| Gayla Peevey | |
|---|---|
 Publicity photo of Gayla Peevey in 1953 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Gayla Rienette Peevey |
| Born | (1943-03-08) March 8, 1943 (age 81) Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Occupation | Singer |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Years active | 1953–1962 |
| Labels | Columbia, Joy |
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.
Early life
Peevey family moved to Ponca City, Oklahoma, in 1948. Prior to moving to California, she attended Columbus Elementary School.
Career
Peevey's first record, "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas", was recorded in 1953, when she was ten years old. It was the best selling Christmas record of that year.
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 (who weighed over 700 pounds) was purchased and given to Peevey, which she then donated to the zoo in 1953. 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 Walt Disney World's Disney's Animal Kingdom, in Orlando, Florida.
Matilda belonged to the hippo species Pygmy hippopotamus. They are now endangered, with fewer than 3,000 in the wild.
In 1960, under the name Jamie Horton, she had a minor hit with her single "My Little Marine" (Joy 45-234, 1959), which reached #84 on Billboard's Hot 100 in early 1960. She also recorded "Robot Man", a cover of a Connie Francis UK hit, but it failed to reach the charts.
Personal life
Peevey graduated from San Diego State University with a Bachelor of Education degree. She eventually left teaching. She is married to Cliff Henderson. They have a daughter, Sydney Forest, and three grandchildren. Following her retirement from performing, Peevey runs her own jingle advertisement company and sings in church.
Gayla lives in San Diego.
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" / "I'm So Glad" (with Jimmy Boyd) |
40218 | RHCO10753/RHCO10754 | ||
| "Upsy Down Town" / "A Dog Named Joe" | 40264 | CO49820/CO49821 | ||
| 1954 | "The 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 | 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
- Coppernoll, Carrie (December 21, 2008). "'Hippo' was a splash in singer's life". The Oklahoman. Archived from the original on November 7, 2019. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
- ^ Rogers, John (December 16, 2016). "Want a hippo for Christmas? The story of a girl who got one". The Press Democrat. Retrieved December 20, 2024.
- "Novelty Nook, Fifties and Sixties". mistletunes.com. n.d. Archived from the original on March 17, 2010. Retrieved May 11, 2010.
- Money, Jack (March 4, 1998). "City Zoo Hippo Dies En Route to Florida Park"". The Oklahoman. Retrieved January 23, 2017.
- Associated Press (December 13, 2017). "'I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas' Singer Welcomes Hippo to Oklahoma City Zoo". Billboard. Retrieved December 20, 2024.
- Discogs (accessed May 8, 2024)
- Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. February 1, 1960. p. 60. ISSN 0006-2510.
- Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. July 25, 1960. p. 3. ISSN 0006-2510.
- ^ "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". Risen Magazine. n.d. Archived from the original on December 27, 2023. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
- "'Only a hippopotamus will do'". The Columbian. December 17, 2016. Archived from the original on September 27, 2024. Retrieved December 26, 2024.
External links
- Gayla Peevey at IMDb
- List of singles from Joy Records at the Wayback Machine (archived October 26, 2021)
- Gayla Peevey discography at Discogs
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