The Beverly Hill Billies

Out of the most successful radio promotion of 1930 Los Angeles, the Beverly Hill Billies rode down from the terra incognita of orange groves and canyons north of the city, bringing old time music styles from their rural enclave. Listeners embraced their bygone songs of hills and plains, cowboys and the parlor ballads that had been sung around the family piano. They also bought the back-story that these were untrained natural musicians. And Glen Rice smiled. As station manager of KMPC, his plan to present an alternative to the high-brow broadcasts using local professional musicians, their identities hidden behind pseudonyms, was a masterstroke. Their popularity was almost instantaneous.

The core membership of Cyprian Paulette (Ezra Longnecker), Henry Blaeholder (Hank Skillet), Leo Mannes (Zeke Craddock), Tom Murray (Pappy), Aleth Hanson (Lem Giles), Stuart Hamblen (Dave Donner) and Chuck Cook (Chuck) would change over time with comings, goings and personal differences which would split the group for a time. Stuart Hamblen left for his own program, the ”Covered Wagon Jubilee.” Other personnel who flowed through the talented groups included Elton Britt, Curt Barrett, Lloyd Perryman, Ashley Dees, Charlie Quirk and the occasional fill-in of Wesley Tuttle.

As their popularity increased they produced transcriptions and commercial recordings and developed friendly rivalries with other radio acts, most notably the Sons of the Pioneers who would often swap songs and occasionally find inspiration in each other’s compositions. By 1935, Zeke Manners and Elton Britt had left for New York and the remaining members began a short career of film work with the un-credited appearance as the Radio Ranch band in Gene Autry’s “The Phantom Empire.” Proper credit came to them in Gene’s “The Big Show” and in two Tex Ritter films.

The Beverly Hill Billies not only showcased the old songs of the west but were a nexus, providing influences and experience to others while accepting the influences of traditional anonymous cowboy composers and artists along with stars of the range song like Jules Verne Allen, Nathan "Jack" Thorp, Curley Fletcher, Powder River Jack Lee and others, producing a spectrum of performance that was integral to the development of the cowboy image in literature, song and film in the 1930's and 40's. The trail ended for the Beverly Hill Billies at KMPC in 1944. During their 14 year run and many incarnations, they provided inspiration and impetus to others establishing their own music niche and created entertaining radio shows produced by the many talents that passed through their ranks.

Larry Hopper