Roy Rogers Museum Settles Into New Location
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High Desert next year to relocate to Branson, Missouri, Roy “Dusty”
Rogers, Jr. recently announced.
The decision, made by the museum’s board
of directors, was not made lightly and was driven by a need to find an
economically viable home for the museum, Rogers said. Since the deaths of museum
founders Roy Rogers (“King of the Cowboys”) and Dale Evans (“Queen of the
West”), attendance had been steadily declining. Thus, the decision was
made in spite of the fact that the museum had resided in Victorville for over
two decades.
“Sometimes you have to make changes in order to
preserve what’s important to you,” Rogers stated. “In our case, it’s
the preservation of the traditions and ideals that Mom and Dad dedicated their
lives to. We owe it to our parents to continue their legacy. I’m not going to
ride a pony down until there are no legs on it.”
Roy Rogers, Sr.
began a legacy making Western films for Republic Pictures in 1937. Ten years
later, he married his co-star, Dale Evans – and through feature films, radio
shows, live appearances all over the world and an immensely popular television
series, the two soon became icons of the Western culture as well as symbols of
traditional family values.
“We’re excited to be able to continue
Mom and Dad’s legacy,” he stated. “But we love it in the High
Desert, and we’re going to miss our friends and family here. We’re very grateful
to the people of the High Desert for the affection they showed Mom and Dad, and
for their support over the years.”
However, the museum’s board and
the Rogers family believe Branson espouses a family-friendly theme that will
provide an ideal environment in which to preserve and continue the Rogers
legacy. The vacation destination for 8.2 million visitors last year, Branson
boasts several theme parks, theaters, restaurants and lodging facilities. It was
even dubbed a “Country Music Mecca” by the television program 60
Minutes.
The new museum will include a theater featuring live
entertainment by Dusty Rogers and the High Riders, with other singing members of
the Rogers family performing the music made famous by Roy Rogers and Dale Evans.
The Victorville location will remain open and operating until early next
year, when construction of the Branson facility is expected to be complete.
“It’s taken three years to reach this decision,” Rogers said.
“We’re not going to pack up and close the doors. The welcome mat is still
out.”
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f the Dorman’s new preview book, <i>The Wasted Lands
#0</i>, which the noted Star Wars painter will be offering at the upcoming
Comic-Con International: San Diego, August 1-4.<br><br>Continuing the story of
the characters introduced in the Image Comics graphic novel, <i>Rail</i>, the
new incarnation of <i>The Wasted Lands</i> series will debut in 2003 from
Dorman’s own Rolling Thunder Press in early 2003.<br><br>This 24-page preview
book will offer the opportunity to explore the world of The Wasted Lands through
model sheets, full color paintings, and commentary by the artist. It also
features many never-before-published illustrations as well as examples from the
earliest development of the series in 1994 and through the <i>Heavy Metal</i>
story published in 1997 as part of the magazine’s 20<sup>th</sup>
anniversary.<br> <br><br></div>
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