James Red Loakes

1929 - 2010

Dubbed "The Little Colonel" by Minnie Pearl Jeffrey Ford, son of the late entertainer Tennessee Ernie Ford, announced today the passing of Ford's lifelong manager, confidante, and closest friend, James "Red" Loakes, who died Saturday, September 4, 2010 after a long illness. Loakes was born October 25, 1929 in Los Angeles, Calif., the oldest son of Margaret and Adelbert Loakes. From the earliest days of his youth, he was taught the value of an uncompromising work ethic; a trait that would define him throughout his life. Enamored by vaudeville and show business from his earliest memories, Loakes began his career behind the scenes at twelve years old, as the Pony Ride Coordinator at Lucas KiddieLand in West Covina, an early precursor of Disneyland. Within weeks of enrolling as a freshman at El Monte High School, he became the school's youngest stage manager, handling backstage duties for every production and function held at the school during his four years there, from 1943 to 1947. In 1947, that same skill and reputation landed him the position of stage manager at the El Monte Legion Auditorium, where he began handling the production duties for Thursday night boxing and wrestling matches. The following year, when bandleader and radio star Cliffie Stone booked the Auditorium for his 'Hometown Jamboree' Saturday night dances, he was told to talk to Red Loakes. That meeting set the stage for one of the greatest partnerships in show business - Stone's newest act was a singer from Tennessee who would go on to become one of the world's most celebrated entertainers - he went by the stage name of Tennessee Ernie Ford. "Cliffie, Jim and Dad were inseparable for nearly half a century," Ford's son, Buck said. "Saying Jim was Dad's manager doesn't come close to the place he held in his career, his life, and our family's life. He was Dad's best friend, his most loyal friend, and that friendship bound them together beyond what any one word description could convey." It was a friendship and partnership that would take Loakes from the wings of the El Monte Auditorium to the studios of NBC and Capitol Records, to the great performance halls of the world, and to the inner circle of Presidents; a half century career that was nothing short of legendary. In the early nineties, Loakes moved to Palm Springs, where he spent the last years of his life, managing Ford's extensive music publishing catalog, and other interests, including producing the cooking classes at the Cary Grant estate for famed Chef-Without-Borders Andrew Copley, at the Four Star restaurant, Copley's On Palm Canyon. A veteran of the United States Army, Loakes is survived by his sister, Carol Ireton of La Verne, Calif.; nephews, Marty Akins and Bruce Loakes of La Verne and Grantsville, Utah; and niece, Cindy Betterly.