''Ozark Jubilee'' is a 1950s American television program that featured

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

's top stars of the day. It was produced in

Springfield, Missouri Springfield is the List of cities in Missouri, third most populous city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County, Missouri, Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 censu ...

. The weekly

live Live may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film * ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film * ''Live'' (2023 film), a Malayalam-language film *'' Live: Phát Trực Tiếp'', a Vietnamese-langua ...

stage show premiered on ABC-TV on January 22, 1955, was renamed ''Country Music Jubilee'' on July 6, 1957, and was finally named ''Jubilee USA'' on August 2, 1958. Originating "from the heart of

the Ozarks The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, as well as a small area in the southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover ...

", the Saturday night variety series helped popularize country music in America's cities and suburbs,Shulman, Art "Dynamo–Country Style" (July 7, 1956), ''TV Guide'', p. 28 drawing more than nine million viewers. The ABC Radio version was heard by millions more starting in August 1954. A typical program included a mix of vocal and instrumental performances, comedy routines, square dancing and an occasional novelty act. The host was

Red Foley Clyde Julian "Red" Foley (June 17, 1910 – September 19, 1968) was an American musician who made a major contribution to the growth of country music after World War II. For more than two decades, Foley was one of the biggest stars of the gen ...

, one of the nation's top country music personalities having been ranked by ''Billboard'' as the #5 Top Country Artist for the 1940s and #5 in the 1950s. Big names such as

Patsy Cline Patsy Cline (born Virginia Patterson Hensley; September 8, 1932 – March 5, 1963) was an American singer. One of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century, she was known as one of the first country music artists to successfully Cross ...

Eddy Arnold Richard Edward Arnold (May 15, 1918 – May 8, 2008) was an American country music singer. He was a Nashville sound (country/popular music) innovator of the late 1950s, and scored 147 songs on the ''Billboard'' country music charts, second onl ...

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter. Most of his music contains themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially songs from the later stages of his career. ...

and Faron Young were interspersed with a regular cast, including a group of young talent the ''Jubilee'' brought to national fame: 11-year-old

Brenda Lee Brenda Mae Tarpley (born December 11, 1944), known professionally as Brenda Lee, is an American singer. Primarily performing rockabilly, pop, country and Christmas music, she achieved her first ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' hit aged 12 i ...

Porter Wagoner Porter Wayne Wagoner (August 12, 1927 – October 28, 2007) was an American country music singer known for his flashy Nudie and Manuel suits and blond pompadour. In 1967, he introduced singer Dolly Parton on his television show, ''The Por ...

Wanda Jackson Wanda LaVonne Jackson (born October 20, 1937) is an American retired singer and songwriter. Since the 1950s, she has recorded and released music in the genres of Rock music, rock, Country music, country and Gospel music, gospel. She was among th ...

Sonny James Jimmie Hugh Loden (May 1, 1928February 22, 2016), known professionally as Sonny James, was an American country music singer and songwriter best known for his 1957 hit, " Young Love", topping both the ''Billboard'' Hot Country and Disk Jockey s ...

, Jean Shepard and

The Browns The Browns were an American country and folk music vocal trio best known for their 1959 Grammy-nominated hit, "The Three Bells". The group, composed of Jim Ed Brown and his sisters Maxine and Bonnie, had a close, smooth harmony characteristi ...

. Other featured cast members were

Webb Pierce Michael Webb Pierce (August 8, 1921 – February 24, 1991) was an American country music vocalist, songwriter, and guitarist of the 1950s, one of the most popular of the genre, charting more number-one hits than any other country and western pe ...

Bobby Lord Robert Lester Lord (January 6, 1934 – February 16, 2008) was an American country music singer-songwriter popular in the 1950s and 1960s. Biography Lord was born January 6, 1934, in Sanford, Florida, but grew up in Tampa, Florida, Tampa. As a ...

, Leroy Van Dyke, Norma Jean and Carl Smith.

Carl Perkins Carl Lee Perkins (April 9, 1932 – January 19, 1998)#nytimesobit, Pareles. was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. A rockabilly great and pioneer of rock and roll, he began his recording career at the Sun Studio, in Memphis, Tennes ...

, singing "

Blue Suede Shoes "Blue Suede Shoes" is a rock and roll standard (music), standard written and first recorded by American singer, songwriter and guitarist Carl Perkins in 1955. It is considered one of the first rockabilly records, incorporating elements of blues ...

", made his TV debut on the series, which showcased hundreds of popular artists performing everything from

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre, it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western musi ...

country and western A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, or d ...

, bluegrass and

honky tonk A honky-tonk (also called honkatonk, honkey-tonk, honky tonk, or tonk) is either a bar that provides country music for the entertainment of its patrons or the style of music played in such establishments. It can also refer to the type of piano ...

to the Nashville sound,

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...

and

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

. Several now-legendary session musicians provided accompaniment at times during the show's run, including Grady Martin,

Hank Garland Walter Louis Garland (November 11, 1930 – December 27, 2004), known professionally as Hank Garland, was an American guitarist and songwriter. He started as a country musician, played rock and roll as it became popular in the 1950s, and release ...

Bob Moore Bob Moore may refer to: * Bob Moore (musician) (1932–2021), American session musician * Bob Moore (executive) (1929–2024), co-founder of Bob's Red Mill * Bob Moore (American football) (born 1949), American football tight end * Bob Moore (Au ...

Charlie Haden Charles Edward Haden (August 6, 1937 – July 11, 2014) was an American jazz double bass player, bandleader, composer and educator whose career spanned more than fifty years. Haden helped to revolutionize the harmonic concept of bass playin ...

, Cecil Brower, Tommy Jackson and Bud Isaacs. The genial Foley closed each show from the Jewell Theatre in downtown Springfield with a "song of inspiration" or a recitation from his ''Keepsake Album''; and his sign-off was "Goodnight mama, goodnight papa", before walking into the audience to shake hands as the credits rolled. The ''Jubilee'' was canceled after almost six years as

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

grew in popularity, and in part because of publicity surrounding tax evasion charges against Foley, who was later acquitted. On September 24, 1960, the final telecast, like the first in 1955, opened with Foley's singing of " Hearts of Stone". The program concluded with his performance of "

May the Good Lord Bless and Keep You "May the Good Lord Bless and Keep You" is a popular music, popular song by Meredith Willson, originally published in 1950. The song is now considered a pop standards, standard, recorded by many artists. It was used as Tallulah Bankhead's theme so ...

". The series was voted Best Country Music Show by ''Fame'' magazine's annual TV critics poll in 1957 and 1960. In 1961, NBC-TV carried a

spin-off Spin-off, Spin Off, Spin-Off, or Spinoff may refer to: Entertainment and media *Spinoff (media), a media work derived from an existing work *''The Spinoff'', a New Zealand current affairs magazine * ''Spin Off'' (Canadian game show), a 2013 Canad ...

, ''

Five Star Jubilee ''Five Star Jubilee'' is an American country music variety show carried by National Broadcasting Company, NBC-TV from March 17–September 22, 1961. The live program, a Spin-off (media), spin-off of ABC-TV's ''Ozark Jubilee, Jubilee USA'', wa ...

''.

Earlier country music television programs

The first (and first live) country music program on network television was '' Village Barn'', broadcast from 1948–50 by NBC from a New York City nightclub. From the late 1940s through the 1950s, the U.S. networks carried a handful of other country music shows, including '' Hayloft Hoedown'' and '' ABC Barn Dance'' (ABC); '' Saturday Night Jamboree'' (NBC); and '' Windy City Jamboree'' and '' The Old American Barn Dance'' ( DuMont). NBC and later ABC also aired '' Midwestern Hayride''. The shows, however, were generally short-lived summer replacements and had few if any well-known performers. ''Ozark Jubilee'' was the first network TV program to feature America's top country music stars, and as a result, was the first country music program to attract a significant national viewership."'Ozark Jubilee' Hits ARB Top for May TV" (June 11, 1955), ''The Billboard'', p. 22 At five years and eight months, it also holds the record for the longest-running country music series on network television (''

Hee Haw ''Hee Haw'' is an American television variety show featuring country music and humor with the fictional rural "Kornfield Kounty" as the backdrop. It aired from 1969 to 1993, and on TNN from 1996 to 1997. Reruns of the series were broadcast on ...

'' was syndicated after two years on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

, and ''

Austin City Limits ''Austin City Limits'' is an American Concert, live music Television show, television program recorded and produced by KLRU, Austin PBS. The show helped Austin become widely known in the United States as the "Live Music Capital of the World", an ...

'' presents a much broader variety of music).

ABC-TV schedules

(all times are

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, and the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico. * Eastern Standard Time (EST) is five hours behi ...

—all running times include

commercial Commercial may refer to: * (adjective for) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and services ** (adjective for) trade, the trading of something of economic value such as goods, services, information or money * a dose of advertising ...

breaks) * 1954–55 season (''Ozark Jubilee'') Starting January 22, 1955: Saturday, 9–10 p.m. Starting July 2, 1955: Saturday, 7:30–9 p.m. * 1955–56 season (''Ozark Jubilee''): Saturday, 7:30–9 p.m. * 1956–57 season (''Ozark Jubilee'') Starting October 4, 1956: Thursday, 10–11 p.m. Starting December 29, 1956: Saturday, 8–9 p.m. * 1957–58 season (''Country Music Jubilee''): Saturday, 8–9 p.m. * 1958–59 season (''Jubilee USA'') Starting September 29, 1958: Monday, 8–8:30 p.m. Starting November 1, 1958: Saturday, 8–9 p.m. * 1959–60 season (''Jubilee USA'') Starting October 3, 1959: Saturday, 10–11 p.m. – September 24, 1960 From October 15, 1955, to September 15, 1956, the program aired from 7:30–8 p.m. every fourth Saturday when ABC televised '' The Grand Ole Opry'' live from 8–9 p.m. From March through September 1956, the "Junior Jubilee" edition aired in the 7:30–8 p.m. time slot. In contrast to many network series which went on summer hiatus, the ''Jubilee'' was live throughout the year.

Red Foley and the rise of Springfield

During the late 1940s and 1950s, Springfield broadcasters Ralph Foster and Si Siman produced nationally syndicated

radio shows A radio program, radio programme, or radio show is a segment of content intended for broadcast on radio. It may be a one-time production, or part of a periodically recurring series. A single program in a series is called an episode. Radio netw ...

through Foster's RadiOzark Enterprises, and aired them locally over his KWTO, also a stepping-stone for numerous country stars. Their stable of country music shows and talent grew, and Foster believed Springfield could dethrone Nashville to become the "crossroads of country music." He realized television was the key, and named his new company Crossroads TV Productions, Inc., with Siman and John B. Mahaffey (Foster's nephew) as managing vice presidents. A financial backer was local businessman Lester E. Cox. In December 1953, they launched '' Ozark Jubilee'' on Springfield's KYTV-TV. In April 1954, after extensive negotiations, Siman lured Red Foley from Nashville to host the show with a one-year contract, renewed for three more in 1955. It was a major coup; Foley was considered by many to be America's top country music star. In 1946 he replaced

Roy Acuff Roy Claxton Acuff (September 15, 1903 – November 23, 1992) was an American country music singer, fiddler, and promoter. Known as the "King of Country Music", Acuff is often credited with moving the genre from its early string band and "hoedown ...

as emcee of the ''Grand Ole Opry'' segment carried by

NBC Radio The National Broadcasting Company's NBC Radio Network (also known as the NBC Red Network from 1927 to 1942) was an American commercial radio network which was in continuous operation from 1926 through 1999. Along with the NBC Blue Network, it wa ...

, and his popularity during the following eight years was credited with establishing it as the number one country music show. Three months later, in July 1954, ABC-TV agreed to buy the ''Jubilee''; and by August, was carrying a radio version hosted by Foley that had begun in July on KWTO. To represent the regular performers on KWTO and the ''Jubilee'', in March 1955 Foster established Top Talent, Inc., in partnership with Siman; and to publish their songs, Siman established Earl Barton Music, Inc. with partners Foster, Mahaffey and Cox Siman also handled talent bookings for the show. Foster, known by cast and crew as "the Skipper", made an appearance on the final broadcast of ''Jubilee USA'', singing "Woodman, Spare that Tree". By 1956, Springfield, with two other ABC shows, ranked behind only New York and

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

for originating network television programming. Top Talent was booking ''Jubilee'' artists across the country, and that April, the ''Jubilee'' had finished third among men. According to '' The St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' that February, "Springfield has become the recognized center of the country music world. In fact, it is generally agreed in television, recording and radio circles, that Springfield, now a city of 90,000, has shaken Nashville, Tennessee, home of The Grand Ole Opry and long-time mecca of hillbilly musicians, to its very foundations." But the 1957 departures of Porter Wagoner and Brenda Lee to the Music City signaled the shift would not be permanent, and Springfield never generated the business or revenues of Nashville. Publicity surrounding federal income tax evasion charges pending against Foley during 1960 influenced ABC's decision to cancel the program, although his first trial that fall ended in a hung jury; and after a second trial he was quickly acquitted on April 23, 1961. The previous October, ABC had begun airing the popular '' Fight of the Week'' in the ''Jubilee's'' former time slot (the show had replaced ''The Saturday Night Fights'' in 1955).

Performers

Cast

The ''Ozark Jubilee'' cast was originally headlined by Wanda Jackson, Norma Jean, Bobby Lord, Webb Pierce, Marvin Rainwater, Porter Wagoner and Slim Wilson, who was also front man for both the Tall Timber Trio, made up of "Speedy" Haworth (guitar), Bob White (bass guitar) and "Doc" Martin (

steel guitar A steel guitar () is any guitar played while moving a steel bar or similar hard object against plucked strings. The bar itself is called a "steel" and is the source of the name "steel guitar". The instrument differs from a conventional guitar i ...

); and the Jubilee Band, composed of Haworth, Martin, White, Johnny Gailey (drums), Paul Mitchell (piano) and Zed Tennis (

fiddle A fiddle is a Bow (music), bowed String instrument, string musical instrument, most often a violin or a bass. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including European classical music, classical music. Althou ...

). Featured vocalists included Leroy Van Dyke, Suzi Arden, Chuck Bowers, Sonny James, Tommy Sosebee and Tabby West.''Ozark Jubilee Souvenir Picture Album'' (second edition, 1956), © Ozark Jubilee's Crossroads Store Singers Hawkshaw Hawkins and Jean Shepard, who met on the show, later married. The versatile Wilson was also half of the show's Flash and Whistler (with Floyd "Goo Goo" Rutledge); and Rutledge was half of Lennie and Goo Goo (with Lennie Aleshire), both country music comedy duos. Other comedians were Pete Stamper, Shug Fisher, KWTO's Bill Ring, Uncle Cyp and Aunt Sap Brasfield, and Luke Warmwater. The cast also included The Foggy River Boys, a singing quartet later known as The Marksmen (George Richardson, Les Robertson, Don Taylor and Earl Terry); Harold Morrison (banjo) and Jimmy Gately (guitar), a bluegrass duo; and The Wagoner Trio, made up of Wagoner, Haworth and Don Warden (steel guitar). The

house band A house band is a group of musicians, often centrally organized by a band leader, who regularly play at an establishment. It is widely used to refer both to the bands who work on entertainment programs on television or radio, and to bands which ...

was first known as The Crossroads Boys, composed of Grady Martin, Billy Burke, Bud Isaacs, Tommy Jackson, Paul Mitchell, Jimmy Selph, Bob Moore and Mel Bly; but the name was soon changed to Bill Wimberly and His Country Rhythm Boys, a seven-piece group that alternated weekly during 1955 with Grady Martin and His Winging Strings, featuring Moore, Jackson, Isaacs and Hank Garland. Pierce hosted the first half-hour of the 90-minute programs once a month beginning October 15, 1955; Wagoner and James joined him in monthly rotation from January through at least July 1956. Substitute hosts included Wilson, Eddy Arnold, and

Jim Reeves James Travis Reeves (August 20, 1923July 31, 1964) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. One of the earliest pioneers and practitioners of the Nashville sound, he played a central role in the sonic development of country music in th ...

(May–July 1958). The on-camera announcer was Joe Slattery, a former

Pan Am Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and more commonly known as Pan Am, was an airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States for ...

and

US Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

pilot who later became president of AFTRA. The ''Jubilee'' featured two square dance groups: the Promenaders (with caller Lowell "L. D." Keller), a competitive team originally from Southwest Missouri State College; and a children's group from Camdenton, Missouri, the (Lake of the Ozarks) Tadpoles (with caller Buford Foster). Several other groups, including the Ozark Sashayers (with caller Rex Kreider) and the teenage Wagon Wheelers (with caller Gary Ellison), made guest appearances. Foley's son-in-law,

Pat Boone Patrick Charles Eugene Boone (born June 1, 1934) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, author, television personality, radio host and philanthropist. He sold nearly 50 million records, had 38 Top 40 hits, and has acted in many films. Boone ...

, occasionally appeared; as did his eldest daughter
Betty

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restr ...

and his eventual third wife, Shirley Simpson, both auditioned for the show, but only Simpson (given the stage surname Caddell) made it. Many of the regular cast were natives or residents of the Ozarks. Over the years they included: * Lennie Aleshire * Suzi Arden
Chuck Bowers
* Uncle Cyp and Aunt Sap Brasfield * Cecil Brower *

Smiley Burnette Lester Alvin Burnett (March 18, 1911 – February 16, 1967), better known as Smiley Burnette, was an American country music performer and a comedic actor in Western films and on radio and TV, playing sidekick to Gene Autry, Roy Rogers, and ...

* Shirley Caddell * Bill Carlisle * Thumbs Carllile * Curly Chalker
Arlie Duff

* James "Rusty" Estes * Buster Fellows * Shug Fisher * The Foggy River Boys * Johnny Gailey * Alfred "Red" Gale
Jimmy Gately
*

* Hawkshaw Hawkins * "Speedy" Haworth
Libby Horne

Bud Isaacs
* Tommy Jackson *

* Norma Jean *

* Merl Lindsay *

* Johnny Manson * Bryan "Doc" Martin * Grady Martin * Paul Mitchell *

* Harold Morrison * Penny Nichols * The Philharmonics *

* Marvin Rainwater * Bill Ring * Floyd "Goo Goo" Rutledge * Jimmie Selph * Jean Shepard
Tommy Sosebee
* Carl Smith
Pete Stamper
* Zed Tennis * Leroy Van Dyke *

* Billy Walker * Don Warden * Luke Warmwater
Tabby West

Bob White
* The Willis Brothers* Slim Wilson
Bill Wimberly

Guest stars

Virtually every country music star of the day appeared on the ''Jubilee'' with the notable exception of

Hank Snow Clarence Eugene "Hank" Snow (May 9, 1914 – December 20, 1999) was a Canadian country music guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He recorded 140 albums and charted more than 85 singles on the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' country charts betw ...

, who maintained an allegiance to Nashville's Opry. Among them were: *

Rex Allen Rex Elvie Allen Sr. (December 31, 1920 – December 17, 1999), known as "The Arizona Cowboy", was an American film and television actor, singer and songwriter; he was also the narrator of many Disney nature and Western productions. For his cont ...

* Bill Anderson *

Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), also known as "Mister Guitar" and "the Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson (musician), Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nash ...

Gene Autry Orvon Grover "Gene" Autry (September 29, 1907 – October 2, 1998), nicknamed the Singing Cowboy, was an American actor, musician, singer, composer, rodeo performer, and baseball team owner, who largely gained fame by singing in a Crooner ...

Johnny Bond Cyrus Whitfield "Johnny" Bond (June 1, 1915 – June 12, 1978) was an American country music singer-songwriter, guitarist and composer and publisher, who co-founded a music publishing firm. He was active in the music industry from 1940 until the ...

* Margie Bowes *

The Carter Sisters The Carter Sisters, (also known as the second version of The Carter Family) were an American band consisting of Maybelle Carter and her daughters June Carter Cash, Helen Carter, and Anita Carter. Each played an instrument, with June being a pio ...

* Don Cherry *

Sanford Clark Sanford Clark (October 24, 1935 – July 4, 2021) was an American country music, country-rockabilly singer and guitarist, best known for his 1956 hit "The Fool (Sanford Clark song), The Fool". Biography Clark was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Tulsa ...

The Collins Kids The Collins Kids were an American rockabilly duo featuring Lawrencine "Lorrie" Collins (May 7, 1942 – August 4, 2018) and her younger brother Lawrence "Larry" Collins (October 4, 1944 – January 5, 2024). Their hits in the 1950s as youngste ...

* Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper * Cowboy Copas *

Jimmie Davis James Houston Davis (September 11, 1899 – November 5, 2000) was an American singer, songwriter, and Democratic Party politician. After achieving fame for releasing both sacred and popular songs, Davis served as governor of Louisiana from ...

Jimmy Dean Jimmy Ray Dean (August 10, 1928 – June 13, 2010) was an American country music singer, television host, actor and businessman. He was the creator of the Jimmy Dean (brand), Jimmy Dean sausage brand as well as the spokesman for its TV comm ...

* Little Johnny Edwards * Little Jimmy Dickens *

Jimmy Driftwood James Corbitt Morris (June 20, 1907 – July 12, 1998), known professionally as Jimmy Driftwood or Jimmie Driftwood, was an American folk music, folk-style songwriter and musician, most famous for his songs "The Battle of New Orleans (song), ...

* Tommy Duncan *

Lefty Frizzell William Orville "Lefty" Frizzell (March 31, 1928 – July 19, 1975) was an American country and honky-tonk singer-songwriter. Frizell is known as one of the most influential country music vocal stylists of all time. He has been cited as in ...

George Hamilton IV George Hege Hamilton IV (July 19, 1937 – September 17, 2014) was an American country musician. He began performing in the late 1950s as a teen idol, switching to country music in the early 1960s. Biography Hamilton was born in Winston-Salem, ...

Homer and Jethro Homer and Jethro were the stage names of American country music duo Henry D. "Homer" Haynes (1920–1971) and Kenneth C. "Jethro" Burns (1920–1989), popular from the 1940s through the 1960s on radio and television for their satirical version ...

Johnny Horton John LaGale Horton (April 30, 1925 – November 5, 1960) was an American country, honky tonk, and rockabilly musician during the 1950s. He is best known for a series of history-inspired narrative country saga songs that became international ...

Jan Howard Jan Howard (born Lula Grace Johnson; March 13, 1929 – March 28, 2020) was an American author and country music singer and songwriter. As a singer, she placed 30 singles on the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' Hot Country Songs, country song ...

* Ferlin Husky *

Stonewall Jackson Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Confederate general and military officer who served during the American Civil War. He played a prominent role in nearly all military engagements in the eastern the ...

* Betty Johnson *

George Jones George Glenn Jones (September 12, 1931 – April 26, 2013) was an American Country music, country musician, singer, and songwriter. He achieved international fame for a long list of hit records, and is well known for his distinctive voice an ...

Grandpa Jones Louis Marshall Jones (October 20, 1913 – February 19, 1998), known professionally as Grandpa Jones, was an American banjo player and Old-time music, old time/country music, country music singer. He was inducted as a member of the Country Musi ...

Pee Wee King Julius Frank Anthony Kuczynski (February 18, 1914 – March 7, 2000), known professionally as Pee Wee King, was an American country music songwriter and recording artist best known for co-writing "Tennessee Waltz". Pee Wee King is credited with ...

* Hank Locklin *

The Louvin Brothers The Louvin Brothers were an American musical duo composed of brothers Ira and Charlie Louvin (''né'' Loudermilk). The brothers are cousins to John D. Loudermilk, a Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member. The brothers wrote and performed ...

* Leon McAuliffe * The Maddox Brothers and

Rose A rose is either a woody perennial plant, perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred Rose species, species and Garden roses, tens of thousands of cultivar ...

* Patsy Montana * George Morgan * Bashful Brother Oswald *

Buck Owens Alvis Edgar "Buck" Owens Jr. (August 12, 1929 – March 25, 2006) was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was the frontman for The Buckaroos, which had 21 No. 1 hits on the ''Billboard'' country music chart. He pioneered what came ...

* The Duke of Paducah *

Minnie Pearl Sarah Ophelia Colley Cannon (October 25, 1912 – March 4, 1996), known professionally as her stage character Minnie Pearl, was an American comedian and country singer who appeared at the Grand Ole Opry for more than 50 years (1940–1991) ...

* Ray Price *

Tex Ritter Woodward Maurice "Tex" Ritter (January 12, 1905 – January 2, 1974) was a pioneer of American country music, a singer, and an actor from the mid-1930s into the 1960s. He was the patriarch of the Ritter acting family (son John Ritter, grandso ...

Marty Robbins Martin David Robinson (September 26, 1925 – December 8, 1982), known professionally as Marty Robbins, was an American country and western singer and songwriter. He was one of the most popular and successful singers of his genre for most o ...

* Margie Singleton * Stringbean * Hank Thompson *

Mel Tillis Lonnie Melvin Tillis (August 8, 1932 – November 19, 2017) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Although he recorded songs since the late 1950s, his biggest success occurred in the 1970s as part of the outlaw country movement, ...

Merle Travis Merle Robert Travis (November 29, 1917 – October 20, 1983) was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Born in Rosewood, Kentucky, his songs' lyrics were often about the lives and the economic exploitation of Ameri ...

Ernest Tubb Ernest Dale Tubb (February 9, 1914 – September 6, 1984), nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, was an American singer and songwriter and one of the pioneers of country music. His biggest career hit song, "Walking the Floor Over You" (1941), marked ...

Conway Twitty Harold Lloyd Jenkins (September 1, 1933 – June 5, 1993), better known by his stage name Conway Twitty, was an American singer and songwriter. Initially a part of the 1950s rockabilly scene, Twitty was best known as a country music performer. ...

* T. Texas Tyler *

Gene Vincent Vincent Eugene Craddock (February 11, 1935 – October 12, 1971), known as Gene Vincent, was an American rock and roll musician who pioneered the style of rockabilly. His 1956 top ten hit with his backing band the Blue Caps, "Be-Bop-a-Lula", is ...

Jimmy Wakely James Clarence Wakely (February 16, 1914 – September 23, 1982) was an American actor, songwriter, country music vocalist, and one of the last singing cowboys. During the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s, he released records, appeared in several B-Western ...

* Kitty Wells * Slim Whitman * The Wilburn Brothers *

Tex Williams Sollie Paul "Tex" Williams (August 23, 1917 – October 11, 1985) was an American Western swing musician. He is best known for his talking blues style; his biggest hit was the novelty song, "Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette)", which held th ...

Bob Wills James Robert "Bob" Wills (March 6, 1905 – May 13, 1975) was an American musician, songwriter, and bandleader. Considered by music authorities as the founder of Western swing, he was known widely as the King of Western Swing (although Spade C ...

* Del Wood * Faron Young Other guests included

Fran Allison Frances Helen Allison (November 20, 1907June 13, 1989) was an American television and radio comedienne, personality, and singer. She is best known for her starring role on the weekday NBC-TV puppet show '' Kukla, Fran and Ollie'', which ran fr ...

in a recurring role as Aunt Fanny; actors

Betty Ann Grove Betty Ann Grove (September 9, 1929 – November 13, 2015) was an American actress and singer. Early years Grove was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Her mother was "an exhibition ballroom dancer" who performed with Ray Bolger and Jack Haley, ...

Jim Brown James Nathaniel Brown (February 17, 1936 – May 18, 2023) was an American professional American football, football player, civil rights activist, and actor. He played as a Fullback (gridiron football), fullback for the Cleveland Browns of the ...

and Duncan Renaldo; and nationally syndicated columnist Earl Wilson. A young

Wayne Newton Carson Wayne Newton (born April 3, 1942), also known as Mr. Las Vegas, is an American singer and actor. One of the most popular singers in the United States from the mid-to-late 20th century, Newton remains one of the best-known entertainers in ...

performed with his brother as the Rascals in Rhythm. On January 14, 1956, the program's first anniversary, Tennessee Gov. Frank Clement, Missouri's U.S. senators Tom Hennings and

Stuart Symington William Stuart Symington III ( ; June 26, 1901 – December 14, 1988) was an American businessman and Democratic politician from Missouri. He served as the first secretary of the Air Force from 1947 to 1950 and was a United States senator from ...

, and Missouri Lt. Gov. Jim Blair appeared, as did St. Louis Cardinals baseball star

Stan Musial Stanley Frank Musial (; born Stanislaw Franciszek Musial; November 21, 1920 – January 19, 2013), nicknamed "Stan the Man", was an American baseball outfielder and first baseman. Widely considered to be one of the greatest and most consistent ...

The ''Jubilee'' and Brenda Lee

On February 23, 1956, 11-year-old

, living in

Augusta, Georgia Augusta is a city on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies directly across the Savannah River from North Augusta, South Carolina at the head of its navigable portion. Augusta, the third mos ...

, turned down $30 to sing on a Swainsboro radio station to see Foley and a visiting ''Jubilee'' promotional unit at Bell Auditorium. A local

disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at nightclubs or music fes ...

convinced Foley to hear her sing before the show. He was stunned and agreed to let Lee perform "Jambalaya" that night. Foley later recalled his reaction: ''Jubilee'' producer-director Bryan Bisney contacted her stepfather, Buell "Jay" Rainwater, who mailed him a

tape recording An audio tape recorder, also known as a tape deck, tape player or tape machine or simply a tape recorder, is a sound recording and reproduction device that records and plays back sounds usually using magnetic tape for storage. In its present ...

of Lee singing "Jambalaya" on an Augusta radio show with a snapshot of Lee in Cincinnati, Ohio with Jimmie Skinner (who had appeared on the show in 1955). He booked her network debut for March 31, 1956 to sing "Jambalaya" on the second "Junior Jubilee" edition of the show. The '' New York Journal Americans Jack O'Brien began his April 1 column with, "Didn't catch the name of the 9-year-old singer on last night's ''Ozark Jubilee'' but she belts a song like a star." The show received three times the usual

fan mail Fan mail is mail sent to a public figure, especially a celebrity, by their admirers or "fan (person), fans". In return for a fan's support and admiration, public figures may send an autographed poster, photo, reply letter, or note thanking the ...

with nearly every letter asking to see her again, and Lee's family soon moved to Springfield. Although her five-year contract with Top Talent was broken by a 1957 lawsuit brought by her mother and her manager, she made regular appearances on the program throughout its run.

Carl Perkins, "Blue Suede Shoes", and Elvis

Carl Perkins and the Perkins Brothers Band made their television debut on ''Ozark Jubilee'' on March 17, 1956, performing Perkins' No. 1 hit, "Blue Suede Shoes" and the B side, "

Honey Don't "Honey Don't" is a song written by Carl Perkins, originally released on January 1, 1956 as the B-side of the " Blue Suede Shoes" single, Sun 234. Both songs became rockabilly classics. Bill Dahl of Allmusic praised the song saying, Honey ...

". The group included Perkins (lead guitar and vocalist), Jay Perkins (rhythm guitar), Clayton Perkins (bass guitar) and W.S. Holland (drums). Coincidentally,

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

performed the song that same Saturday night on CBS-TV's '' Stage Show'', which overlapped the ''Jubilee'' from 8–8:30 p.m. ET (Presley first performed the song February 11 on ''Stage Show''). An automobile accident en route to New York prevented the group from next appearing on '' The Perry Como Show'' on March 24. Perkins returned to the ''Jubilee'' on February 2, 1957 to again sing "Blue Suede Shoes" and his then-current hit, "

Matchbox A matchbox is a container or case for matches, made of paperboard, cardboard, thin wood, or metal, generally in the form of a box with a separate drawer sliding inside the cover. Matchboxes generally measure 5 x 3.5 x 1.5 cm, and commonly have ...

". Both Perkins and Presley were fans of the ''Jubilee''. In 1955, Presley saw Charlie Hodge, his eventual friend and stage assistant, perform on the program. He first met Hodge when a ''Jubilee '' promotional unit later visited

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

. That same year, Presley asked Bobby Lord to get him an appearance on the show, but Lord told Presley the producers viewed him as "a flash in the pan."

Patsy Cline

Patsy Cline made sixteen appearances on the ''Jubilee'', which gave her the opportunity to choose her own material for a national audience., p. 186 She first appeared in January 1956, returning on April 21. In 1957, she appeared on February 9; and on June 22 (the Oklahoma State Fair remote) she performed "

Walkin' After Midnight "Walkin' After Midnight" is a song written by Alan Block and Don Hecht and recorded by American country music artist Patsy Cline. The song was originally given to pop singer Kay Starr, but her label rejected it. The song was left unused until He ...

" and "Try Again". On August 10, 1957 she sang her new single, "Three Cigarettes (In an Ashtray)" and "Try Again". Her December 5 appearance included "Make Believe", a duet with Foley; "I Don't Wanna Know"; and "Then You'll Know". During the program, Foley presented Cline with ''The Billboard'''s Most Promising County & Western Female Artist award, and ''Music Vendor'' magazine's award for Greatest Achievement in Records in 1957 (for "Walkin' After Midnight"). In 1958, Cline appeared on February 21 and April 26. On November 7, 1959, she sang "Walkin' After Midnight" and "Come on In", then "Let's Go to Church" as a duet with Slim Wilson. On December 7, she sang her "Got a Lot of Rhythm in My Soul" and " Lovesick Blues", released in January 1960; and sang duets with Ferlin Husky ( "Let it Snow") and Foley ("

Winter Wonderland "Winter Wonderland" is a song written in 1934 by Felix Bernard and lyricist Richard Bernhard Smith. Due to its seasonal theme, it is often regarded as a Christmas song in the Northern Hemisphere. Since its original recording by Richard Himb ...

"). On June 4, 1960, Cline soloed with "Lovesick Blues" and "How Can I Face Tomorrow", released in July; and sang "I'm Hogtied Over You" with Cowboy Copas and "Rueben, Reuben" with June Valli and Eddy Arnold.

Junior Jubilee

Every fourth Saturday from March 31 through September 15 (and on December 13), 1956, a special edition of ''Ozark Jubilee'' showcased young country music performers. "Junior Jubilee" aired from 7:30–8 p.m. when ABC televised ''The Grand Ole Opry'' from 8–9 p.m. Although Foley appeared, 10-year-old singer Libby Horne of McAlester, Oklahoma was the ostensible emcee. Little Johnny Edwards 6-year-old singer of Sarcoxie, Missouri 1956. Brenda Lee made her first appearances on the program. Other performers included seven-year-old singer "Cookie" McKinney, guitarist John "Bucky" Wilkin, 12-year-old fiddler Clyde Wayne Spears, singer-guitarist Mike Breid, seven-year-old Billy Joe Morris, and child square dancers the Whirli-jiggers. "Junior Jubilee" first appeared as a show segment on November 19, 1955, and returned as a portion of ''Jubilee USA'' on November 8, 1958.

Public service

Foley periodically asked viewers to contribute to various charities, including the

March of Dimes March of Dimes is a United States nonprofit organization that works to improve the health of mothers and babies. The organization was founded by US President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1938, as the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis, to co ...

, Easter Seals, Community Chest, and aid following the 1960 Great Chilean earthquake. Guests in 1956 included the Polio Mother of the Year and the

poster family. Groups recognized on the program included the Girl Scouts and the Chiefs of Police. The ''Jubilee'' also staged performances for inmates at the US Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, including special Christmas shows.

Audience and sponsors

During the program's 1955 premiere, Foley asked, "If you folks want us to come and visit at your house like this every Saturday night, why don't you drop me a line in Springfield, Missouri?" In the next week 25,258 cards and letters arrived from 45 of the 48 states,''The Ozark Jubilee starring Red Foley'' (1956), RadiOzark Enterprises, Inc. and the show typically received 6,000 letters each week.Dessauer, Phil "Springfield, Mo.–Radio City of Country Music" (April, 1957), ''

Coronet In British heraldry, a coronet is a type of crown that is a mark of rank of non-reigning members of the royal family and peers. In other languages, this distinction is not made, and usually the same word for ''crown'' is used irrespective of ra ...

'', p. 154 In May 1955, carried by 72 ABC affiliates, it was the only TV show with an audience equally divided among men, women and children, according to the American Research Bureau (ARB). For 1955, ABC reported these achievements for the program, citing ARB data:"Ozark Jubilee" (February 13, 1956), ''Available on ABC-TV'', ABC, Vol. I No. 37 * Largest male U.S. television audience * 28 percent more per-set viewers than the average of all prime time shows * Largest per-set U.S. television audience, 3.40 persons By early 1956, the ''Jubilee'' had earned a 19.2

Nielsen rating Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the #Nielsen TV ...

, and ARB estimated its weekly TV audience to be as high as 9,078,000. (''

The $64,000 Question ''The $64,000 Question'' is an American game show broadcast in primetime on CBS-TV from 1955 to 1958, which became embroiled in the 1950s quiz show scandals. Contestants answered general knowledge questions, earning money which doubled as the ...

'' had the most viewers, 16,577,500.) By 1959 the show was carried by 150 affiliates, but rarely won its time slot, competing with such heavyweights as ''The Perry Como Show'' on NBC; and on CBS, ''

The Honeymooners ''The Honeymooners'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired from 1955 to 1956, created by and starring Jackie Gleason, and based on a recurring comedy sketch of the same name that had been part of Gleason's variety show. It f ...

'', '' Perry Mason'', and in 1960, the top-rated ''

Gunsmoke ''Gunsmoke'' is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman Macdonnell and writer John Meston. It centered on Dodge City, Kansas, in the 1870s, during the settlement of the American West. The central charact ...

''. Its ratings were also hampered when a few major-market affiliates such as WABC-TV took advantage of network break-away cues to carry 30- or, when it was 90 minutes, 60-minute portions. ABC promoted and sold the program as prime family entertainment. Sponsors included the American Chicle Co., Rolaids,

Anacin Anacin is an American brand of analgesic that is manufactured by Prestige Consumer Healthcare. Anacin's active ingredients are aspirin and caffeine. History Anacin was invented by William Milton Knight and was first to be used as stated in the ...

(1956), Williamson-Dickie (1957–60),

Massey Ferguson Massey Ferguson is an agricultural machinery manufacturer, established in 1953 through the merger of farm equipment makers Massey-Harris of Canada and the Ferguson Company of Ireland. It was based in Coventry then moved to Beauvais in 2003 when ...

(1958–60), Arrid,

Postum Postum () is a powdered roasted grain beverage popular as a coffee substitute. The caffeine-free beverage was created by Post Consumer Brands, Post Cereal Company founder C. W. Post in 1895 and marketed as a healthier alternative to coffee. Post w ...

(1958), Carter's Little Pills and Sargent's Dog Care Products (1960); and was sold nationally by Ted Bates & Company. Joe Slattery handled station breaks and some commercials, often appearing during ''Jubilee USA'' with Massey Ferguson farm tractors and

accessories Accessory may refer to: * Accessory (legal term), a person who assists a criminal In anatomy * Accessory bone * Accessory breast * Accessory kidney * Accessory muscle * Accessory nucleus, in anatomy, a cranial nerve nucleus * Accessory nerve ...

in film clips or on stage. Ozark Jubilee final performance ticket

The live audience was briefly part of the broadcasts when a camera would swing around to show the sold-out Jewell Theatre. Attendees, often nearly 90 percent out-of-state, would cheer and hold up signs or banners with the names of their hometowns. Producers estimated 350,000 people (from as many as 30 states on some nights) attended the performances at the Jewell from 1954–1960. Visitors also came from Canada, Mexico, Hawaii and Bermuda. Tickets had to be requested as long as six weeks in advance and it was believed to be the only network TV show with paid admission ($1.00 main floor, 75 cents balcony and 50 cents standing room). Second (non-broadcast) shows were frequently added to accommodate the demand during the summers. The ''Jubilee'' regularly noted it was carried "coast to coast", and to promote the show, "personal appearance units", often including Foley, performed at state fairs and other venues in 42 states, Alaska (then a U.S. territory) and every Canadian province.

Production

''Ozark Jubilees first broadcast was December 26, 1953 with an hour-long telecast from the

studio A studio is a space set aside for creative work of any kind, including art, dance, music and theater. The word ''studio'' is derived from the , from , from ''studere'', meaning to study or zeal. Types Art The studio of any artist, esp ...

of KYTV before a live audience, hosted by Bill Bailey. The two-and-a-half-hour radio version, hosted by Foley, began July 17, 1954 on KWTO from Springfield's 1,100-sea
Jewell Theatre
a former movie theater. ABC Radio began carrying 30 minutes of the program August 7, and added another half-hour on a delayed basis on Tuesday nights starting October 5. The KYTV show followed with 90-minute TV simulcasts from the theater starting September 4, 1954. The program debuted on ABC-TV on January 22, 1955, but the first 14 national telecasts were staged at

KOMU-TV KOMU-TV (channel 8) is a television station licensed to Columbia, Missouri, United States, serving the Columbia–Jefferson City market as an affiliate of NBC and The CW Plus. The station's studios and transmitter are located on US 63 southea ...

Columbia, Missouri Columbia is a city in Missouri, United States. It was founded in 1821 as the county seat of Boone County, Missouri, Boone County and had a population of 126,254 as recorded in the 2020 United States census, making it the List of cities in Misso ...

because network television transmission capability from Springfield was not available. Columbia had a microwave transmitter, however, for ABC coverage of University of Missouri football games. After

AT&T AT&T Inc., an abbreviation for its predecessor's former name, the American Telephone and Telegraph Company, is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the w ...

installed a microwave link in Springfield to transmit to Kansas City (which could feed to the network via Chicago), and modifications were made to the Jewell (including extending the stage and adding a

control room A control room or operations room is a central space where a large physical facility or physically dispersed service can be monitored and controlled. It is often part of a larger command center. Overview A control room's purpose is produc ...

), the program returned to the theater with the first broadcast April 30. The show was sent to KYTV by a local microwave link from the station's remote van. Rehearsals for Saturday shows were held on Fridays, with run-throughs Saturday afternoons. The program used equipment and staff from KYTV, which was then a dual ABC-NBC network affiliate. It debuted using two black-and-white RCA TK-11

cameras A camera is an instrument used to capture and store images and videos, either digitally via an electronic image sensor, or chemically via a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. As a pivotal technology in the fields of photograp ...

with a third added a year later. Vocals of some hit songs were lip-synched. Overhead shots of square dancing and for other creative purposes were accomplished using a large mirror angled above the stage. One 1960 show included an elephant from a visiting Adams & Sells Circus quietly performing on stage behind an "oblivious" Uncle Cyp. The program had two remote broadcasts: June 22, 1957 from the Oklahoma State Fair during the state's semi-centennial;"The Death of TV's Jubilee" (September 18, 1960), '' Springfield Leader & Press'', p. D4 and February 21, 1959 from the Masonic Auditorium in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

for a Massey Ferguson dealers convention. In July 1957, Dan Lounsbery, producer of NBC's ''

Your Hit Parade ''Your Hit Parade'' is an American radio and television music program that was broadcast from 1935 to 1953 on radio, and seen from 1950 to 1959 on television. It was sponsored by American Tobacco's Lucky Strike cigarettes. During its 24-year r ...

'', and its art director, Paul Barnes, were hired by ABC to spend several weeks with the show to improve the sets and pacing. July 6 saw the first program under the name ''Country Music Jubilee'', which, according to ABC Vice President James Aubry Jr., "recognizes the wide popularity of country music." The ''Jubilees executive producers were Crossroads vice presidents Si Siman and John Mahaffey, and the producer-director was Bryan "Walt" Bisney. The co-writers were publicist Don Richardson and Bob "Bevo" Tubert. Fred I. Rains was floor director and Bill Ring frequently served as associate producer. The original

scenic designer Scenic may refer to: * Scenic design * Scenic painting * Scenic overlook * Scenic railroad (disambiguation) * Scenic route * Scenic, South Dakota, United States * Scenic (horse), a Thoroughbred racehorse Aviation * Airwave Scenic, an Austr ...

was Don Sebring; his successor, Andy Miller, later did scenic design for nearby

Silver Dollar City Silver Dollar City is a theme park in Stone County, Missouri, near the cities of Branson, Missouri, Branson and Branson West, Missouri, Branson West. The park is located off of Missouri Route 76 on the Indian Point peninsula of Table Rock Lake ...

and Richardson became its public relations director.

''Five Star Jubilee''

In 1961, NBC-TV carried a summer spin-off called ''

'' from March 17–September 22. Starting in May, it was the first network

color television Color television (American English) or colour television (British English) is a television transmission technology that also includes color information for the picture, so the video image can be displayed in color on the television set. It improv ...

series to originate outside New York City or Hollywood. The weekly program featured five rotating hosts: Snooky Lanson, Tex Ritter, Jimmy Wakely, Carl Smith and Rex Allen. Produced from Springfield's

Landers Theatre The Landers Theatre in Springfield, Missouri, built in 1909, is the second oldest and largest civic theater (structure), theater operation in Missouri. It has been in continuous use either as a legitimate theatre or a movie theater since it opene ...

, it was similar to ''Jubilee USA'' and featured some of the same cast members, including Bobby Lord, the Promenaders and Slim Wilson's Jubilee Band. Barbara Mandrell made her network debut on the program.

Legacy

After cancellation by ABC, live performances from the Jewell Theatre continued over KWTO-AM (with 15 minutes carried by

on Saturday afternoons through 1961), and groups of cast members continued making personal appearances. The theater was demolished five months later in February 1961; a marker in Jubilee Park, dedicated in 1988, notes its location at 216 South Jefferson Ave. Cast and production crew members held reunions at the 1988 dedication, in October 1992, and in April 1999. The ''Jubilee'' was culturally significant for giving millions of urban and suburban American viewers their first regular exposure to country music. As Webb Pierce told ''TV Guide'' in 1956, "Once upon a time, it was almost impossible to sell country music in a place like New York City. Nowadays, television takes us everywhere, and country music records and sheet music sell as well in large cities as anywhere else." In return, the ''Jubilee'' gave many of the biggest names in country music their first experiences performing on television. The program also gave national exposure to a number of female country music pioneers, including Patsy Cline, Brenda Lee, Wanda Jackson, Jan Howard, Jean Shepard, Kitty Wells and Norma Jean; the show also featured a local

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

group, the Philharmonics. It represented the peak of Red Foley's career, who had been America's top country star since World War II and who remains one of the biggest-selling country artists of all time. Finally, the ''Jubilee'' in many ways laid the groundwork for neighboring

Branson, Missouri Branson is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. Most of the city is situated in Taney County, Missouri, Taney County, with a small portion in the west extending into Stone County, Missouri, Stone County. Branson is in the Ozarks, Ozark Mountain ...

to become America's top country music tourist destination. The program was the subject of a 1993 book, ''Remembering the Ozark Jubilee''; and in 2003
Ozarks Public Televisionreleased an hour-long documentary
''Ozark Jubilee: A Living Legacy''. Cast and crew gathered once again for its premiere at the Landers Theatre. Streets in a residential neighborhood of nearby

Nixa, Missouri Nixa is a city in Christian County, Missouri, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 23,257. It is a principal city, and the second largest city in the Springfield, Missouri Metropolitan Area. History The area was f ...

include Ozark Jubilee Drive, Red Foley Court, Slim Wilson Boulevard, Bill Ring Court, Zed Tennis Street and Haworth Court.

Missouri State University digitization project

More than sixty full or partial

kinescope Kinescope , shortened to kine , also known as telerecording in Britain, is a recording of a television program on motion picture film directly through a lens focused on the screen of a video monitor. The process was pioneered during the 1940s ...

s of the program were preserved at the

UCLA Film and Television Archive The UCLA Film & Television Archive is a visual arts organization focused on the film preservation, preservation, film studies, study, and appreciation of film and television, based at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). As a nonpro ...

.UCLA Library Catalog, Film & Television Archive
/ref>

Missouri State University Missouri State University (MSU or MO State), formerly Southwest Missouri State University, is a public university in Springfield, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1905 as the Fourth District Normal School, it is the state's second-largest u ...

'
Meyer Library
has partnered with the UCLA archives to digitize all viable episodes and post them on a dedicated

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

channel. Digitizing each episode costs $2,500, an
sponsorship opportunities
are available. As of February 2023, more than 70 episodes or segments have been posted. Meyer Library also houses th
Bryan T. E. Bisney Ozark Jubilee Collection
of Bisney's logbooks, notes and photos.

Notes

References

(Chronological) *"Tin Pan Alley in the Ozarks" (January 3, 1955), ''

Broadcasting/Telecasting ''Broadcasting & Cable'' (''B&C'', or ''Broadcasting+Cable'') was a telecommunications industry monthly trade magazine and, later, news website published by Future US. Founded in 1931 as ''Broadcasting'', subsequent mergers, acquisitions and in ...

'', p. 35 *Adams, Val "A.B.C. to Offer 'Ozark Jubilee'" (January 4, 1955), ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', p. 28 *Weekly program listings (1955–1960), ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media In mass communication, digital media is any media (communication), communication media that operates in conjunction with various encoded machine-readable data formats. Digital content can be created, vi ...

'', Vols. 3–8 *"The Red Foley Story" (March, 1955)
''Country & Western Jamboree''
*"Quiet–Men Listening" (March 21, 1955), ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly news magazine based in New York City. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely distributed during the 20th century and has had many notable editors-in-chief. It is currently co-owned by Dev P ...

'', p. 102 *Jenkins, Dan "Review: Ozark Jubilee" (April 16, 1955), ''TV Guide'', p. 19 *''Ozark Jubilee Souvenir Picture Album'' (first edition, 1955) * Misurrell, Ed "How a Local Boy's Hobby Brought TV to the Ozarks" (October 2, 1955), "Pictorial TView", '' New York Journal American'', p. 9 *Turtle, Howard "Ozarks Folk Tunes and Comedy Make Springfield a TV Center" (January 29, 1956), ''

Kansas City Star ''The Kansas City Star'' is a newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Star'' is most notable for its influence on the career of President Harry S. Truman and a ...

'', p. C1 *Terry, Dickson "Hillbilly Music Center" (February 5, 1956) ''

St. Louis Post-Dispatch The ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' is a regional newspaper based in St. Louis, Missouri, serving the St. Louis metropolitan area. It is the largest daily newspaper in the metropolitan area by circulation, surpassing the '' Belleville News-Democra ...

'' "The Everyday Magazine", p. 1 *"Ozark Jubilee" (February 13, 1956) ''Available on ABC-TV'', ABC, Vol. I No. 37 *''The Ozark Jubilee starring Red Foley'' (1956), RadiOzark Enterprises, Inc. *"Hillbilly TV Show Hits the Big Time" (March 10, 1956), ''

Business Week ''Bloomberg Businessweek'', previously known as ''BusinessWeek'' (and before that ''Business Week'' and ''The Business Week''), is an American monthly business magazine published 12 times a year. The magazine debuted in New York City in Septembe ...

'', p. 30 *O'Brien, Jack "TV Review: Ozark Jubilee" (April 1, 1956), ''New York Journal American''
"They Love Mountain Music" (May 7, 1956)
''Time'' *Shulman, Art "Dynamo–Country Style" (July 7, 1956), ''TV Guide'', p. 28 *"'Taint Hillbilly, Neighbor!" (August 27, 1956), ''TV Guide'', p. 10 *''Ozark Jubilee Souvenir Picture Album'' (second edition, 1956), © Ozark Jubilee's Crossroads Store * *''Country Music Jubilee Souvenir Picture Album'' (third edition, 1957) *Dessauer, Phil "Springfield, Mo.–Radio City of Country Music" (April, 1957), ''

'', p. 152 *DeBlois, Frank "Them Big City Ways" (August 17, 1957), ''TV Guide'', Vol. 5, No. 33, p. 9 *"Bill Ring Returns to TV Jubilee" (July 11, 1958), '' Springfield Leader-Press'' *Program listing (August 2, 1958) ''TV Guide'', Vol. 6, No. 31, p. A-12 *Sachs, Bill "Folk Talent & Tunes" (February 16, 1959), '' The Billboard'', p. 18 *Sachs, Bill "Folk Talent & Tunes" (November 9, 1959), ''The Billboard'', p. 18 *"Jubilee, U.S.A." (January 1960), ''TV Radio Mirror'', p. 48 *"The Death of TV's Jubilee" (September 18, 1960), '' Springfield Leader & Press'', p. D4 *"Glamorous 50 Years To End for Theater" (December 25, 1960), '' Springfield News & Leader'', p. D1 *"Foley Acquitted Of Tax Evasion" (April 23, 1961), ''Springfield Leader & Press'', p. A1 *"'Jubilee' Turning to Color TV" (April 30, 1961), ''Springfield Leader-Press'' *Kelley, Michael "Hillbilly Heaven: Music Mecca Basks in all its Glory" (June 29, 1991), '' The Memphis Commercial Appeal'', p. A1 *. *. *. *. *. *. *Rhodes, Don "Young Star Took First Steps in Rise to Fame in Augusta" (September 19, 1997), ''

The Augusta Chronicle ''The Augusta Chronicle'' is the daily newspaper of Augusta, Georgia, and is one of the oldest newspapers in the United States still in publication. The paper is known for its coverage of the Masters Tournament, which is played in Augusta. Hist ...

'', "Applause", p. 18 *Hoekstra, Dave "The King Earns a Country Crown; Honor Recalls Elvis' Nashville Roots" (September 20, 1998), ''

The Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily Non-profit journalism, nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation am ...

'', "Show", p. 13 *Eng, Steve (1998). "Ozark Jubilee" In ''The Encyclopedia of Country Music''. Paul Kingsbury, Editor. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 401–2. *. *Marymont, Mark "'Ozarks Jubilee' Reunion Preserves Past" (April 23, 1999), ''Springfield News-Leader'', p. 20E *Byrne, Bridget "Barbara Mandrell: Just a Mom at 'Heart'" (January 19, 2000), BPI Entertainment News Wire *. *. *Crumpler, Ike "Martin Singer Topped Charts" (April 17, 2004), ''The Stewart News/Port St. Lucie News'', p. A1 *Hocklander, Sony "Celebrating 100 Years" (August 10, 2008), ''Springfield News-Leader'', "Life", p. 1C * * {{refend

External links

''Jubilee'' photos from the History Museum for Springfield-Greene County

''Ozark Jubilee'' radio and TV cast photos at Hillbilly-Music.com
(successive visits display a different rotating photo set)
"The Ozark Jubilee" ''OzarksWatch Video Magazine'' (Iowa Public Television)
January 2010

1955 American television series debuts 1950s American radio programs 1950s American music television series 1960s American music television series 1950s American variety television series 1960s American variety television series 1954 American television series debuts 1960 American television series endings American Broadcasting Company original programming American country music radio programs Black-and-white American television shows Country music television series American English-language television shows American country music Ozarks ABC radio programs