[Dixielandjazz] The Spanish Tinge Cowboys was Dixieland Cowboys

[Ron L'Herault]

The meaning of "Gay" has changed quite a bit over the years.

Ron L

-----Original Message-----
From: dixielandjazz-bounces at ml.islandnet.com
[mailto:dixielandjazz-bounces at ml.islandnet.com] On Behalf Of Steve
barbone
Sent: Monday, February 27, 2006 4:10 PM
To: dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com
Subject: [Dixielandjazz] The Spanish Tinge Cowboys was Dixieland Cowboys


"Jim Kashishian" <jim at kashprod.com> wrote (polite snip)

> By the way, our famed film director, Almodovar, has done films with
the
> likes of gay bullfighters, so the so-talked-about U.S. film is really
old
> hat....

Absolutely old hat. After all, we old timers certainly remember the
"Three
Caballeros", a/k/a "Gay Caballeros" from the 1943 Walt Disney cartoon,
"Saludos Amigos" starring Donald Duck and Joe Carioca. Do you suppose
good
old innocent Walt was sending a hidden message?

And of course the Andrews Sisters had a 1944 hit with Three Cabelleros.

The Three Caballeros

We're three caballeros
Three gay caballeros
They say we are birds of a feather
We're happy amigos 
No matter where he goes
The one, two, and three goes
We're always together

We're three happy chappies
With snappy serapes
You'll find us beneath our sombreros
We're brave and we'll stay so
We're bright as a peso
Who says so? We say so!
The three caballeros

Ahhhh! 
We have the stars to guide us
Guitars here beside us
To play as we go 
We sing and we samba
We shout 'aye caramba!
What means aya caramba?
Oh yes, I don't know

Through fair or stormy weather
We stand close together
Like books on the shelf
And pals though we may be
When some latin baby
Says yes, no, or maybe
Each man is for himself!


Below is an interesting take on Gay Caballeros, who if you lived in
Schweinfurt back then, were not so Gay. But then again, they sustained
some
tail damage later in a collision over Frankfurt. Hmmmm.

Say, Pat Ladd, what was the name of your airplane? :-) VBG.

Cheers,
Steve
    
GAY CABALLEROS  42-29759  B-17F 91/323 OR-V

One of -the 96th Bomb Group's original complement of aircraft, this
camouflagedB-17F flew into Grafton Underwood on 25th April 1943. The
ship
was named "Gay Caballeros" whilst with the 96th BG, probably after the
characters in the popular Walt Disney cartoon movie made in 1943 titled
"Saludos Amigos", featuring Donald Duck and Joe Carioca. Within three
months
it had been transferred on to the 379th at Kimbolton, the base from
which
the 91st originally began its deployment in England. "Gay Caballeros"
sustained severe battle damage over Schweinfurt on 14th October,
force-landed at the famous Battle of Britain airfield of Biggin Hill and
ground looped. There were three large holes in the horizontal
stabilizer,
behind the No.l engine and just forward of the main door, which were
throught to be the result of 20mm hits. Extensive repairs were needed
and
the aircraft was sent to the 2nd Strategic Air Depot.

Made fit for service again, it was sent to Bassingbourn to join the 91st
on
21st December 1943. Dyle Bradford's crew was assigned to the plane and
took
it to Kiel on the 4th January for its first mission with the 91st. "Gay
Caballeros" was lucky to survivethe month because on the 29th, on its
fourth
mission with the group, it suffered a near catastrophic mid-air
collision
over Frankfurt which ripped away a section of its tail rudder. Flak hits
further damaged the plane and it was only through the skill of the pilot
Dyle Bradford, and Lady Luck, that the ship made it back to
Bassingbourn.
Ground crews replaced the damaged rudder and had the plane back in
action on
the 6th February for a mission to Nancy/Essey airfield in France.

Only five further missions were flown with the group the last being to
Augsburg on 25th February, before the plane was transferred to Air Force
Service Command in Early April 1944. It returned to the USA and was
finally
scrapped at Altus, Oklahoma.


PS: For anybody needing a list of Gay Songs see
http://www.queermusicheritage.com/jun2004.html

We use some successfully at beach resort venues in summer. Including
"Ain't
No Sweet Man Worth The Salt of My Tears."

Cheers,
Steve




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