The Gene Autry Show

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.

The Gene Autry Show was an American Western series that starred the famous singing cowboy, Gene Autry; his loyal yet klutzy sidekick, Pat Buttram, and his horse, Champion, listed in the opening credits as 'World's Wonder Horse'. The series premiered in 1950 and ended in 1955.

Tropes used in The Gene Autry Show include:
  • Adorkable: Pat
  • Big Eater: Pat was implied to be this in some episodes.
  • Butt Monkey: Pat provided most of the slapstick and comedy, due to his antics.
  • Cool Horse: Champion, or 'Champ' for short, as he's mostly called in the episodes.
  • Corrupt Corporate Executive: Most of the episodes had Gene and Pat face off against a boss of either a bank or a newspaper office that had gone corrupted.
  • Cowardly Sidekick: Pat showed shades of this in most episodes.
  • Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Though Pat is mostly useless when in battle, there are actually a few episodes when Pat has stood his ground against the bad guys, such as the episode where he believed that he was sick.
  • Deadpan Snarker: Pat again
  • Leitmotif: Gene's is a slightly modified instrumental version of his main song "Back In The Saddle Again", while Pat's is a rather goofy-sounding theme that plays whenever he is about to do something funny.
  • Once Per Episode: Gene, being a singing cowboy, would sing one or two songs in nearly every episode.
  • Put on a Bus: In the final eight episodes of the first season, Pat wound up in an accident involving a cannon misfire. As a result, he was replaced by three other actors; Alan Hale Jr. as Tiny in two episodes, Chill Wills (the voice of Francis the Talking Mule) playing himself in two episodes, and Fuzzy Knight as Sagebrush in four episodes. Fortunately, by the time the second season started, Pat returned to resume the role of Gene's sidekick.