REX ALLEN, JR

Rex Allen Jr. has made a name for himself that equals and in some ways surpasses his famous father (and previous inductee into the AMEHOF), Rex Allen Sr. “The Arizona Cowboy”.

Born August 23, 1947 in Chicago, Illinois. Rex Jr. would begin singing by the age of six. Growing up in this show business family Rex learned the guitar, performing with his church and at school. In college, Rex majored in theater arts and studied at the MGM Actors Studio with Vince Chase, while also working as a rodeo clown.

Moving to Nashville in the late ’60s, he broke into the country charts with “The Great Mail Robbery” in 1973. His first Top Ten was “Two Less Lonely People” in 1977, spanning decades of hits including “It’s Over”, “Lonely Street”, “Goodbye”, “I’m Getting Good at Missing You (Solitaire), ” No, No, No (I’d Rather Be Free”, “Dream On Texas Ladies.”, “Teardrops in My Heart,” and “Two Less Lonely People”.

In 1992 “The Statler Brothers Show” premiered and quickly became The Nashville Network’s highest rated show in which Rex was a regular. In 1994 TNN launched Rex in “Yesteryear” the most popular segment from the Statler Brothers show. Within four weeks it became the number 2 rated show with an average viewing audience of over 28 million people in 58 million households nationally. Rex returned to the Statler Brothers show in 1996 for two more seasons. The last show he did as a regular was the highest rated show in TNN history.
Rex Jr. continued a family tradition when he did the narration for the Jim Carrey movie, “Me, Myself, and Irene”. Rex was then tapped as a narrator for “CMT’s Most Shocking Feuds”. This began many more local and national voice over projects such as WD 40 and Mahindra Tractor.
With the success of both TNN television shows and his narrations, Warner Brothers decided to release a new collection of Rex’s greatest hits called “The Very Best Of Rex Allen Jr.”
1997 was the year Rex wrote, directed and starred in the production show “Gone Country” at the Rio Casino in Las Vegas.

As part of the “The Great American Cowboy China Tour” in 2006 he was the first performer ever allowed to sing on The Great Wall Of China along with his friend Johnny Western.
Rex began a new six hour daily syndicated radio show (2011): “Up all Nights On The Range with Rex Allen Jr.” which aired in many markets including Wichita, Kansas, Fresno, Santa Barbara and Santa Inez, California along with several stations in Texas. Rex’s CD “Other Voices was also released in 2011.

The years 2012 and 2013 were big years for Rex with The State of Arizona declaring Rex’s song “I Love You Arizona” the alternate state anthem and the official song of the Arizona centennial in 2012. The Twentieth Annual Ernest Tub Memorial Award, from the Western Film Preservation Society soon followed.

While honoring the Allen family name, Rex Jr. also created his own legacy with his steady flow of contributions in the entertainment world. Sharing his voice, his songwriting, and his talent to entertain is exactly why Rex Allen Jr. joins the list of inductees with the Arizona Music and Entertainment Hall Of Fame.

by Hans Olson, Linda Jane Brown, Jim West

Rex Allen Jr site