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.
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
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| 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
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| K90W-8507/K90W-8508 |
| KS-193/KS-194 |
| L90W-2188 |
| JR-7051/JR-7031 |
| |
| |
| JR-7103/JR-7101 |
| JR-7073/JR-7122 |
| |
External links
