Skeets Yaney Collection
Scope and Contents
The collection contains correspondence, certificates, advertising for musical events and local businesses, song lyrics, and partial radio scripts. The collection dates from 1924 to 2000, with gaps from 1925 to 1944, from 1963 to 1971, and from 1987 to 1999. The bulk of the collection dates from 1947 to 1978 and is arranged alphabetically by topic and/or type of document.
Most of the correspondence pertains to Yaney’s career. There are letters from Acuff-Rose Publications regarding Yaney’s MGM contract and his song, “The Flower of My Heart.” Yaney also received letters from Pee Wee King, asking him to play a date with him, and a brief letter from Buck Owens. Other letters relate to Yaney’s performances at a Veteran’s Hospital benefit in 1956 and an invitation to the United Cerebral Palsy Association of Greater St. Louis telethon in 1954 (f.4). Correspondence dating after Yaney’s death is from the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. In 1981, the curator of collections asked Alma Yaney to donate items relating to her husband’s career. There is a receipt dated 21 February 1986 for items donated by Yaney’s daughter, Jena Lochirco. The final item is a note dated 26 May 2000 from Mark Medley which enclosed a photocopy from the book, 100 Years of Western Wear, by Tyler Beard and Jim Arndt. In the 1970s, Yaney received a Christmas card from the Moolah Temple and a note with a signed photograph from Harvey A. Beffa of St. Louis, chairman of the Shriners Hospitals (f.4). There is a 1947 poster for Moolah Drum Corps party featuring Yaney and undated fliers for a dinner and hoedown at Skeets Yaney’s Cartwheel Cocktail Lounge for the Moolah Drum and Bugle Corps (f.5). Advertising for Yaney’s performances include a small handbill for Skeets and Frankie on KMOX, a 1952 broadside for the Eighteenth Annual Wentzville Homecoming, and a card for Yaney’s Cartwheel Cocktail Lounge. A flier from Acuff-Rose Publications features Yaney’s song, “The Flower of My Heart,” along with songs by Bud Deckelman and Randy Atcher. Additional items include a small sheet of uncut jukebox labels dated 1957 for Yaney’s songs, “Teardrop” and “I Still Love You.” There are also blank pieces of Yaney’s personal letterhead and envelopes (f.5) and a blank contract used by Yaney for his National Champions (f.3). There are lyrics for two songs: “It Was Like Christmas Morning” by composer/musician Joseph E. Saracini, which Yaney introduced on KMOX; and “All I Want is Your Love.” The verso of the lyrics reads “Bob Orender and Skeets Yaney” and a KMOX envelope accompanies the song. There are also scripts for two radio shows aired on the Armed Forces Radio Service. The first is a ten page script for episode #256 of Redd Harper’s Hollywood Round Up with guest star Skeets Yaney. The second is a single page script replying to a request for Skeets Yaney and The National Champion Hillbillies to play “Grandpa’s House.” In June 1955, Carl Smith sent Yaney a certificate for the Carl Smith Award “for the Tireless and Everlasting Efforts…on Country Western Music.” Other certificates are from The Meridian Lodge No.2 (St. Louis) and the U.S. Air Force Recruiting Service (f.3). General advertising items pertain to St. Louis events and businesses, possibly collected by Alma Yaney, and include: a handbill for “Hear Charlies Preach, Sing, Whistle” at the Delmar Baptist Church; a card from Sam Stringer Service (1200 S. 12th St.); and a coupon book from the South Broadway Merchants and Manufacturer Association.Dates
- 1924 - 2000
- Majority of material found within 1947-1978
Creator
- Owens, Buck, 1929-2006 (Correspondent, Person)
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research use.
Conditions Governing Use
For permission to publish, quote from, or reproduce material in this collection, please contact the Archives Reference Desk at archives@mohistory.org. Copyright restrictions may apply. The researcher assumes full responsibility for conforming to the laws of copyright.
Biographical Sketch
Clyde Alexander Yaney was born on 16 June 1909, to Alexander Yaney and Anna Wicks in Mitchell, Indiana. He was given the nickname, Skeets, at a young age and performed under this name throughout his music and radio careers. In 1931, Yaney performed with musical groups in southern Indiana on WGBF in Evansville. By 1933, Indiana newspapers reported him performing on KMOX in St. Louis. Yaney married Alma Rose Stoll (1912-1984) in St. Louis in 1939, and the couple had one daughter, Jean (Yaney) Lochirco.
Yaney was a well-known country music performer, winning yodeling contests, and DJ on several St. Louis radio stations: KMOX, KXLW, WEW, and KSTL. He met accordion player Frankie Taylor (Frank Krajcir) in St. Louis in about 1936. They performed together with the National Champion Hillbillies and later co-owned two nightclubs. Yaney performed live shows in and around the St. Louis area and was known for his impressive wardrobe. From 1949 to 1957, Yaney wrote and recorded songs with Columbia and MGM, such as “Tear Drop” and "Forever and Always." Yaney died of cancer on 22 January 1978. In 1980, he was posthumously inducted into the Country Music DeeJay Hall of Fame. The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum asked Alma Yaney for items related to Yaney’s long career and in 1986, their daughter, Jean provided suits, cowboy boots, and photographs. One of Yaney’s suits appeared in the 1993 book, 100 Years of Western Wear, by Tyler Beard and Jim Arndt.Extent
0.23 Cubic Feet (6 folders, 1 oversize folder)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
The collection is arranged alphabetically by topic/type of document.
Physical and Technical Restrictions
There are no physical or technical restrictions.
Donor Information
The collection was a gift from the St. Louis Media History Foundation in 2023 (accession number 2023-044).
Sources Consulted during Processing
Processing Information
Processed with funding from The Stuart Foundation, Inc. by Kristina Perez, 2024.
Creator
- Owens, Buck, 1929-2006 (Correspondent, Person)
- King, Pee Wee, 1914-2000 (Correspondent, Person)
- Beffa, Harvey A., 1900-1975 (Correspondent, Person)
- Saracini, Joseph A., 1906-1953 (Composer, Person)
- Title
- Skeets Yaney Collection
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- EAD by Kristina Perez using ArchivesSpace
- Date
- 2024
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Missouri Historical Society Library and Research Center Repository