Village Squire, 1979-07, Page 28In addition there were guest appearance,
appearances that helped give exposure to
people like Tommy Hunter.
The show toured all over southern
Ontario drawing huge crowds everywhere
it went, everywhere, ironically but back
home in Wingham where often only a
handful of people would show up to attend
the show at the local town hall. The live
concert was followed by a dance for the
audience that had come out to the show.
The show was peopled by characters and
its history is remembered mostly in stores.
by those who were involved. There was
Cactus Mac. a comic singer who left more
than his share of stories. both from his
appearances at the Barn Dance and his on
air appearances at the station. There was
the time when his false teeth fell out in mid
song, he stooped down to pick them up but
instead kicked them with his foot. sending
them skittering across the stage further.
He finally coralled them, wiped them off,
put them back in his mouth and went on
performing leaving the live audience in
tears of laughter and the radio audience
probably wondering what was going on.
There was Clark Johnston the singing
Irishman from Belgrave who always
managed to get a few laughs from an
audience. He goes back right to the days
before CKNX was a commercial station,
back to the 10 BP days.
And then there were the unexpected
things that seem funnier now than then.
The show was carried from its point of
origin tor the weeK through telephone lines
to the station from where it was broadcast.
One night a bored telephone operator
plugged her own earphones into the circuit
and in the meantime cut off the station and
the thousands of listeners. It was a long
time. Scott Reid the station's engineer
recalls. before he was able -to find out what
the trouble was and correct it. so the
musicians could play to more than an
audience of one.
Johnny Brent recalls being delayed
getting to the site of a Barn Dance one
night because he had to stop at the scene of
a serious car accident and help rescue
injured people. He got there just in time to
go on stage. still covered with blood and
introduced the opening of the show with
only a short remark to the audience that he
would explain later. During a commercial
he filled in his audience on the reason for
his appearance. Recently while speaking at
a meeting, the man he helped rescue came
up to shake his hand and thank him.
But to people not involved in the
production of the Barn Dance the thing that
is remembered is the music and the feeling
of having real stars who came calling
regularly. There was a sense of importance
to people like Don Robinson and Rossie
Mann; Slim Boucher and Ernie King and it
mixed nicely with the appearance of local
people from just down the way who mule
guest appearances. When the barn dance
came to town there was a feeling of a real
happening in your town. especialIN for the
youngsters for whom these were as big
stars as Bing Crosby or Frank Sinatra.
They were days when Western Ontario was
in a sense more isolated than in later years
when increasing communications made the
region part of the global village of modern
days where entertainment has been
homogenized.
entertainment has been homogenized.
The coming of television eventually
spelled the doom of the barn dance though
for a while the CKNX bands simply
transferred their acts from radio to
television and in a way were even bigger
stars with the prestige that the new
medium had in the early days. But
eventually the barn dance died. The last
one was in 1965.
But this year many of the people who got
their start on the old barn dance will pay it
one more tribute. Among those returning
will be Clark Johnston, Earl Heywood.
Jack Kingston, Bill Mankiss. Slim
Bouchey. Ernie King. Cora and Don
Robinson and Eleanor Townsend. Advance
sale tickets are now on sale at various
locations such as the Ernie King Music
Centre in Wingham. A limited number of
advance tickets will be sold and some rush
tickets will be available the night of the
concert. If you can't be there you will be
able to listen to the stars just as in the old
days on CKNX from 8 ,p.m. to 10 p.m.
Those at the Barn Dance will then be able
to dance to four of the original bands until 1
a.nt.
You are invited
to come to the factory
and see the quality
for yourself.
FACTORY OPEN FOR INSPECTION
WEEKDAYS 8:30-11:30 a.m., 1-3 p.m.
OR BY APPOINTMENT.
•
NORTHLANDER
:'r
ills
A complete line of 12
and 14 wides now available.
Now also building
Commercial/Industrial Units.
An alternate form of
farm housing, custom
designed and built to
your requirements.
-CanadaUiL-
Manufactured in Canada by
Custom Trailers Ltd.,
165 Thames Rd. E.
Exeter, Ontario [Box 190]
15191235.1530 Telex 064-5815
26 Village Squire, July 1979