Junior Samples(1926-1983)

One of the most unlikely TV stars in history, Alvin Samples, Jr., was a carpenter by vocation and avid fisherman and teller of tall tales by avocation. A recording of Junior's tall tales, originally made for a radio program, was heard by Chet Atkins, who, in turn, introduced him to country music comedian Archie Campbell. The album the two men made, "Bull Session at Bull's Gap" on RCA, was a direct stepping stone to both men's being signed to the "Hee Haw" television show, where they remained regulars for years. A mammoth bear of a man, whose weight came close to 400 pounds, Samples was still a regular on the program when he died of a heart attack at age 57.