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Here’s another magazine article I thought you’d enjoy.
It’s a particularly good look at the history of the books from Dad writing on the kitchen table as a teenager to the movies and all the turns on the track along the way. You never know where that “little idea” may take you! Jennifer Meyer does a great job of capturing what interested Walter Farley most – that intangible something that happens between a horse and rider.
My friend Elizabeth McCall wrote this fascinating article about Elvis Presley and his love of horses. It’s going to be out in the next issue of “Cowboys & Indians” magazine but you can have a sneak peek – right here, right now!!
I always liked Elvis in “Blue Hawaii” something about living on an island ranch, I guess :)
Enjoy the memories and maybe we’ll all meet up sometime at the barn in Graceland!
Have a fabulous weekend and take a minute to remember our firefighters and soldiers on this hot Fourth of July holiday.
tim farley
All The King’s Horses
Few outside his innermost circle knew Elvis Presley had a heart for horses.
BY ELIZABETH KAYE MCCALL
Elvis on Rising Sun, his golden palomino, and Bear, his black Tennessee Walking Horse.Photography: Courtesy Elvis Presley Enterprises inc.
The world knew Elvis for his music, his movies, and even for his motorcycles. People close to him knew him for his love of horses. A rich part of his personal life that largely escaped public view, his equine devotion opened to the world in 2009 when the stables at Graceland opened to the public in Memphis, Tennessee.
“Actually, Elvis was a little bit afraid of horses at first because of something that happened on a movie set,” says Alene Alexander, Graceland’s stable supervisor. She’s referring to the time a horse ran away with the actor during production of Flaming Star, in which Elvis plays Pacer Burton, the son of a Kiowa mother and Texas rancher father who ends up caught between both worlds. But after buying wife Priscilla a black quarter horse named Domino, Elvis had a change of heart about riding.
“After he saw Priscilla ride, he became interested in owning a horse,” says Alexander, a former schoolteacher who has become the King’s de facto equine historian after 30 years at Graceland. Not just any horse — he had to have a golden palomino. “He would take the guys [in his entourage] and Priscilla, and they would go out and literally knock on people’s doors who had horses, looking for a golden palomino.”
It was often 3 in the morning when he took those horse-hunting trips. “Elvis couldn’t travel during the day. If he did, the world would be following him. …
Whose it going to be? Do you have a favorite? Union Rags? Bodemeister?
PP Horse Jockey Trainer ML
1 Daddy Long Legs
C. O’Donoghue A. O’Brien 30/1
2 Optimizer
J. Court D.W. Lukas 50/1
3 Take Charge Indy
C. Borel P. Byrne 15/1
4 Union Rags
J. Leparoux M. Matz 9/2
5 Dullahan
K. Desormeaux D. Romans 8/1
6 Bodemeister M. Smith B. Baffert 4/1
7 Rousing Sermon
J. Lezcano J. Hollendorfer 50/1
8 Creative Cause
J. Rosario M. Harrington 12/1
9 Trinniberg
W. Martinez B. Parboo 50/1
10 Daddy Nose Best
G. Gomez S. Asmussen 15/1
11 Alpha
R. Maragh K. McLaughlin 15/1
12 Prospective
L. Contreras M. Casse 30/1
13 Went The Day Well
J. Velazquez G. Motion 20/1
14 Hansen
R. Dominguez M. Maker 10/1
15 Gemologist
J. Castellano T. Pletcher 6/1
16 El Padrino
R. Bejarano T. Pletcher 20/1
17 Done Talking
S. Russell H. Smith 50/1
18 Sabercat
C. Nakatani S. Asmussen 30/1
19 I’ll Have Another
M. Gutierrez D. O’Neill 12/1
20 Liaison
M. Garcia B. Baffert 50/1
21 My Adonis E. Trujillo K. Breen 50/1
Madison Wallraf, Teen Girl, Saves 25 Horses From Stable Fire Teen Girl Saves Horses, Teen News
Horsegirl
Fifteen-year-old Madison Wallraf was driving to the stables with her family to go riding when she saw the smoke rising. Fearing for the life of her horse, Red, she called 911 and ran over to the fire. In addition to saving Red’s life, the brave girl helped evacuate an estimated 25 horses after a stable in McHenry County, Illinois that went up in flames on Wednesday.
The 4’10” teen told MSNBC: “I started off by just putting their halters on and pulling them out by twos, but then the fire started getting quicker so I just started wrapping their ropes around their necks and just tying them around my arms and pulling them out.”
Although her stepfather pleaded with her not to go in to the stable, Madison rushed in to remove the horses as the ceiling of the stable was falling down.
“I got kicked in the shoulder by one of the horses in there and I got knocked down a few times,” she said. “But my adrenaline was so high at the time that it didn’t phase me.”
Along with 21-year-old co-rescuer Shannon Weitzman, Wallraf was rushed to the local hospital and treated for smoke inhalation after the fire department had arrived.
The fire lasted for roughly two hours before it consumed the entirety of the 25,000 square foot barn. Due to the lack of hydrants, water had to be brought in by truck to fight the flames. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.
Although many of the horses were saved thanks to the girls’ heroism, 18 died and three escaped, according to the Daily Chronicle. But, at least, Madison has been reunited with her beloved horse, Red.
Recently we have been focused on creating a new aged bronze of Bucephalus and this is the result of months of reworking the finish to make it as close as possible to the “treasure of the desert”. The aged patina of this new figure will still darken further, as all bronzes do, but this version adds a “jump” on the process. It’s not quite black but the rich bronze color of the original.
Hope you like it! ON SPECIAL SALE for the next few weeks only as warm thank you to all our Black Stallion club members and their help with the Horse Tales literacy project. Don’t forget to tell us what you think and join the forum to meet more of your “herd”.
