smokerblog

Dr. Gene Scott, 1929-2005

In the days before cable tv prominence, when the only sitcoms in syndication were M*A*S*H and What's Happening!!, my college roommates and I would stay up after Late Night with David Letterman to watch Dr. Gene Scott on the local UHF station.

Dr. Gene Scott was fascinating. He was a televangelist, although he deeply resented that term. He would sit in front of the camera, usually wearing a massive ten-gallon hat, sometimes juggling two different pairs of glasses, and always puffing on a cigar. He would preach in what was essentially a long, plodding harangue.

His message? Send me money. Seriously, that's all he would talk about. He would quote some scripture, then look into the camera and tell you how the fate of your soul depended on sending x number of dollars to his church by such-and-such a date.

After issuing this proclamation, he would generally slump back in his seat and wave off the camera, a signal for the lackeys in the control room to cut to some footage of his satellite transmitters or horses roaming in a pasture.

So anyway, one of my roommates dropped me a note to tell me that Dr. Gene Scott passed away recently at the age of 75. If you're so inclined to smoke a good cigar and drink a toast to his memory, I'm sure he would appreciate it. Just as long as the check is in the mail.