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Lawrence Welk reruns on PBS affiliates nearing the end?

J

joebtsflk1

It's been nearly 40 years since an original episode has been produced, yet Lawrence Welk reruns have been a regular fixture on many PBS affiliates, syndicated by Oklahoma public tv network OETA.

The ranks have been thinning over the last few years, which isn't a surprise. In Colorado, the Welk show finally reached its end this August on statewide Rocky Mountain PBS, joining nearly half of the PBS outlets that have discontinued the show.

http://www.oeta.tv/blogs/programming/oeta-keeps-the-lawrence-welk-show-tradition-alive/
 
The article says they've been renewed through 2021, so they ain't dead yet. That's PBS for you...they have no expiration date. It's also one of the few places you can see doo-wop music from the 50s, as well as the history of country music as told by film maker Ken Burns.
 
But who in the world would be interested in Lawrence Welk in 2019. The Doughboy Generation is long dead, and that was his main audience.
 
I'm not sure it matters much how many actually watch. A lot of PBS stations are just looking for cheap programming for a weekend evening when the potential audience is fairly low. I bet Lawrence Welk re-runs from 40 years ago are very cheap.
 
TheBigA said:
I suspect a lot of older boomers grew up with that show.
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Yes we did, and we immediately left the room when my grandparents turned it on. So did my folks, who were born in the 1920s and had no use for him either.
 
TheBigA said:
The article says they've been renewed through 2021, so they ain't dead yet. That's PBS for you...they have no expiration date. It's also one of the few places you can see doo-wop music from the 50s, as well as the history of country music as told by film maker Ken Burns.
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They run that horribly produced doo-wop special every pledge drive, It's time they get some new content.
 
TheBigA said:
I suspect a lot of older boomers grew up with that show.
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The only boomers older than I am were born just 1, 2, 3 or 4 days before me.

Like KeithE4, the "champagne music" was enough to make me run away; my grandmother seemed to like it, but she was born around 1886.
 
Don CT said:
"And now for the tiny bubbles." I remember watching that with my Grandmother.
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"Anna one, anna two anna three.."

As a kid, I thought that the girl singers were all named "Anna" and were differentiated by number...
 
DavidEduardo said:


The only boomers older than I am were born just 1, 2, 3 or 4 days before me.

Like KeithE4, the "champagne music" was enough to make me run away; my grandmother seemed to like it, but she was born around 1886.
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My maternal grandparents were the Welk fans, and were both born in 1892. My dad's parents, not so much. My grandmother watched it, but my grandfather left the room immediately. Both of them were born after 1900, and became adults when music became "just a bit livelier" in the mid 1920s.

But you have to admit, the Welk "classic" 1971 rendition of Brewer and Shipley's One Toke Over The Line was something that had to be seen to be believed. :D
 
In a lot of markets back in the day, it was Welk vs. Hee Haw. Somehow I've got to think Lawrence has some kind of cult following.
 
KeithE4 said:
But you have to admit, the Welk "classic" 1971 rendition of Brewer and Shipley's One Toke Over The Line was something that had to be seen to be believed. :D
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That, in turn, reminds me of when the leading beautiful music syndicators tried to do a custom instrumental cover of every pop song. I found a version of In-a-gadda-da-vida on a reel when I purchased the EZ Communications library... I don't think anyone aired it, as it did not come across very well with strings.
 
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gr8oldies said:
In a lot of markets back in the day, it was Welk vs. Hee Haw. Somehow I've got to think Lawrence has some kind of cult following.
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Hee Haw was corny but amusing. Welk was like a gym from "Fargo" converted into a dance hall with all their typical Dakotas characters.

Like everything else, it was a matter of taste.
 
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In most of Arizona, Lawrence Welk has moved to Saturday's at 4 pm on KAET 8,
Arizona PBS. It was from a different era. Perhaps a kinder, gentler time. The
fact it lasted for 40 years, speaks volumes.... and they had plenty of sponsors.
Remember Geritol???
 
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