Stan Jones (songwriter)

Stanley Davis "Stan" Jones was songwriter, actor, and singer, who worked for Disney in various film and television productions.
Jones was in Douglas, Arizona and was the youngest of seven children. He grew up on a ranch belonging to his parents, John Jones and Berta Davis. His parents had come from the southeastern US, and after a few years in Texas, then a brief spell in Mexico, where Stan's closest sibling Jeanne was born, they settled in Arizona. Stan's father originally owned a small grocery store, then later worked as a shipping clerk. When his father died, his mother moved the family to Los Angeles, California. Jones attended UC Berekley in the early thirties, riding the rodeo circuit during breaks for living expenses. He dropped out in 1934 to join the United States Navy. After his discharge, he worked at many jobs, such as a copper miner, a fire fighter, logger, and a park ranger. During World War II, he worked as a field director for the American Red Cross in Bend, Oregon where met his wife Olive, a schoolteacher.
In his free time, Jones wrote songs, such as "Saddle Up", "Lilies Grow High", "I Left My Love", "In the Shadows of My Heart", "Hannah Lee", "So Much To Me", "My Gal Is Purple", "Footsore Cavalry", "Yellow Stripes", "Wagons West", "Shadows in the Dust, "Cowpoke", and "Ghost Riders in the Sky", which would become his most famous composition which would recorded by various artists, including Gene Autry, Burl Ives, and Johnny Cash.
His introduction to Hollywood came in 1948 as a technical advisor for The Walking Hills and 3 Godfathers. Aside from writing songs for Western pictures, Jones appeared in cameo or supporting roles in films, such as The Searchers, Rio Grande, The Marshal's Daughter, The Last Musketeer, Whirlwind, Wagon Master, The Horse Soldiers, and Invitation to a Gunfighter. In television, he co-wrote the theme song to Cheyenne with Disney alumnus William Lava and created and starred as Deputy Harry Olson in The Sheriff of Cochise. Many of Jones' songs were published through the ASCAP, but he formed two music companies during his lifetime, Stanley Music Company and Stanley Mills Ranger Music Company, to publish more of his work. He released three music albums during his lifetime through the Disneyland label which were Creakin' Leather, later rereleased as Ghost Riders in the Sky, on the Buena Vista label. The others being Walt Disney Presents Songs Of The National Parks and This Was the West.
Jones married twice. He had a daughter with his first wife, but later gave up all parental rights. His second marriage produced one son. He died from cancer in Los Angeles and was buried at Calvary Memorial Park in his hometown of Douglas, Arizona.
==Filmography==
Year 	Film 	Roles/Positions
1955 	Mickey Mouse Club 	Counselor Frank ("Spin and Marty")
1956 	Westward Ho, the Wagons! 	Songwriter: "Wringle Wrangle"
1956 	The Great Locomotive Chase 	Wilson BrownSongwriter: "Sons of Aunt Delilah"
1958-1961	Texas John Slaughter 	Songwriter: "Texas John Slaughter Theme"
1958-1960	The Nine Lives of Elfego Baca	Singer: "The Nine Lives of Elfego Baca (theme)"
1960 	Ten Who Dared 	Seneca HowlandSongwriter: "Jolly Rovers""Roll Along"
1961 	Daniel Boone 	Doc Slocum
==Role==
Stan Jones in Spin and Marty.JPG|Frank(Spin and Marty)
==Gallery==
Stan Jones performing on Disneyland Show.JPG|Jones performing in "Behind the Scenes with Fess Parker".
==External links==
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*MMC Crew: Stan Jones
Category:Males
Category:1910s births
Category:1960s deaths
Category:Deceased
Category:People from Arizona
Category:American people
Category:Actors
Category:Musicians
Category:Singers
Category:Songwriters
Category:Singer-songwriters
Category:Mickey Mouse Club
Category:The Great Locomotive Chase
Category:Westward Ho, the Wagons!
Category:Ten Who Dared
Category:Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color
Category:Walt Disney Records artists