Happy Birthday Lawrence Welk: Here’s His Statue Near Escondido, California

Our never-ending quest to bring you the strangest statuary, the most monumental monuments, and the most enticing effigies brings us to Interstate 15 outside of Escondido, California.  This week we celebrate the birthday of Lawrence Welk, who was born March 11, 1903.  This statue stands outside the Lawrence Welk Museum.  Younger readers may not recognize the name, but for earlier generations of Americans, the name spawns a visceral reaction.  Welk was an accordionist, bandleader, and host of The Lawrence Welk Show, which ran from 1951-82.

The format of Welk’s show was the same virtually every week.  The show opened with Welk’s theme “Bubbles in the Wine” playing amid faux champagne bubbles floating through the ballroom.  Welk would then introduce the night’s theme in a heavy German accent.  The show consisted of several songs from the band and a number of skits as well.  The show featured a variety of musical numbers from the big band era through the 60’s and 70’s, but is most associated with songs from the big band era of the 1940’s.

Welk was a shrewd businessman and knew what sold to mainstream American television audiences of the 1960’s and 70’s.  His performers, which he dubbed his “musical family,” were held to an unofficial set of moral standards.  Alice Lon was famously fired for crossing her legs on a desk in 1959.  By and large, Welk gave America what it wanted, though.  Letters from fans often dictated what performers were featured and what performers saw their solo opportunities diminish.

After his death in 1992, his music earned a reputation as unequivocally un-hip.  While it is true that Welk’s “champagne music” style ostracized many contemporary jazz artists, as was the case when famed clarinetist Pete Fountain quit the band in the 1960’s.  This all-or-nothing view of Welk, however, does a disservice to a band leader whose band stayed relevant for over 30 years.  The Lawrence Welk Show launched the careers of several country acts of the 60’s and 70’s and was the first variety show to regularly feature an African-American when he hired dancer Arthur Duncan in 1964.

Welk’s band continues to perform in Branson, Missouri and the show continues to air in reruns on PBS stations throughout the United States, ensuring that, whichever way the musical wind blows, the bubbles will keep on popping.

Cincinnatus in Cincinnati

This week we take a look at a close-up of Cincinnatus, a bronze sculpture with patina completed in 1982 by Eleftherios Karkadoulias. The statue stands in Bicentennial Commons at Sawyer Point, Cincinnati, Ohio.

Cincinnati was named after Cincinnatus, or more correctly, The Society of the Cincinnati. The society was a group of Revolutionary War officers who made a pact to keep in touch after the war. The society’s members included George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and 23 signers of the U.S. Constitution. The society had chapters in all 13 states of the new republic as well as France.

Who was this man that garnered such attention in the fledgling democracy? Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus (519 BC — 430 BC), was a Roman statesman who served as both Consul and Dictator. He lived humbly on his small farm until being called to serve Rome as dictator. After the crisis had passed, he gave up his absolute power and returned to his farm. He was considered a model of civic virtue in both ancient Rome and early America. Of course, he was also a staunch opponent of the Plebeians, the class of laborers and craftsmen in Rome–but such things get glossed over for the sake of a good role model.