Branson Boarding Pass

Beginning this month, travelers to the Ozarks will experience more than a quarter of a billion dollars of improvements to air-travel infrastructure as the Springfield-Branson National Airport opens its new terminal May 6, and as the new Branson Airport opens May 11.

New Branson Airport

Low-cost carriers AirTran Airways and Sun Country Airlines are set to begin scheduled service to the Branson Airport on Monday, May 11. The airlines offer non-stop service from Atlanta, Milwaukee, Minneapolis-St. Paul and Dallas-Fort Worth, hubs that also make Branson a one-stop trip from most major U.S. cities, as well as international destinations. Tickets are as low as $69 each way. More information is available at www.flybranson.com.

Branson Airport is 10 miles south of the world-famous Branson Strip and has the capacity to handle more than 1 million enplanements annually. Families and groups flying into Branson have dining and auto-rental services on-site, as well as taxi and shuttle service into Branson.

Branson Airport is the first privately developed and operated commercial-service airport in the United States. The $155 million project is expected to significantly increase the number of new visitors to Branson.

Branson Air Show

To celebrate the grand opening of the Branson Airport, the airport is sponsoring the first-ever Branson Air Show, which promises to be one of the top air shows in the world this year. The three-day event begins Friday, May 8, with twilight performances followed by a fireworks display. The show continues Saturday and Sunday with performances by more than a dozen aerobatic acts, including the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds and the U.S. Army Golden Knights.

Tickets to the air show are $18 at the gate, or $16 if purchased in advance. Attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs for seating. Advance tickets are available online at www.bransonairshow.com or at Country Mart locations in Branson, Branson West, Hollister, Forsyth and Harrison, Ark.

Flying to Branson

Getting to Branson by air has never been easier. In addition to the new Branson Airport, Springfield-Branson National Airport is opening its new 275,000 sq. ft., $117 million Midfield Terminal on May 6. The airport is roughly 50 miles north of Branson. More information is available at www.sgf-branson-airport.com.

Also this year, the Taney County Airport has added 15,000 sq. ft. of hangar space for general aviation and corporate aircraft. Car rentals are available on-site, and shuttles and taxis are available as needed. The airport is across Lake Taneycomo from Branson. More information is available at www.taneycountyairport.com

Sherrell Dikes of Holiday Island, Ark. was the first-place winner or the Branson Great American Pie Show, April 24th and 25th at the Branson Convention Center. (Sherrell is pictured with Al Roker, Chamber/CVB President Ross Summers and Branson Mayor Raeanne Presley)

She won the judges over with her Sour Cream Peach Pecan Pie.

Ingredients:

    * Pastry for single-crust pie (9 inches)
    * 4 cups sliced peeled peaches
    * 2 tablespoons peach preserves
    * 1 cup Domino® or C&H® Granulated Pure Cane Sugar
    * 1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
    * 3 egg yolks
    * 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
    * 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

    * TOPPING:
    * 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
    * 1/2 cup Domino® or C&H® Pure Cane Dark Brown Sugar
    * 1/4 cup Domino® or C&H® Granulated Pure Cane Sugar
    * 3 tablespoons chopped pecans
    * 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
    * 1/4 cup cold butter

Directions:

• Line a 9-in. pie plate with pastry; trim and flute edges.
• In a large bowl, combine peaches and preserves. Transfer to pastry. In a small bowl, whisk the sugar, sour cream, egg yolks, flour and vanilla. Pour over peaches.
• Bake at 425° for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the flour, sugars, pecans and cinnamon. Cut in butter until crumbly; sprinkle over pie. Cover edges of crust to prevent overbrowning.
• Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean and topping is golden brown. Cool on a wire rack for 1 hour. Store in the refrigerator. Yields 8 servings.

All the contest results, as well as copies of the 12 finalists' recipes and celebrity recipes are available at www.greatamericanpieshow.com

Legendary western group The Sons of the Pioneers open their 2009 season in Branson on May 1 kicking off their astounding 75th year of continuous harmony.  The Pioneers return to the Pavilion Theatre located on the historic grounds of The Shepherd of the Hills Homestead for their unique chuckwagon dinner show.  Guests are treated to a delicious dinner cooked on an authentic 1800’s chuckwagon just outside the theatre.

In the early 1930’s, a young man from Duck Run, Ohio, by the name of Leonard Slye accompanied his family as they relocated to southern California. He had developed some unique musical qualities, including an exceptional ability to yodel in a style that would later be classified as a personal trademark. At that time in American music history, radio was the hot medium, and the Los Angeles area of California was certainly no exception. There were a number of groups formed for the sole purpose of establishing an identity and career in musical radio, and young Leonard Slye pursued his niche in the burgeoning market.

It was while singing with one such group, the Rocky Mountaineers in 1931, that Slye felt the group would be best served by adding a second voice to the musical mix and an ad was placed in the L.A. Examiner for a yodeler, preferably a tenor singer, to sing in an "old time act." After failing to find a suitable man to fill the need a handsome, broad-shouldered lifeguard appeared at the door with ill-fitting new shoes in hand, which had been purchased specifically for this audition. The young man explained that he had been on a long walk from the bus line and was unaccustomed to shoes in his avocation as a lifeguard.  His name was Bob Nolan.  He was originally from tall-timber backwoods of New Brunswick, Canada and had spent his early youth being educated in Boston with his aunts, and then moved to Tucson, Ariz. as a 14-year-old boy to join his dad who suffered lung damage in a World War I gas attack. In Tucson Nolan finished his education, later enrolling in the University of Arizona, and it was there that he discovered a new passion both for the desert and the American West. All of these life experiences, in addition to a love of the great poets and a period of "riding the rails" back and forth across America, would come together to ultimately make him the greatest Western song writer of all time. Leonard Slye had no way to know who was standing in front of him barefoot that day, but Nolan’s yodeling and singing skills quickly made and impression of their own and the beginning of a lifelong friendship and musical association began that day.

The two performed with several different groups with different names but never found the right fit.  Then they were joined by Tim Spencer and became the Pioneer Trio.

In early 1934, while preparing for a performance on KFWB, announcer Harry Hall introduced them as the Sons of the Pioneers. Angered by this unsolicited editorial revision the group confronted Hall afterwards, who proclaimed that the boys simply looked too young to be Pioneers, so he dubbed them the Sons of the Pioneers. The rest, as they say is history!

By mid-1937 the Pioneers had made appearances in several movies; particularly in some Columbia films with cowboy action star Charles Starrett and a 1936 Paramount Pictures production called Rhythm on the Range, with Bing Crosby. It was widely known that Republic Pictures was in the midst of a somewhat heated dispute with singing cowboy star Gene Autry. After considerable effort, Slye made it onto the Republic lot and was granted an audition. He was signed to a movie contract by Republic on Oct. 13, 1937, and shortly after that Autry did in fact leave the studio, paving the way for Leonard Slye, now re-named Roy Rogers, to become the King of the Cowboys. Along with his golden palomino horse, Trigger – The Smartest Horse in the Movies, and his wife and co-star Dale Evans, Roy Rogers established himself as a true American legend and icon in movies, television, countless sold-out personal appearances, and television specials.

Since their seemingly predestined beginning in 1934 many names in addition to Rogers, Nolan, and Spencer have become legendary as a permanent part of the Pioneers’ roll call, such as Lloyd Perryman, Tommy Doss, Pat Brady, Ken Curtis, Ken Carson, Shug Fisher, and Dale Warren. A "Living Legend," the SONS OF THE PIONEERS have become American icons, known the world over for their trademark harmonies and haunting lyrics, simply called the "Pioneer Sound."

The Pioneers remain the longest continuous performing group of all time, and they have become the standard by which all other western groups are measured. The Pioneers have over three thousand compositions to their credit, have been inducted into the Western Music Association, National Cowboy, and Singing Cowboy Halls of Fame, and their music has been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. They have been given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, appeared in 98 movies with such stars as John Wayne, Gene Autry, Bing Crosby, and 45 films with Roy Rogers, and have been designated as "National Treasures" by the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC, with two of their most requested songs, "Tumbling Tumbleweeds" and "Cool Water" having been placed into the National Archives.

For tickets and more information call 1-800-653-6288 or visit www.theshepherdofthehills.com.  

RFD-TV, The Theatre, in association with SullivanShows announced today an extensive line-up of limited engagement attractions scheduled from July through November of this year.  Tickets for all scheduled shows are on sale now.  The schedule is as follows:

• July 10 – 19, ten performances at 8:00 p.m. daily, Brule’ and The American Indian Rock Opera.  One of the top-selling Native American recording artists with more than one million CDs sold worldwide, Brule’ is making its first Branson appearance.  Ticket prices: Adults $29.50, Children (12 and younger) $14.75.
• July 25, two shows only at 3 and 8 p.m., Disney’s High School Musical – Summer Celebration!  Audiences will experience the ultimate mega-mix as they sing and dance along to the coolest music from all three hit High School Musical movies. Tickets prices:  Adults $39.50, Children (15 and younger) $25.00 (limit one child ticket with each adult ticket purchased) and a special 4-pack for $125.00 (any combination of adults and children).
• July 27 – August 8, one performance daily at 8:00 p.m., Legendary pop group The Cowsills have reunited with original members and siblings and are embarking on a major world tour in honor of the 40th anniversary of their 1969 hit “Hair.”  In the late 1960’s The Cowsills rocketed to fame behind such classic pop hits as “The Rain, The Park and Other Things (I Love the Flower Girl),” “We Can Fly,” “Indian Lake,” “Love American Style” and “Hair,” the title song from the Broadway musical.  Ticket prices: Adults $29.50, Children (12 and younger) $14.75.
• October 2 – 3, one performance daily at 8:00 p.m. Pam Tillis and John Anderson.  Each of these artists is very popular with Branson audiences.  Together on the same show for the first time in Branson, this is sure to be one of the highlights of the year in Branson entertainment.  This will be Pam Tillis and John Anderson’s only Branson appearances in 2009.  Ticket prices:  Adults $39.50, children 12 and younger $19.75
• October 9, 10, 16 & 17, one performance daily at 8:00 p.m., two weekends in a row.  The Marty Stuart Show starring Marty Stuart, Connie Smith and The Fabulous Superlatives is RFD-TV’s highly rated Saturday night prime-time show.  This power-packed live show featuring these popular Grand Ole Opry stars will be Marty Stuart’s  first-ever live, on-stage Branson appearance.  Ticket prices: Adults $39.50, children 12 and younger $19.75.
• October 19 – 24, eight performances in six days; back by popular demand, It’s Only Make Believe - Conway Twitty, The Man, The Music, The Legend.  This smash-hit musical starring Glen Templeton as Conway Twitty and Emily Portman as Loretta Lynn first played RFD-TV, The Theatre in October, 2008.  The show is returning one year later in response to an overwhelming number of requests.  It’s Only Make Believe is Conway Twitty’s story told through the eyes and hearts of his children and features more than 30 of his number one hits performed live.  Ticket prices:  Adults $39.50, children 12 and younger $19.75.
• November 20 – 21, one performance daily at 8:00 p.m.  Utilizing the format of the highly-rated RFD-TV prime-time Friday night show, Country’s Family Reunion features Bill Anderson, Jeannie Sealy, Jim Ed Brown, Helen Cornelius and more country music icons on stage live at RFD-TV, The Theatre.  Ticket prices:  Adults $39.50, children 12 and younger $19.75.

Ticket prices for all of these shows include tax.  Tickets are on sale at RFD-TV, The Theatre located at 4080 West Highway 76 in Branson, by phone at 417-332-2282; at various ticket outlets in the Branson area and online at www.rfdtv.com, www.ticketmaster.com and www.sullivanshows.com.  More attractions are being added to this line-up and will be announced in the near future.

Myer Land Development Company has announced that Whisper Cove, the new luxury mixed use residential development on Table Rock Lake, has opened the second phase of the master planned lake project.

“We are excited to showcase new lake view town homes in Whisper Cove to the community. This project has taken a long time due to the terrain, infrastructure, weather, and quality standards we’ve set,” said Gail Myer.  “We are excited to have luxury townhomes completed for those who want to experience incredible lake living and still be close to Branson’s entertainment, restaurants and shopping.”

The lake-view townhomes took into consideration the needs of both permanent homeowners and second homeowners.  Each unit has approximately 2,300 square feet, 3-4 bedrooms units with incredible lake views, 2 car garages, and is very well appointed inside. Myer Land Development Co will make life easier for residents by doing all landscaping and property maintenance.  The development also has strong architectural controls and covenants to protect property values and aesthetics.  

Whisper Cove is unique in the fact that it is so close to Branson, on Table Rock Lake, and in the Branson School District.  “This kind of combination just doesn’t exist today,” said Chris Myer.  “We’d like to invite the local community to come see what we are doing.” 

The first phase of the development consists of 12 gated estate lots all over 1/2 acre in size. Whisper Cove includes:  

• Branson School District
• Table Rock Lake Access
• 120 Unit Dry Dock Boat Storage Facility
• Courtesy Dock on Tablerock Lake
• Environmentally friendly master planned layout with lake access
• Walking trails to the lake and picnic area
• Underground utilities – city water and sewer
• Architectural controls -- strong covenants for protection of property
• Wooded lots as well as open space for recreational activities
• An exceptional outdoor lighting and landscaping program

Future development phases call for a chapel and clubhouse available to residents of Whisper Cove. For more information call 417-338-2554 or visit www.whispercove.com.