Interviews
Interviews with members of the Sons of the Pioneers
Ken Curtis interviewed by Ken Griffis (November 1, 1968)
Tommy Doss interviewed by Ken Griffis (April 16, 1971)
Bob Nolan, Lloyd Perryman, and Tim Spencer interviewed by Ken Griffis (January 2, 1972)
Bob Nolan interviewed by Ken Griffis (January 12, 1972)
Lloyd Perryman interviewed by Ken Griffis about Stan Jones (December 31, 1974)
Bob Nolan interviewed by Ken Griffis about the Beverly Hill Billies (January 15, 1976)
Bob Nolan interview by Betty Cox Larimer (April 28, 1976)
Bob Nolan interviewed by Jimmy Wakely (September 26, 1976)
Various musicians speaking at the Ray Whitley memorial tribute (February 28, 1979)
Bob Nolan interviewed by Douglas Green (November 20, 1979)
Bob Nolan interviewed by Stuart Hamblen (c. 1970)
Roy Rogers interviewed by Larry Hopper about the Sons of the Pioneers (1980)
Interviews with others about the Sons of the Pioneers
Ken Griffis interviewed on KLAC radio about Bob Nolan (1980)
Fred Goodwin phone interview by Elizabeth Drake McDonald about Bob Nolan and the Sons of the Pioneers (May 7, 1999)
Wesley and Marilyn Tuttle phone interview by Elizabeth Drake McDonald about Bob Nolan (July 13, 1999)
Tommy “Snuff” Garrett phone interview by Elizabeth Drake McDonald about Bob Nolan (March 4, 2004)
Larry Hopper interviewed on KMSU radio about the Sons of the Pioneers (April 14, 2008)
Martha Retsch interviewed by John Fullerton about her years as Sons of the Pioneers fan club president (June 25, 2008)
Ken Curtis interviewed by Ken Griffis (November 1, 1968)
The first interview Ken Griffis made of Ken Curtis for his book Hear My Song in Curtis’s TV studio. This recording was made under the auspices of the John Edwards Memorial Foundation and was used by the foundation for the non-profit activities of this organization.
Transcribed by Elizabeth Drake McDonald from the Ken Griffis Collection with permission from James Kleist and Jeff Wagoner.
Tommy Doss interviewed by Ken Griffis (April 16, 1971)
The audio quality is poor enough so that it couldn’t be accurately transcribed.
Bob Nolan, Lloyd Perryman, and Tim Spencer interviewed by Ken Griffis (January 2, 1972)
This was Ken Griffis’s initial interview of Bob Nolan; it might have been Nolan’s first interview with anyone. It was informal, in the home of Stuart Hamblen and in the company of Nolan’s friends. Before this, Nolan had been unwilling to be interviewed, but after this evening he cooperated cheerfully with many further interviews, most unrecorded.
Transcribed by Elizabeth Drake McDonald from the Ken Griffis Collection with permission from James Kleist.
Bob Nolan interviewed by Ken Griffis (January 12, 1972)
This was Ken Griffis’s second interview of Bob Nolan, in Nolan's Studio City home. It is the first formal interview for historical purposes, giving Nolan’s personal history.
Transcribed by Elizabeth Drake McDonald from the Ken Griffis Collection with permission from James Kleist.
Lloyd Perryman interviewed by Ken Griffis about Stan Jones (December 31, 1974)
Ken Griffis interviews Lloyd Perryman about the late Stan Jones.
Bob Nolan interviewed by Ken Griffis about the Beverly Hill Billies (January 15, 1976)
This hourlong interview was intended to mine Nolan’s memories of the Beverly Hill Billies, the most popular group on radio at the time he was just starting out with the Sons of the Pioneers. It kept straying into fascinating side roads, into Nolan’s own career and an off-the-record comment on his personal philosophy. The audio file had a lot of background noise, including shrill interjections by Nolan’s mynah bird. Because Ken Griffis talks so fast and is not near the microphone, some parts of his questions are lost.
Thanks to Jeff and Robert Wagoner for this interview and to Bob Costa for cleaning it.
Bob Nolan interviewed by Betty Cox Larimer (April 28, 1976)
On January 21, 2003, Calin Coburn received from the Country Music Foundation archive a copy of an April 28, 1976 interview by Betty Cox Larimer, the publisher of Music City News and Lee Rector, the editor. The interview took place in Bob Nolan's home in Studio City. Ken Griffis, Sons of the Pioneers' historian and friend of Bob’s, was also present. Bob’s mynah bird was there, too, constantly interrupting the interview with comments like, “Hello, P-Nuts”, “Good Morning”, and “I like gambling!” When the mynah spoke, everyone but Bob stopped speaking. As a result of this interview, an article was published in the Music City News, August, 1976, page 18. Bob's portions of the interview are reproduced here. Attempts to find Ms. Larimer and Mr. Rector have been unsuccessful.
Transcribed by Elizabeth Drake McDonald from the Calin Coburn Collection.
Bob Nolan interviewed by Jimmy Wakely (September 26, 1976)
The following transcription is of the first part of an interview of Bob Nolan that Jimmy Wakely started backstage on September 26, 1976, after the celebration at the Palladium that followed the dedicating of the Sons of the Pioneers’ star in the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The remainder of the interview has been lost.
Transcribed by Elizabeth Drake McDonald from the Calin Coburn Collection.
Various musicians speaking at the Ray Whitley memorial tribute (February 28, 1979)
Ken Griffis presided over a tribute to Ray Whitley at the Sportsmen's Lodge in Los Angeles. Guests who spoke were: Ken Griffis, Jimmy & Inez Wakely, Marilyn & Wesley Tuttle, Art Rush, Stuart & Suzy Hamblen, Bob Nolan, Gene Bear, Forrest White, Oliver Drake, Curt Barrett, Tex Williams, Harold & Phyllis Hensley, Doye O'Dell, Eddie & Dearest [Lorene] Dean, W.G. (Bill) Bowen, Hank Worden, Hi Busse, Novadeen (Mrs. Chill) Wills and Laurence Zwisohn.
Bob Nolan interviewed by Douglas Green about Nolan's new recording (November 20, 1979)
On November 20, 1979, Dougla B. Green (“Ranger Doug”) arranged a telephone interview with Bob Nolan. The resultant article was printed on page 88 of the Music City News, January-February 1980. The entire interview is printed here with permission from Mr. Green.
Bob Nolan interviewed by Stuart Hamblen (c. 1970)
This 40-minute interview started with a cut from Bob Nolan's final album, The Sound of a Pioneer, so the interview likely takes place in 1979.
Roy Rogers interviewed by Larry Hopper (1980)
Excerpts from the radio interview of Marty Robbins, Roy Rogers, and Tommy "Snuff" Garrett by Larry Hopper, first aired on station WFDU-FM in Teaneck, N.J., on July 6, 1980, six weeks after Bob Nolan's death.
Interviews with others about the Sons of the Pioneers
Ken Griffis interviewed on KLAC about Bob Nolan (1980)
Fred Goodwin phone interview about Bob Nolan and the Sons of the Pioneers (May 7, 1999)
"I won’t hold anything back. I’ll TELL you. This needs to be archived, you know. It needs to be known."
— Fred Goodwin)
Wesley and Marilyn Tuttle phone interview about Bob Nolan (July 13, 1999)
Wesley and Marilyn Tuttle's memories in a telephone interview with Eilizabeth Drake McDonald. Used with Mrs. Tuttle's permission.
Tommy “Snuff” Garrett phone interview about Bob Nolan (March 4, 2004)
Tommy "Snuff" Garrett remembers Bob Nolan in a telephone conversation with Eilizabeth Drake McDonald. Used with Mr. Garrett's permission.
Larry Hopper interviewed on KMSU radio about the Sons of the Pioneers (April 14, 2008)
On April 14, 2008, Larry Hopper was interviewed by Miss Lona and Ron Affolter. Excerpts from this interview can be heard below. This is usually a Minnesota State University jazz program, but hostess Miss Lona made an exception this time to salute Bob Nolan. Hopper gave an outline of Nolan’s life and career with the history of 14 of his best-known songs plus two others. Each segment is identified by the song discussed.
Martha Retsch interviewed by John Fullerton about her years as fan club president (June 25, 2008)
Martha Retsch was a long-time fan of the Sons of the Pioneers, president of their first fan club, and publisher of the fan newsletter The Prairie Prattler. In 2008 John Fullerton located Martha and interviewed her by telephone about her years of association with the group.