General Topics

Les Gilliam Received First "Lifetime Achievement Award"
     Les Gilliam, Oklahoma's Balladeer and Gene Autry's "home-town boy," was honored at the 2008 Film & Music Festival with the first Gene Autry Oklahoma Film & Music Festival "Lifetime Achievement Award" in tribute to his many years of keeping cowboy and country music alive and thriving across Oklahoma and the entire United States. It's nicknamed the "Genie" Award and was presented just before Les' performance on Saturday evening, September 27th. 
     Les has performed at every one of the Gene Autry Film & Music Festivals since its inception in 1991, and has many special stories to tell related to his experiences growing up in and around the Gene Autry area.  His music has caught the attention of folks in lots of high places, including the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, the Governor of Oklahoma, the Kennedy Center, Silver Dollar City, Prairieville Farm Days and the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame, to name just a few.
     The photo above shows Mary Schutz presenting the Lifetime Achievement Award to Les, with Les' wife Martha sharing the moment.

Jeanne Cahill Named WMA Instrumentalist of the Year
     Those of you who know Jeanne Cahill of Call of the West know that she plays several instruments...including guitar, mandolin, concertina, steel guitar, bass, harmonica, Dobro....and that she plays them well.  She was honored for her wide-ranging talent when she received the Western Music Association's Instrumentalist of the Year Award in November at the group's annual convention in Albuquerque.  We congratulate her for this honor and know that it's well-deserved!

 

Gene Autry Oklahoma MuseumAmbassadors               
    Our Ambassador Program is an effort to have dedicated fans in communities across the country share information about the Gene Autry Oklahoma Museum and its events with those in and around their communities.  Here's a bit about some folks who are already working hard to further the cause of the Museum.

Ambassadors Active in Wichita Falls, Texas
     Super volunteers Ed & Elizabeth Henderson of Wichita Falls are putting together a group of folks who are interested in cowboy heritage, films, lifestyle, etc.  They'll be meeting for lunch from time to time to talk about what they love best....cowboys and the Gene Autry Oklahoma Museum and its events.  "Cowboy Ed" has been invited to talk about the Western lifestyle by civic groups, senior centers and radio stations. 
     If you think that this type of activity would be of interest in your community, please give us a holler and we'll send you information and support materials and help you get started.

Jerry Baumann & the DFW Lunch Gang
      The Dallas-Fort Worth Gene Autry Fans Group has been meeting for lunch four-to-five times yearly for the past six years.  Attendance at the luncheons varies from 25 to 45 folks.  Jerry Baumann of Lucas, Texas, organized the group and takes care of alerting everyone to the dates of the lunch-time get-togethers and special activities. (Jerry is shown here with some of the members of the Class Act Dance Troupe, regular entertainers at the Film & Music Festival.)
      "It's such a pleasant surprise to me that there are so many people out there who are still interested in the B-movie cowboys," said Jerry.  "The enthusiasm is definitely there! These get-togethers, whether they be luncheons or holiday parties, are our way of bringing these folks together and carrying out our mission of supporting the Gene Autry Oklahoma Museum."
      Jerry and the DFW gang have worked on fundraising efforts related to the Museum, promotional efforts for the Film & Music Festival, organized performances at senior centers and worked with radio station KAAM to promote the events hosted by the Museum.  The group's spring lunch get-together is scheduled for March 29th in Dallas.
      For more information, see this group's website at www.roywtucker.com/ga/ or e-mail Jerry at jerrybaumann@sbcglobal.net .