Tex Ritter to John Ritter…Cowboy’s Luck of the Draw

Tex Ritter and John Ritter were father and son, respectively.   Tex Ritter was born Woodward Maurice Ritter.  Hardly a cowboy name.  John Ritter was born John Ritter, a cowboy name, but the son was not the cowboy.   Maurice Ritter changed his name to Tex and the rest was history.  John Ritter stayed on as John, and the rest was also history.

Both were famous in their own right.  Both had successful careers.   Tex Ritter was one of the more famous post-war singing cowboys.  He made a slew of record albums.  He appeared in movies and played on Broadway.  He did concerts around the country and around the world.   He sang at the Grand Ol’ Opry and appeared on television.   He was arguably best known for singing the title song to the Academy Award Winning Film, High Noon.  The song was entitled High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling).  The song too won the Academy Award.

Tex’s voice projected soulful masculinity.   He was a voice of the West, at least the West of our fantasies and wishes.   He sung about drinking and poker, romancing, the usual cowboy stuff.  He made you believe it. He was the fifth person to be inducted into the Cowboy Hall of Fame.  He was inducted as well into other Western heritage and performance organizations.   The list is a long one.

John was no slouch either.  He became famous as one of the three leads in the hit series, “Three’s Company.”  He guest starred and appeared on numerous television shows.  He was in films.   He rendered a remarkable performance in Slingblade, which also won an Academy Award.
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Tex was heavyset.  He lived in a different era and appeared to be one not overly concerned about cholestorol or fat content in food.   I don’t know if he smoked, but it is reasonable to think he liked to eat and maybe have a nip or two.

John was more of the contemporary man.  He was concerned about health.   He looked good, kept fit, wasn’t stocky like the old man.   He was a nice guy with a good attitude, and it is reasonable to believe he was never abusive to himself nor to others.

Both father and son have stars on Hollywood Boulevard.  They are the only father-son team to be so honored, especially for different categories.   There was something else they had in common.   Both died of congenital heart defects.   Tex died thirty years before John.   Tex, the stocky guy who didn’t watch his diet, passed away at 68 years of age.   John was only 54 when he died.

So what’s this all mean, besides the fact that we should remember guys who were so talented?   Guys who brought a little something to our lives.  You can live healthy, and you should, but you can still die young.   It seems at times if it is in the cards and a great deal of your mortality is simply in the luck of the draw.  I though of this while watching High Noon for the umpteenth time and thinking of poor John, as well as his father.   I thought about a friend of mine who lived clean and exercised more than any human I know.   She is a relatively young woman.   Yet she is sick and dying.  Her father had the same disease.

I guess you can’t duck the luck of the draw.

Author: Gordon Basichis

Gordon Basichis is the Co-Founder of Corra Group, specializing in pre-employment background checks and corporate research. He has been a marketing and media executive. He is the author of the best selling Beautiful Bad Girl, The Vicki Morgan Story, a non-fiction novel that helped define exotic behavior in the late twentieth century. He has recently published The Cuban Quarter, The Blood Orange, and The Guys Who Spied for China, dealing with Chinese Espionage in the United States. He is the author of The Constant Travellers. He has been a journalist for several newspapers and is a screenwriter and producer.