Six inductees make up ProRodeo Hall of Fame's Class of 2005
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., April 7, 2005 - Six people who left their indelible mark on the sport of Pro Rodeo have earned induction into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame.

Headlining the Class of 2005 is the late Chris LeDoux of Kaycee, Wyo., who not only won the 1976 world bareback riding title but also brought attention to rodeo through his music.

Joining LeDoux is 1981 World All-Around Champion Jimmie Cooper of Monument, N.M., 1978 World Saddle Bronc Riding Champion Joe Marvel of Battle Mountain, Nev., late team roper Charles Maggini of Kingsburg, Calif., stock contractor Marvin Brookman of Wolf Point, Mont., and late rodeo clown Slim Pickens of Hollister, Calif.

These individuals will be honored during the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame's annual induction ceremony on July 16 at the Hall of Fame garden area.

"This year's Hall of Fame class includes some of the most accomplished cowboys and figures in the history of ProRodeo," said PRCA Commissioner Troy Ellerman. "Not only have these inductees excelled in the sport for many years, they have served tirelessly as ambassadors for ProRodeo and the Western lifestyle. They are now where they belong - in the ProRodeo Hall of Fame."

The Class of 2005 is a diverse group with an endless list of accomplishments.

LeDoux
Born Oct. 2, 1948, in Biloxi, Miss., Ledoux got his start in junior rodeo and at the same time became absorbed in music. He joined the PRCA in 1968 and qualified for the National Finals Rodeo five times. In 1976, he won the bareback riding world title. LeDoux of Kaycee, Wyo., retired from competition in 1980, but continued writing and singing about the rodeo life.

He began recording songs in the early 1970s and went on to national stardom with such songs as A Cowboy Like Me, Too Tough to Die and What More Could a Cowboy Need? His songs captured the romance, the freedom, the dirt and the hurt of rodeo. LeDoux had recorded 22 albums of his own, when Garth Brooks mentioned his name in the 1989 hit song, Much Too Young (To Be This Damn Old). As a result, LeDoux's music became more widely known, and he went on to sign with Brooks' record label, Capitol Records. He recorded 36 albums during his career and sold nearly six million records.

In 2000, he was diagnosed with a liver disease and successfully underwent a liver transplant. Within six months of surgery, he was on tour again - throwing himself right back into the hard-driving full-force stage shows that included a mechanical bucking machine.

In 2004, he was diagnosed with cancer of the bile duct and began radiation treatment. On March 9, 2005, the singer/songwriter, rodeo champion and acclaimed sculptor lost his battle with cancer at the age of 56 in Casper, Wyo.

Cooper
A resident of Monument, N.M., Cooper was one of the top cowboys in the PRCA for much of the 1980s, finishing in the top five of the all-around world standings for seven straight years (1980-86). Competing in steer wrestling, team roping and tie-down roping, he won the all-around title in 1981 edging his legendary cousin Roy Cooper by a mere $47.

In August 1980, Jimmie broke the PRCA record for all-time rookie earnings, which was previously held by Roy in 1976 with $43,779. By the end of 1980, Jimmie had earned $74,432.

In 1982, Jimmie won $29,268 at the NFR, becoming the first person to ever make that much money at a single rodeo. He was also one of only 12 cowboys to ever qualify for the NFR in three events. In 1983, he won the NFR aggregate title in the steer wrestling.

Jimmie, a graduate of New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, attended college on an academic scholarship and joined the rodeo team "just for fun." He has been quoted as saying, "Roy didn't exactly get me started, but when Roy did something I always figured I could do it better." Jimmie now joins Roy, who was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 1979.

A second generation cowboy, he credits his father, Jimmie, for helping him become one of the best in the business. Now his twin boys, Jake and Jimmie, are following in their dad's footsteps. Jake and Jimmie won rookie-of-the-year honors in 2004 in team roping.

Marvel
In addition to winning the 1978 saddle bronc riding world championship, Marvel finished in the top 10 in the world standings four other times from 1974-79. A five-time Wrangler National Finals Rodeo qualifier, Marvel won several circuit titles during his career.

Born on June 26, 1955, in Battle Mountain, Nev., Marvel followed in his brother's footsteps. Mike was the first of the Marvel boys to ride saddle broncs in the PRCA, and then came Joe and finally their youngest brother, Pete. Joe got his PRCA card in 1973, the year he graduated from high school. That same year he won the state and national high school all-around championships.

He told his high school sweetheart, Patrice, - now his wife - that he was going to win a world championship. In 1978, he did just that and remains the last Nevada cowboy to win a world title in any event.

Since leaving rodeo, Marvel has immersed himself in the cattle business with property in Spring Creek and Fallon, Nev. He also gives free clinics to high school competitors in northern Nevada and enjoys watching his nephew, Matt, who rides saddle broncs in the PRCA.

Maggini
Born Aug. 9, 1894, in Hollister, Calif., Maggini made history in 1929 when he became the first PRCA member to hold multiple world titles after winning team roping and steer roping events.

Maggini influenced the careers of two-time world champion steer wrestler Jack Roddy and 1982 World All-Around Champion Chris Lybbert. In fact, Lybbert dedicated his world title to the late Maggini, who passed away earlier that year.

Maggini was also a respected horse trainer and pickup man. The last horse Maggini, then 86, trained went on to win the reined horse classes at California Rodeo Salinas and the Cow Palace. He was inducted into the National Cowboy Hall of Fame & Western Heritage Museum in 2003.

Brookman
A resident of Wolf Point, Mont., he started the Brookman Rodeo Company in 1950 and his company still produces 15 rodeos a year.

Brookman, 91, joined the Cowboys' Turtle Association in 1936 and got his stock contractor's card the same year.

Prior to beginning his own company, Brookman worked with renowned rodeo contractors such as Aber, Linger and Beutler Brothers and Cervi to supply stock.

One of the biggest events his company provides stock for is his hometown rodeo presented during the first part of July in Wolf Point. Brookman began supplying stock for the Wolf Point Wild Horse Stampede, in 1941, with his bucking stock being driven from his ranch to the rodeo grounds. With the advent of hauling trucks and good roads, the drive became a thing of the past.

As part of the 75th Wolf Point Wild Horse Stampede in 1998, that piece of history was revived with "The Brookman Wild Horse Drive of '98." A wagon train formed at Brookman's ranch 32 miles north of Wolf Point. The wagon train, with participants from all over the country, pushed more than 100 head of horses south to Wolf Point.

Pickens
He was born Louis Bert Lindley Jr., in Kingsburg, Calif., on June 29, 1919. He started his rodeo career as a roughstock contestant at the age of 16, and went on to work as a rodeo clown when he wasn't competing. Pickens was discovered by a movie talent scout at a rodeo in 1950 and set off on an impressive acting career.

Pickens appeared in more than 100 movies and television series before his death in 1983 of a brain tumor. His first major role came in the 1950 movie Rocky Mountain with Errol Flynn, and some of his most impressive credits include parts in Dr. Strangelove, Stagecoach with Ann Margret and Bing Crosby, One-Eyed Jacks with Marlon Brando and The Getaway with Steve McQueen.

He is perhaps best-known for his portrayal of "Taggart" in the 1974 comedy hit Blazing Saddles, where he acted alongside Gene Wilder and Mel Brooks. Pickens also appeared regularly in the hit comedy television series Hee Haw.

Pickens was inducted into the National Cowboy Hall of Fame & Western Heritage Museum in 1986.

Induction into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame is considered the highest accolade in the sport. While more than 100 nominations are submitted annually, only a small percentage are selected to join this elite group. The members of the Hall of Fame are divided into 14 categories: all-around cowboy; bareback riding; bull riding; contract personnel; lifetime achievement; livestock; media; notables; saddle bronc riding; steer roping; steer wrestling; stock contractors; team roping; and tie-down roping.

Since the Hall's opening in 1979 and not including the 2005 class, 176 people and 23 animals have been inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame. Located on a 13-acre site tucked against the foothills the Hall of Fame is easily identifiable from Interstate 25 by the landmark bronze statue of Hall of Fame saddle bronc rider Casey Tibbs on the famous horse Necktie. Nearly 50,000 people annually visit the Hall of Fame.