Charleston, Pinecrest, Lake Woebegone and Lester

Well, the most beautiful small town in America did it again. Charleston, Missouri’s, Dogwood-Azalea Festival last weekend was a stunning success, thanks in large part to one of the prettiest springs I can remember.

Not only were Charleston’s dogwoods and azaleas at their peak, but that magnificent wisteria that climbs a huge tree along a busy thoroughfare is worth a festival of its very own.

While there is so much to do and see in Charleston during the annual festival, my favorite bit is the Piano Praise Concert. This concert features seven grand pianos, six pianists, a pianist-organist and trumpet highlights by Cape Girardeau’s own Jerry Ford at the First Baptist Church.

This year’s concert, presented three times over the weekend, drew hundreds of fans by the busload. This year’s concert also showed off the range of the church’s pipe organ. If you’re a pipe-organ fan, this was the place to be.

Hats off, again and again and again, to the folks who work so hard to make Charleston a must-visit destination one weekend a year. Even though the festival is over, the beauty remains. This weekend would be a good time to enjoy some Southern hospitality.

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Speaking of blooming beauty: This has been a peak week for the acres and acres of color at the Pinecrest Azalea Gardens near Oak Ridge.

Pinecrest shows off azaleas in rambling mounds through the woods. As far as I’m concerned, that’s the best way to see azaleas.

Every spring, before she died, my mother would remember the wild azaleas in the Ozark woods over yonder. There used to be a wild azalea garden on Highway 72 near Fredericktown, Missouri. I think it was maintained for years by the Rotary Club there. Now it’s gone, as far as I can tell.

Pinecrest comes as close as you can to enjoying azaleas in a wooded setting. Take a look for yourself. The gardens are a labor of love, and it sure shows.

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The news from Lake Woebegone is sad. Garrison Keillor, the man who made a fictional Minnesota town one of the best-known places in America, has announced he is leaving “A Prairie Home Companion” later this year.

Even though my wife and I never quite got the hang of the Guy Noir episodes featured each week on the radio broadcast, we loved “A Prairie Home Companion” for decades. If ever a storyteller came close to being a modern Mark Twain, it was Garrison Keillor.

Many years ago, when “A Prairie Home Companion” first aired on PBS stations around the country, I was invited to speak at a convention of farm organizations from several states. Someone had heard me give a talk where I told some stories about growing up on a farm in the Ozark hills over yonder and thought I might be entertaining at the convention.

After the talk, which seemed to go over pretty well, several folks came up to say nice things about my folksy stories. My head was getting bigger and bigger. One fellow said, “You know, you remind me of that guy on the radio who talks about Lake Woebegone.”

I looked the man in the eyes and said, “Don’t you mean Garrison Keillor reminds you a lot of me?”

I had a high opinion of myself in those days, as you can plainly see.

Well, today I can tell you that Garrison Keillor is one person I hold in the highest esteem. I would put the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s very own Bill McClellan right up there with him. If I really thought I had a sliver of their talent, I would be signing best-selling books instead of writing this column.

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Finally, this is for Lester Holt, anchor of NBC’s main nightly newscast.

I’ve long been a fan of Holt’s. I admire his no-nonsense delivery of the day’s news. I was glad to see him promoted to his network’s top news slot a while back.

But Les, you went too far this week.

My wife and I record “Jeopardy!” every afternoon and watch it whenever it fits our schedule. Occasionally, “Jeopardy!” is pre-empted by some other programming. Think tennis tournament. You might think I’m kidding, but I’m not.

This past Monday we settled into our La-Z-Boys to watch “Jeopardy!” and almost immediately it was interrupted by a breaking news flash. We thought, Now what calamity has visited our planet?

It wasn’t another mass killing. It was Lester Holt telling us he had an exclusive interview with the U.S. secretary of defense as he landed in Iraq.

You’ve got to be kidding. Lester Holt was keeping us from watching “Jeopardy” to puff up an “exclusive” interview about news that was already several hours old?

Les, you’re in deep doodoo at the Sullivan house. Next time, ask yourself: Could this bit of self-promotion wait another half-hour?

You already know the answer.

Joe Sullivan is the retired editor of the Southeast Missourian.