McEnery was born in December 1914 in
San Antonio,
Texas. He got the nickname "Red River Dave" because he enjoyed singing
"Red River Valley" at
Brackenridge High School in his hometown. McEnery first appeared on radio at age 18, in 1932, for
KABC in San Antonio. In 1936, he became "cattle whip and lariat champion" at a state competition. That same year, he broadcast a live singing performance from the
Goodyear Blimp over
CBS AM radio station
WQAM in Miami. McEnery's career really took off with his topical song "
Amelia Earhart's Last Flight", broadcast in a pioneer television broadcast from the
1939 New York World's Fair, where his band entertained at the Swift Premium exhibit. He worked for radio station
WOR (AM) in New York City. Records indicate he was discharged for medical reasons after being admitted to hospital at
Camp Croft, South Carolina. McEnery was featured in several full-length westerns and short subjects as a
singing cowboy including the
Columbia Pictures feature
Swing in the Saddle (1944), and the
Universal Pictures featurettes
Hidden Valley Days and
Echo Ranch (both 1948). He also starred in 14
soundies, three-minute musical films shown in coin-operated "movie jukeboxes", and was the company's most prolific cowboy entertainer. In 1947, columnist Lester Ketner of
Boxoffice magazine asked McEnery about possibly running for political office, to which McEnery replied, "I'm gonna run for sheriff, just to keep outta jail." McEnery became a disc jockey for WOAI in 1953, and also appeared on
WOAI-TV. In November 1953, he bought a recording studio, Marathon Recording Company, in San Antonio. In the latter part of his life, McEnery became a well-known painter of Texas landscapes and Western Americana themes, and was often known to paint the backs of his used guitars. He died in San Antonio in January 2002. ==Publications==