Roy Rogers Jr. took a near-capacity crowd at the Bowlus Fine Arts Center Sunday afternoon on a nostalgic and guitar-twanged journey.
Many who attended are contemporaries of Rogers, 64, and were happy to travel on the time warp. They also came from a broad area of 20 communities, including as far away as Overland Park.
Rogers and his band, The High Riders, sang cowboy standards made popular on the silver screen from the 1930s to 1950s. He filled in around the edges with anecdotes from growing up the son of famous parents.
“I’m often asked if I mind being on stage in Dad’s shadow,” Rogers said during one of several conversations with the audience. “Not at all. My job is to lengthen Dad’s shadow.”
Rogers said his youth was not much different from that of others kids in the 1940s and 1950s.
A “benefit” of his dad’s fame was that Quaker Oats, a sponsor, supplied the household with free oatmeal. The downside for the kids, was that it was a daily fare, and made several hours before they arose.
“Dad got up a 4 a.m. to go to the studio,” he said, which meant by the time the kids got to the oatmeal at 7 a.m. it had congealed so whole portions came out with the spoon in the shape of the bowl.
Roy Jr. quickly learned that his father was idolized by others and, he noted, “truly was the King of the Cowboys. From the 1940s into the 1950s, he got up to 640,000 pieces of fan mail a month.”
In a departure from most touring professionals, Rogers and his band had no objections to photos being taken while they performed. Members of the audience seized the opportunity. Also, Rogers encouraged those attending to visit with him and band members during the intermission and after the show.
“We’ll stay as long as you want,” he said. Staying true to his word, he and and his son, Dusty, were happy to oblige to have their pictures taken with many from the audience.
Rogers concluded with the song made famous by Roy Sr., “Happy Trails.”
“ … until we meet again.”
Roy Jr. follows a happy trail
