Call it History,, Americana, Popular Culture or trivia in the age of twitter, but earlier this month Roy Rogers Horse Trigger (and Bullet, Buttermilk and Trigger Jr.) was put on the Auction block at Christie’s Auction house in Rockefeller Center. It was quite an event and it was captured in an article from Salon magazine
All week long, city slickers, tourists and fans moseyed in off 49th Street to see Trigger (and Bullet, Buttermilk and Trigger Jr.) and to preview the movie star's memorabilia before the big auction on July 14. The powerful steed reared on hind legs in Christie's atrium in the pose made famous on the July 12, 1943, cover of Life magazine. "The Smartest Horse in the Movies" could hula dance, shoot a gun, and untie ropes — everything, it seemed, but read his fan mail (100 letters a week).
According to the auctioneer Cathy Elkies, It was one of the most Iconic pieces she ever sold.
It wasn't Trigger alone that moved people but what he represents: an era when the good guys wore white, the bad guys never smiled, and cowboys defined and defended America. She goes on to say "I've sold John Travolta's 'Saturday Night Fever' suit, Rosebud from 'Citizen Kane,' and the dress Marilyn Monroe wore when she sang 'Happy Birthday' to JFK."Others were moved by Roy and Dale's Christian values. "What you have here is a very powerful horse that is humbly submissive to his master," explained Ken Smith, a pastor from New Jersey. (Dale Evans once spoke at his church.)
To find out the monetary worth of Trigger and other King of Cowboy Memorabilia you will have to read the article.
Roy Passed in 1998, Dale in 2001 and the Happy Trails Ranch recently closed its doors as popularity waned. And no, Dale Evans was not memorialized through Taxidermy for her years of submissive service.
http://www.womenetcetera.com/...
On an almost related note, ever hear of a Zedonk? For those who don’t believe that America is still the melting pot for the incredibly shrinking animal kingdom. A zedonk, an unusual cross between a donkey and a zebra, is turning heads at the Chestatee Wildlife Preserve after being born there about a week ago. She has black stripes on her legs and face. http://www.newslook.com/...