Enlisted in the US Army in 1928 and served two hitches. He re-enlisted in the 1940s for a brief while, then left. He enlisted again during the Korean War.
After he left the film business he became a police officer in Arizona.
His horse was named Apache.
In the mid-'30s he heard that Universal Pictures was looking to star a singing cowboy in a series of westerns. He auditioned for the part and got it. One of the people he beat. out for the part was Roy Rogers.