Tex Ritter

AKA:

Voice of the Western

Birth Name:

Woodward Maurice Ritter

Birth Date:

January 12, 1905

Birth Place:

Murvaul, Texas

Death Date:

January 2, 1974

Place of Death:

Davidson County Jail, Nashville, Tennessee

Age:

Cause of Death:

Heart attack

Cemetery Name:

Oak Bluff Memorial Park

Claim to Fame:

Music

Tex Ritter was an American singer, songwriter, and actor known for his contributions to country music and his work in Western films. Ritter's early life was shaped by a love for music, especially traditional country and cowboy songs. He pursued his passion for music and acting in the 1930s, first gaining recognition with his debut recording, Rye Whiskey in 1932. He became a prominent figure in the 1940s, recording numerous hit songs like "High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me)" in 1952, which became his signature song and earned him an Academy Award for Best Original Song. In addition to his music career, Ritter appeared in over 78 films, often playing cowboy roles in B-Western movies, particularly in the 1930s and 1940s. He was a regular on the radio and television, and he became an influential figure in Western film and music. He remains to this day the only artist to be elected into both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Cowboy Hall of Fame.

Fun Facts

Yes. He is the father of the late television actor and star John Ritter.

Tex Ritter can still be heard as the voice of Big Al, an audio-animatronic bear, at Disney theme park attraction Country Bear Jamboree at Tokyo Disneyland in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan, and formerly at the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World and Disneyland in Anaheim, California. Big Al sings a very depressing, but humorous version of “Blood on the Saddle.”

Tex died on Jan 2, 1974, sitting in a chair at the Davidson County Jail. He was waiting to bail out a band member for not paying child support. At the time it was believed he passed away from a heart attack. In 2003, his son John died, at the age of 54, of an aortic dissection. Because John was initially diagnosed as having a heart attack, and because aortic dissection is known to be hereditary, the family now believes that Tex died of an aortic dissection rather than a heart attack.

Cemetery Information:

Final Resting Place:

Oak Bluff Memorial Park

618 Block Street

Port Neches, Texas, 77651

USA

North America

Map:

Map of Oak Bluff Memorial Park in Port Neches, Texas

Grave Location:

Section 8

Grave Location Description

From Block Street drive until you find Section 17 (Praying Hands) circle. Exit the circle where the gazebo will be on your right. Drive ahead to the intersection with the 3 trees surrounding the Tex Ritter memorial plaque. Park and walk 15 rows into Section 8 for the grave of musician and actor Tex Ritter.