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Tex Lavallee Bio & Production Co.
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Tex Lavallee Biography--see a lot of tex picture below
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Hello Western Fans,
In reply of many requests here's my biography.
I was born around 4:00pm on Wednesday August 29, 1934 in Hemmingford, Quebec, Canada; just about five miles from New York state, USA.
When I was only one year old, my father moved to St. Chrysostome, Quebec; about nine miles from the frontier of the New York state border, on a nice farm. My father was a farmer. His name was Henry Lavallee; a very special fellow! I think he was one of the best storytellers for many miles around Quebec, Canada.
About 5 years later, he started a little restuarant and depanner, until he died at only 56 years old in 1948, I was only 14 years old at that time and I was now in charge of our farm.
My grandfather, Hormidas Lavallee was also farmer as most of my uncles were; except for my uncle Jerry Lavallee. Another uncle Joseph Lavallee was in the milk factory business. At one time he owned three factories.
My mother, Annette St. Hilaire, died in 1976 at the ages of 76 years old. She came from Montreal, Quebec, from a music and artist familly. It was a well educated familly, or high class if you prefer. Her mother Agnes Girard was a very nice lady. That, I will never forget! I was her preferred little grandson. She was alway playing with me and buying me a lot of candies, and all kind of gifts.
My uncle Charles August St. Hilaire was a very educated man and operated a big well known classical education school in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. I must say that he was my best friend; always ready to help me. He became later a Franciscain father. He died at only 60 years old.
My grandfather, Louis St. Hilaire on my mother's blood line was a great artist painter; well known in many countries, including the USA. In 1889 he got his own artist/painter's studio located at the corner of Central and Second E D Street, 16 Bloc White, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. At this time he made alot of professional paintings for the cardinal of St Paul, MN, Joannes Ireland. He also made a fews trips around the world creating many paintings.
I have two brothers. Aurele Lavallee who died in 2004 at age 84. Doris Lavallee, now 88 is a well known trapper and carpenter. He, at one time recorded a song about lumber jacks and trappers of the Province of Quebec, which I wrote for him in the 1960's. After all this time, this song is still sung by trappers, lumber jacks and nature lovers.
My sister, Jeannine Lavallee now 89, She is the oldest of my familly. a very nice person. In the past, she was a banjo player,
When I was around 10 years old, I fell in love with Western Music and Cowboy Western Movie Films. Of course, Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, Allan, "Rocky" Lane as Red Ryder, Lash Larue, and Eddie Dean were some of my favorite stars and heros. So, at this age I decided to be western performer. At only 11 years old, I tried my luck in a local variety music and song contest, but it was not the same as siging at the farm, I was that night with my little school girl friend, named, Denise Giroux, a very good little singer and very nice too. That night she won the contest, but that night I was so nervous that Denise pushed me to enter the stage. The hall was full, so I sung the best as I could, but I didn't win the first or second prize. Ha Ha! I was so mad that I made the promise to be in public show business. I kept my promise.
Up to this date I have made thirty-two 45 rpm records, seventeen long plays, 33 rpm albums, 4 track cassettes, one 8 track cassette, plus 3 CD's. In 1974 I got the chance to win the trophy of the Quebec, "Western Country Music Academy" (QWCMA) for the best western french song, released during 1973. I must say that I sold alot of 45 RPM's and alot of LP records at that time.
Tex Lavallee in a 1956 western film scene of
"Black River Outlaw" Tex is on the left looking
at a Ranger friend who is badly hurt, This 52
minute feature film in color was produced and
released by ETL Productions in 1956,the above picture was scan from an old advertising news papers of 1965, so that wy the picture is not very clear,all the original negatifs and 35mm and 16mm films were all lost in an fire some years ago.
I wrote many western songs in French and in English. I will say over two hundred. The first one I wrote, was in 1949 called, "When the Sun Goes Down on the Prairie". It was recorded by three western artists, and myself, All were very succesful.
I also had my westerm country band for over twenty-five years called, "Tex Lavallee & the Frontier Ramblers". We had many good music players including Andy Mayou at the drums; Bud Lavallee at the flat-top Martin guitar; Gerry Giroux at the fiddle; a great fiddle player; Marty Ricky Smith, Yvon Deneault as lead guitar and Marcel Sagala on the Fender electric base. It was a lot of fun beleive me!
At the present, I write songs from time to time, and I teach some nice tricks to my palomino horse which I named "Trigger" (in memory of the great horse of the movies, the original Trigger, owned by Roy Rogers, "King of the Cowboys". I wrote a song about this famous movie horse called "He Was the Smartest Horse of the Movies". Also, I wrote another song at this time about Roy Rogers called, "He Was the King of the Cowboys". These two songs were on my first CD that were released on E.T.L. label in the spring of 2005, now all sold out!
After fifty-seven years, I still doing special performances from time to time. At times, I perform with my palimino horse "Trigger". We appear at western festivals, fairs and other western activities; which I sing my songs; do fancy gun spinning; fancy rope and whip tricks for all the little kids and grownups.
I'm having the time of my life!
Many of you have asked me if I was married. I will say no, but I got during my life, four girls friends. Two of them, I loved very much, but for some reason, I was never married. Life sometimes is difficult to understand and sometimes we have no control over our destiny.
Partners, I could write a lot about my life, good and bad moments. It would take a book. Maybe in the near future I will do just that!
Many happy trails,
Tex Lavallee, the western performer
(The pictures below show part of my TLP Production equipment
from days gone by).
My nostalgic film camera.
My antique motion picture movie cameras.
More of my antique Production Collection
Just like Roy Rogers .......
I Collect & Save Everything!!
Tex Lavallee Productions ®
Copyright © 2003 2008
All rights reserved.
TEX LAVALLEE,BEFORE A REPRESENTATION.
Tex Lavallee at his home. Standing in front of a large movie poster of one of his B - Western heros, Roy Rogers.
A Young Tex - 12 years old IN 1946.
TEX LAVALLEE,IN HIS PRODUCTION OFFICE IN 1972.
TEX-AT ONLY NINE MONTHS.
YOUNG TEX LAVALLEE, AT ONLY TWO YEARS OLD IN 1936.
TEX LAVALLEE IN AN SCENE OF TEX ON THE RED SKINS TRAIL-RELEASE IN 1965 BY E-T-L PRODUCTIONS, AN SHORT 35mm SOUND AVENTURE FILM IN BLACK AND WHITE,QUEBEC MOTION PICTURE CONTROL NO 26714.
TEX LAVALLEE IN SUMMER OF 1965, BEFORE ACTING IN TEX ON THE RED SKIN TRAIL.
TEX OLD HOMETOWN-ROXY THEATER- IN 1947 WERE HE SEE HIS FIRST ROY ROGERS MOVIE-ALONG THE NAVAJO TRAIL-A GREAT MEMORY.
TEX LAVALLEE IN AN WW2 ACTION FILM IN 1987 STARRING ROBERT MITCHUM, TEX GOT AN SMALL PART IN THIS BIG TELEVISION SERIAL.
TEX LAVALLEE, OWN- FRONTIERS RAMBLERS BAND-AROUND 1958,FROM LEFT TO RIGHT-ANDY MAILLOUX DRUMMER-RENE CLOUTIER AT THE MIKE-GERRY GIROUX AT THE VIOLIN AND TEX LAVALLEE,THE OTHER PLAYER IS UNKNOW AT THE PRESENT.
TEX LAVALLEE IN 1959 PROMOTION PICTURE AT 25 YEARS OLD.
TEX LAVALLEE WAS AN bIG VINTAGE AIRCRAFT COLLECTOR BETWEEN 1962 TO 1990,HERE HIS TWO OF HIS MILLITARY AIRPLANE IN THE PAST,TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HIS COLLECTION AND AVIATION STORIE, PLEASE CHECK HIS WEB SITE BY USING THE LINK ON THIS WEB PAGE.
THE FIRST TRICK HORSE OF TEX LAVALLEE IN 1950 NAMED- KID-HE WAS DOING 32 GOOD TRICKS,AFTER ALL THOSE YEARS TEX NEVER FORGET HIM AND HE WROTE A SONG ABOUT HIM.
TEX LAVALLEE, DOING SOME SPECIAL GUN TRICK
BILLY LEONARD(LEONARD BETOURNAY) THE GREAT COMEDIAN OF TEX LAVALLEE MANY YEARS AGO.
TEX LAVALLEE IN 1949 AT HIS RANCH, DOING SOME SHOOTINGS FOR HIS FUTURE PUBLIC PERFORMANCE THAT START IN 1950.
TEX LAVALLEE AND LITTLE SUN (ALAIN BOUCHARD)DURIND THE FILMING OF AN SCENE OF, TEX ON THE RED SKIN TRAIL-IN 1965.
TEX LAVALLEE DURING HIS SHOW AT TERREBONE QC IN 2006.
TEX LAVALLEE OWN RECORDING STUDIO IN 1968 WERE TEX-HAVE PRODUCE MANY GREAT FRENCH WESTERN SINGER,INCLUDING ANDRE HEBERT-DIANE ROBERT-REJEAN GAGNE AT THE VIOLIN-MARCEL SAGALA- ANDRE BOUCHARD-AND OTHERS.
HERE IS NICE PICTURE OF MY GRAND FATHER AND GRAND MOTHER ON MY MOTHER SIDE' MR LOUIS ST_HILAIRE AND HIS WIFE AGNES GIRARD,IT IS IMPORTANT TO MENTION THAT LOUIS ST_HILAIRE WAS A GREAT ARTIST PAINTER, WELL KNOW IN QUEBEC-CANADA-AND USA,TEX LAVALLEE STILL HAVE A FEWS NICE PAINTINGS OF HIS GRAND FATHER AND ALSO A LOT OF PICTURES AND DOCUMANTATION ABOUT THE ST_ HILAIRE FAMILLY' FOR MORE DETAILS CONTACT TEX LAVALLEE.
tex, at six years old in 1940 with his mother and familly freinds,picture in the front of tex father store at russeltown flatt,
louis st-hilaire the famous quebec and canadian artist painter, photographed around 1894,louis was the grand father of tex, on his mother side,
pierre hilaire st-hilaire the father of louis,and the grand grand father of tex lavallee, on his mother side,
henry lavallee, the father of our web master tex, this picture date from 1922,
tex,at only a fews days, in august 1934
tex first love, denise in 1949