A summer replacement for The Smothers Brothers Show, Hee Haw premiered on Sunday, June 15th, 1969. Over at NBC, Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In was a controversial, but undeniable smash, and CBS hoped to strike their own pot of gold with a more down home, country flavored, variety show. While hayseed comedy and country music were the series’ trademark, Hee Haw wasn’t afraid to peddle a little flesh courtesy of the ever-changing stable of Hee Haw Honeys. A hit, Hee Haw stayed on CBS for three seasons, before starting a remarkable 22 year run in syndication.
Co-hosted by country artists Buck Owens and Roy Clark, several of the series cast members, such as Grandpa Jones, Archie Campbell, and Minnie Pearl (who joined the show in 1970), became household names. In an age when country music rarely crossed over and received minimal exposure, Hee Haw attracted top stars week-in-and-week-out. Conway Twitty, Tammy Wynette, Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Hank Williams, Jr., Tennessee Ernie Ford and many more happily performed.
This new three disc collection from Time Life includes five never before released episodes going all the way back to the series run on CBS. There’s also interviews and comedy sketches—who can forget “Haystack” and “Cornfield?”—that will bring a smile to your face. It’s possible it might seem a bit corny all these years later (forgive the pun), but even if the comedy of Hee Haw isn’t your style, the show did serve up some pretty impressive musical guests. For me, just having Loretta Lynn and Merle Haggard performing on the same episode is worth the price of admission.
Available on September 8, 2015 from Time Life, The Hee Haw Collection is a must-have for fans of the show and those that follow country music. The DVD’s themselves look and sound great, and would make a fine addition to anyone’s personal collection.
