American cowboy star of B-Westerns who had a brief career in the 1940s. Born with the decidedly unheroic name of Winifred Maurice Harrison (although he was generally known to his family as Michael or Mick) in Gracemore, Oklahoma, he moved to Plainview, Texas as a boy and became a successful rodeo rider. Supposedly spotted at a rodeo by Tom Mix, Carson (like Mix, never one to let the truth get in the way of a good story) was given a job in Mix's touring circus/Wild West Show. He also claimed to have appeared in a few bit parts in movies before traveling to South America in 1940 and winning the Champion All-Around Cowboy awards in Buenos Aires (!) two years in a row. Returning to the U.S., he got small parts in films such as Stage Door Canteen (1943) and Janie (1944) before being spotted by Republic executive Lou Grey. His size, looks, and horsemanship got him a contract as the star of a series of B-Westerns, along with a name change to Sunset Carson.

Within two years, Carson was number 10 on the list of Top Money-Making Western Stars. But Republic parted ways with Carson in 1946. According to stuntman Yakima Canutt, Carson attended a studio function drunk and accompanied by an underage girl, and studio head Herbert Yates fired him. Carson claimed to have left over business disputes. In any case, he never again achieved the level of success he had had at Republic. After a string of low budget made Westerns for other companies, Carson retired from films in 1985 with the Sci-Fi Western "Alien Outlaw". Sunset Carson toured with Tommy Scott's Country Music Circus and Wild West Show, he replaced Tim McCoy after his death for Five seasons. Thereafter he lived in retirement, makeing film appearances and attending Western Film Conventions. He died in Reno, Nevada in 1990.

Photo by Ron Moody from "Find-A-Grave"


(Additional information on Find-A-Grave from V. Flesher)
Winifred Maurice Harrison, aka Mickey Harrison, aka Sunset Carson, star of Western movies and television, was the son of Maurice Greeley Harrison and Azalee McAdams. He is buried as Sunset Carson, and I have done extensive research on him, verifying this is the same person. I don't know how I came across his burial as Sunset Carson, but being 20 miles from this cemetery, I became curious about his burial here. I find his family in 1930 Hale Co TX. His brother, Herman Dale Harrison, enlisted in the Army in that county. He also appeared with Sunset, billed as Dale Harrison and Dale Carson. He resided in Oxnard, Ventura Co CA at the time of his death, and is buried in that county. Their parents are buried in Maricopa Co AZ and have memorials also.

Buried at Highland Memorial Cemetery at Jackson, Madison County TN
Born 12 November 1920 Gracemont, Caddo County OK
Died May 1, 1990 Reno, Washoe County NV
Married to "Jeane" born 1955 - no death date on her headstone
His horse's name was Cactus.
In 1980 he was discovered to have abdominal cancer. He underwent surgery, and by 1982 it was in remission.
In 1979 he was bitten by a black widow spider while he was asleep one night and almost died.
His father was a rodeo rider in the circus owned by cowboy star Tom Mix.
Children; Susanne Azalie Carson, Michael Carson and Ann Harrison.
The hero of "Cowboy Western Comics" and "Sunset Carson" comic books published by Charlton in 1950-51.

When Carson, whose real name was Michael Harrison, signed with Republic Pictures, studio head Herbert J. Yates thought that his name was too long to fit on theater marquees and would have to be changed. As he looked out his window he saw a used-car lot across the street called "Sunset Motors", and named his new cowboy star "Sunset". The new last name, "Carson", was in honor of legendary frontiersman Kit Carson.