Biography
Ken Maynard earned recognition as America's pioneering singing cowboy through more than three hundred screen appearances, yet his comparatively modest recorded output included several Columbia releases. Although born in the small Indiana community of Vevay, he maintained a personal account of a Texas origin. Early success came as a rodeo titleholder and trick rider with Buffalo Bill's outfit and the Ringling Brothers Wild West productions. Hollywood claimed his attention beginning in 1923, where rapid popularity led to over twenty pictures before the decade closed. In 1929 he introduced the singing-cowboy archetype on The Wagon Master, then visited Columbia's Los Angeles facility the following year to cut eight tracks drawn partly from his recent film work. No further studio sessions occurred, but Maynard retained industry favor by capturing the top-grossing Western performer award for both 1936 and 1937, the poll's initial years. He instructed John Wayne in stunt techniques and arranged Gene Autry's screen introduction via the 1934 feature In Old Santa Fe. Audience interest nevertheless waned by the close of the 1930s; a handful of additional pictures emerged in the mid-1940s before Maynard stepped away from production. Folklorist Harry Smith later selected Maynard's "The Lone Star Trail" for the 1952 collection Anthology of American Folk Music.