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What is the origin of the derogatory term "jasper" we hear so often on the show?
Corwyn Edwards writes: Yesterday on the way to work I stopped into a
library branch and looked up Jasper in the unabridged dictionary. One entry
for the name said: 'fellow, guy.' The source for this defintion was: 'from the name
Jasper.' It then used an example quoted from an author named Ross
Santee, and gave no date of origin.
Looking up the meaning of the name in another book I find either 'a
precious stone' or a 'form of Casper.' Casper, in turn, is a form of
Gaspar, the traditional name for one of the three wise men who followed
the star of Bethlehem (of course the Bible gives neither name nor number
to the wise men.) Gaspar is probably from the Persian name for
treasure. None of this explains how it came to be a derogatory
reference. I have considered it being a euphemism for another 'J' word,
but am not convinced. More likely, I think it may have its origin in
some literary character, although I can think of none."
Go to top of section.
What's the deal with the "remuda"?
Is it Spanish? And does it mean the place where the horses are kept or
the string of horses itself?
Corwyn Edwards provides a response: "REMUDA is a spanish word referring to the herd of horses used by the cowboys on the trail drive. The meaning of the
spanish word REMUDA is "change" or "replacement". The man in charge of
the REMUDA is known as the Wrangler. The remuda, of course, allowed the
cowboys to alternate horses during the day so as not to overwork them."
Go to top of section.
Dogies:
Corwyn Edwards provides even more information: Although most people know that "dogies" refers to cattle, many don't know the specific definition. A dogie is a
motherless calf. Perhaps they are called dogies because of the
puppy-like behavior of an orphaned calf in following a person about.
Incidentally, a maverick is any unbranded, motherless calf--but that's
another story."
Go to top of section.
Mavericks:
Corwyn Edwards, font of considerable information and of amusing prose, continues:
"Mavericks are the namesake of early Texas settler Samuel Augustus
Maverick. Maverick was born in Pendleton, South Carolina, in 1803, and
graduated from Yale University before moving to Texas. He was involved
in the Texas war for independence in 1835-36, and, unknown at the time,
his life was spared when he was elected a delegate to represent the
garrison defending the Alamo at the convention which framed the Texas
Declaration of Independence. Samuel Maverick was one of the 59 men to
sign that document. Samuel Maverick died in San Antonio in 1870.
Maverick county Texas is named in his honor.
"Texas legend has it that Samuel Maverick refused to brand his cattle,
then claimed any unbranded calf he found as his own. Eventually any
unbranded calf became known as a Maverick calf.
"The true story may be a little more pedestrian, but still interesting.
There are several versions of the actual origin. The most likely one
has Maverick reluctantly entering the cattle business by accepting a
herd in payment for a debt. The cattle were generally neglected between
the late 1840's and mid 1850's, when his unbranded cattle began roaming
the Texas coastal region. The area residents began referring to any
unbranded calf as a Maverick calf. In 1856, Maverick sold his herd, and
the buyer roamed the region claiming all unbranded cattle as
"Maverick's". This expression caught on locally, and then spread
throughout Texas after the war between the states, when large herds of
unbranded cattle were scattered across the Texas plains.
"The state of having no brand--signifying no owner--came to represent an
independence free of obligation. After maverick became a synonym for an
unbranded calf, it began to refer to a person displaying extreme
independence." Go to top of section.
Lyrics to the Rawhide theme song :
(With thanks to Cathi Iuliano for having typed in much of this.)
Keep movin', movin', movin',
Though they're disapprovin',
Keep them dogies movin', rawhide.
Don't try to understand 'em,
Just rope 'em, throw, and brand 'em.
Soon we'll be livin' high and wide.
My heart's calculatin',
My true love will be waitin',
Be waitin' at the end of my ride.
Move 'em on, head 'em up,
Head 'em up, move 'em on,
Move 'em on, head 'em up, rawhide!
Cut 'em out, ride 'em in,
Ride 'em in, let 'em out,
Cut 'em out, ride 'em in, rawhide!
The ending lyrics are:
Keep rollin', rollin', rollin',
Though the streams are swollen,
Keep them dogies rollin', rawhide.
Through rain and wind and weather,
Hell bent for leather,
Wishin' my gal was by my side.
All the things I'm missin',
Good vittles, love and kissin',
Are waiting at the end of my ride.
Move 'em on, head 'em up,
Head 'em up, move 'em on,
Move 'em on, head 'em up, rawhide!
Cut 'em out, ride 'em in,
Ride 'em in, let 'em out,
Cut 'em out, ride 'em in, rawhide!
RAWHIDE!!!
Go to top of section.
Beyond the Sun:
Here are the lyrics to the song Rowdy sang in The Pitchwagon.
Beyond The Sun
(by Russ Garcia and Lenny Adelson)
Beyond the sun over the mountains,
There's a place my heart's longing to be
Beyond the sun over the mountains,
There's a face my eyes hunger to see
The long, long road
Seems like an endless thing,
Somewhere, someplace,
There is a home.
Beyond the sun over the mountains
There are lonely arms, waiting for me.
Go to top of section.
Filming Locations:
(This information is culled shamelessly from comments made by the learned members of our Rawhide discussion list.)
The majority of the "outside" scenes in Rawhide were
filmed at Iverson's Ranch--located in what is now
called the Simi (pronounced see-mee) Valley--in
California. If the cast went "on location," it was usually to Red Rock Canyon (also an LA location) or to
Sonora. There is a website that has some pics
of Iverson's Ranch at:
http://employees.oxy.edu/jerry/iverson.htm
Go to top of section.
Where and when were the drives?
(This information is likewise culled from comments made by the members of our Rawhide discussion list.)
The first drive ended in Sedalia, Missouri. As the seasons passed, they made
several more drives, and there were episodes about arriving at the
railhead town--The Big Blowout (2/10/61) and The Lost Herd (10/16/64) are two of them--and about starting up a
new drive--The Sendoff and The Long Shakedown (10/6/61 and 10/13/61).
As for dates, based on internal evidence, and things like dates on
tombstones, the drives made it into 1870 a least.
At least one season the drive was on the Goodnight-Loving Trail.
Go to top of section.
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Rawhide: 1959-65 (CBS)
Eric Fleming as Gil Favor
Clint Eastwood as Rowdy Yates
Sheb Wooley as Pete Nolan
Paul Brinegar as Wishbone
James Murdock as Mushy
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Theme performed by Frankie Laine
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Eric Fleming movies
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 The Glass Bottom Boat
Doris Day mistaken as a spy! Sounds like a light-hearted 60's romp to me. In addition to our man Eric Fleming, the movie also features Arthur Godfrey (by the way, am I the only one who can sing about dotting the "i" for the inventors?), Paul Lynde, Dick Martin, and Dom DeLuise.
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 Curse of the Undead
Eric Fleming stars as Preacher Dan Young in this, yes, vampire western. How cool is that?
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 Queen of Outer Space
Eric stars with Zsa Zsa Gabor, dahling, in this hilarious sci-fi flick. A reviewer at the Internet Movie Database says the movie "reeks of cardboard sets, silly dialogue, and more phallic symbols, hot babes, and sexual innuendo than you can wave a stick (or laser gun) at."
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 Conquest of Space
Eric stars as Captain Barney Merritt in this story about the first manned expedition to Mars. A reviewer at amazon.com numbers among the movie's merits its inclusion of: "MST3K ready dialog! The obligitory accidental weightlessness scene! ... The first ever burial in space! The first ever snowfall on Mars!" In other words, you can't lose!
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The Rawhide theme
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 Rockin'/Hell Bent for Leather
Head 'em up, move 'em out! Frankie Laine performed the rousing song played over the opening credits of Rawhide. The Rawhide theme is among the 24 tracks on this CD.
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Sheb Wooley Sings
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 The Purple People Eater
31 tracks including the classic title song
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 Wild and Wooley, Big Unruly Me
29 tracks
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 Rawhide/How the West was Won
24 tracks including Sheb's version of the Rawhide theme (this is not the version performed in the opening credits of the show!)
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 That's My Pa
Four box set totaling 47 tracks
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