ANDREWS, ARKANSAS “SLIM”

(1906–1992)

   Born Lloyd Andrews, Arkansas Slim was one of the famous comic sidekicks from the 1930s. He was tall and lanky, had a handlebar mustache, and seemed more of a hillbilly than a cowboy. He is best known as Tex Ritter’s companion, who faithfully trod along behind on a mule named Josephine. The two worked well as a team, though a Variety review of The Golden Trail (1940) suggested that Andrews should have been left unrestrained: “Evidently the guy is being held in check, for no apparent reason” (Kramer 1998, 63).