Being funny is serious business for these Branson mainstays
by GARY ELLISON
Johnny Carson once said that the dullest thing you could
ever read was an article about comedy and comedians. He
should know. His college thesis was an analysis of Jack
Benny and his comedy.
I’ve discovered that people who make other people laugh can
be a lot of fun to be around, but they take their craft
seriously. That’s true in Branson, a great place to give
your funny bone a real workout. Hopefully, a peek into the
minds of these guys will not be “the dullest thing.”
Three places to find fall-on-the-floor comedy are Jim
Stafford’s, the Presley’s and the Baldknobbers with seven
magnificent comedians who make a living making you laugh.
And they are good at it. Jim Stafford spent some time as
head writer for the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour on CBS.
He is a Florida native who’s made Branson his home for 17
years. At the Presley’s, Gary has been playing his
character, Herkimer, for 45 years, longer than any other
comedian in Branson. His son, 30-year-old Eric, has been
playing Cecil for 28 of those years. At the Baldknobbers
there are four guys determined to get your belly laughs
going in high gear: Bob Leftridge, the straight man; Stub
Meadows and Hargus Marcell, the story tellers; and Tim Mabe
who has inherited his late father’s character, Droopy
Drawers.
The remainder of
this article appears in the Spring 2007 issue of Show-Me
Missouri. Click here or call
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