{"id":38790,"date":"2014-11-06T04:48:27","date_gmt":"2014-11-06T04:48:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/owegopennysaver.com\/?p=38790"},"modified":"2014-11-10T04:52:38","modified_gmt":"2014-11-10T04:52:38","slug":"tinseltown-talks-author-recounts-life-of-western-hero-rocky-lane","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2014\/11\/06\/tinseltown-talks-author-recounts-life-of-western-hero-rocky-lane\/","title":{"rendered":"Tinseltown Talks – Author Recounts Life of Western Hero \u2018Rocky\u2019 Lane"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Tinseltown<\/a>

Allan Rocky Lane.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Tinseltown<\/a>

Author Linda Alexander. Photo Credit: Nick Thomas.<\/p><\/div>\n

Linda Alexander first developed an interest in the stars of early film and television as a child in the 1960s, watching old movies with her mother. Many years later, her fascination for Hollywood\u2019s Golden Age led to the publication of several actor biographies, the most recent being released this past summer.<\/p>\n

\u201cI Am Mister Ed: Allan \u2018Rocky\u2019 Lane Revealed,\u201d published by BearManor Media (see www.authorsden.com\/lindaalexander) provides a complete biographical account of the cowboy actor often known as \u201cRed Ryder\u201d or \u201cRocky Lane\u201d in films from the \u201940s and \u201950s.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough well-known to fans of early westerns, Allan Lane\u2019s most famous role was actually un-credited at the time,\u201d said Alexander from her home in Wetumpka, Ala. \u201cFor six seasons from 1961 to 1966 he was the anonymous voice of Mister Ed, the talking horse in the TV show of the same name.\u201d<\/p>\n

Oddly enough, Alexander says she didn\u2019t watch the classic sitcom much when it first aired on CBS. But that changed early one morning a few years ago in Maryland, where her family lived at the time.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe television was on and I heard this interesting voice of the horse and was intrigued,\u201d she said. But as the closing credits scrolled by, the part of Mister Ed was listed as being played by \u201chimself.\u201d<\/p>\n

After discovering the voice actor was Allan Lane, Alexander began to delve deeper into his background.<\/p>\n

\"Tinseltown<\/a>

Allan Rocky Lane in action. Photo provided by Linda Alexander.<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cIt proved extremely difficult to find any information about Allan Lane, the man,\u201d she said. \u201cSeveral western historians who had unsuccessfully attempted to research him advised me to give it up. And I almost did!\u201d<\/p>\n

Then Alexander contacted the state of California for Lane\u2019s mother\u2019s death certificate, which listed relatives who she traced, interviewed, and in 2012 even created a Facebook page dedicated to Lane.<\/p>\n

With an extensive film career going back to the silent era in the 1920s, Lane became a solid actor in B-westerns, bringing to life the beloved comic book western heroes Red Ryder and Rocky Lane in Saturday matinee movies.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut he fell on hard times when \u2018Mister Ed\u2019 rolled round,\u201d Alexander noted. \u201cHe felt it was beneath him to be the voice of a horse, but when the show became a hit he wanted recognition. By then, kids were enamored with a series about a \u2018real\u2019 talking horse, and the producers didn\u2019t want to reveal it was an actor\u2019s voice. So they kept his name off the credits, and gave him a raise instead!\u201d<\/p>\n

Alexander has also published a biography on Jack Kelly, who played James Garner\u2019s brother in the popular \u201960s western TV series \u2018Maverick.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough the two didn\u2019t have much of a private friendship, they had remarkable on-screen chemistry,\u201d said Alexander. \u201cGarner was ill when I was working on the book, so I never got to interview him. But his daughter, Gigi, as well as Kelly\u2019s widow, provided information.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alexander\u2019s upcoming project includes the re-release of her popular 2008 biography on MGM leading man Robert Taylor, which will include family photos she acquired from Taylor\u2019s daughter.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, her Rocky Lane biography has been popular with classic western fans.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m delighted all the people who remember the man,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Nick Thomas teaches at Auburn University at Montgomery, Ala., and has written features, columns, and interviews for over 450 magazines and newspapers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Linda Alexander first developed an interest in the stars of early film and television as a child in the 1960s, watching old movies with her…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38790","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-editorial"],"yoast_head":"\nTinseltown Talks - Author Recounts Life of Western Hero \u2018Rocky\u2019 Lane - Owego Pennysaver Press<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/www.owegopennysaver.com\/PS\/2014\/11\/06\/tinseltown-talks-author-recounts-life-of-western-hero-rocky-lane\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Tinseltown Talks - 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