On July 19, 1996 the National Auctioneers Association (NAA) inducted a new honoree into its Hall of Fame . . . not such an unusual event; they do it every year.
However, this year's selection, announced at the NAA international convention in San Diego, is unusual because of the person selected: Leroy Van Dyke, entertainer, auctioneer, stockman and journalist.
Rarely does this honor go to a person who is not a full-time auctioneer, but obviously Colonel Van Dyke was tapped because of his unique contributions to the cause of professional auctioneering. This prestigious award, in the auctioneering profession, is the equivalent to the Country Music Association or the Academy of Country Music Hall of Fame awards in country music.
The Van Dyke induction was announced by his cousin, idol and mentor, Ray Sims, whose life was the subject of Leroy's composition and first million-selling song, "Auctioneer." Sims was inducted into the NAA Hall of Fame in 1990. Of Leroy, Sims stated that Van Dyke, with his personal image of professionalism and integrity and his first recording, "Auctioneer," thrust the auction profession to new heights of respectability and consciousness in the collective mind of the public by bringing it into every automobile, every home, every radio station and every television station, not only in North America, but in the rest of the free world as well.
Leroy follows a grueling schedule, traveling in excess of a hundred thousand miles per year fulfilling more than a hundred entertainment and auctioneering commitments, including overseas engagements. Leroy has been an auctioneer for 45 years, a world-class entertainer for 40 years, the only person famous worldwide in both professions. His "Auctioneer," has sold approximately three million records, is one of the most enduring country standards ever, and has been the unofficial anthem among auctioneering professionals since it was first released in the fall of 1956. The song has been not only a definite plus for Leroy's 40-year entertainment career, but also a continuing boost to the auction profession.
Leroy's NAA Hall of Fame Award, coincidentally, comes on the heels of the Billboard Magazine announcement that, based on record sales, airplay and number of weeks in the charts, his "Walk on By," first recorded in 1961, is the biggest country record of all time.
Leroy is a licensed, bonded auctioneer and has sold everything from buffalo to bulldozers, real estate to rabbits, combining auctioneering with his 40-year primary profession: Entertainment.
Van Dyke will tell you very quickly, "There are only four things I've ever seriously wanted to do: sing, sell, raise livestock and write. I've been fortunate to be able to pursue all four. My motto has always been: 'Find something you like to do so well you'll do it for nothing, then learn to do it well enough to be paid for it!'"
It has worked for Leroy . . . his accomplishments as a singer and auctioneer are well known and documented. It is not quite so well known that he graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia, with majors in Animal Husbandry and Journalism. He was a member of both the junior and senior intercollegiate livestock judging teams, and was one of the editors of the Columbia Missourian agricultural section. His current place of residence is a 1,000-acre ranch near Sedalia, Missouri, where, when he is not traveling, he and his family (wife, Gladys; son, Ben) enjoy raising top quality saddle mules from registered Arabian mares. His stockman reputation is such that he is in demand as a judge of mule shows, and he accepts a few of these engagements as time permits.
He has made good use of his fourth area of expertise: Writing. For three years after his stint in Korea as a Special Agent, United States Army Counter-Intelligence Corps, he worked for a chain of livestock newspapers, the Corn Belt Farm Dailies, with headquarters in Chicago. His most recent coup is in the form of a writing effort fast becoming recognized as the textbook of the auctioneering profession: "Auctioneering--Motivation--Success." Leroy's motivation for the creation of this work came after several decades in the entertainment business, during which time literally hundreds of successful auctioneers approached him to say they had learned to be an auctioneer simply from listening to his recording of "Auctioneer." One such auctioneer strode up to him, stuck out his hand and said, "I want to shake your hand, you've made me a million dollars."
Leroy reasoned that if two minutes and some-odd seconds of a song could help that much, then why not help a whole lot more. The result is a home-study course and reference work on auctioneering and motivation that not only caters to beginners, but serves as a valuable reference tool for experienced auctioneers. This course, comprised of six audio cassettes and a text book is now selling worldwide.
Leroy Van Dyke has spent his life in pursuit of excellence, and has found it: Singing, selling, livestock, writing . . . "find something you like to do so well you'll do it for nothing . . ."
