Born 1912 as Frances Octavia Smith in Uvalde, Texas, American actress, singer, and songwriter Dale Evans had a productive career as a jazz, swing, and big band singer that led to a screen test and contract with 20th Century Fox studios. She gained exposure on radio as the featured singer for a time on the Edgar Bergen/Charlie McCarthy show.
Evans married Roy Rogers on New Year’s Eve 1947 at the Flying L Ranch in Davis, Oklahoma, where they had earlier filmed the movie Home in Oklahoma. The successful marriage was Rogers’ third and Evans’ fourth; the two were a team on- and off-screen from 1946 until Rogers’ death in 1998.
For her contribution to radio, Evans has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6638 Hollywood Blvd. She received a second star at 1737 Vine St. for her contribution to the television industry. In 1976, she was inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. In 1995, she was inducted into the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame in Fort Worth, Texas. In 1997, she was inducted into the Texas Trail of Fame. She ranked No. 34 on CMT’s 40 Greatest Women in Country Music in 2002.
Evans died of congestive heart failure in 2001, at the age of 88, in Apple Valley, California. In 2001, a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars was dedicated to her and Roy Rogers. In 2018, she was inducted into the National Multicultural Western Heritage Museum.
Take a look at these fabulous photos to see the beauty of a young Dale Evans in the 1940s.
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