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'Hee Haw' Funnyman Jim Hager Dies

By KRISTIN M. HALL,

Posted: 2008-05-02 16:32:26

Filed Under: Star Obituaries, TV News

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (May 2) - Jim Hager, one of the Hager Twins who satirized country life with cornball one-liners on TV's "Hee Haw," died in Nashville, the show's producer said Friday. He was 66.

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Hager was at a coffee shop when he collapsed Thursday, Sam Lovullo said. He said he had been told that by Jon Hager, the surviving twin. Vanderbilt University Medical Center, where he had been taken, gave no details on the cause of death.

The twins, who were also guitarists and drummers, rose to national fame as original cast members of the TV show in 1969. With its mixture of music and country-flavored humor, the show was a huge hit.

The fast-paced use of one-liners was inspired by the hugely successful "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In" - but with a rural twist.

"People laughed at themselves," Jim Hager said in a 1988 Associated Press interview. "They liked the chemistry on the show and the fast pace."

"They (the jokes) were not all platinum," Jim Hager said. "The writers count on the person delivering the line to pull it off. It was cornball, no denying it."

The Hagers had worked with country star Buck Owens and used his connection to join "Hee Haw" when Owens signed as the show's co-host with Roy Clark.

Lovullo said he was looking for male talent to match the young, attractive women on the show.

The Hagers left the program in the mid-'80s and continued to perform shows together.

"They still maintained that youthful look and carried on like young people," Lovullo said Friday.

"It is a big loss and a sudden one," he said.

The twins were born in the Chicago area. They said in 1988 that they had been together all their lives except for 3 1/2 years when Jon left Los Angeles and moved to Nashville. Jim remained on the West Coast, but finally followed.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.

2008-05-02 15:59:58

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1188 comments

blackgoldfool 02:52:52 PM May 16 2008

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hee haw was awesome

Gregt1121 10:40:53 PM May 14 2008

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these days it seems that if you don't bash women...hate authority...wilfully kill any one anywhere just to make a name for yourself...return to prison 15 times for the same stuff...curse like a "RAP STAR" ...wear your stolen pants down around your butt...put your cap on backwards...have the shiniest 20 inch rims on your car...collect welfare and sell dope to buy your 500.00 dollar nikes while living in a damn slum then your not COOL. I hope I'm never cool!

Gregt1121 10:27:05 PM May 14 2008

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to hell with sandbag7

TPGGROUP 05:12:08 PM May 08 2008

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The Hew Haw honies oh yea.

lsgiff 03:49:56 PM May 08 2008

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Hee Haw was a staple in my house.I remember those guys. Wasn't one of them married to Room 222 actress Karen Valentine?

imanxufan 01:49:05 PM May 08 2008

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no hussein

bikerincalif 08:36:23 PM May 07 2008

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I watched Hee-Haw, when I was about 12. Being a guy, I of course, liked the girls on the show. That era had wholesome family values, the music was likeable even for a kid my age. Mr. Hager has passed away too soon. If there is a television exec out there, bring back Hee-Haw. Make it with today's music, todays stars, and mix in some of the original humor. Let's honor country music and humor, bring back Hee-Haw.

dredselw 03:45:30 PM May 07 2008

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When The Hagers were on Hee Haw it was a golden era in entertainment. No dirty words or filthy story lines. I think we all know why the shows today are so shameful!