Welk died in 1992, but death couldn’t stop this juggernaut, no more than it could stop Elvis, Marilyn, Jimi, etc. From the early 1950s until his retirement in 1982, Lawrence Welk and his Champagne Music Makers and accordion superstar Myron Floren and Norma Zimmer the Champagne Lady and the whole crew of singing-and-dancing homies produced music that was clean and bright, with all the corners sanded off. Lawrence Welk specialized in a whipped-potatoes version of popular music.

The two Americas are populated by people who like Lawrence Welk and people who don’t. reality-based? The answer is yes, but the divide is not along these lines. Or maybe you fell for Bobby Burgess' three dancing partners, Barbara Boylan, Cissy King and Elaine Balden?Īnd of course, the many fine soloists like Natalie Nevins and Kathie Sullivan is your preferred choice.īut I will betcha that while many of you have favorites, you really love them all.Are there two Americas? Are they red versus blue, conservative vs. Perhaps you fancy the funky Latin harmonies of the Maestro's Mexican senorita Anacani, our you maybe just a little bit' country first with Lynn Anderson and later Ava Barber. Many of you are Sandi Griffths fans, whether she teamed with Sally Flynn as 'Sandi & Sally' or with Gail Farrell and Mary Lou Metzger as the trio of Sandi, Gail and Mary Lou. Whether it's the Champagne Ladies of Alice Lon and later Norma Zimmer (or even Jayne Walton, Lois Best, Helen Ramsey and Roberta Linn from way back!), the talented sister acts of the Lennon Sisters, Semonski Sisters and Aldridge Sisters, the honky-tonk piano stylings of Jo Ann Castle or the vocal talents of Ralna English (of Guy & Ralna), the ladies of the Welk Musical Family have something for everybody.

They come from all parts of the USA, each of them different and unique and very talented. Of course they include the Maestro himself, the Champagne Music and its music makers and the colorful sets and costumes they wore and that's very true.īut you can make the case that the lovely and talented ladies featured on the show have a huge part in why we watch!

Throughout the more than fifty years the Lawrence Welk show has been on television starting out on local station KTLA in 1951, then nationwide on ABC in 1955 followed by syndication in 1971 and later on public television from 1987 to this day, several factors have contributed the show's enduring success and popularity.

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