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 Records 4-40106, 1953). Peevey recorded the novelty song when she was 10 years old.
In 1960, under the name Jamie Horton, she had a minor hit with her single "My Little Marine" (Joy 45-234, 1959),[ Discogs (accessed May 8, 2024)] which reached #84 on Billboard's Hot 100 in early 1960. She also recorded "Robot Man", a cover of a Connie Francis UK hit, but it failed to reach the charts.
Biography
The Peevey family moved to Ponca City, Oklahoma, in 1948. Prior to moving to California, she attended Columbus Elementary School.
[ ‘Hippo’ was a splash in singer’s life ] Peevey graduated from San Diego State University with a Bachelor of Education degree.
[" Biography of Gayla Peevey," Internet Movie Database (accessed May 11, 2010).] She eventually left teaching.
She is married to Cliff Henderson. They have a daughter,
Sydney Forest, and three grandchildren.
[ Famed Child Singing Sensation Gayla Peevey On the Comeback of Her Classic, I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas ] Following her retirement from performing, Peevey runs her own jingle advertisement company and sings in her local church.
[ Christmas hippo changed life for Oklahoma 10-year-old ]
In popular culture
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 $3,000 (equivalent to US$ in ), and a baby
hippopotamus named Matilda was purchased and given to Peevey, which she then donated to the
zoo in 1953.
[ Novelty Nook, Fifties and Sixties , Mistletunes.com (accessed May 11, 2010).] 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.
[ " City Zoo Hippo Dies En Route to Florida Park". News OK (March 4, 1998). Retrieved on 2017-01-23.]
Singles as Gayla Peevey on Columbia Records
|
| CO49818/CO49819 |
| RHCO10747/RHCO10748 |
| RHCO10753/RHCO10754 |
| CO49820/CO49821 |
| RHCO33252/RHCO33253 |
| RHCO10749/RHCO10750 |
| RZSP33598/RZSP33599 |
| JZSP41539/JZSP41540 |
| JZSP42215/JZSP42214 |
Singles as Jamie Horton on Joy Records
|
| K90W-8507/K90W-8508 |
| KS-193/KS-194 |
| L90W-2188 |
| JR-7051/JR-7031 |
| |
| |
| JR-7103/JR-7101 |
| JR-7073/JR-7122 |
| |
External links