Roger Dean Miller Sr. (January 2, 1936 – October 25, 1992) was an American singer-songwriter, widely known for his honky-tonk-influenced novelty songs and his chart-topping country hits "King of the Road", "Dang Me", and "England Swings".

After growing up in Oklahoma and serving in the U.S. Army, Miller began his musical career as a songwriter in the late 1950s, writing such hits as "Billy Bayou" and "Home" for Jim Reeves and "Invitation to the Blues" for Ray Price.

[3] He listened to the Grand Ole Opry and Light Crust Doughboys on a Fort Worth station with his cousin's husband, Sheb Wooley.

[4] He then met George Jones, who introduced him to music executives from the Starday Records label who scheduled an audition.

He returned to Nashville and wrote "Invitation to the Blues", which was covered by Rex Allen and later by Ray Price, whose recording was a number three hit on country charts.

He wrote: "Half a Mind" for Ernest Tubb, "That's the Way I Feel" for Faron Young; and his first number one, "Billy Bayou", which along with "Home" was recorded by Jim Reeves.

Bill Anderson later remarked that "Roger was the most talented, and least disciplined, person that you could imagine", citing the attempts of Miller's Tree Publishing boss, Buddy Killen to force him to finish a piece.

He was paired with singer Donny Lytle, who later gained fame under the name Johnny Paycheck, to perform the Miller-written "A Man Like Me", and later "The Wrong Kind of Girl".

His second single with the label, featuring the B-side "Jason Fleming", foreshadowed Miller's future style.

The next year he made an even bigger impact, breaking through the top 10 with his single "When Two Worlds Collide", cowritten with Bill Anderson.

[7] But Miller soon tired of writing songs, divorced his wife, and began a party lifestyle that earned him the moniker "wild child."

[1] After numerous appearances on late night comedy shows, Miller decided that he might have a chance in Hollywood as an actor.

Smash agreed to the proposal, and Miller performed his first session for the company early in 1964, when he recorded the hits "Dang Me" and "Chug-a-Lug".

9", "Kansas City Star" (a Top Ten country hit about a local television children's show personality who would rather stay in the safety and security of his success in Kansas City than become a bigger star – or risk failure – in Omaha), and "England Swings" (an adult contemporary No. 1).

Later that year, Miller wrote and performed three songs in the Walt Disney animated feature Robin Hood as the rooster and minstrel Allan-a-Dale: "Oo-De-Lally", "Not in Nottingham", and "Whistle-Stop" (which was sampled for use in the popular Hampster Dance web site).

[1] He provided the voice of Speiltoe, the equine narrator of the Rankin/Bass holiday special Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey in 1977.

The song, with guest vocals from Ray Price, was the last hit of Miller's career,[1] peaking at No.

[9] As Brian Carpenter wrote in Southern Cultures, "With its rooftop lounge and accompanying penthouse suite (complete with a swinging double bed), Miller's King of the Road Inn was, for a time, the unofficial center of Nashville's thriving music scene.

[2] He was absent from the entertainment business following the release of Old Friends in 1981, but returned after receiving an offer to write a Broadway score for a musical based upon Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

Although he had not read the novel, Miller accepted the offer after discovering how the story brought him back to his childhood in rural Oklahoma.

The musical received glowing reviews, earning seven Tony Awards including "Best Score" for Miller.

He acted the part of Huck Finn's father Pap for three months after the exit of actor John Goodman, who left for Hollywood.

[1] His last performance on television occurred on a special tribute to Minnie Pearl[2] which aired on TNN on October 26, 1992, the day after Miller's death.

[15] Although he is usually grouped with country music singers, Miller's unique style defies easy classification.

Many of his recordings were humorous novelty songs with whimsical lyrics, coupled with scat singing or vocalese riffs filled with nonsense syllables.

[17] The biographical book Ain't Got No Cigarettes described Miller as an "uncategorizable talent" and stated that many regarded him as a genius.

Subsequent public interest in Miller led to the success he had long hoped for, but it also brought struggles that are often associated with life in the entertainment business: periods of burnout as well as alcohol[23] and substance abuse.

She sued Sony for copyright infringement in the 2007 case Roger Miller Music, Inc. v. Sony/ATV Publishing, LLC, which went to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.

During a television interview, Miller explained how he composed his songs from "bits and pieces" of ideas he wrote on scraps of paper.

Miller died of lung and throat cancer in 1992, at age 56, shortly after the discovery of a malignant tumor beneath his vocal cords.