Johnny Boone was a 1965 Quarter Horse AAA Stakes placed stallion. He’s the son of the World Champion sire Rebel Cause AAA and his dam, Me Bright AAA was a stakes winner and multiple producer. She was the dam of two All American Quarter Horse Futurity qualifiers, Me Gotta Go and Bright Rebel (full brother to Johnny Boone). Me Bright was by American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame inductee Leo, who was a leading sire of Quarter Horses for over twenty years, and his grand-dam was the American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame inductee Maddon’s Bright Eyes AAA, who held five World Champion titles.
Cleo Maddon claims her husband, C.L.“Tess” Maddon, named the stallion. Tess was a legend in New Mexico for his race horses, and was a “drinking man”. He named the horse for his best drinking buddies “Johnny” and “Boone”. Later his owner Cleo Maddon, moved from the old home place to Willard, New Mexico to stand the stallion, in what she considered a “hub of the racing Quarter Horse world. Then he stood at the popular Frisco, Texas ranch owned by B F Phillips. In 1978, the Maddons sold Johnny Boone to Dan and Charlotte Dailey from Tupelo, OK.
When Johnny Boone was twenty years old, Dan was convinced that the stallion could be a leading sire. He only needed more foals on the track. Dan lowered Johnny Boone’s stud fee and over 100 horse breeders came that first year. Some say that Johnny Boone was a “poor boy’s horse,” something affordable and his offspring were athletes who could cut, rope, run barrels and race. Hunka Boone 86 SI became a roping champion multiple times and went to the National Finals Rodeo several years.
In 1985, Johnny Boone’s get were the first and second place horses in the Darrell Rose Memorial Futurity, Ronnie Boone 102 SI and Sunny Boone Suite 100 SI. The winners kept coming, and he sired Appaloosa and Paint runners.
Marvin Barnes of Ada, OK ran a son of Johnny Boone named Mr Boone Bug 101 SI and he won ten races and $46,966. This colt was Flicks Bug’s first foal, she next produced All American Quarter Horse Futurity winner and 2017 OQH Hall of Fame Inductee Mr Master Bug. Nita Boone 111 SI owned by local school teacher Sandra Mantooth of Ada, OK, was a multiple stakes winner and World Record holder at 300 yards. J T McConnell ran Jay Boone 99 SI and he was a multiple winner.
Dan Dailey decided to sponsor the Johnny Boone Futurity at Ross Meadows in Ada, OK. He added $1000 to the purse and only 2 year old Johnny Boone foals were eligible. The purse grew to $15,000. There were over thirty Johnny Boone foals in the first trials. No other stallion in the area had such a futurity.
Johnny Boone sired 283 ROM’s, 163 ran 80 +SI and 98 ran 90+ SI and 11 had Superior Race awards. One daughter, Kitty Boone 99 SI qualified for the prestigious Champion of Champions Invitational race in Los Angeles. CA. Six of his offspring set new track records and one matched the World Record.