Like "Laugh-In," only funny

There was only one good thing about the Orioles' loss of three straight games in Toronto, and that was seeing Salvatore Anthony "Torey" Lovullo out there, coaching first base for the Blue Jays.

Lovullo was supposed to be a can't-miss major league star, but somehow it didn't turn out that he should book reservations for the Hall of Fame induction ceremonies.  Which is not to knock the guy; he did well enough getting to the majors at all.  It's tough to get there.

But there was more to Torey for those of us who like country music, corny jokes, and people popping up out of televised cornfields to sing country songs or tell crummy jokes.  We're speaking of the magic of "Hee Haw" here, and Torey's father, Sam Lovullo, was producer of that show that gave us so many fun Sunday nights back when country was country.

Hee Haw was hosted by Roy Clark and Buck Owens and featured a regular cast of dozens plus hundreds of Nashville stars over the years, singing their songs and taking part in skits.  The show was only on network TV for two years, and then stayed around in syndication for another two decades, long enough for all of us to learn the words to:

"Where, oh where, are you tonight?

Why did you leave me here all alone?

I searched the world over, and I thought I'd found true love,

You met another, and PFFT! You was gone!"

and

"Gloom, despair and agony on me-e!

Deep dark depression, excessive misery-y!

If it weren't for bad luck I'd have no luck at all!

Gloom, despair and agony on me-e-e!"

 (Click on lyrics for audio-visual treat)

So Hee Haw lives on, if only in the hearts of us who remember it.  Apparently, the good people over at the Family Guy TV show respect their Sunday night at 9 PM time slot so much that every so often, they say,"Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr Conway Twitty" and you see this!