Henry D. Haynes
Encyclopedia
Henry Doyle Haynes was an American entertainer who gained fame on radio
and television
as Homer of the country music
comedy duo Homer and Jethro
with Kenneth C. Burns
for 35 years beginning in 1936.
on July 29, 1920. He met Kenneth Burns during a WNOX-AM
audition in 1936 when they were both 16 years old. Haynes strummed the guitar and Burns played the mandolin
. Known as Junior and Dude , the duo was rechristened Homer and Jethro when WNOX Program Director Lowell Blanchard
forgot their nicknames during a 1936 broadcast
. In 1939 they became regulars on the Renfro Valley Barn Dance
radio program.
Haynes was drafted into the US Army and served in the medical corps in the Pacific. He reunited with Burns, who had served in Europe, in Knoxville in 1945. In 1947, the duo moved to Cincinnati
, Ohio
and were working at WLW-AM on the station's Midwestern Hayride
. They signed with King Records
, where they worked as a house band and recorded singles on their own, and two years later signed with RCA Records
. The pair was fired along with several other stars by new management at WLW in 1948, and after a brief tour, they moved to Springfield, Missouri
and performed on KWTO-AM
with Chet Atkins
, the Carter Family and Slim Wilson
.
In 1949 they moved to Chicago and appeared on National Barn Dance
on WLS-AM
; and later appeared on television programs including Ozark Jubilee
, The Beverly Hillbillies
, The Johnny Cash Show
and The Tonight Show
.
The pair recorded more than 50 albums during their career and won a Grammy for the best comedy performance in 1959 for "The Battle of Kookamonga," a parody of Johnny Horton
's "Battle of New Orleans."
Haynes, who owned Fender Stratocaster
serial number 0001, died in 1971 of a heart attack in Hammond, Indiana
. He and Burns were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2001 as Homer and Jethro.
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
as Homer of the country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
comedy duo Homer and Jethro
Homer and Jethro
Homer and Jethro were the stage names of American country music duo Henry D. Haynes and Kenneth C. Burns , popular from the 1940s through the 1960s on radio and television for their satirical versions of popular songs...
with Kenneth C. Burns
Kenneth C. Burns
Kenneth C. Burns was an American country musician, comedian, and mandolin player. He was better known by his stage name Jethro from his years with Henry D. Haynes as part of the comedic musical duo Homer and Jethro beginning in 1936.-Biography:Burns was born Conasauga, Tennessee on March 10, 1920...
for 35 years beginning in 1936.
Biography
Haynes was born near Knoxville, TennesseeKnoxville, Tennessee
Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...
on July 29, 1920. He met Kenneth Burns during a WNOX-AM
WNOX
WNOX is a radio station in the Knoxville, Tennessee area. It broadcasts a news-talk format.WNOX operates a 100,000-watt transmitter, located on Cross Mountain north of Briceville, Tennessee...
audition in 1936 when they were both 16 years old. Haynes strummed the guitar and Burns played the mandolin
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
. Known as Junior and Dude , the duo was rechristened Homer and Jethro when WNOX Program Director Lowell Blanchard
Lowell Blanchard
Lowell Blanchard was an American radio presenter and performer. Blanchard, a native of Chicago, Illinois, was a station manager and popular show host for WNOX-AM Radio in Knoxville, Tennessee. He was inducted into the in 1977. He is said to have given country performers Henry D. Haynes and...
forgot their nicknames during a 1936 broadcast
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
. In 1939 they became regulars on the Renfro Valley Barn Dance
Renfro Valley Barn Dance
Renfro Valley Barn Dance was an American country music stage and radio show originally carried by WLW-AM in Cincinnati, Ohio on Saturday nights. It debuted on October 9, 1937 from the Cincinnati Music Hall and moved to the Memorial Auditorium in Dayton, Ohio. It was hosted by John Lair, Red Foley,...
radio program.
Haynes was drafted into the US Army and served in the medical corps in the Pacific. He reunited with Burns, who had served in Europe, in Knoxville in 1945. In 1947, the duo moved to Cincinnati
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
and were working at WLW-AM on the station's Midwestern Hayride
Midwestern Hayride
Midwestern Hayride, sometimes known as Midwest Hayride, was an American country music show originating in the 1930s from WLW-AM and later from WLWT-TV in Cincinnati, Ohio. During the 1950s it was carried nationally by NBC and then ABC television...
. They signed with King Records
King Records (USA)
King Records is an American record label, started in 1943 by Syd Nathan and originally headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.-History:At first it specialized in country music, at the time still known as "hillbilly music." King advertised, "If it's a King, It's a Hillbilly -- If it's a Hillbilly, it's a...
, where they worked as a house band and recorded singles on their own, and two years later signed with RCA Records
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
. The pair was fired along with several other stars by new management at WLW in 1948, and after a brief tour, they moved to Springfield, Missouri
Springfield, Missouri
Springfield is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. According to the 2010 census data, the population was 159,498, an increase of 5.2% since the 2000 census. The Springfield Metropolitan Area, population 436,712, includes the counties of...
and performed on KWTO-AM
KWTO
KWTO refers to two radio stations in Springfield, Missouri, USA. On AM, KWTO can be found at 560 kHz, where it airs a news-talk format. On FM, KWTO operates at 98.7 MHz and carries a sports talk format....
with Chet Atkins
Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins , known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, created the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.Atkins's picking style, inspired by Merle...
, the Carter Family and Slim Wilson
Slim Wilson
Clyde Carol Wilson , better known as Slim Wilson, was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, and radio and TV personality who was a cornerstone of country music in the Ozarks for more than 50 years beginning in the 1930s; both in his own right, and as a member of The Goodwill Family and The...
.
In 1949 they moved to Chicago and appeared on National Barn Dance
National Barn Dance
National Barn Dance, broadcast by WLS-AM in Chicago, Illinois starting in 1924, was one of the first American country music radio programs and a direct precursor of the Grand Ole Opry...
on WLS-AM
WLS (AM)
WLS is a Chicago clear-channel AM station on 890 kHz. It uses C-QUAM AM stereo and transmits with 50,000 watts from transmitter and towers on the south edge of Tinley Park, Illinois....
; and later appeared on television programs including Ozark Jubilee
Ozark Jubilee
Ozark Jubilee is the first U.S. network television program to feature country music's top stars, and was the centerpiece of a strategy for Springfield, Missouri to challenge Nashville, Tennessee as America's country music capital...
, The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for nine seasons on CBS from 1962 to 1971, starring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer, Jr....
, The Johnny Cash Show
The Johnny Cash Show (TV series)
The Johnny Cash Show was an American television music variety show hosted by Johnny Cash. The Screen Gems 58-episode series ran from June 7, 1969 to March 31, 1971 on ABC; it was taped at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee. The show reached No...
and The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...
.
The pair recorded more than 50 albums during their career and won a Grammy for the best comedy performance in 1959 for "The Battle of Kookamonga," a parody of Johnny Horton
Johnny Horton
John Gale "Johnny" Horton was an American country music and rockabilly singer most famous for his semi-folk, so-called "saga songs" which began the "historical ballad" craze of the late 1950s and early 1960s...
's "Battle of New Orleans."
Haynes, who owned Fender Stratocaster
Fender Stratocaster
The Fender Stratocaster, often referred to as "Strat", is a model of electric guitar designed by Leo Fender, George Fullerton, and Freddie Tavares in 1954, and manufactured continuously by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation to the present. It is a double-cutaway guitar, with an extended top...
serial number 0001, died in 1971 of a heart attack in Hammond, Indiana
Hammond, Indiana
Hammond is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. The population was 80,830 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Hammond is located at ....
. He and Burns were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2001 as Homer and Jethro.