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Famous Folks in Music from the Big Country |
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 Curtis Potter was born in Cross Plains, Texas, but was raised in Abilene. He worked on KRBC-TV and the Bill Fox Show in the mid-'50s. He was also a bandleader for Hank Thompson from 1959-1971. |
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 Darrin Stout is a country, blues rockabilly singer that was raised in Abilene |
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 Jeannie C. Riley "Harper Valley P.T.A.," was born Jeanne Carolyn Stephenson in Anson, TX. She made her first public performance, on her uncle's jamboree show. |
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 Ronnie Dunn, of Brooks and Dunn, was born in Coleman and graduated from Port Isabel High School. Ronnie attended Hardin-Simmons for 2 years before transferring to Abilene Christian University. |
 Terri Hendrix - Americana Folk Singer - attended Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene |
 The Gatlin Brothers spend their time playing in Branson, playing golf and supporting charities, but they always find time to make a trip to Abilene to see their parents. |
 Matt Dunnam grew up in Haskell and Abilene. He now has his own band, playing Texas Country around the State. Matt returns to Abilene many times throughout the year to play benefit concerts for the area. |
 Jody Nix, son of Hoyle Nix, is still in Big Spring traveling the country playing great Western Swing. Jody is in the Western Swing Hall Of Fame. |
 Daron Norwood lived in Tahoka and then Hawley where he attended school, played football and polished his music skills around Abilene. |
 Sonny West wrote 2 of Buddy Holly's biggest million seller hits, "Oh Boy" and "Rave On". Sonny moved to Abilene a few years ago. |
 Bob Lapham A member of "The Picks" who backed Buddy Holly in 1957 on "The Chirping Crickets" album while Bob was at Texas Tech. Bob is retired from the Reporter-News & lives in Abilene. |
 Brad Baker, Guitar player for Texas Artist Ricky Calmbach, was born in Abilene. |
 Lyn Collins born in Abilene, Texas on June 12 1948, Lyn was the principal voice of the James Brown Revue |
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 Lee Roy Parnell Born Dec 21, 1956, in Abilene, Tx, & raised on a ranch near Stephenville, Tx. |
 Los Lonely Boys Henry, JoJo and Ringo, three brothers from Snyder & San Angelo |
 Grant Turner - Born May 17, 1912 Abilene, Attended Hardin-Simmons. The Voice Of The Grande Ole Opry. He Was Inducted Into The Country Music Hall Of Fame (As A Non-Performer) In 1981. Grant died October 19, 1991. |
 Mason Williams Acclaimed Classical Guitarist born in Abilene, Texas in 1938 |
 Terry Noland born in Abilene, Texas in 1938 moved to Lubbock as a child and went to school with Buddy Holly |
 Caryl Mack Parker Country Singer born in Abilene and attended ACU |
 Ronna Reeves, a promising singer in the 1990s. She won the Little Miss Big Spring competition at age eight and was a regular on the Statler Bros. Show for several years. |
 Rockabilly singer Royce Porter was born April 1, 1939 in Sweetwater |
 Sons of the Desert Raised in Brownwood and the Big Country |
Johnny Moore, from Anson, is a country boy with a talent to write and sing country songs. He started his own radio show at the age of 12 on KDWT in Stanford. |
| Raymond Bynum founded the 1st high school marching band in Texas, Abilene High, and taught at McMurry University | Shane Stockton, of Breckenridge, had a couple of hits on Decca Records. Shane is now a preacher in Lubbock |
| Janie Fricke's Husband grew up in Abilene at attended Cooper HS | Texas Music Singer Aaron Watson lives in Abilene. |
| Slim Willet, musician, DJ Hall of Fame and host of the original Big State Jamboree in Abilene |
Stuart Hamblin, inducted into the Nashville Songwriter's HOF, ACM Pioneer Award & Hollywood Walk Of Fame, went to McMurry, singer/songwriter, radio/movies & KAYO in Abilene |
| Rick & Bobby Sikes from Coleman. Rick is in the West Texas Music Hall Of Fame | Joe Ammons, former drummer for Texas Country Band Cooder Graw, grew up in Haskell and is a cousin of Texas Gov. Rick Perry. |
| Holly Dunn was born and raised in San Antonio attended Abilene Christian University. Her 1986 self penned tribute to her dad, Daddy's Hands, put her on the Country Music map. | Sonny Throckmorton is a famous songwriter who has penned tunes like Merle Haggard's "The Way I Am," and numerous other #1 hits. Sonny lives between Coleman and Brownwood |
| Tommy Overstreet was born on Sept 10, 1937, in Oklahoma City While at the University of Texas, he played clubs under the name Tommy Dean From Abilene. |
Dean Beard, from Coleman had a band called "The Crew Cats" and also played with "The Champs" who had the popular song, "Tequila". Dean is now deceased. |
| Darren Kozelsky is from Ballinger and went to ASU. Darren is tearing up the Texas Music Charts | The Hogg Maulies are one of the hot new groups in Texas Music. They are from Rotan, Tx. |
| Jake Hall from Abilene plays bass with the Michael Klein Band | Kathy Westmoreland - back up singer to Elvis Presley, he even names her on some of his taped live concerts. |
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Sports - Famous People From The Big Country |
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| Legendary Coach Gordon Wood 1914-2003 |
Rogers Hornsby Born: April 27, 1896, in Winters National Baseball Hall of Fame |
 April won Ms Bikini USA in 2008 and was runner-up the Universe. April lives just West of Abilene and is a fitness trainer |
 Colt McCoy, former Jim Ned QB, is the Starting QB for the Texas Longhorns. |
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John Lackey - Pitcher 2002 World Series Champion Anaheim Angel |
Greg Maddux, pitcher for the Chicago Cubs was born in San Angelo |
| Ray Berry attended Cooper High and played pro football for the Minnesota Vikings. He still lives in Abilene | Sammy Baugh, born in 1914 moved to Sweetwater at 16. First NFL player to intercept 4 passes in a game & only player to lead league in passing, punting & interceptions in same season. In Pro & College Football Halls Of Fame. |
| Chip Townsend Founder/Chief Instructor TEAM CHIP Tae Kwon Do Centers - 5th Dan Black Belt - 11 ISKA World Titles - ISKA 04 & 05 Ultmate World Breaker Champion | Glyn Ann Townsend 4th Dan Black Belt Team Chip 2005 Women's Overall Grand Champion of Ultimate Board-Breaking. |
| Jim Parmer, of Abilene, played Running Back for the Philadelphia Eagles from 1948 to 1956 including setting team and league records at the time. | EJ Holub, a member of the College Football and the Kansas City Chieft Halls of Fame, is the son-in-law of Jim Parmer |
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Bubba Franks, TE for the Green Bay Packers grew up in Big Spring |
Ken Blackman, born in Abilene, played Guard for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| Jack Mildren, born Oct 1949 in Kingsville graduated from Cooper High School in 1968. Famed QB for OU, played pro ball for Baltimore and in Oklahoma Sports Hall Of Fame. | Spike Dykes coached High School Teams in Big Spring and Coahoma along with a long tenure at Texas Tech |
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David Terrell, Cornerback for the Washington Redskins grew up and played ball in Sweetwater |
Glynn Gregory of Abilene, played football for SMU and in 61-62 for the Cowboys |
| Cory Aldridge Graduated from Abilene Cooper in 1997 and was drafted by the Atlanta Braves |
Dominic Rhodes, a Running Back for the Indianapolis Colts attended Cooper High School. He resides in Abilene, Tex. |
| Trevor Brazile formerly of Anson, Tx 2002/2003 PRCA World Champion All Around Cowboy | Terry Orr, former tight end for UT and the Washington Redskins graduated from Cooper. Terry played in the 1988 and 1992 Superbowls. |
| 3-time ISKA World Champ Power Breaker, ISKA World Champ Creative Breaker, 2-time NBL World Champ Creative Breaker | Clyde "Bulldog" Turner, played for Hardin-Simmons and then the Chicago Bears 1940-1952, had his number retired and is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame |
| Justin Snow, Long Snapper for Indianapolis Colts & Cooper. Lives in Abilene | Phil Lombardi, born in Abilene, was Drafted by the New York Yankees in the 3rd round of the 1981 amateur draft. |
| Dave Johnson Born in Abilene, was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 5th round of the 1967 amateur draft and went to Manage. He threw the last out in the 1969 World Series. | |
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More Baseball Players born in Abilene Bill Shores was born May 26, 1904 in Abilene, TX Bill Gilbreth, former ACU baseball coach, was born in Abilene and was Drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 3rd round of the 1969 amateur draft. ACU Football Players Drafted Into The NFL 1985 - Dan Remsberg - Chargers 1983 - Grant Feasel - Colts 1977 - Johnny Perkins - Giants 1976 - Raymond Crosier - Cardinals 1975 - David Henson - 49ers 1974 - Richard Williams - Bengals 1973 - Tom Humphrey - Browns 1972 - Ron Vinson - Saints 1971 - Wayne Walton - Giants 1970 - Chip Bennett - Bengals 1969 - Bob Oliver - Browns 1967 - Bernard Erickson - Chargers 1956 - Paul Goad - San Francisco 1954 - Sonny Cleere – Bears 1951 – Bailey Woods - Bears Mike Love - Steelers Wilbert Montgomery - Eagles Ove Johansson – Oilers Steve Parker - Patriots HSU Football Players Drafted Into The NFL 1954 – DC Andrews - Bears 1950 – Wilton (Hook) Davis - Bears 1952 - Gene Offield - San Francisco McMurry Football Players Drafted Into The NFL 1970 – Charles Tabb - Browns 1951 – Brad Rowland – Bears |
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| WWE Wrestling Superstar Bradshaw was born in Sweetwater | Chuck Harrison, born in Abilene was Signed by the Houston Colt .45's as an amateur free agent in 1963 and played for the Astros and the Royals |
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Jim Hall Creator of the legendary Chaparral sports cars, Jim was born in Abilene, Texas, in 1935.
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Grady Little Former manager of the Boston Red Sox was born in Abilene. |
| Former ACU defensive back Danieal Manning became the first ACU player drafted into the NFL in 21 years. He was the 10th pick in the second round by the Chicago Bears in the 2006 NFL Draft. |
David Johnson was a pitcher for the Atlanta Braves in the early 90’s and now lives in Abilene.
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Danny Briggsborn in Abilene, he is one of 2003's newest members of the PGA tour
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Trudy Ireland Pro Award winning body builder born in Abilene, Texas, on February 20, 1957.
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| Pro Golfer Bob Estes, was born in Graham, Texas and lives here in Abilene. | Rodeo clown, Quail Dobbs, of Coahoma, retired July 26, 1998 at the Cheyenne Rodeo after 28 consecutive years & 35 years in the business. |
| Kirk Rogers, who played football for Hardin-Simmons, also played pro football for Kansas City as well as in Canada and in Europe | Pro Golfer Charles Coody is in the Top 31 on the all time money list |
| Lance Barrow graduated from ACU in 1978. 1997 coordinating producer of golf for CBS Sports and 7 time Emmy Award winner. Lance became a producer at CBS in 1994, working on Super Bowls, Winter Olympics and other major events. | Bob Harrison was raised in Stamford where he lives today. I'm told he played Pro Football. My buddy Kody knows more about him. |
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Bobby Morrow went to ACU and was the first American man in 20 years to win gold in 100m & 200m (56 Olympics)
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Hall of Fame WR- Don Maynard From Colorado City |
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Cody Lambert, who lives in Merkel, is in the PBR Ring Of Honor. |
Dr. Charlie Johnson played football for the Denver Broncos and Cleveland Browns. 1954 graduate of Big Spring High School. He has a PHd in Nuclear Physics. |
| Ken Coffee of Big Spring played for the Redskins out of Texas A&I in the late 80's early 90's. . |
Ernest Park attended Wylie HS and McMurry. Drafted by the San Diego Chargers and played for Denver, Miami and Cincinatti. He now lives in Clyde.
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| "The Mad Bomber" Clint Longley Staubach's backup in 74-75. He completed a last-minute 50 yard winning TD to Drew Pearson Thanksgiving Day against the Redskins. He also played ball for ACU. | Bob Lilly Born July 26 1939, in Olney, Texas. 1st ever draft pick for the Dallas Cowboys. In the Cowboys Ring of Honor. Hall of Fame in 1980. |
| Billy Olson Former world record holder in the pole vault. | Kevin Robinzine, sprinter and gold medal winner 1988 Summer olympics 1600 meter relay. Abilene High grad |
| Don the LAWMAN Slatton former pro wrestler | Jeff Ireland Cooper class of 1988. Former scout for Dallas Cowboys. GM of Miami Dolphins in 2008 |
| Billy Olson - 11 time World Record Holder in Pole Vault - lives and works in Abilene | |
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Movie/TV/Film - Famous People From The Big Country |
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| Steve Bland, wrangler, expert horseman and wrangler for "The Alamo," "Secondhand Lions" "Grand Champion" and other movies Steve passed away early this year. |
Del Shores was Born December 3, 1957 in Winters. Hollywood Actor, Writer, Producer and Director
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| Brad Maule was born October 11 in Rotan. Brad is an actor on General Hospital, a regular at the Rehab Telethon and his parents live in Camp Springs. | Powers Boothe born June 1, 1948 Snyder, Texas. |
| 1997 Midland Lee graduate and former high school quarterback David Smith also played baseball for McMurry University and is featured on Fox TVs Joe Millionaire | Audie Murphy was from Kingston, Tx. In 1996 the Tx Legislature officially designated his birthday, June 20th, as Audie Murphy Day. |
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Ann Wedgeworth was born January 21, 1935 in Abilene. Ann starred on Three's Company and in Steel Magnolias
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Cory Kreig born in Abilene and featured on the VH1 show Bands On The Run |
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Paige Moss grew up in Abilene. Her grandmother, Naomi Mayfield, lives in Roby. Currently starring on the new ABC sitcom, It's All Relative.
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Charlene Holt born in Abilene, she was a beauty queen and actress from mid 50s to mid 60s. |
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Tex Cobb was born May 7, 1950 in Abilene. Cobb's big-budget films have included "The Golden Child" (1985), "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" (1994) and "Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult" (1994).
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JB Cook lived in Abilene while in fourth grade, and lived several other places before returning to attend Abilene High School and Hardin-Simmons University. Producer/writer for Fox sitcom "King of the Hill" |
| Fess Parker was born in Ft. Worth and attended Hardin Simmons University | Dean Nolan, Hardin Simmons grad, was in the original Broadway cast of Mama Mia |
| Cris Judd, born in August 15, 1969 in Abilene is an award winning dancer and Choreographer. Was married to Jennifer Lopez. |
Dan Blocker, who played Hoss Cartwright on Bonanza, went to Hardin-Simmons.
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Ty O'Neil from Abilene was in the Mighty Ducks movies |
Coby Archa, born in Abilene, was on the CBS Reality Show - Survivor Palau |
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Abilene native Paydin LoPachin, born Jan 18, 1988, plays "Tennis Girl" in movie "All the Kings Men" with Jude Law, Kate Winslet and Sean Penn. |
Victor Aaron Played Ulzana in the Movie "Geronimo"....From Abilene, died in car crash in L.A |
| Actor Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez who was John Waynes sidekick in over a dozen movies | Nelson Coates - Production Designer and filmographer. Abilene native and ACU Grad. |
| Victor Aaron, actor, played the part of an indian, most notably in the movie Geronimo with actor Jason Patrick. | |
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Famous Political People From The Big Country |
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| Dr. Bob Hunter, Senior Vice President Emeritus ACU and Texas State Representative | Texas Railroad Commisioner Victor Carillo, Abilene High School class of 1982 |
| Former Congressman Charlie Stenholm. Honorary Doctor of Law degrees from Abilene Christian, Hardin-Simmons, and McMurry Universities | California Senator Jack Scott was born in Sweetwater, Texas, and graduated from high school there. He met his future wife, Lacreta, while they were students at Abilene Christian College |
| Sworn in as the state's 47th governor on December 21, 2000, Rick Perry was elected to a four-year term on November 5, 2002. A fifth generation Texan, Governor Perry hails from around Haskell, where farming, ranching and public service run in his family. |
Sarah Weddington (above) and attorney Linda Coffee filed the Roe vs. Wade class-action lawsuit on behalf of U.S. women. Sarah attended McMurry University in Abilene.
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| Billy Sol Estes, once the richest man in Texas, famous in the 60s, President Lyndon B. Johnson’s secret business partner, claims he knows who killed Kennedy, later was sent to jail but wrote a book about it | |
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Other Famous People From The Big Country |
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| A.C. Greene, born in Abilene, Texas, was an author of twenty books. He has been a newspaper editor and university professor, and has worked in both television and radio. | Diane Stanley, born in Abilene, is received the Washington Post/Children's Book Guild Nonfiction Award. |
| Bill Cauble and Cifford Tinnert of Albany Cowboy Cook's were born and raised in Albany Tx. They have a Cook book BBQ BISKETS and BEANS. It is all over the world and they do many catering jobs | Author, Speaker and Oprah's boyfriend, Steadman Graham attended Hardin-Simmons University where he played basketball. |
| Anny Nantandy was born in Abilene, TX in 1927. She is a painter, muralist, sculptor, printmaker, draftsman and poet. | Megan Ewing born in Abilene and raised in Brady, Megan is a top model in the fashion industry. |
| Brad Braune, a renowned western painter, was born in Abilene, Texas in 1951 and lived there until he was 13 | Nathan White born in Abilene, Texas, the second oldest of eight brothers and sisters. He was a 1991 graduate of Cooper High School. Nathan made World news when his plane was shot down and killed over Iraq. |
| The oldest living triplets are Faith, Hope, and Charity Cardwell were born in Sweetwater, Texas on May 18, 1899. Faith died at age 95 years and 137 days, in October of 1994, Charity passed away in 1995, and Hope in 1997. |
Western Novelist, Mark Tufts was born in Abilene and now lives in Nevada
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Brigadier General Bradley Faver was born in Sweetwater in 1916, Graduated High School in 1933 and received his B.A. at Abilene Christian College, in 1937. Retired March 1, 1973. Gen Faver was director, Secretary of the Air Force Personnel Council, Washington, D.C. |
Laurance L. Priddy, author of the critically acclaimed WINNING PASSION and SON OF DURANGO both published by Sunstone Press, was born in Sweetwater |
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Tom Perini is the cowboy cook to the stars and politicians who owns Perini Ranch Steak House in Buffalo Gap. |
| Lt. Col. William Edwin Dyess He was born in Albany and was also laid to rest there. Dyess AFB was named after him. | Former Congressman George Mahon who moved with his family in 1908 to a farm near Loraine, Mitchell County |
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Lori Wilde, born in Abilene on June 6, 1958, published over 30 books for Harlequin and Time/Warner. |
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