Gayla Rienette Peevey (born March 8, 1943) is a former singer and child star from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. She is best known for her recording of "I Want a Hippopotamus For Christmas" (Columbia 4-40106, 1953). Peevey recorded the novelty song when she was 10 years old. In 1960, under the name Jamie Horton, she had a minor hit with the song "Robot Man", a Connie Francis cover.[1]
Biography
Her family moved to Ponca City, Oklahoma, in 1948. Prior to moving to California, Gayla attended Columbus Elementary School.[2] Peevey graduated from San Diego State University with a Bachelor of Education degree.[3] She eventually left teaching.[3] She is married to Cliff Henderson. They have a daughter, Sydney Forest, and three grandchildren.[4] Following her retirement from performing, Peevey runs her own jingle advertisement company and sings in church.[5]
In popular culture
The Oklahoma City Zoo capitalized upon the popularity of "I Want A Hippopotamus For Christmas" with a fundraising campaign to "buy a hippo for Gayla". The fund raised $3,000 (equivalent to US$34,164 in 2023), and a baby hippopotamus named Matilda was purchased and given to Peevey, which she then donated to the zoo in 1953.[6] Matilda spent 45 years in the Oklahoma City Zoo, and then died at age 47 from a heart attack in 1998 while being transferred to the Walt Disney World's Disney's Animal Kingdom, in Orlando, Florida.[7]
Singles as Gayla Peevey on Columbia Records
| Year | Title | Label | Single | Matrix No. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1953 | I Want a Hippopotamus For Christmas/Are My Ears On Straight | Columbia Records | 40106 | CO49818/CO49819 |
| Wish I Wuz A Whisker (On The Easter Bunny's Chin)/Three Little Bunnies | 40182 | RHCO10747/RHCO10748 | ||
| Kitty In The Basket (duet with Jimmy Boyd)/I'm So Glad (duet with Jimmy Boyd) | 40218 | RHCO10753/RHCO10754 | ||
| Upsy Down Town/A Dog Named Joe | 40264 | CO49820/CO49821 | ||
| 1954 | Angel In The Christmas Play/Got A Cold In The Node For Christmas | 40364 | RHCO33252/RHCO33253 | |
| Daddy's Report Card/The Night I Ran Away | 40425 | RHCO10749/RHCO10750 | ||
| 1955 | 77 Santas/Rubberlegs (The Knock-Kneed Monkey) | 40602 | RZSP33598/RZSP33599 | |
| 1957 | I Want You To Be My Guy/Too Young To Have A Broken Heart | 40932 | JZSP41539/JZSP41540 | |
| 1958 | That's What I Learned In School/Do It Again | 41027 | JZSP42215/JZSP42214 |
Singles as Jamie Horton on Joy Records (New York)
| Year | Title | Label | Single | Matrix No. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | My Little Marine/Missin' | Joy Records (New York) | 234 | K90W-8507/K90W-8508 |
| 1960 | Where's My Love/Heartbreakin' Doll | 237 | KS-193/KS-194 | |
| Just Say So/There Goes My Love | 240 | L90W-2188 | ||
| Robot Man/We're Through – We're Finished | 241 | JR-7051/JR-7031 | ||
| What Should A Teen Heart Do/Hands Off, He's Mine | 245 | |||
| 1961 | When It Comes To Love/Yes, I'll Be Your Girl | 252 | ||
| Going, Going, Going Gone/They're Playing Our Song (contains elements of 16 Candles) | 258 | JR-7103/JR-7101 | ||
| Dear Jane/Only Forever | 266 | JR-7073/JR-7122 | ||
| 1962 | Go Shout It From A Mountain/Oh Love (Stop Knockin' On My Door) | 269 |
References
- ^ Nielsen Business Media, Inc. (July 25, 1960). Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. p. 3. ISSN 0006-2510.
{{cite book}}:|author=has generic name (help) - ^ ‘Hippo’ was a splash in singer’s life
- ^ a b "Biography of Gayla Peevey," Internet Movie Database (accessed May 11, 2010).
- ^ Famed Child Singing Sensation Gayla Peevey On the Comeback of Her Classic, I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas
- ^ Christmas hippo changed life for Oklahoma 10-year-old
- ^ Novelty Nook, Fifties and Sixties, Mistletunes.com (accessed May 11, 2010).
- ^ " City Zoo Hippo Dies En Route to Florida Park". News OK (March 4, 1998). Retrieved on 2017-01-23.
External links
- Gayla Peevey at IMDb
- List of singles from Joy Records
- Gayla Peevey discography at Discogs
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