Branson Courier

Month: April 2003

  • Branson Motorcycle Rally-Road Trip III

    The Third Annual Branson Motorcycle Rally-Road Trip III kicks off May 15 at the MGH Performing Arts Complex, located on Shepherd of the Hills Exp.[Highway 248], near its junction with Highway 65.It will continue until May 18th.



    The rally is sanctioned by the American Motorcycle Association (AMA), Freedom of Road Riders Local 15, Branson Star Chapter 248 and Tri Lakes Messengers Christian Motorcycle Association and will host dozens of vendors including American Hog, DynoMark-featuring on site dyno tuning, Biker Alley Magazine, and many others with custom bike parts and painting, leather and sewing etc.BMW has been added as a major sponsor for this year’s event and plans to bring a demo fleet of bikes for test rides and apparel to demonstrate.



    From its opening reception at the Legends in Concert Theater Thursday, May 15 at 6 p.m., this four-day rally is packed with events for the entire family.These include a vintage motorcycle meet, ride in bike show, the Daytona USA Florida District Drill Team will perform at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Friday and Saturday.



    Charity poker runs will be held throughout the weekend, with proceeds benefiting the March of Dimes Bikers for Babies and the Special Olympics.Field games begin Friday, May 16 and include a slow race, ring toss, tennis ball drop, balloon toss on bike wash, cloths pin contest and the wienie bite contest. Area rides for Sport bikes, Cruiser rides, a bike blessing by CMA and much more is featured throughout the four-day event.



    Entertainment at the rally will feature classic rock bands including Midlife Crisis, Solace, Sideshow Blues Band, The Blues Brothers and Neil Diamond from Legends in Concert, plus many other local bands. The Branson Blues Crawl, a separate paid event, is Saturday, May 17. Ride the Ducks will shuttle patrons to area venues to hear great Blues bands such as The Cate Brothers, Ricky Brothers, Steve Howell, Trip Wire and Karen Vance.



    Full registration is $35, which includes general admission to all events except the Blues Crawl, a shirt, pin, patch, coupon book and a copy of Branson Biker Magazine. Day passes are available for $10 per day.



    Courtesy of Branson Daily Independent


  • “Y” is Branson “shook” up on the “trail” to a fitness center?

    In a news paper article appearing in the April 18th edition of this paper it was reported that both the City of Branson and the Tri Lakes YMCA are considering building, what would be, competing fitness centers in the Branson Hills area.The article indicates that they would be built on donated land, would cost in the neighborhood of $5-6 million dollars each, and would be located within a mile of each other.



    In reading the article one gets the distinct impression that the YMCA is trying to work with the Branson Parks and Recreation Department to avoid the building of two similar competing facilities.Further, the desire of the YMCA to work with the City of Branson in meeting the recreational needs of the citizens of our community seemed apparent.



    Although the article indicated that there is some scheduling co ordination between the City and the “Y,” Mr. Scott Deckard, the YMCA Executive Director, indicated that “the strained relationship between the YMCA and the park board has been going on for nine months.”He pointed out that the YMCA is scheduling their programs around Branson’s, offering programs that the Branson Park District does not offer, and is “not duplicating programs that you [Branson Park District] offer.”



    For years, the Branson Parks and Recreation Department has been providing recreational programs, not only for the children and citizens of Branson, but the surrounding area as well.In large part, these programs are similar to programs run by other cities of a similar size, softball, base ball, soccer, basketball, tennis, golf, an outdoor pool, parks, etc.It did not include the operation of a fitness center!



    Herein, the Ole Seagull thinks lays the “strain.” The YMCA is striving to build a multi purpose fitness center facility, similar to that which they have been building and operating for decades.On the other hand, the Branson Parks and Recreation Department wants to expand into an area that it has not operated in before and, apparently, with as little involvement from the YMCA as possible.The question is why?



    Do they, collectively, have as much experience in building and operating multi purpose fitness centers as the YMCA does?Will they use less tax payer dollars to build and operate such a facility than the YMCA or by working with the YMCA to build and operate such a facility?Do they have a program support system and personnel available, from the local to the national level, to provide the types of programs that will maximize the use of such a facility by the community?



    Considering that the YMCA would be able to invest substantial private funds in such a facility would it be a better investment on the city’s part to partnership with the YMCA in the building of such a facility or, at least refrain from building a competing facility with tax payer dollars?Is there the possibility that this could free up tax dollars to be used in other areas where the investment of tax payer dollars could better serve the recreational and economic needs of our community?



    One, of many areas, that might be considered is the “fast tracking” of the City’s Master Trail Plan.This Plan provides for the development of an 89 mile net work of hiking and biking trails.These trails will not only provide a unique outdoor recreational experience for locals and visitors alike, but also has the distinct potential of providing an environmentally friendly economic stimulus to the “soft adventure” side of Branson’s economy.



    One can only wonder what could be accomplished if the Branson Parks and Recreation Department decided to work in partnership with the YMCA for the benefit of our community.Like the community he serves, the Ole Seagull can only hope that the Branson Parks and Recreation Department is not all “shook up” over building a “kingdom” or visions of a fitness center “profit center” and will consider the total value that such a partnership could be to our community.


  • Review of the Hank Williams Remembered Show

    The Hank Williams Story

    Larry Burton Crocker

    Larry Burton Crocker is Hank Williams in the “Hank Williams Remembered Show,” at the Owen’s Theater, in downtown Branson. Larry takes you on a journey of Hank’s life from his first recorded song through the pre-mature end of his up and down career.

    Larry Burton Crocker is amazing as Hank Williams. Several reasons for this include the fact that Larry looks amazingly like Williams. He not only looks like him but he acts like you would imagine him to act and sings in Williams’ voice. The most amazing fact, told nearly halfway through the show, is that Larry was born on the same day as Williams. There must be something in the stars.

    Many artists have tried to replicate Hank Williams on stage. None can be so successful at doing so as Larry Burton Crocker. The Owen’s Theater is a perfect venue for Larry’s Tribute to Hank Williams. The theater, built in 1935, has the look and feel of Hank Williams’ era. Larry Burton Crocker plays Hank Williams to the nth degree.



    Throughout the show, the history of Hank Williams is told with explanations of how each song came to be.Such as the time Williams went to a music house in Nashville and asked for a job with them.Fred Rose, of the newly formed Acuff-Rose publishers, asked Williams to write a song for him on a subject that he alone would choose.Too many newcomers had been asking for work and using other people’s music, saying they had written it.



    Williams agreed and Fred Rose told him to go back to his hotel, write the song and come back when he had finished.Thirty minutes later, having never left the building, Williams knocked on Fred Rose’s door stating that the song was completed.Rose did not believe him, but Hank Williams sang the song he had written, “Mansion on the Hill.”This song was later released on MGM records and became a hit.



    Topping the country charts for sixteen weeks in 1949, “Lovesick Blues” stayed in the listings for another year.Through the success of that song, Williams was invited to perform on the Grand Ole Opry.His first performance of “Lovesick Blues” garnered him six encores.Hank Williams had arrived.This allowed him and his band, the Drifting Cowboys, to get one-thousand dollars per performance.This was also the beginning of Hank’s roller-coaster ride in life.



    Crocker sings most of Williams recordings.Williams wrote of life, its faults, its ups and downs, drinking, women and love.Hank Williams wrote songs mainly of his own life, loves, pains, ups and downs.He wrote songs that the average person on the street or in the bar could identify with.In 1952, Williams wrote a song in praise of Cajun food called “Jambalaya.”It went to the number one position overnight; while another of his songs, “Half as Much” was number two.Williams became the first country music superstar, and as such, became a showman.He wore custom suits with musical notes on them.He drank too much, tore up hotel rooms, threw money from windows and took too many pain killers for a back injury he had suffered early in his life.All this took its toll on the super star and caused a rapidly developing spiral downward for him.



    Eventually, in 1952, the Grand Ole Opry, preferring it’s entertainers to be sober and a good reflection on the institution, fired Williams because of missed appearances and drinking.Hank Williams was thrown back to playing small clubs with pick-up bands.


    In 1949, Hank Williams had a son named, Randall Hank Williams.He nicknamed him “Bocephus,” after a wooden dummy used by Rod Brassfield.Well, Randall grew up to be better known as Hank Williams Jr. and went on, through his own tragedies, and two Emmys, to become a star in his own right.



    “Bocephus,” recorded a post-humous video with his Father, “There’s A Tear in My Beer” that was widely acclaimed and sold 250,000 copies.Larry Burton Crocker, through southern ingenuity, performs this two-part video with different costumes.It is something you must see.I have never seen anything performed in the wayLarry Burton Crocker does both Hank Williams Senior and Hank Williams Junior, at the same time.



    Having recorded 170 different songs, it was uniquely ironic that Hank Williams’ last song was, “I’ll Never Get Out Of This World Alive.”It was as if he knew his destiny.His plaque at the Country Music Hall of Fame has the following inscription, “The simple beautiful melodies and straightforward plaintive stories in his lyrics of life, as he knew it, will never die.”I think when Hank lay down in the back seat of that Cadillac in 1953, seeking solace from the pain of life, he already knew of that inscription and where it would be written.



    For information and tickets call, 417- 336-2112



    Authors Note:It is interesting to note that my last couple of articles were written about two of our all time legendary country stars, Patsy Cline and Hiram “Hank Williams.”They were both born in September, a decade apart, both died under tragic circumstances, both were twenty-nine when they died and both became legendary after their deaths.Perhaps the stars do have a story to tell.



    Courtesy of Branson Daily Independent

  • Disney recommends ‘Port Branson’ theme for [Branson Landing] lakefront redevelopment

    A possible name for the Taneycomo lakefront project was revealed at the Branson Board of Aldermen meeting, Monday, April 14. “Port Branson” could replace the currently titled Branson Landing project. The name was formed because of the project’s connection to water.


    HCW Development CEO Rick Huffman is working with YPB&R, Ideas at Disney and Wet Design to create the Port Branson theme for the project. Mitch Gorshin, of Ideas at Disney, said the storyline of Port Branson will make it come alive. “A port implies a marketplace—a place that is alive,” he said. “It is a central meeting ground. I think port embodies everything this project wants to embody.”

    Gorshin said the idea for Port Branson includes having four distinct areas within the entire project—each having a different theme. Gorshin said his team played with other names. “The Waterfront” and “The Port” were two examples that did not make the cut. “Port Branson is not just a name,” he said. “It is something well beyond that. Port Branson signifies what we are wanting to do.”

    While Gorshin believed the name would fit well with the project, some of the aldermen had concerns with the name. Newly re-elected alderman Ron Huff asked Gorshin what the problem was with the name Branson Landing was. “It implies something small—a little bit soft,” he said. “It doesn’t make it as alive as it possibly could be. The four districts within the project would retain the heritage and tradition of the Ozarks.”

    Huffman said the Port Branson name was chosen because there is a “Landing” in St. Louis that might interfere with marketing plans. “We were scared of putting tremendous marketing dollars into something that has the same name and is in the same state as the other,” he said. YPB&R Managing Partner Peter Yesawich said the Port Branson name would go through a market test to see how people reacted to the name.

    Both Gorshin and Yesawich said the ultimate name and theme of the project will depend on what kind of tenant anchors come in. Huffman said he is currently negotiating a contract with Bass Pro for a 60,000-square-foot space. Underwater World is also another tenant Huffman is trying to secure. Underwater World would have a 55,000-square-foot aquarium. Numerous smaller tenants such as restaurants and shops have already been secured. Huffman said he would like to add a Nordstrom or Sax 5th Avenue and a cinema as tenants.

    The aldermen and audience got a glimpse of the project through initial drawings that Huffman presented. The drawings showed the river walk, 200,000-square-foot convention center, shops, restaurants, parking lots, water features and a town square that would accommodate 6,000 people for a stand up function. “These (drawings) are not set in stone,” Huffman said. “They are to scale, and they are workable.”

    The next steps for HCW Development include the Phase Two traffic study, HCW ground lease, on-going design contract, 404 permit, convention center TIF approval and finalizing the Empire Electric land acquisition.

    Another upcoming project Huffman will take on is creating a Branson Landing Information Center. Huffman said he plans to remodel a building at Business 65 and Main Street, currently leased to Ozark Mountain Quilts and a visitor information center, and using it for the next two years as the project information center for visitors. The building would contain drawings of Branson Landing and a fiber optic model of the project.

    Courtesy of Branson Daily Independent

  • 2003 Main Street Hoops 3-on -3 Street Basketball Tournament

    (Branson, MO) Downtown Branson Main Street Hoops, a 3 on 3 Street Basketball Tournament, will be held on April 26, 2003. From “Top Guns” to “Couch Potatoes" and adults, boys, and girls there is a Division for everyone and every skill level.

    The entry fee is only $40.00 per team before April 22nd or $50.00 until April 24th. No Entries will be accepted after April 24th.

    Sponsored by the Downtown Branson Main Street Association, the tournament will be held in Historic Downtown Branson in the Awbery Parking Lot at the corner of Atlantic and Commercial Streets. For entry information and Entry Forms call 417.334.1548.

    Entry fee includes:
    1. Everyone who plays will get a T-shirt before the games begin. Corporate
    teams may wear their business logo T-shirts if they wish.
    2. Each person on each winning team also gets a "Winners Shirt."
    3. About 16 trophies will be given away to the winning teams in the
    children & youth divisions – up to age 14. (Each person on the winning teams
    gets a trophy.)

  • World Fest At Silver Dollar City April 11-May 18

    “New this year, World-Fest presents a dozen new groups and shows, including the world-famous Czech Black Light Theatre from Prague, performed by a troupe whose European director founded black light stage entertainment with its amazing special effects. The troupe brings to life astounding animated vignettes, drawing upon a four-decade history as masters of this dramatic art form. Also new are the Irish Ceili show, a Dublin City revue with Irish music, dance and comedy; and the Sound of Angels show, with world-renowned harpists from Ireland, Scotland and the Ukraine who play music from the Beatles to bluegrass. New groups include a French bagpipe band, an Italian precision flag-throwing team, and folk music and dance groups from Italy, Mexico, Manchuria and Portugal. Over four hundred performers from around the world bring their music, dance, costumes and culture for World-Fest, America’s largest international festival.” To go to the Silver Dollar City World Fest web site click here.

  • The “Seagull’s View” on “Our View” – the voters have spoken!


    On April 8, 2003 Branson’s Voters went to the polls in an election that was billed as a “referendum on the Branson Landing Project.”At the end of the day, if the city wide mayoral race was any indication, approximately 58% of the vote went to candidates that supported the Branson Landing Project and Convention Center and 42% to candidates that opposed it.



    An “Our View” editorial piece appearing in the Springfield News Leader in their April 10, 2003 edition covered the election results and their apparent support of the Branson Landing Project and Convention Center.It quotes Mayor Lou Schaefer as saying, “There’s no question in my mind about that because that’s what the whole race was about. It’s a vote of confidence.”The piece then goes on to say, “When we [News Leader Staff] look at the tea leaves of the election, though, a mandate is much more difficult to find. Schaefer won less than half the vote to top a five-candidate field.”



    In discussing the aldermanic races however, they point out that in Ward I, David Edie, who favors delaying the project, “took 50.3 percent of the vote to defeat an incumbent strongly in favor of the project.It goes on to point out that in Ward II, a five candidate race, “the two candidates backing the lakefront project got 49.8 percent of the votes. The three candidates opposed to the project took 50.2 percent.”



    Things really get interesting when the piece gets to their analysis of Ward III where it states, “Only in Ward III was there anything that looked like a mandate. Project backer Beverly Martin won 57 percent of the vote in defeating Larry Taylor, the lone incumbent who consistently opposed lakefront proposals.”



    Now granted that the Ole Seagull isn’t the brightest bird in the Branson sky and, at this stage of his life, confusion is easier to come by than it was a few years ago, but alas, he must admit, he is confused.If a 14% margin in Ward III looks like a mandate what is different about the 16% margin in the City wide mayoral election between candidates that very actively either supported or didn’t support the Branson Landing Project and Convention Center?



    Of more importance however is the “selective manner” in which the piece chose to analyze the election results.It appears that, in the mayoral race, it was not statistically significant to point out what percentage of the vote supported candidates in favor and against the Branson Landing Project and Convention Center but it was in the case of the aldermanic races.Why?



    Is it to support the conclusions and recommendations that the piece makes?Conclusions and recommendations such as “When an election indicates the community is divided down the middle, the town’s leaders need to take heed. This is a time to listen, to make sure all residents, not just two new board members, have all the information they need — and every opportunity to have their voices heard before next year’s election.”



    What’s wrong with the results of this year’s election?Using the same analysis and logic that the piece uses, and applying them to the mayoral race, it appears that, city wide, 58% of the voters want the Branson Landing Project and Convention Center while 42% do not.There is absolutely nothing in the piece supporting the proposition that these voters didn’t “have all the information” they needed to make a decision and to imply otherwise does them a disservice.



    Now here’s a “Seagull’s View.”Using the “Our View” criteria and applying it to the city wide mayoral vote, the 16% majority in favor of the Branson Landing Project and Convention Center candidates appears to be a significant victory.

  • Roy Rogers-Dale Evans Museum Scheduled to Open

    (BRANSON, Missouri) – The first shipment of exhibits and memorabilia is scheduled to arrive in Branson at 10 a.m. tomorrow for the new Roy Rogers – Dale Evans Museum and Happy Trails Theater. The 26,000 square-foot museum and 300-seat theater is under construction at the northeast corner of Green Mountain Drive and State Highway 376 across from Silver Dollar City’s new theme park, Celebration City (formerly Branson USA).


    Dustin Rogers, grandson of Roy Rogers and Dale Evans and General Manager of the new facility, said one of the first items scheduled for delivery and installation on Friday is a 19-foot tall statue of Roy Rogers’ famous horse Trigger.The statue and museum displays are movingfrom the original museum in Victorville, CA to the new facility in Branson. The Victorville facility closed on March 31.The scheduled opening date for The Roy Rogers – Dale Evans Museum & Happy Trails Theater in Branson is Memorial Day Weekend.