Roscoe Ates: Movies & Box Office

Roscoe Blevel Ates (January 20, 1895 – March 1, 1962) was an American vaudeville performer, character actor, and musician best remembered for his recurring side‑kick role as Soapy Jones in dozens of B‑westerns. Born in the tiny hamlet of Grange, Mississippi, Ates grew up with a stutter that he later turned into a comic asset, mastering it by the age of eighteen. He began his entertainment career accompanying silent pictures on the violin in Chickasha, Oklahoma, before forming the comedy duo Ates and Darling, which headlined the Orpheum Circuit for fifteen years and showcased his unique blend of music and slapstick. After a stint on Broadway in the musical comedy Sea Legs (1937) and a tour of Scotland and England, Ates transitioned to Hollywood where his first screen appearance was as a ship’s cook in South Sea Rose (1929). Over the next three decades he amassed more than two hundred film credits, ranging from the classic King Kong (1933) to Gone with the Wind (1939), where he delivered a memorable line as a Confederate soldier. His most iconic work came in the 1940s and 1950s when he embodied the lovable, stammering deputy Soapy Jones, appearing alongside stars such as Roy Rogers in titles like Wild West (1946) and Driftin’ River (1946). In addition to acting, Ates performed musical numbers in his movies, singing traditional tunes like “Home on the Range” and “Turkey in the Straw.” He also served in World War II, training Air Force fighter pilots at Ellington Field, Texas. With the advent of television, Ates brought his western persona to the small screen, debuting as Deputy Roscoe on The Marshal of Gunsight Pass (1950) and later guest‑starring on series such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Wagon Train, and The Untouchables. His personal life saw three marriages—first to Clara Callahan, then to Leonore Belle Jumps, and finally to Beatrice Angelina Naranjo—though he left no recorded offspring. Roscoe Ates succumbed to lung cancer in 1962 at the age of 67, but his distinctive stutter, quick wit, and rustic charm continue to endear him to classic‑film enthusiasts.