tunes, their rendition of “Hazy Mountains” and “Tumbling Tumbleweeds,” which were previously recorded by a popular Western singing group (and also Rogers’ former group), Sons of the Pioneers, and ended the performance with their signature theme song “Happy Trails” written by Evans which is considered to still be one of the Top 100 Western Songs of All Time.
And of course, the Muppets joined in on the fun and danced and swayed along to the tune around a campfire.
“San Antone”
This was probably one of the sweetest duo performances they ever did that showcased not only their chemistry but also the range of their talent. That is, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans performed parts of the fun-filled song titled “San Antone” in Spanish!
The performance was for a TV show, and Rogers and Evans were surrounded by a group of people who were comfortably sitting on straw bales. As they started their song, the people clapped and swayed along with them. And when it was time for Evans’ solo, she stepped forward with Rogers at the back clapping and adoringly looking at her. After that, they sang together again.
The whole time, the duo looked so sweet – keeping eye contact and leaning toward each other so comfortably. It was definitely so enjoyable to watch them that you’d find yourself swaying along to the tune.
The Nestle’s Quik Ad
We’re sure you are familiar with Nesquik, the delicious chocolate milk that we all love to drink as kids after we got home from school. But did you know that back in the day, it was actually called Nestle’s Quik. And two of their product endorsers were Roy Rogers and Dale Evans!
Their ad, which was filmed in black-and-white, was cowboy-themed and shot in a Western-like scenery, complete with the staple campfire. Rogers stood at the start of the ad, strumming and plucking on his guitar, and then Evans asked him to play a song while she whipped them both a cup of Quik. Rogers indulged her with a song, and it was addictive (just like Quik)! And when Evans finished making the cups, she joined in the little ditty song. We definitely miss these catchy tunes for ads, right?
There you have it! We hope you enjoyed watching Roy Rogers and Dale Evans’ duet performances and getting to know them a bit better.
Tags
Dale Evans, Roy Rogers