Lester Alvin Burnett, better known as Smiley Burnette, was an American country music performer and a comedic actor in Western films and on radio and TV, playing sidekick to Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, and other B-movie cowboys. He was also a prolific singer-songwriter who is reported to have played proficiently over 100 musical instruments, sometimes more than one simultaneously. His career, beginning in 1934, spanned four decades, including a regular role on CBS-TV's Petticoat Junction in the 1960s.
The Phantom Empire is a 1935 American Western serial film directed by Otto Brower and B. Reeves Eason and starring Gene Autry, Frankie Darro, and Betsy King Ross. This 12-chapter Mascot Pictures serial combined the Western, musical and science-fiction genres. The duration of the first episode is 30 minutes, while that of the rest is about 20 minutes. The serial film is about a singing cowboy who stumbles upon an ancient subterranean civilization living beneath his own ranch that becomes corrupted by unscrupulous greedy speculators from the surface. In 1940, a 70-minute feature film edited from the serial was released under the titles Radio Ranch or Men with Steel Faces. This was Gene Autry's first starring role, playing himself as a singing cowboy. It is considered to be the first science-fiction Western.
Beyond the Last Frontier is a 1943 American Western film about an undercover Texas Ranger, John Paul Revere, within Big Bill Hadley's gang of crooks. Howard Bretherton directed the film and John K. Butler and Morton Grant wrote the screenplay. The film stars Eddie Dew as Johnny Revere, Harry Woods as Big Bill Hadley, Robert Mitchum as Trigger Dolan, Lorraine Miller as Susan Cook, and Smiley Burnette as Frog Millhouse.
Raiders of Sunset Pass is a 1943 American Western film directed by John English with a screenplay by John K. Butler.
The Old Barn Dance is a 1938 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, Joan Valerie, and written by Bernard McConville and Charles F. Royal.
Billy the Kid Returns is a 1938 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane and starring Roy Rogers.
Man from Music Mountain is a 1938 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and Carol Hughes. Written by Betty Burbridge and Luci Ward, based on a story by Bernard McConville.
Home on the Prairie is a 1939 American Western film directed by Jack Townley and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and June Storey. Written by Charles Arthur Powell and Paul Franklin, the film is about a cattle inspector's efforts to prevent a corrupt cattle rancher from shipping to market a herd of cattle infected with hoof and mouth disease.
Guns and Guitars is a 1936 American Western film directed by Joseph Kane and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and Dorothy Dix in her final film appearance. Written by Dorrell and Stuart E. McGowan, the film is about a singing cowboy who helps protect a county from fever-ridden cattle, and after being framed for murdering the sheriff, proves his innocence, gets elected sheriff, and then goes after the bad guy.
Rootin' Tootin' Rhythm is a 1937 American Western film directed by Mack V. Wright and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and Armida. Based on a story by Johnston McCulley, the film is about two cowboys who assume the identities of dead outlaws in order to stop a bunch of cattle rustlers, later discovering that the outlaws are far from dead.
Mountain Rhythm is a 1939 American Western film directed by B. Reeves Eason and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and June Storey. Based on a story by Connie Lee, the film is about a cowboy who organizes his fellow ranchers to oppose an Eastern promoter's land grab scheme.
Rovin' Tumbleweeds is a 1939 American Western film directed by George Sherman and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette and Mary Carlisle. Written by Betty Burbridge, Dorrell McGowan, and Stuart E. McGowan, the film is about a cowboy congressman who exposes a crooked politician who is delaying passage of a flood control bill.
Rancho Grande is a 1940 American Western film directed by Frank McDonald and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and June Storey. Written by Bradford Ropes, Betty Burbridge, and Peter Milne, based on a story by Peter Milne and Connie Lee, the film is about a singing cowboy and ranch foreman responsible for completing an important irrigation project and for the three spoiled grandchildren of his former boss who come out West to the ranch they inherited.
Ride, Tenderfoot, Ride is a 1940 American Western film directed by Frank McDonald and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and June Storey. Written by Winston Miller, based on a story by Betty Burbridge and Connie Lee, the film is about a singing cowboy who inherits a meat-packing plant and must face stiff competition from a beautiful business rival.
Under Fiesta Stars is a 1941 American Western film directed by Frank McDonald and starring Gene Autry, Smiley Burnette, and Carol Hughes. Based on a story by Karl Brown, the film is about a singing cowboy and rodeo champion who inherits a ranch and mining property along with his foster father's niece. She wants to sell but needs his consent, and he wants to work the mine according to his foster father's wishes. Problems arise when the niece unwittingly gets involved with unscrupulous lawyers who are plotting to steal the mine. The film features the songs "Purple Sage in the Twilight", "When You're Smiling", and the title song.
Pride of the Plains is a 1944 American Western film directed by Wallace Fox and written by John K. Butler and Robert Creighton Williams. The film stars Robert Livingston, Smiley Burnette, Nancy Gay, Steve Barclay, Kenneth MacDonald and Charles Miller. The film was released on January 5, 1944, by Republic Pictures.
The Laramie Trail is a 1944 American Western film directed by John English and written by J. Benton Cheney. The film stars Robert Livingston, Smiley Burnette, Linda Brent, Martin Garralaga, Emmett Lynn and John James. The film was released on April 3, 1944, by Republic Pictures.
Call of the Rockies is a 1944 American Western film directed by Lesley Selander and written by Robert Creighton Williams. The film stars Smiley Burnette, Sunset Carson, Harry Woods, Kirk Alyn, Ellen Hall and Frank Jaquet. The film was released on July 14, 1944, by Republic Pictures.
Bordertown Trail is a 1944 American Western film directed by Lesley Selander and written by Robert Creighton Williams and Jesse Duffy. The film stars Smiley Burnette, Sunset Carson, Weldon Heyburn, Addison Richards, Francis McDonald and Jack Luden. The film was released on August 11, 1944, by Republic Pictures.
Code of the Prairie is a 1944 American Western film directed by Spencer Gordon Bennet and written by Albert DeMond and Anthony Coldeway. The film stars Smiley Burnette, Sunset Carson, Peggy Stewart, Weldon Heyburn, Tom Chatterton and Roy Barcroft. The film was released on October 6, 1944, by Republic Pictures.
