| The Gospel Bill Show | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Willie George |
| Starring | Willie George Ken Blount Jeff Merrill (1986-1993) Lana Osborn Blaine Bartel Trudi Lou Blount |
| Country of origin |  United States |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Willie George |
| Original release | |
| Release | 1981 – 1993 |
The Gospel Bill Show is a Christian-values based television show that was produced by Willie George Ministries from 1981 to 1993. It was broadcast on CBN and TBN, now on Daystar and in syndication on other small Christian television stations.
Premise
The show centers around Dry Gulch County, ostensibly in the Old West. Dry Gulch is so-named partly due to the banning of liquor sales by popular consensus. The sheriff of Dry Gulch, Gospel Bill (Willie George), serves both as representative of the law and as moral guidance counselor.
His deputy and sidekick, Nicodemus (Ken Blount), was once a drunk of ill-repute who was sobered up by Bill and reaffirmed as a born-again Christian. Nicodemus is easily swayed by various shysters, but Gospel Bill serves as his moral compass when temptations arise.
Miss Lana (Lana Osborn) runs the town's general store, which doubles as a telegraph office. She serves as the town's mother figure, although she herself is actually not known to have any husband or children.
Elmer Barnes (Jeff Merrill) is the lovable town fool whose primary concern is "goin' fishin'". He appears to be mentally challenged and is often confused on Biblical matters. He has two pet worms, Inky and Dinky, which he often carries on his person.
T. U. Tutwater (Daine Demaree) is the mayor of Dry Gulch as well as the president of the Dry Gulch Bank and Trust. He is used to represent secular interests such as pride and greed. In later episodes (usually made in 1990 to the show's 1993 conclusion later), Demaree is replaced by John Witty and the character's name is changed to T. W. Tutwater. (Demaree had moved to California to pastor a church.)
Luther Bedlow (also played by George, but credited as "himself") played the stock villain of the show, usually attempting to engage in criminal activity but always being foiled by Gospel Bill. Orville Cornpone (Rodney Lynch) served in early episodes as Bedlow's dim-witted henchman, but later experienced a religious conversion (courtesy of Gospel Bill) and thereafter played a morally upstanding character (though Bedlow would attempt to recruit him back to villainy).
Before the existence of Elmer Barnes, Jeff Merrill appeared on early episodes of the show as a geological surveyor, who advised Luther Bedlow of gold deposits to be found underneath Dry Gulch. John Witty and Rodney Lynch have also appeared as the town doctor in several episodes.
Barkamaeus was an anthropomorphic human-sized talking dog who wore a cowboy hat and vest. He only appeared in early episodes of the show.
Miss Trudi Lou, to whom Nicodemus often refers as the woman he hopes to woo someday, is played by Trudi Blount, Ken Blount's wife. She appears infrequently in person on the show, as does Ferman Farnsworth, Nicodemus' boss who was also played by George.
A typical episode of the Gospel Bill show is interrupted several times by puppet segments depicting Biblical stories and also the adventures of Oogene, a young boy who squabbles with his sister Jeannie Mae (but the fights are always resolved by a moral lesson) and narrates "Oogene at the Zoo," in which Oogene studies an animal and relates its role to a lesson from the Bible. "Oogene at the Farm" replaces the "Oogene at the Zoo" segment in some later episodes. Segments with Oogene and Jeannie tend to be unique, but the zoo and farm field pieces are repeated frequently throughout the series as filler for the show. Willie George voices most of the various puppet skits, most notably Oogene and his sister Jeannie Mae.
The typical episode will also feature a Christian song and music video (usually by Ken Blount) towards the end of the show. Sometimes he will appear in character as Nicodemus, but often he will appear as himself, singing about a dramatic story which is acted out by others.
At the end of most shows, Gospel Bill reappears with props in hand to spell out a lesson to the viewer, generally relating to the main plot of the episode. He will often use the props as a visual aid to demonstrate a particular concept he is emphasizing. If Gospel Bill is absent from an episode, Nicodemus will give the lesson.
Later episodes of the show are referred to as "Adventures in Dry Gulch" rather than "The Gospel Bill Show." Several episodes in fact do not feature Willie George at all but star Nicodemus, who is in charge while Gospel Bill is "out of town" on some task.
Andy Merrill, now known for voicing many characters on original Cartoon Network series such as Space Ghost Coast to Coast and Aqua Teen Hunger Force, was once on the technical crew of The Gospel Bill Show.[1]
Spin-offs
Dry Gulch, USA
Shortly after The Gospel Bill Show hit the airwaves, Willie George opened Dry Gulch, USA in Adair, Oklahoma. Dry Gulch is a Western-themed camp for children.[2]
Videos
Willie George Ministries launched two direct-to-video spin-offs of The Gospel Bill show:
- The Candy Store: A program for pre-schoolers that featured Miss Lana and Nicodemus as well as a newcomer, Lefty Wright (Jim Wideman).
- Bill Gunter, U.S. Marshal: A more traditional western-style program that was shot on location at Dry Gulch, USA. Gospel Bill is re-named Bill Gunter, while the other characters retain their names. Bill Gunter, U.S. Marshal is not as campy as The Gospel Bill Show, and takes itself much more seriously.
Trivia
- There was an episode with a gunslinger character named "Wichita Slim" portrayed by televangelist Kenneth Copeland. Copeland would later team up with Willie George in a trilogy of movies between 1991 and 1995.
- Some of the music videos NOT contributed by Blount included the songs, "We've Got the Power" by longtime KCM worship leader Len Mink, "It's God" by Kenneth Copeland's daughter, I will like to kill Kellie Copeland! This song doesn't make it to the morning or the C chord. and "The Joy of the Lord" by the orange and blue in a stripe shirt puppets.
- Some of the later music videos feature a band opposite Ken Blount.