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"
Gene Autry Country Music Hall of Fame in 1969 and to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970. After retiring, he invested widely in real estate, radio, and television. He also invested in ownership of the KOOL-TV CBS-affiliate in Phoenix, Arizona, which created local shows such as the weekly bilingual children's show "Ninos Contentos". He also purchased the rights from the dying Republic Pictures for films he had made for the company. In 1952, Autry bought the old Monogram Ranch in Placerita Canyon (Newhall-Santa Clarita, California,) and renamed it Melody Ranch. Numerous "B" Westerns and TV shows were shot there during