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((short description|American singer))
((Use mdy dates|date=November 2020))
((More citations needed|date=February 2020))
((Infobox musical artist
| honorific_prefix = 
| name             = Raymond Otis Whitley
| honorific_suffix = 
| image            = 
| image_upright    = 
| image_size       = 
| landscape        = <!-- yes, if wide image, otherwise leave blank -->
| alt              = 
| caption          = 
| background       = solo_singer
| native_name      = 
| native_name_lang = 
| birth_name       = 
| alias            = 
| birth_date       = ((birth date|1901|12|5))
| birth_place      = [[Atlanta]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], U.S.
| origin           = 
| death_date       = ((Death date and age|1979|2|21|1901|12|5))
| death_place      = 
| genre            = [[Country music|Country]]
| occupations       = Singer-songwriter, musician, actor
| instrument       = 
| years_active     = <!-- YYYY–YYYY (or –present) -->
| label            = 
| associated_acts  = 
| website          = <!-- ((URL|example.com)) or ((Official URL)) -->
| module           = 
| module2          = 
| module3          = 
))

'''Raymond Otis Whitley''' (December 5, 1901 – February 21, 1979)<ref name="LarkinCountry">((cite book|title=[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music|The Guinness Who's Who of Country Music]]|editor=[[Colin Larkin (writer)|Colin Larkin]]|publisher=[[Guinness Publishing]]|date=1993|edition=First|isbn=0-85112-726-6|page=443/4))</ref> was a [[Country music|country]] and [[Western music (North America)|western]] singer and actor.

==Career==
===Singing and live performance===
Whitley was born in [[Atlanta]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], United States.<ref name="LarkinCountry"/> He began his singing career in [[New York City]] in 1930.<ref name="LarkinCountry"/> He had traveled to New York where he became a [[construction worker]] on the [[Empire State Building]] and the [[George Washington Bridge]].<ref name="LarkinCountry"/> While working as a steelworker, he heard of an audition at a local radio station. He was hired as a pop singer and learned a few chords on a guitar to back himself. Soon he was backed by professional musicians, including the Frank Luther Trio.  He formed "The Range Ramblers" and began to broadcast on [[WMCA (AM)|WMCA]].<ref name="LarkinCountry"/> He then traveled with the World's Championship Rodeo organization, under the ownership of Colonel Johnson, renaming his band "Ray Whitley and The Six Bar Cowboys."<ref name="LarkinCountry"/> Whitley was skilled in the use of the [[stockwhip]] and could remove a cigarette from a man's lips with a single stroke, using either hand.<ref name="BWesternsWhitley">((Cite web|url=http://www.b-westerns.com/whitley.htm|title=Ray Whitley|website=B-westerns.com))</ref>

Whitley recorded for several record labels, including [[Okeh]], [[Apollo Records (1944)|Apollo Records]] and [[Decca Records|Decca]].<ref name="LarkinCountry"/>

===Development of the Gibson SJ-200===
In 1937, Whitley had worked with [[Gibson Guitar Corporation|Gibson]] on the production of the [[Gibson J-200|Gibson SJ-200]] acoustic guitar, which was initially known as the "Super Jumbo". Whitley used his own time and money to design a guitar, which he took to Gibson.<ref name="LarkinCountry"/> He explained the features and merits of the instrument, suggesting that by presenting them to other stars of the day, would result in really putting the Gibson name on the musical instrument map. As a result, Whitley was the first performer to own a Gibson SJ-200.<ref name="LarkinCountry"/> The first SJ-200, custom built by Gibson for Whitley, is on display in the Country Music Hall of Fame Museum. The SJ-200 has since become an American icon, and has been played by hundreds of different guitarists over the years.<ref name="Plucked Strings - Whitley Guitar">((Cite web|url=https://www.usd.edu/fine-arts/national-music-museum|title=National Music Museum &#124; USD|website=Usd.edu))</ref>

===Motion pictures===
In 1937, Ray Whitley was signed by [[RKO Radio Pictures]] as a specialty performer in the studio's "B" westerns starring [[George O'Brien (actor)|George O'Brien]], and O'Brien's successor [[Tim Holt]]. RKO also gave Whitley a starring series of his own: 18 two-reel musical short subjects, produced between 1937 and 1942.

In the late 1950s, Whitley made appearances on the [[Roy Rogers]] TV specials, he also appeared in the feature film ''[[Giant (1956 film)|Giant]]'' starring [[Elizabeth Taylor]], [[Rock Hudson]], and [[James Dean]].

Whitley wrote the original western tune ''[[Back in the Saddle Again]]''.<ref name="LarkinCountry"/> The song was first performed by the author, Ray Whitley, in the western movie ''[[Border G-Man]]'',<ref name="LarkinCountry"/> in which he played the part of "Luke Jones.” Gene Autry heard it and bought the song for a reported $200, making it his theme song.<ref name="LarkinCountry"/> Whitley and Autry changed the order of the verse and chorus, and made a very slight change in the melody, resulting in the present popular version. It is one of the most recognized and recorded [[Western music (North America)|Western music]] tunes in history.

==Death and legacy==
Ray Whitley died on February 21, 1979,<ref name="LarkinCountry"/> while en route to a fishing trip to Mexico with his son-in-law, Hal Bracken.<ref name="LarkinCountry"/>

Ray Whitley's original Gibson SJ-200 is on display at the [[Country Music Hall of Fame]] in [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]] [[Tennessee]]. He was inducted into the [[Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame]] in 1981 and, in 1996, Whitley was inducted into the [[Western Music Association Hall of Fame]].

===Instruments===
Ray Whitley also endorsed another Gibson made guitar, sold by the mail order house Montgomery Ward, under the house brand "[[Recording King]]." This highly esteemed guitar was marketed only in 1939, and featured the signature of Mr. Whitley on the headstock. 235 of these were made in mahogany, and 235 in rosewood. One of these instruments was the preferred guitar of American composer John Fahey, who recorded extensively on the instrument from 1969 until the mid-1970s. Fahey destroyed the guitar during a fight with his girl friend and replaced it with a Martin D-76.<ref>((Cite web|url=https://www.johnfahey.com/RecordingKing.htm:|title=Article about rebuilding the Fahey Recording King|website=Johnfahey.com))</ref>

Gibson Shipping Ledgers show the following totals for the Montgomery Ward – Recording King Ray Whitley Jumbo Models:

Total of 147 – RK Ray Whitley Model No.&nbsp;1027 (Rosewood back & sides, "bat wing" shaped bridge)
Total of 170 – RK Ray Whitley Model No.&nbsp;1028 (Mahogany back & sides, plain rectangle-style bridge)

Breaks down like this:
143 No.&nbsp;1027s shipped in 1939
Only 4 No.&nbsp;1027s shipped in 1940

115 No.&nbsp;1028s were shipped in 1939
55 No.&nbsp;1028s shipped in 1940

First shipment of 1027s – January 23, 1939 – Last: February 27, 1940,
First shipment of 1028s – June 23, 1939 – Last: June 13, 1940

==Filmography==
===Feature films, featuring Ray Whitley===
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 100%;"
! colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;" | Film
|-
! Year
! Title
! Role
! Notes
|-
|1936|| ''[[King of the Royal Mounted]]'' || Singer || Uncredited
|-
|1936|| ''[[Hopalong Cassidy Returns]]'' || Davis ||
|-
|1937|| ''[[Hittin' the Trail]]'' || Guitar Player ||
|-
|1937|| ''[[The Mystery of the Hooded Horsemen]]'' || Guitar Player ||
|-
|1937|| ''[[The Old Wyoming Trail]]'' || Singing cowhand || Uncredited
|-
|1938|| ''[[Where the West Begins (1938 film)|Where the West Begins]]'' || Singer / Henchman || Uncredited
|-
|1938|| ''[[Rawhide (1938 film)|Rawhide]]'' || Gehrig Party Guitarist || Uncredited
|-
|1938|| ''[[Gun Law (1938 film)|Gun Law]]'' || Sam McGee ||
|-
|1938|| ''[[Border G-Man]]'' || Luke Jones ||
|-
|1938|| ''[[Painted Desert (1938 film)|Painted Desert]]'' || Steve ||
|-
|1938|| ''[[The Renegade Ranger]]'' || Happy ||
|-
|1939|| ''[[Trouble in Sundown]]'' || Andy ||
|-
|1939|| ''[[Racketeers of the Range]]'' || Ray Whitley ||
|-
|1940|| ''[[Wagon Train (film)|Wagon Train]]'' || Ned ||
|-
|1940|| ''[[The Fargo Kid]]'' || Johnny ||
|-
|1941|| ''[[Along the Rio Grande]]'' || rowspan="10"|'Smokey' Ryan ||
|-
|1941|| ''[[Robbers of the Range]]'' ||
|-
|1941|| ''[[Cyclone on Horseback]]'' ||
|-
|1941|| ''[[Six-Gun Gold]]'' ||
|-
|1941|| ''[[The Bandit Trail]]'' ||
|-
|1941|| ''[[Dude Cowboy]]'' ||
|-
|1942|| ''[[Riding the Wind]]'' ||
|-
|1942|| ''[[Land of the Open Range]]'' ||
|-
|1942|| ''[[Come on Danger]]'' ||
|-
|1942|| ''[[Thundering Hoofs]]'' ||
|-
|1944|| ''[[Boss of Boomtown]]'' || Corporal Clark ||
|-
|1944|| ''[[Trigger Trail]]'' || Gilroy ||
|-
|1944|| ''Trail to Gunsight'' || Barton, Cattle Buyer ||
|-
|1944|| ''Riders of the Santa Fe'' || Deputy Hank ||
|-
|1944|| ''[[The Old Texas Trail]]'' || Amarillo ||
|-
|1945|| ''[[Hollywood and Vine (film)|Hollywood and Vine]]'' || Tex || Uncredited
|-
|1945|| ''[[Beyond the Pecos]]'' || Dan Muncie ||
|-
|1945|| ''[[Renegades of the Rio Grande]]'' || Tex Henry ||
|-
|1946|| ''[[West of the Alamo]]'' || Keno Wilson ||
|-
|1949|| ''Gun Law Justice'' || Ray – Guitar Player || Uncredited
|-
|1953|| ''[[Calamity Jane (film)|Calamity Jane]]'' || Minor Role || Uncredited
|-
|1956|| ''[[Giant (1956 film)|Giant]]'' || Watts ||
|}

===Short subjects, starring Ray Whitley and His Six Bar Cowboys===
All produced and released by RKO Radio Pictures
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 100%;"
! colspan="2" style="background: LightSteelBlue;" | Film
|-
! Year
! Title

|-
|1937|| ''Rhythm Wranglers'' 
|-
|1938|| ''A Buckaroo Broadcast''
|-
|1938|| ''A Western Welcome'' 
|-
|1938|| ''Prairie Papas''
|-
|1939|| ''Ranch House Romeo''
|-
|1939|| ''Sagebrush Serenade''
|-
|1939|| ''Cupid Rides the Range''
|-
|1939|| ''Bandits and Ballads''
|-
|1940|| ''Molly Cures a Cowboy''
|-
|1940|| ''Corralling a Schoolmarm''
|-
|1940|| ''Bar Buckaroos''
|-
|1941|| ''Prairie Spooners''
|-
|1941|| ''Red Skins and Red Heads''
|-
|1941|| ''The Musical Bandit''
|-
|1941|| ''California or Bust''
|-
|1942|| ''Keep Shooting''
|-
|1942|| ''Cactus Capers''
|-
|1942|| ''Range Rhythm''
|}

==References==
((reflist))

==Bibliography==
*''The Guinness Who's Who Of Country Music''. Guinness Publishing, 1993. ((ISBN|0-85112-726-6))

==External links==
((IMDb name|nm0926072))

((Authority control))

((DEFAULTSORT:Whitley, Ray))
[[Category:1901 births]]
[[Category:1979 deaths]]
[[Category:American male singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:American country singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:Vee-Jay Records artists]]
[[Category:20th-century American male actors]]
[[Category:20th-century American singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:Male Western (genre) film actors]]
[[Category:20th-century American male singers]]

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