Champion the Wonder Horse to 1953, and in the television series during the 1950s. Several other "Champion" horses were used as stunt doubles and for personal appearances throughout the years. There were three official Champions that appeared in Gene Autry films. The original Champion was a dark sorrel with a blaze face and white stockings on all his legs except the right front. The original Champion first appeared on screen with Autry in "Melody Trail" (1935) and went on to co-star in 51 additional Autry films. The horse was previously owned by Tom Mix and was used during the filming of "The Phantom Empire"
Adrian Autry pursued a professional basketball career. He was undrafted in the NBA but had several workouts and played on the Summer Team. Autry enjoyed a more lucrative career overseas. Autry spent one year (1995-1996) playing with Besiktas Istanbul. , and then spent three seasons in Germany playing for SSV Ulm 1846. It was here that Autry and his team were the runners-up in the 1998 German Cup. Autry still holds the 1998-1999 records for points (504), assists (116), and steals (65) and was named to the All-German Imports First Team in 1999. After Germany, Autry headed to Europe where he played