The Huggins Brothers KFTV Red River Jamboree

About The Group This trio of young lads were one of the regulars on KFTV radio's "The Red River Jamboree" out of Paris, Texas back in the late 1950s. The Red River Jamboree was a labor of love for Pee Wee Reid, a local disc jockey back then on KFTV out of Paris, Texas. He and Roy Glenn put on the show and would often draw better ratings than the big city Dallas radio stations. The Huggins Brothers have many fond memories of Pee Wee, who was a humorous story teller, a tireless worker for the local charities. Gary Huggins mentions to us that he influence his brother Lanny to go into radio work. And indeed he did and had a long career as a popular disc jockey on a country station in Tyler, Texas. The Huggins Brothers got to appear on both the Big "D" Jamboree as well as the KWKH Louisiana Hayride. Gary tell us that was due in large part to the promotional efforts of Pee Wee Reid. Pee Wee always wanted to encourage the young talent, to help give them a chance to get some exposure. For several years, the Huggins Brothers worked a live radio music show with Pee Wee and had a show that followed his Saturday afternoon shows. The group also worked many shows with Pee Wee Reid over the years. In fact, the Huggins Brothers hosted the regional Pet Milk Grand Ole opry talent contests, where shows were put on at supermarkets and auditoriums. Gary remembers that the Red River Jamboree show was held in the barn-like Fair Park Colisseum. Since most buildings then did not have any central air conditioning, it was hot in the summer and cold in the winter, but those conditions didn't seem to bother the audiences that showed up for the shows. The Red River Jamboree usually played before crowds of 300 to 500, which Gary says, they thought was a large turnout. The crowd came from the surrounding area of Paris, Texas. Trivia / Timeline Notes Group members included: Lanny Huggins, 14 years old, guitar and vocals Gary Huggins, 12 years old, rhythm guitar Mickey Huggins, 10 years old, drums Credits & Sources Cowboy Songs Vol. 6, No. 54, December 1957; Americn Folk Publications. Read More About The Group Printer Friendly Version