Biography for will rogers

“An actor is a fellow that just has a little more monkey in him than the fellow that can’t act.”

– Will Rogers

1879

William Penn Adair Rogers is born on his father’s ranch near Oologah, Indian Territory.

1898

Begins work as a cowboy on a ranch in Higgins, Texas.

1902

In December, joins Texas Jack’s American Circus and Wild West Show in South Africa as a bronco rider and lasso thrower. Billed as the “Cherokee Kid.”

1904

Joins Colonel Zach Mulhall’s Wild West Show as a fancy roper at the World’s Fair in St. Louis. In October, plays in a vaudeville bill at the Cleveland Theatre in Chicago.

1905

Receives considerable publicity for helping to rope a runaway bull that had run into stands at the Horse Fair in New York City’s Madison Square Garden. Buck McGee becomes his partner, riding Will’s horse on stage.

1908

Will marries Betty Blake in Arkansas on November 25. They will have four children. Three of them survive to adulthood.

1915

Will takes his first airplane flight in Atlantic City.

1916

He gives his first presidential performance to Woodrow Wilson in May. In July, Will joins the Ziegfeld Follies as a comedian and emcee.

1918

Will makes his first motion picture, Laughing Bill Hyde.

1919

Moves the family to California to start a silent film contract with Goldwyn Studio.

1922

He stars in and produces his own motion pictures, as well as begins a series of syndicated weekly articles for the McNaught Syndicate.

1925

Travels all over United States on a lecture tour.

1926

Elected honorary mayor of Beverly Hills, California.

1929

Will makes his first sound picture for Fox Film Corporation. He will star in 21 films for them from 1929-1935.

1930

Does a series of radio broadcasts for E. R. Squibb and Sons.

1931

Travels to Nicaragua to benefit earthquake and fire victims, and to London to observe disarmament conference.

1933

Will Rogers is the highest paid film star in Hollywood. His famous talks on the Gulf Oil radio broadca

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(1879-1935)

Who Was Will Rogers?

After performing in Wild West shows as a young man, Will Rogers broke into vaudeville and then Broadway. His folksy wit and common sense attitude made him one of the most famous actors and authors in the world in the 1920s and '30s.

Early Life

Rogers was born on November 4, 1879, in present-day Oologah, Oklahoma — then part of Indian territory. Rogers grew up in a ranching family. Himself part Cherokee, Rogers socialized with both Indigenous peoples and Anglo-American settlers in the immediate area. He left Oklahoma as a teenager, eventually finding work in the traveling Wild West shows popular at the time.

Career

In 1905, Rogers began performing a lasso act on the vaudeville circuit. His charm and humor, along with his technical ability, made Rogers a star. Audiences responded with enthusiasm to his off-the-cuff remarks delivered while performing elaborate roping tricks.

Rogers parlayed his vaudeville success into a Broadway career. He debuted in New York in 1916, performing in The Wall Street Girl. This led to many more theatrical roles, including headlining appearances in the Ziegfeld Follies. Rogers also brought his act to the burgeoning medium of the moving picture. He appeared in dozens of silent films, often playing a country bumpkin trying to negotiate the modern world.

In addition to acting, Rogers became nationally-known as a writer. He penned a column for the Saturday Evening Post that ran in newspapers across the country. His columns dealt with contemporary issues from a perspective of small-town morality, emphasizing the integrity of working people. It was a viewpoint that resonated in the rapidly industrializing twentieth-century United States. Many of his books, including The Cowboy Philosopher on Prohibition and There's Not a Bathing Suit in Russia, achieved best-seller status.

Rogers's fame had eclipsed his country bumpkin persona by 1930. No longer believable as an uneducated

American humorist and entertainer (1879–1935)

For other uses, see Will Rogers (disambiguation) and William Rogers (disambiguation).

William Penn Adair Rogers (November 4, 1879 – August 15, 1935) was an American vaudeville performer, actor, and humorous social commentator. He was born as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, in the Indian Territory (now part of Oklahoma), and is known as "Oklahoma's Favorite Son". As an entertainer and humorist, he traveled around the world three times, made 71 films (50 silent films and 21 "talkies"), and wrote more than 4,000 nationally syndicated newspaper columns. By the mid-1930s, Rogers was hugely popular in the United States for his leading political wit and was the highest paid of Hollywood film stars. He died in 1935 with aviator Wiley Post when their small airplane crashed in northern Alaska.

Rogers began his career as a performer on vaudeville. His rope act led to success in the Ziegfeld Follies, which in turn led to the first of his many movie contracts. His 1920s syndicated newspaper column and his radio appearances increased his visibility and popularity. Rogers crusaded for aviation