Long before Elvis packed arenas and Elton John filled every seat in the house, a soft-spoken cowboy from Texas was already making history at one of the most famous venues in America.
His name was Gene Autry. And what he did at Madison Square Garden, decades before those other legends ever set foot on the stage, still has not been repeated.
Born Orvon Grover Autry on September 29, 1907, he grew up in small-town Texas and became known to the world as the Singing Cowboy. From that humble start, he turned himself into one of the most recognizable performers in the country.
Then he walked into New York City and did something no entertainer had ever done before. Gene Autry became the first act to sell out Madison Square Garden.
Think about that for a moment. Elvis Presley. Elton John. Billy Joel. All of them would go on to make their own celebrated history at MSG. But Autry got there first. More than a century after his birth, that record still stands. No other entertainer can say they were first. He sold more than 100 million record copies and he also earned more than a dozen gold and platinum records.
Being the first star to sell out Madison Square Garden was not enough for Autry. He appeared in 93 motion pictures between 1934 and 1953. His films were the first to feature Western music to Americans. He also hosted The Gene Autry Show TV series for 6 consecutive seasons. Autry passed away in 1998, at the age of 91. He lived his life in full, setting a good example for all of us.
If you grew up watching him ride across the silver screen or hearing his voice on the radio, you already know there was something special about Gene Autry. Turns out, the rest of New York knew it too.
