The Lawrence Welk Show Station, 2012

Mixed media, 71 x 22 x 14 inches. Collection of the artist.

The Lawrence Welk Show was a televised musical variety show hosted by big band leader Lawrence Welk (1903 – 1992). The show first aired on a local ABC affiliate in Los Angeles in 1951 and made its national debut in 1955 where it remained a staple of the ABC network line up for another 27 years, becoming the most popular variety show in television history.

Welk, born in North Dakota to ethnic Germans parents, was the accordion-playing centerpiece of the “Musical Family,” which also included, the Lennon Sisters, a four girl vocal group from Venice, California; the Champagne Lady, who usually performed a down-tempo solo number toward the close of the show; and the Irish tenor, Joe Feeney, among others through the course of the series.

One of my very earliest memories was sitting with my grandmother and watching her favorite television program, The Lawrence Show.