Lawrence Welk was an American musician, accordionist, bandleader, and television impresario, who hosted The Lawrence Welk Show from 1951 to 1982. His style came to be known to his large number of radio, television, and live-performance fans as "champagne music". In 1996, Wel...
March 11, 1903, Strasburg, North Dakota, United States
Died
May 17, 1992, Santa Monica, California, United States
Place Of Birth
Strasburg
Profession
Musician, Bandleader, Impresario
Nationality
United States of America
Spouse
Fern Renner (m. 1931–1992)
Children
Shirley Welk, Donna Welk, Lawrence Welk Jr.
Parents
Christina Welk,Ludwig Welk
Siblings
John Welk,Eva Welk,Barbara Welk,Louie Welk,Ann Mary Welk,Anton Welk,Mike Welk,Agatha Welk
Nicknames
Welk, Lawrence
Awards
Academy of Country Music Award for Man of the Year
Nominations
Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement In Tape Sound Mixing, People's Choice Award for Favorite TV Variety Program, 32. Spotlight on the Musical Family, 31. Easter, 30. Tour of Southern California
TV Shows
The Lawrence Welk Show
Star Sign
Pisces
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Trademark
1
"An-a one, an-a two."
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Theme song: "Champagne Time" (1970 - 1982)
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Theme song: "Bubbles in the Wine" (1955 - 1970)
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Quote
1
We cater to the people who want a melody as it was originally written. Our audiences want songs that tell a story. We don't want any song with questionable moral standards.
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Fact
1
He is a first cousin, once removed, of Montana governor Brian Schweitzer. Lawrence's mother, Christiana Schwahn, was the sister of Brian's paternal grandmother, Franziska Schwahn.
Co-founder (with Randall Wood, former owner of Dot Records) of Ranwood Records in 1967.
4
He was awarded 2 Stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Recording at 6613 Hollywood Boulevard and for Television at 1601 Vine Street in Hollywood, California.
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Dropped out of school in the fourth grade to work on the family farm. At age 21, he left home to make his way in the music business.
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Registered his car with a vanity license plate that read "A1 AN A2".
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His show was initially cancelled by ABC-TV in 1971, after 17 years as a Saturday night perennial on the network, because of a question of viewer demographics. Advertisers and networks were convinced that they should gear their shows to younger, urban audiences, who were thought to have the buying power, and Welk's audience was simply considered too old. In what was then considered a bold move, Welk began producing shows for first-run syndication, and by the start of the 1971 fall season he was back on the air, where he remained until he retired eleven years later. Ironically, many of the stations that carried his show were local ABC affiliates.
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Parents, Ludwig and Christina Welk, emigrated from Alsace-Lorraine via Russia to Strasburg, North Dakota, where Lawrence was born.
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A common misconception is that Welk did not learn English until he was 21. In fact, he began learning English as soon as he started school. The part of North Dakota where he lived had been settled largely by Germans from Russia; even his teachers spoke English as a second language.
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In the early 1990s, the U.S. Congress refused federal funding to restore Welk's boyhood home in Strasburg, N.D., as a museum. His many still loyal fans, hearing of this, donated the money themselves, and to this day the Welk Home and Museum has been restored and maintained entirely by private funds.
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Served as his own producer for most of his years on TV, via Teleklew Productions. The name was made up of "tele" for television and "klew" was Welk spelled backwards.
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Founder of the still-thriving Lawrence Welk Resort and Country Club in Escondido, California.
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A good judge of talent, Welk's discoveries included Lynn Anderson and Pete Fountain, both of whom got their starts with his band.
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Inducted into the Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame in 1989.
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Recorded prolifically before and during his TV years, primarily for Columbia, Coral, Dot and Ranwood, scoring a #1 single and album with "Calcutta" in 1961.
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Welk's show was originaly entitled "The Dodge Dancing Party," after his first national sponsor. His longest-lasting sponsors were two over-the-counter medicines, Geritol and Serutan ("That's 'nature's,' spelled backwards!").
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Welk's son, Larry Welk (aka Lawrence Welk Jr), is owner/operator of the "Welk Resort" in Branson, Missouri.
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Welk's grandson, Larry Welk (aka Lawrence Welk III), is an airborne traffic and breaking news reporter in "Sky Nine" helicopter for KCAL-TV, Ch 9, Los Angeles.
$8 Million
