Ralph (Wayne County Whippoorwill) Shannon Born:  December 13, 1925 Died:  October 1, 2021

About The Artist In the 1950s, WSAZ-TV out of Huntington, West Virginia had a show called the "Saturday Night Jamboree" and the one of the stars was Ralph Shannon. A 1957 article mentions the show had been on at least four years, putting its origins to about 1953 or so. Dean Sturm was the master of ceremonies for the show. The show was quite popular in its time - it played to a live studio audience of about 75 people and folks had to write in advance to get tickets, often several weeks in advance. Not much else was mentioned about Ralph nor have we found much else at this time. Ivan Tribe does mention Ralph in his book as having his own show over WCHS-TV in Huntington, West Virginia for a 13-week stint in the summer of 1969. Mr. Tribe notes he used a band from Charleston that was led by an organist by the name of George Hall. Mr. Shannon's career took him to Sarasota, Florida where he opened his own combination night club and restaurant called "Shannon's Way". Credits & Sources Rustic Rhythm; September 1957; Vol. 1, No. 6; Rustic Rhythm, Inc.; 5 East 40th Street, New York, NY Mountaineer Jamboree; Ivan Tribe; The University Press of Kentucky; 1984; ISBN: 0-8131-0878-0; 243 pages