Actor. Born Roland Charles Meyers in Granite City, Illinois. He was one of eight children. He was a moderately successful singer before going to Hollywood, and although he sang in a few pictures, he is not considered a "singing cowboy." Scott R. Dunlap, a Monogram Studio executive, had been looking for someone like Buck Jones since Buck perished in the Boston Cocoanut Grove nightclub fire in 1942. Dunlap signed him to star in a Western series. At the same time Lash LaRue was gaining some fame cracking a bull whip in the movies, so Dunlap decided to give Wilson a whip and make him a combination of Lash LaRue and Buck Jones. In 1949, Whip got his own series and made his first starring film called "Crashing Thru." He starred in 22 B western features. Whip's most frequent sidekick was comedian Andy Clyde. However, in five of his films, he was teamed with Fuzzy Knight and Jim Bannon. His last starring feature was "Wyoming Roundup" which was released in 1952. He also had his own series of comic books. He did work in one more movie. He was hired to do the whip scenes in the Burt Lancaster film "The Kentuckian." He and his 3rd wife Monica, operated an apartment complex after he left the movie industry. He died of a heart attack. He was 53 years old.
Actor. Born Roland Charles Meyers in Granite City, Illinois. He was one of eight children. He was a moderately successful singer before going to Hollywood, and although he sang in a few pictures, he is not considered a "singing cowboy." Scott R. Dunlap, a Monogram Studio executive, had been looking for someone like Buck Jones since Buck perished in the Boston Cocoanut Grove nightclub fire in 1942. Dunlap signed him to star in a Western series. At the same time Lash LaRue was gaining some fame cracking a bull whip in the movies, so Dunlap decided to give Wilson a whip and make him a combination of Lash LaRue and Buck Jones. In 1949, Whip got his own series and made his first starring film called "Crashing Thru." He starred in 22 B western features. Whip's most frequent sidekick was comedian Andy Clyde. However, in five of his films, he was teamed with Fuzzy Knight and Jim Bannon. His last starring feature was "Wyoming Roundup" which was released in 1952. He also had his own series of comic books. He did work in one more movie. He was hired to do the whip scenes in the Burt Lancaster film "The Kentuckian." He and his 3rd wife Monica, operated an apartment complex after he left the movie industry. He died of a heart attack. He was 53 years old.
Bio by: Jane Stacy Eubanks
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