Shug Fisher's Birthday

Shug on Gunsmoke

On September 26, 1907, George "Shug" Fisher was welcomed into the world. He got his nickname from his mother, who said he was "sweet as sugar." He learned to play several instruments while he was young and developed a flair for comedy.

Shug played the upright bass and acted as comedian for the Sons of the Pioneers on and off from 1943 - 1959. (Pat Brady, Shug Fisher, and Deuce Spriggens all took turns at the role of bass player/comedian during these years.) He was married to a girl named Peggy Summers.

He appeared with the Pioneers in several Roy Rogers movies, Everybody's Dancin' (1950), and Rio Grande (1950). He was at his stuttering best on the Pioneers' radio show The Lucky U Ranch which ran for a few years during the early fifties.

Shug was good friends with both Ken Carson and Ken Curtis, who sang with the Pioneers at different times. Shug later appeared with Curtis as a regular in a series called Ripcord (1961 - 1963), and as an occasional guest on Gunsmoke (1955 - 1975).

A real down-to-earth sort of fella, Shug has been quoted as saying, "There are more folks than there are people."

He passed away on March 16, 1984.

(Clockwise from top) Bob Nolan, Karl Farr, Lloyd Perryman, Shug Fisher, Hugh Farr, Ken Curtis
Western Reservoir collection

See Shug's biography here on the Bob Nolan website.