Coward of the County - wikipedia Coward of the County `` Coward of the County '' Single by Kenny Rogers from the album Kenny B - side `` I Want to Make You Smile '' Released November 12, 1979 Genre Country Length 4 : 20 Label United Artists Songwriter ( s ) Roger Bowling, Billy Ed Wheeler Producer ( s ) Larry Butler Kenny Rogers singles chronology `` You Decorated My Life '' ( 1979 ) `` Coward of the County '' ( 1979 ) `` Do n't Fall in Love with a Dreamer '' ( 1980 ) `` You Decorated My Life '' ( 1979 ) `` Coward of the County '' ( 1979 ) `` Do n't Fall in Love with a Dreamer '' ( 1980 ) `` Coward of the County '' is a country song written by Roger Bowling and Billy Ed Wheeler, and recorded by American country music singer Kenny Rogers. It was released in November 1979 as the second single from the multi-platinum album Kenny. A million - selling gold - certified 45, it is one of Rogers ' biggest hits. The song is about a man 's nephew who is a reputed coward, but finally takes a stand for his lover. The song reached number one on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. It also hit # 1 on the Cash Box singles chart and # 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. In addition, it hit # 1 on the UK Singles chart. It was the most recent traditional country music song to hit number one in the UK, in February 1980. In Ireland, the song was # 1 for six consecutive weeks. Contents 1 The song 's story 2 Controversy regarding `` The Gatlin Boys '' lyric 3 Chart performance 4 Cover versions 5 Film adaptation 6 References 7 External links The song 's story The song tells the story of a young man named Tommy, who earns a notorious reputation as the `` coward of the county '' ( and is nicknamed `` Yellow '', a slang term for a cowardly person ) since he never stood up for himself one single time to prove the county wrong. Tommy 's non-confrontational attitude was influenced, at age 10, by his final visit with his imprisoned father, shortly before he dies there ( accompanied by the singer, portraying Tommy 's uncle ). In his final words to Tommy, his father tells him that to `` turn the other cheek '' is n't altogether a sign of weakness, and implores him to promise `` not to do the things I 've done ; walk away from trouble if you can '' ( implying that not `` turning the other cheek '' was what may have landed Tommy 's father in prison ). Despite his cowardly reputation, Tommy falls in love with Becky, a local girl who loves Tommy for who he is without having to prove to her that he was a man. One day, while Tommy was working, the three Gatlin brothers came to Becky 's house, attacked and `` took turns at Becky. '' Tommy returns home and finds Becky crying and her dress torn. Reaching above the fireplace and taking down his daddy 's picture, he faces the dilemma of choosing between upholding his father 's plea of `` walking away from trouble '', or achieving justice for Becky. Tommy chooses to visit the bar where the Gatlin boys are. Amid laughter upon Tommy 's entrance, and after `` one of them got up and met him halfway ' cross the floor, '' Tommy turns around, and the Gatlins assume he once again is going to walk away like a coward ( `` they said, hey look old yellow 's leaving '' ). However he actually turned to lock the door behind him ( `` you coulda heard a pin drop when Tommy stopped and locked the door '' ) and trap the Gatlin boys inside with him. Fueled by `` twenty years of crawlin ' '' that `` was bottled up inside him, '' Tommy engages in a relentless barroom brawl that leaves all three Gatlin boys unconscious on the barroom floor. Tommy then reflects on his dead father 's plea, addressing him respectfully that while he did his best to avoid trouble, he hopes he understands that `` sometimes you got ta fight when you 're a man. '' Controversy regarding `` the Gatlin boys '' lyric It has been claimed that mention of the `` Gatlin boys... there was three of them '' in the song was a reference to The Gatlin Brothers. However, in The Billboard Book of Number One Country Singles, Rogers stated that he did not realize the connection, and that had he done so, he would have asked for the name to have been changed. Larry Gatlin also gave the song a positive review ( `` It 's a good song '' ). Writer Billy Edd Wheeler denied that the lyric was a reference to the Gatlin Brothers. Larry Gatlin said in an interview on the Adam Carolla Show that Roger Bowling had a personal grudge against him although he did n't know why. He told Carolla that when Bowling won song of the year for `` Lucille '', he ( Gatlin ) walked over to congratulate Bowling for winning. Gatlin told Carolla : `` He said ' fuck you Gatlin. ' I said ' what ? ' He said ' fuck you. ' I said ' Let me tell you something, hoss. If we were n't in the Grand Ole ' Opry House dressed up in tuxedos, I would just open a boot shop in your ass. ' '' Gatlin said it was a year or two later that his family name showed up in `` Coward of the County. '' the song Gatlin to retaliate for this incident. Chart performance Chart ( 1979 -- 1980 ) Peak position Australia ( ARIA ) 6 Austria ( Ö3 Austria Top 40 ) 9 Canada Adult Contemporary Tracks ( RPM ) Canada Country Tracks ( RPM ) Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) Ireland ( IRMA ) Netherlands ( Dutch Top 40 ) 8 New Zealand ( Recorded Music NZ ) Switzerland ( Schweizer Hitparade ) 8 Spain ( AFYVE ) 19 UK Singles Chart ( The Official Charts Company ) US Hot Country Songs ( Billboard ) U.S. Cash Box Top 100 Singles US Billboard Hot 100 US Adult Contemporary ( Billboard ) 5 Cover versions Alvin and the Chipmunks covered the song with several lyric changes for their 1981 album Urban Chipmunk. Jamaican dancehall musician Sister Nancy performed a version on her 1982 album `` One, Two '' as `` Coward of the Country ( sic ). '' Her version also includes elements of the songs `` Banana Boat Song '' and `` In the Ghetto. '' Film adaptation The song inspired a 1981 television movie of the same name, directed by Dick Lowry, who also directed all but the last of The Gambler television movie saga pentalogy. Set in small - town Georgia during the onset of America 's involvement in World War II, the film 's plot stayed true to the song 's lyrics and starred Rogers as Tommy 's uncle, Reverend Matthew Spencer ( the singer of the song ), Fredric Lehne as the troubled Tommy Spencer, Largo Woodruff as Tommy 's girlfriend Becky, and William Schreiner as James Joseph `` Jimmy Joe '' Gatlin ( one of Tommy 's nemeses and a rival for Becky ; Jimmy Joe publicly states that Becky is ' his girl ' despite the fact that Becky never has felt the same way towards him and has repeatedly told him so. That rejection ( to which he is in total denial ), along with the fact that Becky and Tommy started dating and became engaged while he and his brother Luke were away at basic training, would serve as motive for Jimmy Joe and his brothers to assault Becky three days before she and Tommy would be getting married. ). The movie added several characters not mentioned in the song, including Car - Wash ( Noble Willingham ), a friend of the Spencer family ; Violet ( Ana Alicia ), a local girl who also loved Tommy ; and Lem Gatlin ( Joe Dorsey ), the equally - nemesis father of the Gatlin boys ( brothers Jimmy Joe, Paul, and Luke ). The film ends with Tommy joining the military and being shipped off to war, right after his and Becky 's wedding ceremony ( performed by Matthew ), and with all three Gatlin brothers going to prison for gang - raping Becky. References Jump up ^ `` Kenny Rogers Artist ''. Official Charts. Retrieved 2014 - 03 - 28. Jump up ^ Roland, Tom, The Billboard Book of Number One Country Hits. Billboard Books, Watson - Guptill Publications, New York, 1991 ( ISBN 0 - 82 - 307553 - 2 ) Jump up ^ `` Chicken Soup for the Soul : Country Music : The Inspirational Stories behind... - Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Randy Rudder - Google Books ''. Books.google.com. Retrieved 2014 - 03 - 28. Jump up ^ `` Larry Gatlin Podcast ''. adamcarolla.com. July 24, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2016. Jump up ^ `` Australian-charts.com -- Kenny Rogers -- Coward of the County ''. ARIA Top 50 Singles. Jump up ^ `` Austriancharts.at -- Kenny Rogers -- Coward of the County '' ( in German ). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Jump up ^ `` Nederlandse Top 40 -- Kenny Rogers search results '' ( in Dutch ) Dutch Top 40. Jump up ^ `` Charts.org.nz -- Kenny Rogers -- Coward of the County ''. Top 40 Singles. Jump up ^ `` Swisscharts.com -- Kenny Rogers -- Coward of the County ''. Swiss Singles Chart. Jump up ^ Salaverri, Fernando ( September 2005 ). Sólo éxitos : año a año, 1959 -- 2002 ( 1st ed. ). Spain : Fundación Autor - SGAE. ISBN 84 - 8048 - 639 - 2. Jump up ^ Roberts, David ( 2006 ). British Hit Singles & Albums ( 19th ed. ). London : Guinness World Records Limited. p. 377. ISBN 1 - 904994 - 10 - 5. Jump up ^ `` Kenny Rogers -- Chart history '' Billboard Hot Country Songs for Kenny Rogers. Jump up ^ `` Kenny Rogers -- Chart history '' Billboard Hot 100 for Kenny Rogers. Jump up ^ `` Kenny Rogers -- Chart history '' Billboard Adult Contemporary for Kenny Rogers. Jump up ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKO5_MFl8h4 External links Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics Preceded by `` Happy Birthday Darlin ' '' by Conway Twitty Billboard Hot Country Singles number - one single January 5 -- January 19, 1980 Succeeded by `` I 'll Be Coming Back for More '' by T.G. Sheppard Preceded by `` Whiskey Bent and Hell Bound '' by Hank Williams, Jr. Canadian RPM Country Tracks number - one single January 12 -- January 26, 1980 Succeeded by `` Help Me Make It Through the Night '' by Willie Nelson Preceded by `` The Special AKA Live ! '' by The Specials UK number - one single February 16 -- February 29, 1980 Succeeded by `` Atomic '' by Blondie Kenny Rogers Studio albums Love Lifted Me Kenny Rogers Daytime Friends Love or Something Like It The Gambler Kenny Gideon Share Your Love Love Will Turn You Around We 've Got Tonight Eyes That See in the Dark What About Me ? The Heart of the Matter They Do n't Make Them Like They Used To I Prefer the Moonlight Something Inside So Strong Love Is Strange Back Home Again If Only My Heart Had a Voice Vote for Love Across My Heart She Rides Wild Horses There You Go Again Back to the Well Water & Bridges The Love of God Amazing Grace You Ca n't Make Old Friends Collaboration albums Every Time Two Fools Collide ( with Dottie West ) Classics ( with Dottie West ) Timepiece ( with David Foster ) Christmas albums Christmas Once Upon a Christmas ( with Dolly Parton ) Christmas in America The Gift Christmas from the Heart Christmas with Kenny Christmas Collection Once Again It 's Christmas Compilations Ten Years of Gold The Kenny Rogers Singles Album Greatest Hits ( 1980 ) 20 Greatest Hits Duets The Kenny Rogers Story Love Is What We Make It Short Stories Greatest Hits ( 1988 ) Daytime Friends -- The Very Best of Kenny Rogers Live by Request 42 Ultimate Hits 21 Number Ones Notable singles `` That Crazy Feeling '' `` Just Dropped In ( To See What Condition My Condition Was In ) '' `` But You Know I Love You '' `` Ruby, Do n't Take Your Love to Town '' `` Laura ( What 's He Got That I Ai n't Got ) '' `` Lucille '' `` Daytime Friends '' `` Sweet Music Man '' `` Every Time Two Fools Collide '' ( with Dottie West ) `` Love or Something Like It '' `` Anyone Who Is n't Me Tonight '' ( with Dottie West ) `` The Gambler '' `` All I Ever Need Is You '' ( with Dottie West ) `` She Believes in Me '' `` ' Til I Can Make It on My Own '' ( with Dottie West ) `` You Decorated My Life '' `` Coward of the County '' `` Do n't Fall in Love with a Dreamer '' ( with Kim Carnes ) `` Love the World Away '' `` Lady '' `` I Do n't Need You '' `` Share Your Love with Me '' `` Blaze of Glory '' `` Through the Years '' `` Love Will Turn You Around '' `` A Love Song '' `` We 've Got Tonight '' ( with Sheena Easton ) `` All My Life '' `` Scarlet Fever '' `` Islands in the Stream '' ( with Dolly Parton ) `` Eyes That See in the Dark '' `` This Woman '' `` Buried Treasure '' `` Together Again '' ( with Dottie West ) `` What About Me ? '' ( with Kim Carnes and James Ingram ) `` Evening Star '' `` Crazy '' `` Morning Desire '' `` Goodbye Marie '' `` Tomb of the Unknown Love '' `` Twenty Years Ago '' `` Make No Mistake, She 's Mine '' ( with Ronnie Milsap ) `` I Prefer the Moonlight '' `` The Factory '' `` I Do n't Call Him Daddy '' `` When You Put Your Heart in It '' `` Planet Texas '' `` The Vows Go Unbroken ( Always True to You ) '' `` Maybe '' ( with Holly Dunn ) `` Love Is Strange '' ( with Dolly Parton ) `` Crazy in Love '' `` If You Want to Find Love '' `` Ol ' Red '' `` Mary, Did You Know ? '' ( with Wynonna Judd ) `` The Greatest '' `` Buy Me a Rose '' ( with Alison Krauss and Billy Dean ) `` He Will, She Knows '' `` There You Go Again '' `` Homeland '' `` I Ca n't Unlove You '' Guest singles `` What Are We Doin ' in Love '' ( with Dottie West ) `` Real Love '' ( with Dolly Parton ) `` If I Ever Fall in Love Again '' ( with Anne Murray ) Related articles Discography The First Edition Kenny Rogers Roasters Book : Kenny Rogers Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Coward_of_the_County&oldid=801929460 '' Categories : 1979 singles 1979 songs Billboard Hot Country Songs number - one singles Kenny Rogers songs RPM Adult Contemporary number - one singles RPM Country Tracks number - one singles Song recordings produced by Larry Butler ( producer ) Songs about sexual assault Songs written by Billy Edd Wheeler Songs written by Roger Bowling UK Singles Chart number - one singles United Artists Records singles Hidden categories : Articles with hAudio microformats Singlechart usages for Australia Singlechart usages for Austria Singlechart usages for Dutch40 Singlechart usages for New Zealand Singlechart usages for Swiss Singlechart usages for Billboardcountrysongs Singlechart called without song Singlechart usages for Billboardhot100 Singlechart usages for Billboardadultcontemporary Talk Contents About Wikipedia Nederlands Norsk Svenska Edit links This page was last edited on 22 September 2017, at 20 : 54. 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Question: who played tommy in coward of the county
Answer: Fredric Lehne