August 18, 1918

Western swing bandleader and comedian Hank Penny was born in Birmingham. Penny formed several popular swing bands, including the Painted Post Rangers, who released three Billboard top-10 country singles. Penny also starred as a comedian on Spade Cooley’s popular Hoffman Hayride in Los Angeles, where he played a backwoods character named “That Plain Ol’ Country Boy.” In 1954, Penny moved to Las Vegas and headlined a show at the Golden Nugget Casino for seven years with a big band that included guitarist Roy Clark. Penny later auditioned to host the CBS country variety show Hee Haw, but lost out on the role to former bandmember Clark.

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Publicity photograph of Hank Penny. (Dytopos, Bhamwiki)

Hank Penny, 1944. (Advertisement from the 1944 Billboard Music Yearbook, Wikipedia)

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