Found, in the midst of a short story, while looking for something else. This brings back memories of Saturday afternoons -- the show was one in a series of half-hour syndicated country music shows on KOTV every Saturday afternoon, a lineup that concluded with Hee Haw at 6 p.m.
Houston’s favorite TV program was a country and western music review called The Porter Wagoner Show, on Saturday evening. At the appointed hour Mark and I were expected to plop ourselves in front of the TV, lips buttoned. Houston didn’t like any noise during Porter Wagoner.Porter, a Grand Old Opry star, sported a blonde pompadour and custom-designed white suits adorned with giant sequined wagon wheels, horseshoes, and cacti. His singing partner and sidekick, Dolly Parton, was then just a Tennessee mountain girl with a beautiful voice. I thought they looked good together during their duets because they both had bouffant hairdos. (Some time later I found out they actually made a point of dying their hair the same shade of white-blonde.)
Dolly did the Duz detergent commercials, the laundry soap with the free wash cloth in every box. She’d open a package, unfurl a towel, and exclaim, “Looky here, Porter!” This always sent Mark and me into fits of giggles, but Mom shot us dirty looks, so we covered our mouths with our hands.
Each week Dolly performed a spotlight solo, such as her song about being a poor country girl reduced to wearing a coat of many colors, a cloak of rags that her mother had stitched together from scraps. These selections made Houston sentimental. He’d sit there with Rand on his lap, wiping at his wet eyes.
There's some dispute over whether the towels were in boxes of Duz or in boxes of Breeze.
Comments (4)
I was a bit too young to see the "Porter and Dolly" show, but I caught Dolly's syndicated TV show shortly thereafter. Funny ... most folks think of Dolly being that bubbly country gal with big boobs. But she made a big impression on me before I ever saw her just because of that voice.
Not long ago, I caught Dolly on tour with her bluegrass band. Onstage alone, she started strumming her guitar and sang the opening lines of "Coat of Many Colors." I immediately got tears in my eyes; all I could think was: "She sounds every bit as good now as she did when I first heard that song in 1971." Pretty amazing, given that most singers have trouble maintaining their voice through the years because of poor health habits and sheer age. Dolly isn't ageless, but her voice was.
Those who enjoyed her and Porter together are advised to pick up either the "The Essential Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton" or "20 Greatest Hits" (either is fine). Porter's best solo material is pretty swell, too. But it can't hold a candle to Dolly's career, to which you can make a strong argument that she's the greatest female country artist in history.
Posted by Ron | March 5, 2005 11:15 PM
Posted on March 5, 2005 23:15
Well, I seem to remember that one of the detergents had a glass tumbler inside. I'm fuzzy..thought it was Duz. I remember the towels as well, maybe Gain had the glasses and Duz had the towels. What a memory. Did any one ever go to a skating rink, over by the traffic circle on Saturday afternoons. Can't remember the name.
Posted by Jeff Shaw | March 6, 2005 7:47 AM
Posted on March 6, 2005 07:47
Well, I seem to remember that one of the detergents had a glass tumbler inside. I'm fuzzy..thought it was Duz. I remember the towels as well, maybe Gain had the glasses and Duz had the towels. What a memory. Did any one ever go to a skating rink, over by the traffic circle on Saturday afternoons. Can't remember the name.
Posted by Jeff Shaw | March 6, 2005 7:48 AM
Posted on March 6, 2005 07:48
I remember the slogan clearly about the towels (we used to have some):
Dolly: "And you can only get 'em in boxes of BREEZE"
Posted by philip | August 7, 2005 5:10 AM
Posted on August 7, 2005 05:10