Bill Potter (musician)

Lewis William Potter (April 15, 1923 – September 5, 1975),[3] known professionally as Bill Potter, was an American country music singer, Western movie actor, and television personality of the late 1940s and early 1950s.

Bill Potter
Potter, c. 1957
Potter, c. 1957
Background information
Birth nameLewis William Potter
Also known asCactus Bill
Cowboy Bill
Born(1923-04-23)April 23, 1923
Stratton, Maine, U.S.[1]
DiedSeptember 5, 1975(1975-09-05) (aged 52)
Orange, Texas, U.S.
GenresCountry
Occupation(s)Singer, actor, deputy sheriff
Instrument(s)Guitar[2]
Years activec. 1948–1957
LabelsStarday Records
Monogram Pictures

Biography

Potter grew up in Bingham, Maine, and served with the United States Army Air Forces during World War II.[4][3] After being discharged in December 1943,[3] he worked for a shipbuilding company in Orange, Texas.[5] By 1948, he was married to a woman from Dallas and had a son.[6] They later operated a ranch near Orange.[4]

In Texas, Potter was discovered by a talent scout, and appeared in several Western movies by Monogram Pictures in the late 1940s as a singing cowboy.[6][7] Also known as "Cactus Bill" or "Cowboy Bill", Potter went on to appear on early television shows on KFI-TV in Los Angeles and on KPRC-TV in Houston.[8] While living in Houston, he worked as a deputy sheriff in Harris County for approximately three years.[9] In mid-1954, he moved to Corpus Christi, Texas, where he had a children's program on KVDO-TV.[10] He resumed working as a deputy sheriff in December 1955,[9] a role he held through at least December 1956.[11]

In August 1957, Potter was the winning contestant on an episode of Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts, singing a western ballad.[4] Billed as "Hollywood Singing Cowboy Bill Potter", he was featured at several events in Maine the following month.[12][13] From February to May of 1958, KPLC-TV in Lake Charles, Louisiana, broadcast the Bill Potter Show on an intermittent basis.[14][15] At the time of his mother's death in June 1958, Potter was again living in Orange, Texas.[16]

Potter died in September 1975 in Orange, aged 52, "following a lingering illness."[1] He was survived by a son and a daughter.[1] He is interred in Houston National Cemetery.[3]

Filmography

Potter is known to have appeared in at least 10 movies, each released in 1948 or 1949:[17]

YearTitleRole
1948Gunning for JusticePotter
Courtin' TroubleSteve Graves
Hidden DangerHenchman Perry
1949Susanna PassHenchman (uncredited)
Across the Rio GrandePete - Henchman (uncredited)
West of El DoradoGuitar Player Phil
Brand of FearMac - Gold Shipper
Range JusticeBill (as Bill Porter)
Haunted TrailsDeputy (uncredited)
Western RenegadesBob (uncredited)

Discography

Potter is known to have released at least two records, both with Starday Records in 1953.[18][19] Additionally, a promotional record from the Shamrock Record Company in Houston is credited to Cowboy Bill Potter and Dickie Jones and His Texas Longhorns, year unspecified.

LabelNo.A-sideB-SideFormatRef.
Starday110"I Lost My Gal""Nobody Knows"Shellac / 10" / 78 rpm[20]
Starday111"Honk Your Horn""Cry Not For Me"Vinyl / 7" / 45 rpm[21]
Shamrock–"High Sierra Moon""I Got A Yearnin'"Shellac / 10" / 78 rpm[22]

References
  1. "William Lewis Potter". Morning Sentinel. Waterville, Maine. September 17, 1975. p. 2. Retrieved October 3, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  2. "Television Programs". Los Angeles Evening Citizen News. August 12, 1957. p. 21. Retrieved October 3, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  3. "U.S. Veterans' Gravesites, ca.1775-2019". United States Department of Veterans Affairs. Retrieved October 3, 2022 – via fold3.com.
  4. "Bingham Native Is Winner On Godfrey Show". Portland Press Herald. Portland, Maine. August 13, 1957. p. 2. Retrieved October 2, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  5. "Bingham". Morning Sentinel. Waterville, Maine. February 2, 1944. p. 5. Retrieved October 3, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  6. "Bingham Man Gets Roles In Hollywood". Morning Sentinel. Waterville, Maine. October 29, 1948. p. 17. Retrieved October 2, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  7. "Bingham Native Appears In Picture At Local Theater". Bangor Daily News. Bangor Daily News. January 27, 1949. p. 13. Retrieved October 3, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  8. "Talent & Tunes". The Billboard. November 13, 1954. p. 93. Retrieved October 3, 2022 – via Google Books.
  9. "'Cactus Bill' Named Deputy By Odem Dolan". Corpus Christi Caller-Times. December 20, 1955. p. 16. Retrieved October 2, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  10. "Radio, TV Highlights". Corpus Christi Caller-Times. August 8, 1954. p. 13-C. Retrieved October 2, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  11. "Christmas Party For Children Set Thursday". Corpus Christi Caller-Times. December 16, 1956. p. 11B. Retrieved October 2, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  12. "Hollywood Singing Cowboy Bill Potter". Sun Journal. Lewiston, Maine. August 31, 1957. p. 7. Retrieved October 3, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  13. "Big Show and Dance Tomorrow Night". Biddeford Daily Journal. Biddeford, Maine. September 6, 1957. p. 6. Retrieved October 2, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  14. "Weekly Television Guide". Crowley Daily Signal. Crowley, Louisiana. February 15, 1958. p. 7. Retrieved October 3, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  15. "Saturday's Television Log". The Jennings Daily News. Jennings, Louisiana. May 16, 1958. p. 2. Retrieved October 3, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  16. "Mrs. Agnes H. Potter". Bangor Daily News. Bangor Daily News. June 16, 1958. p. 18. Retrieved October 3, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
  17. "Bill Potter". IMDb. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
  18. Gibson, Nathan D. (2011). The Starday Story: The House That Country Music Built. University Press of Mississippi. p. 179. ISBN 978-1604738308.
  19. "Starday Records". Discogs. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
  20. "I Lost My Gal / Nobody Knows". Discogs. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
  21. "Honk Your Horn / Cry Not For Me". Discogs. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
  22. "High Sierra Moon / I Got A Yearnin'". Discogs. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
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