Hollywood Gold died in 1964, but he carries on to show up in the pedigree of some of the leading horses in AQHA document publications.
Story by Jim Jennings
The Four Sixes Ranch, headquartered at Guthrie, Texas, has experienced quite a few outstanding stallions in its 150-calendar year heritage, but what could be thought of the foundation stallion of the ranch was a dun-coloured
horse with a mild mane and tail, foaled in 1940. The stallions title was Hollywood Gold.
Hollywood Golds tale starts on a quite spring working day in Could 1940, when Lige Reed, foreman of the Triangle Ranch around Iowa Park, Texas, was prowling the pastures, checking the 40-some-odd mares that have been grazing there. The Triangle was owned by Anne Burnett Hall, who experienced inherited that ranch, together with the Triangle Ranch around Paducah, Texas, from her father, Tom Burnett. Her grandfather, S. B. Burk Burnett, had started the 4 Sixes ranches, and Anne was running both equally of them. AQHA experienced been formed in March of that 12 months, and Skip Anne, as she was termed in the ranch state of West Texas, experienced had an instrumental element in that formation, hosting a supper occasion at her house the night just before the meeting. Her partner, Jim Corridor, experienced been elected treasurer of the fledgling firm.
Lige was a horseman of the finest variety, and when he rode up on a purple dun mare with a triangle branded on her jaw and the range 17 on her hip, and a wobbly legged dun colt trying to disguise driving her, he stopped to get a look. The mare was about 6 several years old and had by now manufactured a few of colts that promised to be good using horses, so Lige maneuvered all around to get a glimpse at this one particular.
This team of mares experienced all been bred to a horse named Gold Rush, a 4-yr-outdated palomino by Caliente by Del Rey. Gold Rush had been bred by C. B. Lowry and was foaled in California in 1936. Miss Anne had viewed him out there and thought he would be a very good cross on her broodmares, so she purchased him and brought him to the Triangle as a 2-12 months previous. As Lige was seeking the colt above, he noticed suitable absent that he carried the coloration of his sire and dam, but he noticed some thing else, also, and it didnt get him long to go those people feelings along. That working day at midday, when he returned to the ranch headquarters, he explained to the other adult males all around the meal table, Check out that Triangle 17s colt. Choose fantastic care of him. Weve received a stud horse there.
But Lige didnt leave it to the other guys to check out Triangle 17s colt. As spring turned into summer season and then into fall, there was many a working day that Lige would saddle up and ride as a result of the pasture or push out in his pickup and just sit and look at the colt as he ran and performed with the other weanlings in the pasture. It even bought to be a joke amid the Triangle cowboys about how a great deal hunting following that 17s colt demanded. Lige paid them no thoughts. He was thinking about the coming yrs, when he would be riding the colt, and then a several yrs after, when he would be riding foals by him. When a person questioned Lige what it was about the colt that he liked so properly, the foreman replied, I just like him, thats all.
But a tiny later on, Lige advised someone that he experienced preferred the colt from the time he was foaled. He reported that he preferred his conformation that first working day and then received to liking him better and superior when he saw how he handled himself. Lige also stated that he experienced normally preferred the colts mother, and he appreciated Gold Hurry. In a 1957 Quarter Horse Journal post, Lige was quoted as stating, When we introduced the colts into headquarters for halter breaking, we identified (this a single) experienced a excellent disposition. He seemed to fully grasp just what we wished him to do, and he tried using to help us get the position finished. I was ideal happy that I hadnt been dissatisfied in him.
When it arrived time to geld the yearlings, Lige set the dun colt in a distant pen exactly where he could retain an eye on him. He needed to be sure no one manufactured a oversight and minimize that a person. And then when time arrived to name the little dun, Lige manufactured confident he bore a identify to fit his bearinghe termed him Hollywood Gold.
As the colt loaded out and grew into a 2-calendar year-aged, Lige began using him but made use of him extremely evenly. He stated that in the commencing, he primarily just utilised him to deliver up the milk cows. However, he stated that he was easy to crack and went right into cow do the job just like he had been at it
for decades.
For the initial two many years of Hollywood Golds life, Lige talked about him just about every likelihood he received. He under no circumstances enable an possibility go to praise the colts terrific probable as a cow horse and as a potential sire. Then came that day that he figured he had talked much too significantly and bragged also considerably on the colt. Pass up Anne referred to as him into the dwelling space at her Triangle Ranch headquarters residence and informed him she was sending Hollywood Gold to the Four Sixes at Guthrie to head a band of mares there. 4 Sixes supervisor George Humphreys, who also had an eye for a fantastic horse and had been with the Sixes since 1918, experienced been attempting for many months to get Hollywood Gold, and lastly Overlook Anne relented.
When the ranch operator explained to Lige what she was likely to do, Lige pleaded, Make sure you, Skip Anne, get a knife and get my suitable arm, but depart me the colt. But her thoughts was created up, and quickly Lige loaded Hollywood Gold in a trailer and delivered him to George at the Sixes.
Before lengthy, George was riding Hollywood Gold on cattle, slicing in the Four Sixes headquarters pens, accumulating cows in the ranchs pastures, roping and doing work calves. George claimed that Hollywood Gold was the smartest horse he had at any time ridden.
In these early several years of AQHA, horses had to be inspected in purchase to be registered. Overlook Anne had both equally Gold Hurry and Hollywood Golds dam, Triangle Girl 17, inspected as soon just after AQHA commenced registering horses as she could, and in 1944, the AQHA inspector came by the ranch and passed Hollywood Gold for registration. This was seriously just a formality given that the two his sire and dam were
previously registered, he was qualified for automatic registration. Nevertheless, it was vital to get it performed, since Hollywood Golds very first foals were being hitting the ground in 1944, and this meant they would all be registered, as well.
Hollywood Gold sired 263 registered horses in 22 crops even though at the 4 Sixes. He was crossed a excellent deal on mares of Joe Hancock breedingTom Burnett experienced purchased Joe Hancock a several decades earlierand the cowboys who rode them swore they had been the very best cattle-managing horses alive. 1 of those people cowboys reported, They took a minimal a lot more riding to get them there, but when you ended up finished, you experienced on your own a cow horse.
While numerous of Hollywood Golds foals remained on the Four Sixes and were being utilized as ranch horses, a pick few made their way into effectiveness and halter arenas across the Southwest. George reported as soon as that it was no trouble at all to offer every single Hollywood Gold colt as quick as they had been weaned, and that the purchasers were being eager to fork out great costs for them. He mentioned, There are significantly more men and women seeking Hollywood Gold foals than we have, both fillies or colts.
The late J. J. Gibson, who succeeded George Humphreys as Four Sixes general manager, reported, We actually didnt know what we experienced in Hollywood Gold. I guess we definitely didnt know how superior he was until eventually he was gone. He was registered as a dun, but I often called him a palomino. He wasnt tall, possibly 14.2, and weighed to some degree over 1,000 lbs. His eyes are what I don’t forget the most about him. They had been unbelievably big, rather and gentle. Even mares who however trace to him right now have those eyes.
J. J. additional that, Hollywood was normally excellent-natured. His colts were being the very same way and uncomplicated to crack. He had tremendous stamina and excellent feet and legs. He handed most of his positive characteristics on to his offspring. A person of the to start with colts to leave the ranch, Hollywood Snapper, gained 229 chopping details in AQHA competitors. Hollywood Cat, earned 403 factors. Then there was Mr Gold 95, who was 3 moments in the leading 10 at the Countrywide Cutting Horse Affiliation Finals, and third in the NCHA planet standings in 1965. And, only a calendar year earlier, Hollywood Lin received the 1964 NCHA globe championship. In other years, she was twice runner-up at the Finals, and a few additional periods in the top 5 at the Finals. Then, in 1966, Goldwood gained the NCHA Finals in the non-professional division.
In 1969, Matlock Rose rode Cee Bars Joan, who was out of the Hollywood Gold mare Holly Joanie, to gain the NCHA Futurity, and in 1988, Sam Rose rode Miss Holly Tip, a granddaughter of Hollywood Gold, to get the NCHA Breeders Cutting. According to the Four Sixes web-site, Hollywood Gold is valued, even these days, in pedigrees of contemporary-day ranch and aggressive cutting horses.
The late Dr. Glenn Blodgett, previous horse division supervisor for the 4 Sixes, claimed, We continue to experienced two daughters of Hollywood Gold when I arrived to the ranch in 1982, and one of those people daughters, Skip Holly Peg, speedily came to the entrance. Shes the dam of Pass up Holly Tip, who Sam Rose rode, but then Miss Holly Tip is the dam of Ginnin Attraction, who produced both Playin Attraction and Quahadi, two of the stallions that we have standing at the 4 Sixes now.
Hollywood Gold is also in the pedigree of Sixes Choose, one more 4 Sixes-bred stallion, and, of training course, American Quarter Horse Corridor of Famer Hollywood Dun It. Dr. Blodgett mentioned, The very first issue I recognized about the Hollywood Gold horses have been these significant smooth eyes. I consider all people in the horse organization knows that a major, comfortable eye is a indicator of intelligence and trainability in a horse, and I definitely think this was a authentic solid trait of the Hollywood Golds.
In 1964, at age 24, Hollywood Gold was put down owing to failing, arthritic legs. He died in 1964, but he hasnt been forgotten.