George Tracy

George Tracy's career in the entertainment business really started around 1951 when he was asked to play the harmonica on one of Jimmy Walker's songs. Walker remembered that Tracy liked to drink and he was a nervous wreck because he wasn't allowed to touch alcohol during that sessions. Little did Tracy know, this was the beginning on a long and varied career in the entertainment industry. By the late 1950s, Tracy had developed a reputation as a reputable musician for various country music acts. He even managed to release a few individual records by himself. It was this time when Tracy started to appear in variety shows like The Bob Hope Show to showcase his ability with the harmonica. He traveled around played the harmonica whenever he was given the chance. During this time, wasn't steady for Tracy but through some friends, he was able to get into the Screen Extras Guild. Tracy's entrance into the Screen Extras Guild lead to a new source of income for Tracy. He was able to occasionally do recording sessions with a vast array bands while also supplementing his income with extra work. Tracy's appearance made him a natural fit for western bar scenes and his hard drinking made him a natural fit for the rough and tumble crew of extras that inhabited television westerns that were being produced during the time period. By the mid-1960s, television westerns were being phased out by the entertainment industry but like many other cowboys, Tracy found steady work on shows like Bonanza and Gunsmoke. Tracy would also be called upon to play his harmonica in numerous television westerns including a very noticeable role in the television show Laredo where you can see Tracy entertain the local citizens. During the 1970s, Tracy was able to become a reoccurring extra on the television western Nichols. You could frequently see him frequently appear with the few remaining cowboy extras during most of the scenes where the production needed a few extra townsman. Tracy's rough appearance opened up some new opportunities. The studios started to make detective series that featured the main characters visiting various rundown areas and Tracy was frequently called upon to play a vast array of derelicts and undesirable characters. Tracy continued these roles until he passed away in 1981.