Falmouth ‘Urban Cowboy’ takes bull back to Texas

  • Gale Gregg of Falmouth rides El Toro, a backup mechanical bull for the 1980 film “Urban Cowboy” outside of the VFW where the Gilley’s Urban Cowboy Reunion Party was held on June 7 in Livingston, Texas. Picture courtesy of Gale Gregg.
    Gale Gregg of Falmouth rides El Toro, a backup mechanical bull for the 1980 film “Urban Cowboy” outside of the VFW where the Gilley’s Urban Cowboy Reunion Party was held on June 7 in Livingston, Texas. Picture courtesy of Gale Gregg.
  • Gale Gregg, left, and his mother, Karen Bishop Gregg, pose with Gator Conley, one of the actors from the movie “Urban Cowboy.” Conley helped build El Toro. Picture courtesy of Gale Gregg.
    Gale Gregg, left, and his mother, Karen Bishop Gregg, pose with Gator Conley, one of the actors from the movie “Urban Cowboy.” Conley helped build El Toro. Picture courtesy of Gale Gregg.

    By Nila Harris

    FALMOUTH — If you happened to see a mechanical bull in the back of a pickup truck heading down Highway 27 recently, that would have been Falmouth native Gale Gregg and his mother, Karen Bishop Gregg.

    Two weeks ago, the two Greggs ventured on a journey to the Urban Cowboy Reunion Party in Livingston, Texas.

    But they weren’t the only ones who made the round trip of “approximately 2044 miles,” according to Gale. El Toro, the backup mechanical bull featured in the 1980 movie “Urban Cowboy” starring John Travolta and Debra Winger rode in the back of Gregg’s pickup truck to the event.

    Gale purchased the bull last year at a Northern Kentucky auction, along with two antique rolling dance floors.

    In 1976, Sherwood Cryer installed a mechanical bull in the Pasadena, Texas, nightclub he co-owned with Mickey Gilley. The bull had been purchased from Joe Turner, a New Mexico man who built the mechanical bulls for training rodeo riders.

    Gilley wasn’t keen on installing the bull but later admitted that the attraction transformed Gilley’s and served as an inspiration for the “Urban Cowboy” movie which featured a honky-tonk named Gilley’s.

    When Cryer realized that the bull was going to be one of the “stars” in the movie, he and Gilley bought the company that owned the patents on the bulls, renamed the business Gilley’s Bronco Shop Inc., and started making two models, The Bronco and El Toro.

    The bull that Gregg purchased was originally bought by Bobby Mackey in 1979.

    Mackey has a country music nightclub in Wilder.

    Mackey posted on his Facebook page, “This past week (June 7) after 45 years, Bobby Mackey’s original mechanical bull El Toro returned to Texas for the Gilley’s reunion. Thanks to Gale Gregg who did all the driving. El Toro was also reunited with Gilley Rat Jessie Mapes.”

    Mapes played Sissy’s (Debra Winger) best friend in the movie and the term “Gilley Rat” referred to the cowboys/girls who hung out at the movie’s honky-tonk.

    Gregg explained that his bull is the “oldest Sherwood Cryer and Mickey Gilley bull out of about 12,000 or so.”

    He said he “loved every minute of Texas” and was thankful for the Texas hospitality. He and Karen met and visited with Gilley’s son Mike, Mapes and other actors from the movie, including Robert Wright and Gator Conley, who not only won the dance contest in the movie but also helped build El Toro.

    “I’ve watched it (‘Urban Cowboy’) many, many, many times in the past several years. Now I feel like a part of the family for real.”

    Gale said that he hopes to have El Toro in the Falmouth Independence Day parade on July 5.

    He laughingly stated that he’d also like to “retire as an insulator, and make the bull portable. I’ll have the best portable honky-tonk in town. Time to hit the road. I have an antique portable pool table too.”