Bill Linderman

Born in Bridger, Montana and raised in Red Lodge, Linderman had six brothers, four of whom were cowboys on professional rodeo tours. At the age of seven, Linderman's father, John H. Linderman, died, and he eventually moved to his stepfather's farm in Belfry. ==Professional rodeo career==

In 1943, Linderman won his first world championship in the bareback riding event, Two years later, he won the All-Around title, which was unofficial at the time; his closest competitor was younger brother Bud Linderman. In addition to the All-Around crown, he won the saddle bronc riding world championship that year. Linderman claimed three RCA world championships in 1950, becoming the first cowboy to win that many in a season. he won the official All-Around Cowboy championship. He also won his second saddle bronc title and only steer wrestling crown. The following year, Linderman again won the All-Around Cowboy title, with more than $33,000 in season earnings. and a subsequent injury in Omaha caused him to miss the remainder of the season. In 1955, Linderman won the all-around championship at the Ellensburg Rodeo, adding victories in the bareback bronc and saddle bronc disciplines. Linderman repeated his wins in the all-around and steer wrestling categories in the 1957 Spokane Rodeo. In 1959, Linderman retired from competition; estimates of his career earnings range from over $439,000 to over $500,000. ==Other rodeo work==

From the mid-1940s until his death, Linderman also held various jobs in the rodeo industry. In 1946, after sustaining the injuries that ended his season, he served as a judge for other performers. The RCA gave Linderman a position on its board of directors in 1947, as he was recovering from his appendectomy; At the time, there were multiple rodeo organizations awarding world championships; in addition to the RCA, there was the International Rodeo Association (IRA), which itself was created by a merger of two organizations. Linderman was sent to a November 1948 IRA convention, where he backed the idea of a single champion per event. The IRA stopped calling their season point leaders "champions" in 1955. While on the board, he pushed for the creation of an event to be held at the conclusion of the rodeo season, which would involve the leaders in the standings. His intent was to have the event play a large role in deciding the season's champions, which were determined by season earnings. In 1951, the RCA made Linderman its president, and he served six terms through 1956. During his time as president, the RCA agreed to a deal with the Girls Rodeo Association (GRA), which mandated that rodeos comprising the RCA's schedule gain sanctioning by the GRA. Linderman's desire for a season-ending event came to fruition in 1959 with the founding of the National Finals Rodeo. He was selected by those in the rodeo community to be arena director at the rodeo. Linderman returned to the RCA in 1962 as secretary-treasurer, holding the position for the remainder of his life. ==Personal life==

Linderman married Jean Whidden and the couple had a daughter, Charlotte. A few years after Jean's death in 1945, he remarried to Patricia Aber, who had a daughter, Michael. They had one son, Billy. ==Death==

On November 11, 1965, Linderman boarded United Airlines Flight 227 to San Francisco; he was heading to Spokane, Washington, to speak at a Washington Fairs Association conference. Multiple pieces of folklore exist in the rodeo community regarding events surrounding his death. According to one story, Linderman exited the plane after surviving the crash, only to die after returning in an effort to help others still aboard. American Cowboy magazine editor Kendra Santos describes another story, on a visit by Linderman to Denver's Pig ’n' Whistle restaurant hours before the accident, as having "been passed along—cowboy to cowboy". ==Legacy==

Nicknamed "The King" by other rodeo performers, The RCA had sculptor Bob Scriver build a bronze statue of Linderman, which was placed in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma's Cowboy Hall of Fame in 1969. He had been a member of the Hall since 1966. Linderman was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 1979. == Honors ==

• 1966 Rodeo Hall of Fame of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum • 2006 Cheyenne Frontier Days Hall of Fame (as Linderman Family) • 2012 Montana Cowboy Hall of Fame • 2012 Montana Pro Rodeo Hall and Wall of Fame ==References==