Hopalong Cassidy Music - Western hero to millions of adoring fans

This was the first children's record set to make it
to the Top Ten on the pop charts...

HOPALONG CASSIDY AND THE SINGING BANDIT
was available with two 78 rpm or 45 rpm records.

There was another Record-Reader released by Capitol Records in 1950,
HOPALONG CASSIDY AND THE SQUARE DANCE HOLDUP

"Hoppy's Good Luck Coin" by Hamilton Richards
"The Legend of Phantom Scout Pass" by Steve Graham

The Hopalong Cassidy TV shows began in 1949. The next year the radio series started and ran from 1950 to 1952 for 104 episodes on the Mutual and CBS Radio Networks. The programs were recorded between 1948 and 1950 and featured primarily Andy Clyde as California and later Joe DuVal also as California. The theme music for this radio series was by Albert Glasser, who composed over 150 film scores in his long career. Here is what he said about the Hopalong Cassidy radio series music:

Walter White, who had been in charge of Radio Free Europe broadcasts for which I had written some stuff, asked me if I would like to write the music for a new radio show he was producing with William Boyd as Hopalong Cassidy. Well, of course, I jumped at the opportunity. This was around December of 1948, and James Petrillo, head of the musicians union, had called a strike for January 1st, 1949.

So, everybody was scrambling to get their music recorded before the deadline, and I had to look all over town to find a studio that was not already booked. I finally found a place on Highland Avenue - upstairs, but we had to be out of there by midnight to beat the strike deadline. So, I wrote the cues, had them copied, and called the seven (7) men for the orchestra - all top men. We got there at 10:00, and everything went well. I wrote a real slow, walking horse theme for when the announcer says, "It's Hopalong Cassidy time..."

We left the studio at midnight New Year's eve, and, it was snowing outside! Snowing in Los Angeles!! That was for the sample show. Once the show was sold, and they needed more music, with the strike on, everybody was going out of the country to record - England, Germany, France, Mexico.

My buddy Elias Breeskin was in Mexico, and he told me that he could set me up there at Cherabusco Studios, so I went to Mexico. He took care of everything - all I had to bring was the music, my baton and the money!

So, the show was a hit, and after the strike, I continued to hire the same seven musicians who had recorded the sample show with me for all the other Hoppalong Cassidy music sessions.

Here he comes,
Here he comes,
There's the trumpets,
There's the drums,
Here he comes, Hopalong Cassidy,
Here he comes!

These lyrics are from the television theme song,
bb L. Wolfe Gilbert (1886-1970)
with music by Nacio Herb Brown (1896-1964)

The Hopalong Cassidy opening and closing
TV theme is included on this wonderful nostalgic CD collection:

Former President Bill Clinton has written
the Preface to this lavishly illustrated book
by Grace Bradley Boyd and Michael Cochran titled,

Hopalong Cassidy: An American Legend

To read the book review

There were many articles written about Hopalong Cassidy, especially in 1950 in Time, Life and Look magazines,
when he was at the peak of his popularity.