Casey Duane Tibbs (March 5, 1929 – January 28, 1990) was a rodeo cowboy, and actor. In 1979, he was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame.

Life and career

Tibbs was born to John F. Tibbs (1886–1948) and Florence M. Tibbs (1889–1974) in rural Orton northwest of Fort Pierre in Stanley County in central

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota people, Lakota and Dakota peo ...

. He was of

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national id ...

descent. He held the " World All-Around Cowboy Champion" title twice, in 1951 and 1955. He won in 1949, 1951–1954, and 1959, the world

saddle bronc Bronc riding, either bareback bronc or saddle bronc competition, is a rodeo event that involves a rodeo participant riding a bucking horse (sometimes called a ''bronc'' or '' bronco'') that attempts to throw or buck off the rider. Originally ...

riding championship and in 1951 world bareback bronc riding championship. He was featured on the October 22, 1951 cover of ''

Life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for Cell growth, growth, reaction to Stimu ...

'' magazine. He moved in 1976 to

Ramona, California Ramona is a census-designated place (CDP) in San Diego County, California. The population was 20,292 at the 2010 census. The name ''Ramona'' also refers to an unincorporated community (with some plans to incorporate) that includes both the ...

, to raise and breed horses. After battling bone cancer and then lung cancer for about a year, he died at his home in Ramona, while watching the 1990 Super Bowl. He is interred at the Scotty Philip Cemetery in

Fort Pierre, South Dakota Fort Pierre is a city in Stanley County, South Dakota, United States. It is part of the Pierre, South Dakota micropolitan area and the county seat of Stanley County. The population was 2,115 at the 2020 census. The settlement of Fort Pierre d ...

Selected filmography

After his successful rodeo career, Tibbs became a stunt man, stunt coordinator, technical director, livestock consultant, wrangler, and actor for the film industry. He wrote, produced, directed, and starred in the film ''Born to Buck''. *Actor: ** ''Bronco Buster'' (1952) as Rodeo Rider ** '' Screen Director's Playhouse'' (1956, Episode: "Partners") (with

Brandon deWilde Andre Brandon deWilde (April 9, 1942 – July 6, 1972) was an American theater, film, and television actor. Born into a theatrical family in Brooklyn, he debuted on Broadway at the age of seven and became a national phenomenon by the time he co ...

) as himself ** '' Bus Stop'' (1956) as himself (uncredited but announced by rodeo announcer) ** '' To Tell the Truth'' (1957) as himself (uncredited) ** ''Wild Heritage'' (1958) as Rusty (trail boss) ** '' The Ann Sothern Show'' (1959, Episode: "Katie and the Cowboy") ** ''

Tales of Wells Fargo ''Tales of Wells Fargo'' is an American Western television series starring Dale Robertson that ran from 1957 to 1962 on NBC. Produced by Revue Productions, the series aired in a half-hour format until its final season, when it expanded to a ...

'' (1961, Episode: "Town Against a Man") as Sheriff Jim Hogan ** ''Tomboy and the Champ'' (1961) as Himself ** ''A Thunder of Drums'' (1961) as Trooper Baker ** '' Stoney Burke'' (1962–1963) as Rodeo Judge ** '' The Rounders'' (1965) as Rafe ** '' Branded'' (1965, TV Series) as The Cowboy ** '' Gunpoint'' (1966) as Dealer (uncredited) ** '' The Rounders'' (1966, TV Series) as Folliat / Buck / 3rd Posseman ** ''

The Monroes Monroe or Monroes may refer to: People and fictional characters * Monroe (surname) * Monroe (given name) * James Monroe, 5th President of the United States Places United States * Monroe, Arkansas, an unincorporated community and census-designate ...

'' (1967, Episode: "To Break a Colt") (uncredited) ** '' A Time for Dying'' (1969) as Southerner's Sidekick ** ''

The Young Rounders ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...

'' (1972) ** '' Junior Bonner'' (1972, rodeo coordinator) as Parade Grand Marshal (uncredited) ** ''Climb an Angry Mountain'' (1972, TV Movie) as Buck Moto ** ''

The Waltons ''The Waltons'' is an American historical drama television series about a family in rural Virginia during the Great Depression and World War II. It was created by Earl Hamner Jr., based on his 1961 book '' Spencer's Mountain'' and the 1963 fil ...

'' (1974, Episode: "The Conflict") as Flagman ** '' Breakheart Pass'' (1975) as Jackson ** ''More Wild Wild West'' (1980, TV Movie) as Juanita's brother (final film role) *Stunts: ** '' A Thunder of Drums'' (1961) (stunts) (uncredited) ** '' The Rounders'' (1965) (stunts) ** '' Gunpoint'' (1966) (stunts) (uncredited) ** ''

The Plainsman ''The Plainsman'' is a 1936 American Western film directed by Cecil B. DeMille and starring Gary Cooper and Jean Arthur. The film presents a highly fictionalized account of the adventures and relationships between Wild Bill Hickok, Calamity ...

'' (1966) (stunts) (uncredited) ** '' Texas Across the River'' (1966) (stunt coordinator) (uncredited) ** '' Firecreek'' (1968) (stunts) (uncredited) ** '' Heaven with a Gun'' (1969) (stunts) (uncredited) ** '' The Cowboys'' (1972) (stunts) (uncredited) ** '' Once Upon a Texas Train'' (1988) (TV) (stunt coordinator) *Director: ** ''The Young Rounders'' (1966) ** ''Born to Buck'' (1966; and producer)

Tributes

* Annual Casey Tibbs Ramona Roundup in

* 28-foot-tall bronze likeness, ProRodeo Hall of Fame, Colorado Springs, Colorado *

Ian Tyson Ian Dawson Tyson (September 25, 1933 – December 29, 2022) was a Canadian singer-songwriter who wrote several folk songs, including " Four Strong Winds" and " Someday Soon", and performed with partner Sylvia Tyson as the duo Ian & Sylvia. Ea ...

wrote a song about Tibbs for the album ''I Outgrew the Wagon'' * Mentioned in the film ''

Smokey and the Bandit ''Smokey and the Bandit'' is a 1977 American road action comedy film starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, Pat McCormick, Paul Williams and Mike Henry. The directorial debut of stuntman Hal Needham, the film follo ...

'' * Mentioned in the film ''

Cotter Cotter may refer to: * Cotter pin (disambiguation), a pin or wedge used to fix parts rigidly together * Cotter (farmer), the Scots term for a peasant farmer formerly in the Scottish highlands * Cotter (surname), a surname (including a list of peopl ...

'' * Mentioned in the Chris LeDoux song "Back when we was kids". * Cole Elshere plays the role of Casey Tibbs in "Floating Horses – The Life of Casey Tibbs". * In 1979, he was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame, the highest honor in rodeo.

Honors

*1955 Rodeo Hall of Fame of the

National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is a museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, with more than 28,000 Western and American Indian art works and artifacts. The facility also has the world's most extensive collection of Ame ...

*1976 South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame *2001 Ellensburg Rodeo Hall of Fame *2002 Cheyenne Frontier Days Hall of Fame *2004 Pendleton Round-Up and Happy Canyon Hall of Fame *2010 Texas Trail of Fame *2018

California Rodeo Salinas Hall of Fame The California Rodeo Salinas Hall of Fame is a cowboy hall of fame. Established in 2010 by the California Rodeo Salinas, the hall of fame recognizes and awards those individuals who helped build the rodeo and those rodeo performers who helped ...

In popular culture

The song ''Casey Tibbs'', also known as ''Casey the Rainbow Rider'' by

References

External links

Casey Tibbs bio from his own website

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tibbs, Casey 1929 births 1990 deaths 20th-century American male actors All-Around American male film actors American male television actors Bareback bronc riders Deaths from bone cancer Deaths from lung cancer in California Male actors from South Dakota People from Ramona, San Diego County, California People from Stanley County, South Dakota ProRodeo Hall of Fame inductees Saddle bronc riders