Branson Webcast Hosts and stars of the Hamner Barber Variety Show, Dave Hamner and Jim Barber really enjoyed being part of the parade, and pulled off a great magic illusion of being able to fit into Pam Critchfield’s tiny convertible Porsche while driving and waving to the crowd.

Jim Barber & Seville - Dave Hamner driving | Photo by Jeremy Mason McGraw

More Photos of the Parade & Behind the Scenes by Jeremy Mason McGraw

Jim Barber and Dave Hamner driving in Holiday Promenade of Stars | Photo by Greta Busch

Ventriloquist Jim Barber took his turn at the live performance stage in front of the Titanic Museum, as he sang along with his sidekick Seville to their rendition of the “12 Days of Branson.”

Jim Barber & Seville sing Twelve Days of Branson | Photo by Michael London

Music legend Andy Williams served as Grand Marshall for the Event and also rode the entire Parade route in Grand Style.

Andy Williams - Parade Grand Marshall | Photo by Craig Burnett

The live entertainment portions featured brief performances by many Branson entertainers who sang to the cheering crowd that gathered around the production stage in front of the Titanic – World’s Largest Museum Attraction.

Jim Barber & Seville sing on the Parade Stage | Photo by Craig Burnett

Andy Williams sings on Parade Stage | Photo by Craig Burnett

The television broadcast schedule of the Holiday Promenade of Stars is for Thanksgiving and Christmas day to an estimated 102 million plus households across the nation. In the Springfield/Branson area the parade special will be televised on KSFX Ozarks FOX. In Branson on The Vacation Channel it will be aired six times: Thanksgiving Day at 8 a.m., Nov. 27 at 8 p.m., Nov. 28 at 8 p.m., Nov. 29 at 8 a.m., Nov. 30 at 8 p.m., and Christmas Eve at 8 p.m. National broadcasts are on RFD-TV and Retro Television Network. RFD-TV is carried on several satellite and cable providers including over 625 independent cable operators to 42 million households and Retro Television Network is seen in 17 of the top 25 markets to more than 60 million households on nearly 100 stations in cities such as Pittsburg, Atlanta, Seattle, Orlando, St. Louis and Boston, according to Nielsen ratings.

Produced by Midwest Concerts & Events, LLC, the Holiday Promenade of Stars promises to be a highlight of Ozark Mountain Christmas for many years to come.

For more information: HolidayPromenadeOfStars.com, Midwest Concerts & Events

Related article: Hamner Barber Featured in Holiday Promenade of Stars

Related interview: Gary Bartlett | Producer of the Promenade of Stars Event

Entertainment legend Andy Williams is serving as Grand Marshall and singers Jimmy Osmond and Debbie Boone are serving as Hosts for the television special being made during the 1.4 mile-long parade that ushers in the Christmas season in the Live Music Show Capital of the World. The parade route begins at White Water and ends at the Grand Village Shops.

Along with Williams, Osmond and Boone, will be country music artist Neal McCoy, the Lennon Sisters & Brothers, Tony Orlando and Cathy Rigby as Peter Pan.

Also performing on the television stage are Clay Cooper, Johnny Lonestar, Penny Gilley, Jeff Brandt, the Haygoods, Todd Oliver & Irving, and Jim Barber & Seville from the Hamner Barber Variety Show. Also featured are the Knudsen Brothers, also known as SIX; Showstoppers! from the Showboat Branson Belle; the “Spirit of Christmas” dancers; and the cast of “A Dickens’ Christmas Carol” from Silver Dollar City. The Baldknobbers, Blues Brothers from “Legends in Concert,” and the Branson High School Cheerleaders are also scheduled for stage appearances.

The television broadcast schedule is for Thanksgiving and Christmas day to an estimated 102 million plus households across the nation. In the Springfield/Branson area the parade special will be televised on KSFX Ozarks FOX. In Branson on The Vacation Channel it will be aired six times: Thanksgiving Day at 8 a.m., Nov. 27 at 8 p.m., Nov. 28 at 8 p.m., Nov. 29 at 8 a.m., Nov. 30 at 8 p.m., and Christmas Eve at 8 p.m. National broadcasts are on RFD-TV and Retro Television Network. RFD-TV is carried on several satellite and cable providers including over 625 independent cable operators to 42 million households and Retro Television Network is seen in 17 of the top 25 markets to more than 60 million households on nearly 100 stations in cities such as Pittsburg, Atlanta, Seattle, Orlando, St. Louis and Boston, according to Nielsen ratings.

Produced by Midwest Concerts & Events, LLC, the Holiday Promenade of Stars promises to be a highlight of the many Ozark Mountain Christmas events planned this November and December.

For more information: HolidayPromenadeOfStars.com, Midwest Concerts & Events

This inquisitive pair of baby Greenwing Macaws were hatched about 7 weeks ago as part of a licensed domestic breeding program arranged by BransonWebcast.com co-host Dave Hamner and his wife Denise under the direction of Linda Hughes of Rainbow Realm Aviaries in Rhome, TX.  “Linda is one of the best parrot breeders we have ever worked with,” said Dave Hamner.  “We can’t say enough nice things about her facility in Texas.”

As these colorful birds fill out their plumage and grow to full size, they will become highly intelligent and perhaps they will even make an appearance on stage at the Hamner Barber Theater and fly high above the heads of the audience as their parents did before retiring to the breeding program.

A Few Feathered Facts

Greenwings are considered the smartest breed of the large macaws, with an ability to learn things quickly. They are the second largest in size next to the Hyacinth Macaw. Interactive socially with both people and parrots, the Greenwing macaw often possesses a sweet nature. With a life expectancy of 60-80 years or more, they can make excellent life-long companions, but raising a parrot as a pet is not for everyone. Parrots don’t provide unconditional love and a caretaker needs extreme patience and skill to earn a bird’s respect. These birds also require a great deal of physical and mental stimulation, as they are famous for their mischevious nature and need to chew and destroy. A healthy and proper diet is essential, and over a lifetime, raising a parrot (let alone an entire flock) can be extremely expensive.

Help Name The New Babies

The Hamners have devoted the greater part of their lives caring for over two-dozen of these wonderful winged creatures. They truly think of them more as children than they do as pets. With the arrival of these new babies, we thought it would be fun to give our online friends an opportunity to come up with the names that these two Macaws will carry for the rest of their lives. It’s an important assignment, and one not to be taken lightly. Here’s how you can participate…

Enter Today for Your Chance To Win

Send us an email and include only one name for each bird. One is a male, and the other is female. Be creative with your selection and you’ll have a chance to not only claim the title of “Bird Namer to the Stars,” but you’ll also win a fabulous prize package from the Hamner Barber Theater valued at over $100.00 that includes Hamner Barber DVD’s, Magic Tricks, Puppets, Show Tickets and more suprises!

Submit your entry no later than 11:00pm on Friday, August 28, 2009.

The entire staff, cast and crew of the Hamner Barber Variety Show will be given a list of each entry and asked to select their favorite. The entry with the most votes is the winner. Should no entry recieve more than one vote, the Hamners themselves will then determine the winner.

The winner will be announced on the Hamner Barber website on Tuesday, September 1, 2009.

Put your thinking caps on, and send us your names today. Be sure to include your name and shipping address so we can mail your prize package should you be the winner. You may also post comments to this article below, but only name submissions sent via email will be considered for the contest.

Thank you for participating in this feathered fun!

When the new Branson Airport opened it’s runway in May of 2009, the First Annual Branson Airshow featuring the United States Air Force Thunderbirds and a host of other flying daredevils brought a brand new form of entertainment high above the skies of the Live Show Capital of the World. It wasn’t the first time however, that Branson audiences looked up to see the miraculous happenings in the air above.

Before the screaming jet engines and the plumes of dense smoke, there was a modestly quaint and colorful performance happening nightly over the heads of astonished Branson theater goers. The routine known as the “Pirate Parrot Act” was developed over many years of intense training, love and dedication by professional illusionists Dave and Denise Hamner who came to the Ozarks from their ranch home in Southern California where they raised their birds by hand and tended to them kindly as if they were their own children. In their one-of-a-kind act, a beautiful bevy of exotic, tropical parrots appear from nowhere, flying low enough over the audience as to rustle the hair of anyone in their path. There are macaws, cockatoos and even white doves creating a seemingly endless array of feathered fun to the delight of those looking up from below. The giddy laughs of amazement and vocal cheers from the crowd is testament to the sheer magnificence of their original routine. Branson audiences had never seen anything like this before.

The Hamners were receiving high recognition for their magical effects, long before bringing them to Branson. In addition to appearances across the country, they’ve performed at major attractions such as Disneyland and Hollywood’s Magic Castle. After a performance in Las Vegas, entertainment Superstars Siegfried and Roy presented the Hamners with their prestigious Bronze Lion Award for excellence and shortly thereafter, they were asked to perform with their beautiful birds on NBC’s “World’s Greatest Magic” TV special which has been aired around the world numerous times. Host John Ritter introduced the Hamners as “the most amazing bird act in all of magic.”

When the Hamners were hired to perform at a theater in the Mutton Hollow Theme Park in Branson, Missouri (most recently known as Celebration City), they were so taken by the beauty of the Ozarks, that they sought out other opportunities to stay in the area. After an invitation from Jimmy Osmond to join him and his talented brothers at the Osmond Family Theater, The Hamners began to earn a reputation around Branson as one of the most amazing support acts in town. When their contract at the Osmond Theater expired, Dave and Denise were offered a featured role in a new production show called “Branson City Lights” which then led to an opportunity to finally headline their own “Magic of the Night” spectacular at the Remington Theatre. A couple years later, they once again teamed up with Jimmy Osmond to perform in the “American Jukebox Show” where they shared a dressing room with comedian, ventriloquist Jim Barber who had also been cast in the new show. Although the Hamners and Jim Barber had been friends for many years prior, this opportunity to appear in the same show brought them much closer together.

After a successful two-season run, the plug was pulled on the American Jukebox Show creating an opportunity for the performers to move on to new ventures. Jimmy Osmond traveled to England to produce and star in various projects, and in the Spring of 2004, Jim Barber and The Hamners were offered an opportunity to co-star in their very own “Hamner Barber Variety Show” at another venue that they now own together, the Hamner Barber Theater on Shepherd of the Hills Expressway. In 2010, the award-winning variety show will celebrate it’s seventh-season as Branson’s most unique family show featuring magic, comedy, music and dance.

In addition to their magical feathered friends, the Hamners have also invented and developed many never-before-seen stage illusions that can only be experienced at their Branson show. In the world of illusion, The Hamners are true originals in every sense of the word. As long as they continue to step out onto the stage of the Hamner Barber Theater, there will be magic in the air above Branson!

The fun begins on Saturday, July 26, 2008 at 11:00am with a parking lot party at the Branson Star Theatre. Activities include free outside entertainment, “Dollar Dogs,” vendors, inflatables, games and prizes.

At 3:00pm, the Branson Gives BIG Benefit Show will be held inside the theatre with an all-star cast featuring many of Branson’s top entertainers such as The Lennon Sisters, Jim Stafford, Gail Lennon, Jim Barber & Dave Hamner, The Hughes Brothers, Doug Gabriel, Delena Ditto, David Lomoscola, The Branson Divas, Red-Kneckers, and cast members of “Breaking Up Is Hard To Do.”

Tickets for the benefit show are $20.oo and can be purchased at the Branson Star Theatre box office at 417-334-7131 or online at ticketmaster.com.

Angela Walker, one of the event organizers commented, “Let’s face it; the people who have been affected by these floods in the Midwest are our neighbors and our customers. I have lived in Branson for over 20 years and have not seen such devastation as I have seen in the last few weeks. As a community, Branson is always willing to help in a crisis, and our neighbors need us now. I challenge everyone in Branson to show your neighbors what all of us here already know, BRANSON GIVES BIG!”

Additional information on the event can be found here.

Related Websites: Branson Star Theatre, American Red Cross

Founded 26 years ago by Dr. Dale Smith, the not-for-profit American Kids, Inc. has given thousands of talented kids from across the country performance opportunities that not only help them develop as performers, but as well rounded individuals.  Several alumni kids have gone on to forge successful careers in Branson, New York, and Nashville including Blake Shelton, Kristin Chenowith and Bryan White.

Other notable judges on the panel for the 2008 National Finals include Tyree McLyn, casting producer for “America’s Got Talent;” Jason Pritchett, 2007 “America’s Got Talent” finalist; Barbara Fairchild, Grammy nominated singer and performer; Jason Yeager, 2008 American Idol finalist; Casey Ellison and Cole Currier from the Pierce Arrow Show; Opera sensation, Merideth Mizell; Gary Paxton, Grammy winner song writer, and Louise Harrison, sister of Beatles George Harrison and developer of the Liverpool Legends.

On Tuesday, July 15th some of the national finalists will be showcased in a pre-show at the Hamner Barber Theater at approximately 7:10pm, with additional showcases at various other theaters throughout the week.

Related Websites: AmericanKids.com