Gene
Autry’s
Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award
on Display Now at the Autry National Center
Image of Gene Autry courtesy of Autry Qualified Interest Trust
Los Angeles (April 3, 2009) — The Autry National
Center of the American West is proud to display the National Academy of Recording Arts and
Sciences Lifetime Achievement Grammy presented (posthumously) to Gene Autry at the 2009
Grammy Awards. A cameo case and banner were placed in the museum’s lobby on Tuesday
in recognition of his influence and achievements in the music industry.
In addition to his success in film, television, and business, Gene
Autry’s music and radio accomplishments were remarkable. Autry sold over 100 million
records and influenced several generations of fans and musicians. During his musical
career, Gene Autry recorded 640 songs, including more than 300 that he wrote or cowrote.
He has more than a dozen gold and platinum records, including the first record ever
certified gold. His children’s records “Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa
Claus Lane)” (1947) and “Peter Cottontail” (1950), were certified platinum.
“Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer” (1949), the second all-time best-selling
Christmas record, boasts in excess of 30 million in sales.
The display case features the 2009 Grammy Award at the center, surrounded
by objects representing different aspects of Autry’s musical career, including the
record that inspired rhythm-and-blues pioneer Bo Diddley and a rare concert poster (circa
1938).
Other objects include:
- Gene Autry’s Famous Cowboy Songs and Mountain Ballads
songbook (1934)
- Film poster from Republic Picture’s Git Along Little
Dogies (1937)
- Phonograph record set of Gene Autry’s Western Classics
from Columbia Records (1947)
- “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer”/“If It
Doesn’t Snow on Christmas” record (1949)
- “Jingle, Jangle, Jingle”/“I’m a Cow Poke
Pokin’ Along” record (circa 1950)
- Booklet entitled The Art of Writing Songs and How to Play a
Guitar by Gene Autry (1933)
- Radio Guide magazine (1939)
All objects are from the collection of the Museum of the American West,
Autry National Center, with generous donations from Mr. and Mrs. Gene Autry, Peter N.
Gibbs, Mr. Edward H. Brown, and the Autry Qualified Interest Trust.
The Gene Autry Grammy cameo exhibition is slated to run through October 3
and will be followed by a cameo exhibit in December highlighting the 60th anniversary of
Autry’s recording of “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer.”
For more information about Gene Autry’s life and career, visit www.geneautry.com.
About the Autry National Center of the American West
The Autry National Center of the American West is an intercultural history center that
includes the Southwest Museum of the American Indian, the Museum of the American West
(formerly the Autry Museum of Western Heritage), and the Institute for the Study of the
American West. Each institution maintains its individual identity; however, the
convergence of resources allows us to expand our understanding of the diverse peoples of
the American West, connecting the past with the present to inform our shared future. The
Autry National Center’s executive offices are located in Griffith Park.
Effective March 10, 2009, the Autry National Center of the American West’s hours of
operation at its Griffith Park location have changed. The new weekday hours for the
Autry’s Museum of the American West are Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The
museum store’s new weekday hours are Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday hours for the museum and the museum store are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. On
Thursdays from June 1 to August 31, hours for the museum and museum store are 10 a.m. to 8
p.m. The museum and museum store will continue to be closed on Mondays.
Admission is $9 for adults, $5 for students and seniors 60+, $3 for children 3–12,
and free for Autry members, veterans, and children 2 and under. Admission is free on the
second Tuesday of every month.
Autry National Center of the American West
4700 Western Heritage Way
Los Angeles, CA 90027
www.autrynationalcenter.org
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