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Boxcar Willie
Lecil Travis Martin was born in Sterrett, Texas in 1931. He joined the United States Air Force in 1949, and served as a flight engineer for the B-29 Super Fortress during the Korean War in the early 1950s. In Lincoln, Nebraska, Martin was once sitting at a railroad crossing and a fellow that closely resembled his chief boom operator, Willie Wilson, passed by sitting in a boxcar. He said, "There goes Willie." He pulled over and wrote a song entitled "Boxcar Willie".[citation needed] It eventually stuck and became Martin's nickname. In 1962, Martin met his future wife, Lloene, in Boise, Idaho. They later had four children.
In San Jose, California, Martin attended a talent show as "Boxcar Willie" and performed under the nickname for the first time. He won first place, a $150 prize and a nickname that he forever went by. That was his part-time vocation, however he was still in the Air Force and had been flying daily missions. He later became a Flight Engineer on Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter aircraft in the 136th Air Refueling Wing in the Texas Air National Guard, including air refueling flights around the U.S. and overseas in Germany. In the early 1970s, he was in the Texas Air National Guard as a Flight Engineer on KC-97L tanker aircraft, participating in Operation Creek Party by flying over the Atlantic to Germany many times to do air-to-air refueling there. He was in the 136th Air Refueling Wing, 181st Air Refueling Squadron.
In 1976, Martin retired from the Air Force and became a full-time performer. One of his first national appearances was a win on Chuck Barris' The Gong Show. He entered American mainstream pop culture consciousness due to a series of television commercials for record compilations of artists who were obscure in the United States, yet had large international followings, such as Slim Whitman and Gheorghe Zamfir. He went on to become a star in country music. In 1981, Martin achieved a professional landmark by being inducted into the Grand Ole Opry. His was more than a US success too, with his 1980 album King of the Road giving him his greatest chart success by reaching No. 5 in the UK Albums Chart. Traveling around the world with his band, was his steadfast and trusty steel guitar player Chubby Howard, radio show host and musician for many years.
In 1985, Martin moved to Branson, Missouri and purchased a theater on Highway 76, or 76 Country Music Boulevard. In addition to the Boxcar Willie Theater, he opened a museum and eventually had two motels, both bearing his name. Boxcar Willie was one of the first big stars to open a show in Branson, paving the way for the other nationally known names that followed. He performed at his theater in Branson until he died.
On February 23, 1992, Boxcar Willie was featured on the Season 2 premier of Tracks Ahead in which he performed with his band at the Boxcar Willie Theater.
Martin was diagnosed with leukemia in 1996, and died on April 12, 1999 in Branson, Missouri the at age of 67. He was buried at Ozarks Memorial Park in Branson. Major league baseball umpire "Cowboy" Joe West was among his pallbearers.
