ENTERTAINMENT SCHOOL
by Stan Hitchcock
When I got out of the Navy, in 1958, and returned to my home town of Springfield, Missouri, the ABC Network television show, "Ozark Jubilee" was still the hottest thing on television with Red Foley hosting.
I never got to appear on the Ozark Jubilee, however, I did get to travel with Red and do concerts with him....and there couldn’t have been a better advanced school of professional entertainment. There were some funny times, too.
On the first Fair that I was booked on with the Red Foley Show, in 1960, I was scheduled to ride with the band, in the station wagon, pulling the trailer, and hauling six musicians. Now this was my first road trip, and the boys sure took advantage of that fact. Slim Wilson, the leader of the band, looked over at me after we had loaded all the instruments in the trailer, and said, "Stan, why don’t you take the first shift of driving?" The Fair was in Flint Michigan, a fur piece from Springfield, Missouri, where we were leaving from. Well, I said ok and headed out, while all the other guys in the band promptly went to sleep.
About 16 hours later, I pulled us in to Flint, found the fairgrounds, and went to waking up all the other guys, who had just had the sleep of their lives. We had two hours till show time, and I was already whipped, after that drive, but sure didn’t want these guys to know it.
We unloaded the trailer, set up the stage, changed clothes and scrubbed up in a sink in the same bathroom that the carnival workers used, did two shows, loaded the trailer back up, and got ready to head back to Springfield. It was now after midnight of the second day and I’m kinda standing there in a fog from no sleep when Slim walked up, handed me a cup of coffee, and said, " Stan, why don’t you take the first shift of driving?" I crawled behind the wheel, gritted my teeth and started out. Dang, this show biz is hard work.
I drove all night, having to drive with my head out the window to stay awake, all on two lane highways and up into the middle of the next day......and we were just going through Fair Grove, Missouri, a town about 20 miles from Springfield, when Slim, who had been sleeping like a baby since we left Flint, Michigan, 16 hours before, raised up out of the back seat and said. "Pull her on over, Stan, I’ll dog ‘er on in!"
Bless you Slim Wilson, you were one of a kind. You did love to pull one over on the kid. It was great, learning from you, the old master show bizzer, and it sure prepared me for the road to come for the rest of my life.
Your friend, Stan!
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