''ABC Barn Dance'' is an early

country and Western music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, old ...

show on American television, a

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of simultaneous broadcast) is the broadcasting of programmes/programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simultane ...

of the popular radio program ''

National Barn Dance ''National Barn Dance'', broadcast by WLS-AM in Chicago, Illinois starting in 1924, was one of the first American country music radio programs and a direct precursor of the ''Grand Ole Opry''. ''National Barn Dance'' also set the stage for other ...

'', a title that was also sometimes used for the TV version. It also included some

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

. The show aired on Monday nights from February 21 to November 14, 1949 on ABC-TV. Originally broadcast from 8:30 to 9 p.m.

Eastern Time The Eastern Time Zone (ET) is a time zone encompassing part or all of 23 states in the eastern part of the United States, parts of eastern Canada, the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico, Panama, Colombia, mainland Ecuador, Peru, and a small port ...

, it was moved to 9 p.m. and then to 9:30 p.m. Filmed at the Eighth Street Theater in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, the sustaining weekly

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical theatre, musical performances, sketch comedy, magic (illusion), magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is ...

originated from

WENR-TV WLS-TV (channel 7) is a television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, airing programming from the ABC network. Owned and operated by the network's ABC Owned Television Stations division, the station maintains studios on North State S ...

. It was hosted by Hal O'Halloran and

Jack Stillwell Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

. Several of the radio program's performers appeared, including the Sage Riders (instrumental quartet),

Lulu Belle and Scotty Myrtle Eleanor Cooper (December 24, 1913 – February 8, 1999) and Scott Greene Wiseman (November 8, 1909 – January 31, 1981), known professionally as Lulu Belle and Scotty, were one of the major country music acts of the 1930s and 1940s, dubbe ...

, Cousin Tifford, Bob Atcher,

the DeZurik Sisters The DeZurik Sisters (also known as The Cackle Sisters) were a country-music duo. They were two of the first women to become stars on both the ''National Barn Dance'' and the ''Grand Ole Opry'', largely a result of their original yodeling style. ...

and Holly Swanson. A review of the program's February 22, 1949, episode in the trade publication ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' called it "a television programming natural which includes all the showmanship factors the medium requires ... great visual qualities, comedy, top music and talent."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Abc Barn Dance 1949 American television series debuts 1949 American television series endings American Broadcasting Company original programming American country music Black-and-white American television shows Country music television series English-language television shows