# Sheb Wooley has died.

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sheb-wooley-has-died/202158>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [September 17, 2003, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sheb-wooley-has-died/202158 "2003-09-17T16:13:58Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Papermache\_Prince](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f05b48/32.png) [@Papermache\_Prince](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Papermache_Prince)\
**Post date:** [September 17, 2003, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sheb-wooley-has-died/202158/1 "2003-09-17T16:13:58Z")

</div>

[Reuters](http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=entertainmentNews&storyID=3461093l) reports that Sheb Wooley has died. He was an actor / comedy song writer, perhaps best known for the novelty hit _Purple People Eater_ from 1958. He also was a regular on the tv Western _Rawhide_ with Clint Eastwood from '59 to '67.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\
**Post date:** [September 17, 2003, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sheb-wooley-has-died/202158/2 "2003-09-17T16:27:38Z")

</div>

Does that make the copy of PPE that I found at a garage sale recently valuable? It’s in the original DJ and in perfect condition. Can I profit from his death?

What…too cynical? Hey, it’s Wednesday…

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\
**Post date:** [September 17, 2003, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sheb-wooley-has-died/202158/3 "2003-09-17T16:51:09Z")

</div>

I always liked him in the Rawhide reruns they use to play when I was a kid.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\
**Post date:** [September 17, 2003, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sheb-wooley-has-died/202158/4 "2003-09-17T17:29:25Z")

</div>

Me too. He was my favorite character.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\
**Post date:** [September 17, 2003, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sheb-wooley-has-died/202158/5 "2003-09-17T22:39:32Z")

</div>

Wow. He was alive all this time? He seemed kinda old in _Rawhide._

Well, it’s wonderful that he had such a long life. I thought he was great.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![John\_Carter\_of\_Mars](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/2bfe46/32.png) [@John\_Carter\_of\_Mars](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Carter_of_Mars)\
**Post date:** [September 18, 2003, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sheb-wooley-has-died/202158/6 "2003-09-18T01:03:53Z")

</div>

“I said mister purple people eater what’s your line?  
He said eatin’ purple people and it sure is fine  
But that’s not the reason that I came to land  
I wanna’ get a job in a rock ‘n’ roll band…”

R.I.P., Mr. Wooley

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\
**Post date:** [September 18, 2003, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sheb-wooley-has-died/202158/7 "2003-09-18T02:04:53Z")

</div>

As Ben Colder he did quite a few country & western song parodies. Kinda made him the country “Weird Al”.