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Gayla Peevey

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Gayla Peevey
Publicity photo of Gayla Peevey in 1953
Publicity photo of Gayla Peevey in 1953
Background information
Birth nameGayla Rienette Peevey
Born (1943-03-08) March 8, 1943 (age 81)
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S.
OccupationSinger
InstrumentVocals
Years active1953–1962
LabelsColumbia, 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

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Peevey family moved to Ponca City, Oklahoma, in 1948. Prior to moving to California, she attended Columbus Elementary School.[1]

Career

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Pevey's first record, "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas", was recorded in 1953, when she was just ten years old. It was the best selling Christmas record of that year.[2]

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[2]) was purchased and given to Peevey, which she then donated to the zoo in 1953.[3] 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.[4]

The hippo species Matilda was, a Pygmy hippopotamus, are now endangered, with less than 3,000 in the wild.[5]

In 1960, under the name Jamie Horton, she had a minor hit with her single "My Little Marine" (Joy 45-234, 1959),[6] which reached #84 on Billboard's Hot 100 in early 1960.[7] She also recorded "Robot Man", a cover of a Connie Francis UK hit, but it failed to reach the charts.[8]

Personal life

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Peevey graduated from San Diego State University with a Bachelor of Education degree.[9] She eventually left teaching.[9] She is married to Cliff Henderson. They have a daughter, Sydney Forest, and three grandchildren.[10] Following her retirement from performing, Peevey runs her own jingle advertisement company and sings in church.[11]

Gayla lives in San Diego.[2]

Singles as Gayla Peevey on Columbia Records

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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)

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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

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  1. ^ Coppernoll, Carrie (December 21, 2008). "'Hippo' was a splash in singer's life". The Oklahoman. Retrieved December 23, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c ROGERS, JOHN (December 16, 2016). "Want a hippo for Christmas? The story of a girl who got one". Santa Rosa Press Democrat. Retrieved December 20, 2024.
  3. ^ Novelty Nook, Fifties and Sixties, Mistletunes.com (accessed May 11, 2010).
  4. ^ " City Zoo Hippo Dies En Route to Florida Park". News OK (March 4, 1998). Retrieved on 2017-01-23.
  5. ^ Press, Associated (December 13, 2017). "'I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas' Singer Welcomes Hippo to Oklahoma City Zoo". Billboard. Retrieved December 20, 2024.
  6. ^ Discogs (accessed May 8, 2024)
  7. ^ Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. February 1, 1960. p. 60. ISSN 0006-2510.
  8. ^ Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. July 25, 1960. p. 3. ISSN 0006-2510.
  9. ^ a b "Biography of Gayla Peevey," Internet Movie Database (accessed May 11, 2010).
  10. ^ Famed Child Singing Sensation Gayla Peevey On the Comeback of Her Classic, I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas
  11. ^ Christmas hippo changed life for Oklahoma 10-year-old
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