He was one of eight children . Wilson had been a moderately successful singer before coming to Hollywood . Following Buck Jones 's death in the famous Cocoanut Grove fire of 1942 , which claimed the lives of 492 people , Monogram Pictures had been searching for someone to replace him . Producer Scott R. Dunlap saw Meyers , and thought he looked similar to Jones . This , apparently , was enough to build him into a cowboy star . Because of the fame being generated by Lash LaRue , who used a bullwhip in his movies , Monogram decided to make Meyers a similar whip-wielding character , renaming him '' Whip Wilson ''
Cocoanut Grove fire
Cocoanut Grove fire
Whip Wilson