Pierce Arrow – Great Music, Great Fun

I had an exchange with a tourist the other day that went something like this:
ME: “So, how are you enjoying Branson; have you seen any good shows?”

GUEST: “Oh, yes. We saw Pierce Arrow just last night. It was great. I do believe it is the best show in Branson.”

This exchange is pretty typical. Guest after Guest pick Pierce Arrow as the best show in Branson. It had been a couple years since I had seen the show, so my wife and I visited it Friday night. To help me analyze the show, I brought along two of my grandsons and a granddughter, all under 8 years old.

As expected, the show began with a bang! Literally. Jarrett Dougherty, the show’s funny man for several years never fails to amuse guests, and – once again – he was the highlight of the show. In the show he plays Ed Winnebag, or “Edwin,” an RV Repairman who mistakenly comes to the “Pierce Arrow” Theater to repair a “Pace Arrow” RV. Once he wanders on stage and sees the spotlight, he wants to be a star. Dougherty never fails to get laughs with both new jokes and time-tested routines, and – even though I knew a lot of what was coming – I couldn’t help but laugh as loud as anyone. My grandkids loved his antics, and that speaks volumes. To his credit, and to the credit of the entire cast (who must have performed the same routines hundred if not thousands of times), every line seems spontaneous and fresh. Dougherty is a pro, and a very funny man. (I must warn you, though, that some – a very little – of his humor may be considered rated PG, a new trend in Branson that I first noticed in the Paul Harris Show).

Bobby Blackburn, a fine guitarist and musical director acts as Dougherty’s straightman. He does well in that roll, and is more than a little reminiscent of Oliver Hardy in both his looks and his nature.

Dan Britton, owner and executive producer of the show founded the Pierce Arrow quartet over years ago. Incidently, he holds many world records for the lowest notes ever sung. In recent years, he has stepped out of the spotlight, and has hired Tim Storms to sing bass. Britton performs only when Storms has other engagements. Storms himself holds the current record for lowest note sung, and has recently set a new kind of record. He sung a note so low that the human ear could not detect it. It was recorded only by instruments (and I am guessing a few thousand elephants in zoos across the midwest). Storm is clearly the crowd’s favorite, and his performance generates many spontaneous rounds of applause throughout the night. When one watches Storm perform, one feels his bass part as much as hears it; he rocks the house.

Christian recording artis and founding member of Pierce Arrow, Gary Korieba, is back again this season and does a fine job as lead singer in the quartet. His wife, Kim Boyce, sounds and looks as lovely as ever. The show – in my opinion – would not be worth seeing without them.

New to the Branson stage this year is the very talented Luke Menard. Luke’s name may be familiar to you from his time with the a cappela group, Take Six, or you may recognize him as a finalist from American Idol. Luke adds much to the show, and he seems to be a natural fit.

Also on the stage this year is a fourteen year old sensation from Branson who – even at such a young age – sings like a pro. CeCe Day, discovered by Dan Britton’s daughter at the Branson Junior High School, has a great future ahead of her. The country songs that she sang Friday night blended very smoothly with the music of Pierce Arrow.

Speaking of the music of Pierce Arrow, their show features a half dozen songs of the Statler Brothers. This section of the show in and of itself is worth the price of the ticket.

Is Pierce Arrow my favorite show? Maybe not, but it kept my young grandchildren entertained, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I strongly recommend this show.

2012 Branson Passport Rating for Pierce Arrow (out of 5):

Family Friendly – 4

Entertaining – 5

Musical Abilities – 5

Vocal Abilities – 5

Professionalism – 5

Total Score – 4.8

Pierce Arrow plays Monday through Thursday and Saturday at 3 PM and 7:30 PM at the Pierce Arrow Theater in Branson. On Fridays, Pierce Arrow perfoms at 7:30 PM. For a complete schedule, go to http://piercearrowtheater.com/shows.php

Branson Devestated by Tornado

Updated 3/7/12:  Tim Haygood Says that The Americana Theater is set to re-open on April 15th.  Meanwhile, as scheduled, the Haygoods are “rocking it” every night at RFDTV, preparing segments for their show.

 

Feb. 29, 2012, 10:59 p.m.

Last week’s top story in the Branson Independent News spoke of the dire need for a facelift on 76 Country Music Boulevard, known to locals as “the strip.” Last night, the strip got that facelift. Yesterday evening, severe weather raced into Missouri from Kansas at over seventy miles per hour. Tornadoes spawned first in Lamar, Buffalo, and Lebanon, taking a life along the way. Another cell in the storm damaged Cassville, and Shell Knob. It was this storm that headed due east, dropping a tornado smack on the strip.

Driving the strip today, the damage was reminiscent of the damage in Joplin last May. It is more of a contrast than a comparison. The loss of life in Joplin is still palpable. So far as I know, no one lost their life in Branson. Branson Mayor Raeanne Presley said today that because the Joplin tragedy was so fresh on everyone’s mind, folks were quick to take shelter. She is probably right; many that I spoke with today told of hiding out in basements and crawling into bathtubs.

Hardly a business along the strip is unscathed. From the Branson Landing, west to the Jim Stafford Theater, roofs are missing or collapsed, or entire top floors have crumpled. Windows are shattered in condos above the stores at The Landing. It appears as if every window is out on the west side of The Hilton at the Branson Convention Center. There are reports of furniture being sucked out those windows. Today, drapes flap in the breeze. Driving west from the strip, one notices that the pylon sign in front of Wendy’s is gone.

Turning south from Wendy’s into the residential section just south of the strip, your heart sinks. Most of the homes in this section of town are damaged. One hundred year old trees have crushed cars and collapsed roofs. Power lines still crossed roads as of late this afternoon.

Tornadoes seem to have a mind of their own, picking and choosing which buildings to hit and which to miss. Across U.S. 65 on the strip, the Veterans’ Memorial Museum is devastated, and the Branson Mall, Walmart, and Jubilee Super Market are severely damaged. The Dick Clark Theater took a hit, but Dixie Stampede appears to have minor or no damage. Melody Lane Inn and its neighbor, 1st Inn both lost roofs, but the Baldknobbers’ Theater next door appears okay. A block to the north, the Plaza hotel, a tower property that sits further down the mountain, appears to have been spared. Next door to 1st Inn, Papa John’s and the Branson Variety Theatre have both lost roofs, though the majority of the damage at Branson Variety Theater seems to be in the lobby. Near the west end of the strip (and the beginning of the tornado’s path of destruction), the Blue Bayou Motel is utterly destroyed, but its sister motel, next door, the Caprice, appears to have far less damage. The Titanic seemed to be spared, but the nearby Best Western, The Hall of Fame Hotel, the Riverboat Inn, and Charlie’s Ribs have all suffered.

The real damage to Branson will be to the economy. Branson had hoped that this year would bring a comeback. The recession has been hard on Branson, especially on low-level hourly workers, those that work the front lines in the entertainment and hospitality industry. Even when the economy is good, working the front lines in Branson can mean a meager subsistence. For many, it means seasonal work, part-time work, or both. For many, front-line work means working two or three part-time jobs. Unemployment before the storm was at 9% in Taney and Stone County, but many of those had hopes of starting work in the next week or so. For some, that date may be pushed back a few weeks or even a few months while Branson rebuilds.

Branson is far from closed, though. Only half a dozen or so of Branson’s 50 theaters were damaged, some less than others. Those theaters, as of today’s reports, are The Owens Theater, The Dick Clark Theater, The Branson Variety Theatre, The Starlite Theatre, The Andy Williams Theater, The Icon Theater, The Americana Theater, and The Baldknobbers’ Theater. Much of the damage to some of these theaters was very minor. It is expected that all but The Branson Variety and The Dick Clark will be open in a matter of days.

About twenty hotels and motels in Branson were damaged, and some nearly destroyed. Besides the Blue Bayou and the Melody Lane Inn, other hotels with substantial damage include 1st Inn and the Hilton Hotel. The top floor of the four story Ozark Mountain Inn on the strip at Fall Creek Road was practically sheered off.

The storm gave the strip a facelift, or the beginnings of one, but it could have been much worse. Most of the Branson’s Theaters will be open and most (though not all) will open on time. Most of the hotels are undamaged. And, thank God, this tornado stuck on leap day, instead of three weeks later when hotels on the strip would have hosted many more guests.

Featured Blogs From the Past: Branson In Winter

I look forward to winter in Branson.  From place, I can look out over a valley and watch the trees turn from dull gray to vibrant white.   Thursday night and Friday brought such a snow – at least 6 inches of the stuff – to the Branson area, and snarled up driving for a day, but by Saturday morning, Branson City Street workers and Taney County Highway workers had most roads, even many of the side roads clear.  Still, the two or three snows we have gotten this winter has made me think about how traffic around and through Branson could be made better, and how local businesses could benefit.

Let’s start on the north end of the city, at Branson Hills, which has to be the fastest growing part of town.  My son lives just north of Branson Hills, beyond the west side outer road.  If ever Branson needed a stop light, it is now, at that corner, at Branson Hills Pkwy and the west outer road.  I predict that someday, if no light is put in here, we will see a deadly broadside collision at this intersection.

Moving south a couple blocks and west a couple miles, let’s look at the Shoppes at Branson Meadows, where the movie theater recently went out of business, and then was re-opened by the owners of the Branson Imax.  This is nothing new to shoppes in the Meadows.  Stores in this shopping center are constantly opening and closing, or jostling for position.  A stoplight in front of the Shoppes main entrance would serve to both slow down traffic on Gretna, thus making it safer, and to allow people to better find the Shoppes.

Another traffic light that I feel is needed is at the intersection of West 76 Country Blvd. and Green Mountain Dr., in front of McDonalds and Jubilee Foods.  Okay, I know that many reading this will say that Branson does not need another stoplight on the 76 strip.  Yes, we do.  Here, we need a stoplight, especially since Forsyth Street opened up, leading down to Roark Valley Road, just a  few yards away.   Perhaps that intersection could be controlled by the same stop light?

Finally, traffic coming off southbound US 65 onto MO Hwy 76 could be greatly diminished by making the off ramp two lanes wide all the way.  As it is now, traffic leaves US 65 in one lane, and can spread to two lanes after making the first bend in the ramp.  After the lanes split, one may use the right hand lane to turn right, turn left, or go straight.  The problem is, no one but locals realize that one can turn left from the right hand lane (signs signifying two left turn lanes are small and often not seen until one is near the end of the ramp).  So having two lanes at the end the off-ramp from US 65 to MO Hwy 76 does nothing to alleviate traffic.  There needs to be a second lane from the beginning, and the signs signifying two turn lanes need to be larger, and posted over the appropriate lanes.

Now, my wife has a stop light to add to this list.  Their needs to be a stop light on the corner of Hwy 165 and Fall Creek Dr.  This is an extremely busy intersection, involving heavy traffic from three roads.  And, it sits near a curve.  I agree with my wife: a traffic light is needed here, also.

Well, that is my opinion.  Let me know what you think.