Before Harold Ensley’s Gone Fishin’ Show became nationally syndicated, he made frequent appearances in Nodaway County in the 1960s and 1970s, including two Spoofound athletic dinners at the First Christian Church and giving the West Nodaway commencement address. He made appearances in Arkoe and Elmo.
There’s another Nodaway connection. His original fishing song was written by Smiley Burnett, who lived in Ravenwood in the 1920s.
Appearances in Nodaway County
Arkoe
Burlington Jct
Elmo
Lions Club – Methodist Church 1969
Hopkins
Maryville
- Name The Lure Name Pup Contest-Ladd Motors 1963 (ad)
- Recipies for Cooking Fish-Ingels, Inc 1965 (ad)
- Athletic Banquet -First Christian Church 1966
- Athletic Banquet-Christian Church 1969
- Consumers Oil-National Guard Armory 1970
- Scottish Rite-NWMSU Student Union 1971
- Money Saving Coupon Book – Ingels, Inc 1971 (ad)
- First Baptist Church 1976
‘Like This,’ Explains Ensley
The Maryville Daily Forum, February 26, 1970, Page 8. via Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-maryville-daily-forum-consumers-oil/197966825/
Harold Ensley, “the Sportsman’s Friend,” second from right, explains how to catch a fish to Consumer Oil Co. board president David White, second from left, and Steve Hayes, nephew of general manager Jim Hays, right, following the Consumer Oil Co. firm’s 41st annual meeting Wednesday night (at the National Guard Armory). More than 350 persons were present to hear the cooperative’s financial reports, name three board members, and hear the noted sportsman. -Heywood’s
Ingels Ensley Advertisement 1971
Evolution of Title Song
Smiley Burnett, who lived in Ravenwood, Missouri, in the early 1920s while his parents were pastor of the First Christian Church, in 1945 wrote the song that would first be used as Ensley’s theme in the 1940s during his fishing show in Joplin, Missouri, on WMBH.
When his show started in Kansas City he started using the three suns songs-texas by Jim Robertson published in 1950.
2005 Obituary
He helped teach America how to fish. Known to TV viewers across the country as “The Sportsman’s Friend, ” Harold Edward Ensley had a life as full as his tackle box.
Born November 20, 1912, to Amy and Wesley Ensley in Healy, KS, Harold grew up on their Dust Bowl cattle ranch. At 18, he was the state’s top history student and valedictorian of his class–even though he’d confessed to playing hooky to go fishing. He taught himself to catch perch, wading a creek with a safety-pin hook and a willow stick.
But he dreamed of a future with a different stick. He had a .390 batting average and a fine fastball, pitching in the California Winter League, when a teammate accidentally tossed a bat that broke his arm and his heart. He would achieve a big-league career without baseball, but he had to touch a lot of bases to get there.
For a while, he drove big rigs for $10 a week. For a long while, he was a Church of Christ preacher in Joplin, MO, where his local religious radio show played a role in a major job change. To supplement his church salary, he sold radio ads when a friend set the hook for the rest of his life. Wiley McGehee, who owned a country store, said he’d buy ads if Harold had a fishing show.
The boss at WMBH never heard of such a thing, but Harold said he’d do it for free. For a theme song, he picked Smiley Burnett’s “Well, I Might Have Gone Fishin’.” (Ten years later, Smiley sang that song live as Harold’s guest on that newfangled thing called television.) As Harold’s professional life was changing, so was his personal. He would be married to two remarkable women with whom he had three extraordinary children: Oba’s sons, Smokey and Dusty; Bonnie’s daughter, Sandy. In 1949, Harold and Bonnie moved to Kansas City, and the only radio job he could find was selling time for KIMO/Independence.
Eventually, he hustled his way on the air by offering to sell spots, but take no pay for play-by play of Little League baseball, plus basketball for high schools, NAIA, Big 6 and Big 7 tournaments, and he wrote a syndicated newspaper column.
In 1951, he talked KIMO into airing “The Fisherman’s Friend”-again for no pay. That would change. Harold was one whale of a salesman. As a kid, he sold magazines to the parents of other kids who sold magazines. He would become a world champion sportsman and a broadcasting pioneer, but his success probably came about because he could sell whiskers to catfish. His big break came when Sears wanted to cancel ads on KIMO, but he convinced them to sponsor his radio show: 5 days a week, $5 a show. Sears signed up for one month, stayed for 15 years.
Radio executives were baffled by the popularity of a fishing show, but the big-city audience was drawn to small-town Harold, like a school of white bass swarming shad on Soap Creek.
In 1953, he helped invent an industry. A California man, Charlie Davis, hosted the very first TV fishing show and had Harold as a guest. Not long after Gadabout Gaddis in Boston, Mort Neff in Detroit, and Harold Ensley in K.C. virtually tied for TV’s second fishing show. Harold’s program on KCMO-TV (now KCTV) became one of the first in the Midwest to air in color. His radio show also moved to KCMO, and for both, a new theme song, “Gone Fishin’,” became synonymous with Harold Ensley. And because he loved all outdoors, “The Fisherman’s Friend” became “The Sportsman’s Friend.”
Every week for 21 years–1,104 live telecasts, no reruns–he and his son, Dusty, hit the road. From Arkansas to the Arctic, from the East Coast to Costa Rica, they shot 2,000,000 feet of film, covering everything from snow skiing to water skiing, duck hunting to mushroom hunting, hang gliding to high-country horseback riding. But most of all, fishing. And maybe one secret of Harold’s enduring appeal is that he loved to catch a fish as big as your hand as much as one as big as your house.
You bet, he was proud of those two 150 lb. tarpon on back-to-back casts in Africa, but you should’ve heard him brag on that big ol’ bucket of Truman Lake crappie. He was not partial to big-game hunting, but some of his finest footage featured upland game birds and his favorite dogs: his beautiful English setter, Ben, and his prized pointer, Country Squire, named after his famous red Ford station wagon.
In 1975, his TV coverage expanded from eight states to nationwide syndication. For the next 27 years, his series was produced by KSNW-TV/Wichita and aired from Bangor to Bakersfield, Fargo to Orlando.
For 48 straight years, television was never without “The Sportsman’s Friend.” Harold won a boatload of awards that place him among the elite of outdoors, of athletes, of broadcasting. In 1960, Sports Illustrated hosted the first major fishing tournament, the World Series of Freshwater Sport Fishing, and Harold became the first World Champion. Mayor H. Roe Bartle gave him the key to the city, and at the Kansas City Night of Sports, he was “Athlete of the Year.”
He was inducted into the National Fishing Hall of Fame, and Argosy and Outdoor magazines named him “National Freshwater Fisherman of America.” In Bermuda, he won the Light-Tackle Allison Tuna Tournament. In Oklahoma, at the 1970 Grand National Quail Hunt, he was “Top Gun.” The U.S. Congressional Record cited his achievements, and he was honored by the state legislatures of Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Missouri, as well as by his union, AFTRA.
In 1994, he was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame; in 2001, the Kansas Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame; in 2004, the Legends of the Outdoors Hall of Fame; in 2005, the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame. Growing up, Harold just wanted to be a ballplayer, never dreamed he’d be cameo player in Hollywood. He taught Jimmy Stewart how to cast and showed Henry Fonda how to catch trout. He fished with Tennessee Ernie Ford, Karl Malden, Rex Allen, William Holden, Denver Pyle, Mel Tillis, Kirk Douglas, Clint Waker, Clint Eatswood.
Especially dear was the cast of “Gunsmoke.” They appeared on Harold’s show, and he appeared on “Gunsmoke.” and when “The Beverly Hillbillies” shot a fishing episode, who else would be Jed Clampett’s guide but Harold Ensley? He hunted quail and pheasant with Roy Rogers and the Apollo 17 astronauts, and wet a line with governors, senators, and a president’s son. And what a thrill to fish with ballplayers he’d hoped to play with: Ted Williams, Joe DiMaggio, Enos Slaughter, Stan Musial, Bobby Richardson, Tony Kubek, Roger Maris, and some Johnny-come-lately’s like George Brett. One of his most prized photos is autographed: “To Harold, the second-best fisherman I know. (signed) No. 1 Mickey Mantle.”
Hundreds of friends helped his career: resort owners, dock operators, guides, landowners who gave permission to hung, his sponsors, especially Midwest Ford Dealers and Abu Garcia. After 50 years on the air, he had no intention of stopping there, but a twice-broken knee and broken back forced doctors to dry-dock his TV series in 2001.
However, his idea of slowing down was to write his first book. Read his “Winds of Chance”, and you won’t find the typical, technical how-to-fish, but a celebration of 50 years of fun. And he took a liking to book writing; he wrote another on hunting, “Wings of Chance.” In print or in person, he was a gifted storyteller. For an audience of one or 100,000, he made magic. As much as he liked to work a crowd, he found joy in solitary pursuits.
He loved to run. On four continents, everywhere he fished or hunted, he jogged. Another life-long discipline: he began and ended each day reading the Bible. He completed Genesis through Revelation 59 1/2 times and attended Overland Park Church of Christ. Yet another passion: his garden.
He had to use a ladder to pick cucumbers, and those of us who tasted “Ensley Sweets,” the cherry tomato he created, would vote him into the Delicious Hall of Fame. Every summer, he harvested bushels of crops that he loved to share. And from the late 1940’s until Wednesday, he shared his love of the outdoors. No one on this planet inspired more people to pick up a fishing pole or pick out a bird dog than Harold Ensley. August 24, 2005, at home, looking out at his garden, he joined family he had lost: his parents, his wife Bonnie, brother James Ensley, sister Dorothy Stewart, and daughter-in-law Dodie Ensley.
He is survived by sons Smokey Ensley, Dusty Ensley, and wife Gloria; daughter Sandy Trotter and husband Jim; four grandchildren, Michael Ensley and wife Laurie, Chris Ensley and wife Beth, David Trotter, Leslee Trotter; by great-grandchildren, James and Sophia, Olivia and Tess; and special nieces and nephews. Memorial contributions suggested to Christian Family Services, 10500 Barkley, Overland Park, KS 66212. Friends and fans are invited to Overland Park Church of Christ, 119th & Pflumm, 6 p.m., Saturday, August 27, to celebrate the man we love, whose tall fishing tales are true. (Arrangements: D. W. Newcomer’s Sons, Johnson County Chapel. 913451-1860)
Gone Fishin History
Jokes about Harold Ensely
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“Harold Ensley taught me fishing is 90% patience and 10% pretending the fish didn’t see you screw up the cast.”
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“On Harold’s show the fish never stood a chance — they watched, clapped, and then mysteriously jumped into the boat.”
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“I asked Harold for a tip: ‘Talk to the fish.’ Now they follow me on social media and still won’t bite.”
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“Harold’s idea of advanced tackle is a smile and more enthusiasm than my rod can handle.”
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“Watching Harold fish is like watching a motivational speaker with a cooler — inspirational and wet.”
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“He made every cast look easy. I copy him and now my backyard has more tangles than a fishing knot contest.”
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“Harold’s favorite bait? Confidence. Second favorite? Whatever the viewers sent in that week.”
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“On the show Harold called every bite ‘the big one.’ I call it clickbait with fins.”
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“Harold’s fishing advice: use live bait. My wallet’s advice: use patience and a smaller tackle box.”
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“He promised I’d reel in a story for campfires. All I got was soggy marshmallows and a lot of excuses.”
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“Harold could find fish like a GPS — too bad mine keeps saying ‘recalculating’ every cast.”
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“They say fishing is a sport of kings. After watching Harold, I feel like the court jester with a net.”
Jokes About Gone Fishin’ Song
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“Texas Jim Robertson sang ‘Gone Fishin’’ so convincingly Harold had to ask the fish for an encore.”
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“The Three Suns wrote the tune, Jim sold the vibe—together they made fish put on their Sunday best.”
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“Every time ‘Gone Fishin’’ plays, Harold’s audience reaches for tackle boxes like it’s a hymn book.”
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“Jim’s voice says ‘gone fishin’—my boss hears it and suddenly my out-of-office reply writes itself.”
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“The Three Suns gave us the melody; Jim gave us the swagger. The fish got the memo and disappeared.”
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“Harold’s theme song made fishing feel cinematic—complete with dramatic pauses for the fish to gasp.”
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“When Jim sings ‘Gone Fishin’’, even the worms start packing their bags.”
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“That song is so classic the fish subscribe to the reruns.”
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“The Three Suns set the soundtrack, Texas Jim provided the narration—Harold supplied the fish stories.”
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“Jim’s version makes every cast feel like the opening scene of an adventure movie—starring a cooler.”
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“They recorded a song about leaving work; Harold turned it into a TV degree in escaping responsibilities.”
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“Listening to that theme, you’re either heading to the lake or suddenly very committed to untangling a fishing line.”