THE LAWRENCE WELK SHOW FULL

When the crowds on some nights numbered over five thousand, the manager of a Los Angeles television station, KTLA, took notice and asked Welk if the band would like to appear on television. In 1951, The Lawrence Welk band was signed for a 4-week engagement at the Aragon ballroom at Venice Beach, but were such a sensation that they stayed onвЂ¦.for four years! Audience members found out just how addictive champagne music can be. The band was featured in a few Hollywood short films when they moved out to California. In 1939 the Welk Orchestra hit it big when they were hired to perform at the Trianon Ballroom in Chicago. In 1927 he formed his first band and they traveled across the Midwest performing one night stands.

At the age of 16 Welk asked his father to buy him a $400 accordion (the equivalent of about $5,000 today) and for the next four years he worked on his parentвЂ™s farm and performed at local functions to pay it off.

He grew up speaking only his mother tongue, until he went to school, where he failed to lose his heavy accent. Lawrence came from a family of German immigrants and was born in the mostly German city of Strasburg, North Dakota. LetвЂ™s take a look now at how the show has evolved over the years and see how many familiar faces you can recognize : A Look Back

THE LAWRENCE WELK SHOW FULL

Lawrence wanted a show that was full of good clean entertainment, and he never let anything slip into his program that wasnвЂ™t suitable for children to watch. In an age when violence and distasteful humor areВ prevalent, itвЂ™s good to sit down to a program that has a healthyВ atmosphere. It is indeed a corny show, but that is exactly what makes it so fun to watch. Bubbles, colorful settings, beautiful gals in beautiful dresses (thanks to the talent of costume designer Rose Weiss), handsome men in matching suits (or the occasional kilt), and plenty of music makes the show an addictive pleasure to behold. You could come as you like and would always be welkome. Those watching his show feel that they are meeting up with old friends at the вЂњsame place, same timeвЂќ to share some laughs, goof around, sing and dance and have a whale of a good time. What makes this show so darn appealing?В Welk was infectiously joyous, as was the rest of the cast. There are thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of Welkies across America who love it tooвЂ¦and new fans are being born every leap year. If you still have your teeth, and most of your hair strands intact, and thrive on this wunnerfully hokey show then donвЂ™t be all too ashamed, or amazed, at yourВ peculiarВ tastes. The majority of the younger generation of today would consider the show, and the music being played, old peopleвЂ™s entertainment but strangely, these вЂњold peopleвЂќ watching the show today were young people forty years ago who lamented the same fact. WelkвЂ™s music has a lilting quality that is delightfully light and bubbly and вЂ“ almost вЂ“ tickles your nose. It featured dancing, singing and plenty of band music in all forms: big band, jive, jazz, country, polka, Latin, pop, gospel and, of course, champagne music.

The Lawrence Welk ShowВ was one of the longest running variety shows on television, running for 27 years and still airing today on PBS.

The lawrence welk show