This is a sad day for we aging "Baby Boomers." Before John Wayne, John Ford, Winston Churchill, Abraham Lincoln, Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan were my heroes there was Fess Parker as Davy Crockett. The "Davy Crockett fad" was one of the first fads to be enthusiastically embraced by the post war "baby boomers".More would come, such as hula hoops, Rock N'Roll, Elvis, the Beatles, and Woodstock, but first there was Davy Crockett. I had my coon skin cap and there was a whole counter at our local department store with Davy Crockett paraphernalia. I awaited each week to see if the Disneyland TV show, on ABC TV, had a new episode of "Davy Crockett." I could not believe he would be killed at the Alamo ! It was the first time I had heard of the story of the Alamo and it would be a story that would haunt me for the rest of my life.
When my kids were very young I would sing the "Ballad of Davy Crockett" to them at bed time because other than "The Star Spangled Banner" it was the only song to which I knew all the words. My Kids, now that they are grown, claim I made up my own version but I tell them there is more than one version. A few years ago my son stayed at Fess Parker's hotel in Santa Barbra and I was so excited I wish I could have been there. I have the DVD of all the "Davy Crockett" episode from TV . I think I will watch them tonight. It is a sad day :(
Click on the title for a link to view a YouTube video from The Alamo episode of the TV show.It's the night before they are all killed at the Alamo.(Crockett,Jim Bowie and Travis.) I thought it was sad in 1955 and is sure is sad today. So long Davy !
List of the 5 episodes and date of their first broadcast. They also made the episodes into a movie in color that I saw at a Drive In.
"Davy Crockett Indian Fighter" 12/15/54
"Davy Crockett Goes to Congress" 1/26/55
"Davy Crockett At the Alamo" 2/23/55
"Davy Crockett's Keelboat Race" 11/16/55
"Davy Crockett and the River Pirates" 12/14/55
