The Singing Cowboy (1936 film) The Singing Cowboy (1936 film) The Singing Cowboy is a 1936 American Western film directed by Mack V. Wright and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and Lois Wilde. Based on a story by Tom Gibson, the film is about a cowboy who decides to sing on television in order to raise money for the orphaned daughter of his former boss who was murdered. Ranch owner Steve Stevens (John Van Pelt) is shot by his greedy partner, Martin (Lon Chaney, Jr.), who then sets fire to Stevens' barn. Stevens' last request is for cowboy Gene Autry (Gene Autry) to look after
To Tell the Truth up with it, he/she won $500. If the contestant stumped the audience member, that player won $1,000. Occasionally, celebrities whose faces were not well known would attempt to stump the audience during this part of the game. For example, Hank Ketcham, the creator of "Dennis the Menace" and a challenger on the original "To Tell the Truth" in May 1962, tried during one episode to convince an audience member that he was really the songwriter to "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" (Johnny Marks had actually done this), but was unsuccessful in doing so. The show then had a two-year run in