The Lawrence Welk Show was a musical variety program that ran from 1951 to 1982. It was a show made for the World War II generation, a generation that is no longer with us.
This was one of my maternal grandparents’ favorite shows. Throughout my early years, my grandparents were my parents’ caretakers of choice when they went out for the evening—usually on a Saturday night.
My grandparents loved their television shows. (Note: the addicting power of screens did not start with Gen Z; it started with the World War II/GI Generation.)
Saturday night with my grandparents would begin with a fried chicken dinner, including mashed potatoes, biscuits, and gravy.
Then it was TV time. The Lawrence Welk Show ran in the 7:00 pm Saturday night slot.
The show’s host and namesake, Lawrence Welk, was born in 1903, making him a generation older than my grandparents, who were born in 1921 and 1922.
Lawrence Welk was born in North Dakota, the son of German immigrants from the Russian Empire. He grew up speaking German. (Welk did not learn English until he was twenty-one; and he spoke with a noticeable German accent.)
Lawrence Welk seemed like a man of sterling character, but I was at least forty years too young to connect with his show. Even my parents, both born in 1946, couldn’t stomach this stuff.
The Lawrence Welk Show was fun for me because it was uniquely associated with the time I spent with my grandparents, who were almost like a second set of parents for me.
After The Lawrence Welk Show, we usually watched something more entertaining, like CHiPs or B.J. and the Bear. Then it was The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, and the 11 pm news.
We all went to bed at 11:30 p.m. My bedroom at my grandparents’ house was my mother’s childhood bedroom (something I did not fully realize for many years). I attended Sunday church in the morning with my grandparents, and my parents would usually pick me up around noon.
These Saturday nights were common when I was between the ages of six and twelve—1974 to around 1980.
The Lawrence Welk Show was a requisite part of Saturday night at my grandparents’ house. I therefore miss that show, even though I never liked it.
-ET