Lash LaRue - King of the Bullwhip

Lash LaRue Comics

Lansing and Andrea Sexton provide the following info:

Citing Robert Overstreet's Comic Book Price Guide, Lash LaRue Western began publication in 1949 and ran for 46 issues, the last being dated January, 1954. I believe all 46 issues had photo covers. In any case, only the first 6 issues had photo back covers. The Gerbers' Photo-Journal Guide to Comic Books illustrates the first 9 as well as number 46 and they do all have photo covers.

However, #46 was not the end of Lash's comic. In an unusual move, when Fawcett left the comic business, Charlton comics continued the series and even the numbering, beginning with #47, dated March-April 1954 and ending with #84, dated 1961. Most of these did not have photo covers although Overstreet indicates that #47 did.

In 1990, a small company called Americomics published Lash LaRue #1 and Lash LaRue Western Annual. #1 apparently contains reprints of Fawcett's issue #6 plus movie posters. The contents are partly color and partly black and white. Both issues have photo covers.

In addition to this long and successful run in his own comic, Lash also appeared in two issues of Fawcett Movie Comics, # 8 featured KING OF THE BULLWHIP (1950) and #11 THE THUNDERING HERD, dated June, 1951. Both have photo covers, #8 being an especially nice shot of Lash, gun drawn, standing just in front of Rush/Black Diamond.

Fawcett's related series Motion Picture Comics also featured Lash's film THE VANISHING OUTPOST in issue 11, dated July 1952.

Lash also appeared in Fawcett's Six-Gun Heroes issues 5 through 23 along with Hoppy, Rocky Lane and others. Issues 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 19 and 22 were Lash photo covers.

As with Lash's own comic, Six-Gun Heroes was at this point picked up by Charlton with issue 24, dated January 1954. I'm not sure how many issues Lash was in, although he was definitely still appearing in #30. (In January, 2004, Carl E. Kerley sent an e-mail noting that Lash's last appearance in Six-Gun Heroes was in issue #60 from 1960.)

The Grand Comics Database Project (GCD) website has images of the covers for Six-Gun Heroes, Fawcett Movie Comic, and Lash Larue Westerns:
     Fawcett Six-Gun Heroes issues 1 - 23: https://www.comics.org/series/14345/covers/
     Charlton Six-Gun Heroes issues 24 - 74: https://www.comics.org/series/1019/covers/
     Fawcett Lash Larue Westerns issues 1 - 46: https://www.comics.org/series/14331/covers/
     Charlton Lash Larue Westerns issues 47 - 84: https://www.comics.org/series/1016/covers/
     Lash had photo covers on issues 8 and 11 of Fawcett Movie Comic in 1950-1951: https://www.comics.org/series/13902/covers/

LaRue wore a variety of gunbelts, and examples are shown below.
(Courtesy of Minard Coons)	Above and left are the gunbelts that LaRue wore in the Eddie Dean Cinecolor oaters at PRC, circa 1945-1946.
	Lash got his own series at PRC, where his role was as 'Cheyenne Davis'. The gunbelt changed, probably to a custom rig made specifically for Lash.
	After their series at PRC, Lash and 'Fuzzy' did a batch for Ron Ormond's Western Adventure Production company ... and the gunbelt changed again. Lash is also wearing his pants belt with the Lash monogram.
Lash also had several pants belts that he wore over the years. Most often, he wore a belt with the "Lash" monogram. And occasionally, he did wear belts with rather large and ornate buckles. Thanks to Wayne Knowles for reminding me that Lash had a later belt which carried a monogram of A L R (bottom right) ... which I'm guessing stood for Al La Rue.

Did Lash pattern his dark outfit on one of the range costumes worn by George O'Brien?
(Courtesy of Minard Coons)		(Courtesy of Minard Coons) Perhaps he did, though George O'Brien did wear a mix of light and dark colored shirts and hats, and he generally packed a single six-shooter. Above is a youngish George O'Brien in one of his many costumes - this is probably during his early westerns at Fox. Left is LaRue as the 'Cheyenne Kid' in SONG OF OLD WYOMING (PRC, 1945). In an interview with author David Rothel, Lash mentioned that he wore a "George O'Brien shirt" from the Western Costume Company for SONG OF OLD WYOMING.

Lash - his later years ... and film/nostalgia convention appearances

(Courtesy of Walter & Elaine Flanagan)

Got an e-mail from Elaine and Walter Flanagan about Lash, and we appreciate them also providing the above photo. Walter Flanagan writes:

"As a kid, I went to the movies every Saturday morning and saw the usual two westerns.

I met Lash LaRue in Memphis, TN in 1992 at a B-movie festival and got his autograph on this picture of him and Fuzzy St. John. He was attired in all black as usual and was sitting at a table surrounded by video tapes of western movies being sold by another man. I took it that he had hired Lash to bring people to his table. No one was around at the time, so I was able to spend a few minutes talking to Lash. I had heard of his problems with addiction and being arrested in Miami for vagrancy.

I told him of seeing his westerns on Saturday mornings at the movies and how much I enjoyed them. As I looked at the autographed picture of him and Fuzzy, I asked him if Fuzzy was still with us. He lowered his head, shook it back and forth, and said, 'No', and with a pause, 'Fuzzy's gone!' I told him I was sad to hear that, and that it was a pleasure to see him in person, and I wished him all the best."

Walter Flanagan
March, 2002

(Courtesy of Minard Coons)

Above, a business card showing one of Lash's many jobs and ventures during his later years.

Right, an advertising/promo card from Lash, and the autograph reads 'Black Diamond and Me, 1953'. Note the spelling variations of Lash's last name on the advertising card and the autographed photo from Walter Flanagan above --- is it LaRue or La Rue with a space? Just about all the movie adwork shows La Rue spelled with a space.

(Courtesy of Minard Coons)

(Courtesy of Colette 'Coleen' Crowder Stoneking)

After his film career ended, Lash had some run-ins with the law, alcohol problems, financial difficulties and other issues.

By the 1980s, he seemed to have straightened out his life and became a frequent and very popular and cooperative guest at the western film conventions.

(Courtesy of Minard Coons)

Above from left to right are Al "Lash" LaRue, Max Terhune and Russell Hayden in a 1972 photo.

(Courtesy of Minard Coons)

Lash at an early 1970s film convention.

(Courtesy of Bill Sasser)

LaRue was married a bunch of times, with some counts as high as ten or twelve marriages. In the above picture, Lash was re-united with ex-wife Reno Browne (Reno Blair) at the 1987 Charlotte Film Fest. Browne was a great rider and made a batch of films at Monogram in the 1940s with Johnny Mack Brown, Whip Wilson, others. She is ill from the cancer that would ultimately claim her life in 1991.

(Courtesy of Donn & Nancy Moyer)

Above, Al "Lash" LaRue, circa early 1980s.

(Courtesy of Donn & Nancy Moyer)

Lash with a beard, early 1980s photo.

LASH LINKS

Although some of the data is incomplete or inaccurate, the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) has information on Lash LaRue and Al St. John:

Lash La Rue: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0479017/
Al "Fuzzy" St. John: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0820607/

Lash was one of the first recipients of a Golden Boot award, and he received that recognition at the 1983 award ceremony. If you want more info, go to the Golden Boot Awards page on the Old Corral.

The Los Angeles Times newspaper has an obituary on Lash: https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-05-31-mn-10514-story.html

The New York Times newspaper has an obituary on Lash: http://www.nytimes.com/1996/05/31/arts/lash-larue-79-western-star-with-a-whip.html

YouTube has a nine minute video of Lash guesting on a 1984 David Letterman show: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wjEP9IWqwc

Sunset Carson chatting with Lash LaRue on the set of ALIEN OUTLAW (1985):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czzT27V30E0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPk4gx0MCbE

Boyd Magers' Western Clippings website has a section on Lash's westerns: http://www.westernclippings.com/westernsof/lashlarue_westernsof.shtml

The Indian Reader has an article on Lash: http://www.indianreader.com/lashlarue.html

LaRue was purportedly married ten or twelve times, and one of his wives was western heroine and great rider Reno Browne (Reno Blair), who worked at Monogram Pictures in the 1940s with Whip Wilson, Jimmy Wakely and Johnny Mack Brown. Click on the Heroines section off the Old Corral homepage to read about Reno Browne/Reno Blair.

Martin Hart's American Widescreen Museum website has info on Cinecolor: http://www.widescreenmuseum.com/oldcolor/cinecolor2.htm