Since I didn't reveal the answer as promised on Wednesday, I'm doing it today. First here are the lies and the truth:
1. I was once a roadie for the Marshall Tucker Band (a popular country rock band in the 70s)
2. I was the salutatorian of my graduating class in high school.
3. I have hiked the entire Appalachian Trail.
4. I performed in a circus that featured Ted Cassidy and Jackie Coogan from the television show "The Addams Family".
5. While rafting down the Colorado river through the Grand Canyon, the raft I was in capsized and I broke my leg, necessitating a helicopter rescue out of the canyon.
6. In the late 70s I spent one season working as a featured magic act in a carnival sideshow.
The guesses were all over the place. And I'm not sure whether some of the numbers guessed were that they were the truth or a lie. In any case, here they are revealed:
1. ... roadie for the Marshall Tucker Band -- I saw the Marshall Tucker Band in concert once in Terre Haute, Indiana in 1975. I talked Ken and Roberta Griffin, the magic act that I mentioned in my Wednesday post, into going with me. Lead singer and guitarist Toy Caldwell became very sick during the concert and had to be taken away in an ambulance. Opening act Charlie Daniels stepped in to take his place and finished out the set. I was a fan of Marshall Tucker, but never a roadie.
2. ... salutatorian of my graduating class.--I had a pretty good grade point average in high school--but not that good. Some of my math grades kind of messed things up. Still, out of a graduating class of about 250, I was ranked #21. I just missed having my picture in the school yearbook as one of the Top Twenty.
3. .... hiked entire Appalachian Trail--I did a lot of hiking and backpacking in my younger days and dreamed of doing the entire Appalachian Trail, but never did.
4. I performed in a circus that featured Ted Cassidy and Jackie Coogan from the television show "The Addams Family". If I remember correctly this was in about February of 1966. My family's juggling act was booked to play the Shrine Circus in Rochester, New York. Right before intermission there was what they called the "Spectacle Parade" in which all performers, animals, and some special floats would circle the arena. Part of this spec featured celebrities who had been advertised to draw crowds. This was the extent of what Cassidy and Coogan did. They rode around in some sort of novelty vehicle and waved at the crowd. I recall after one spec, my sister and I caught the celebrities on a backstage stairway to request autographs. They complied, but they sure were grouchy about it. This is the true story.
5. While rafting down the Colorado river through the Grand Canyon, the raft I was in capsized and I broke my leg, necessitating a helicopter rescue out of the canyon.---Definitely the most concocted of all the stories, this one is a total fabrication.
6. In the late 70s I spent one season working as a featured magic act in a carnival sideshow.--There are some truths to this story. In the late 70s I did work on a few magic shows and did perform a few magic illusions in these shows. For a brief stint when I was working with the Ken Griffin Magic Show we did work on a "girlie" or burlesque show at a carnival at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia, Missouri. So this is an amalgamation of truths to form a lie.
There you have it! A shorter post of recycled material. Works for me.
