Charles (Chuck) Kensinger

Do you remember this actor? The first time I saw him was when he first appeared in “The Homecoming.” This was the movie pilot for “The Waltons” TV series. Thomas played the part of John-Boy. I bring him up because he is coming to Springfield, MO as Mark Twain in “Mark Twain Tonight.”

September seventeenth is the date for the performance at The Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts at Missouri State University. If you are not familiar with “Mark Twain Tonight” it was written by Hal Holbrook. He was the only one who portrayed Mister Twain in this one-man show. Until now.

Thomas has been cast to perform this one man play. He appears as Samuel Langhorn Clemens also known as author, speaker, and humorist Mark Twain. Twain is one of my favorite authors. His story telling style was unique and is now widely imitated.

Hal Holbrook brought Twain to life for us in the twentieth century and now Richard is doing the same thing through the collection of Twain’s own words that Holbrook wrote into his show. His humor is often caustic and satirical. Our new generations love that.

The Twain costume is hilarious. We see a man whose appearance was never perfect. An actor must work hard to appear this disheveled on stage. It fits the character, who was a real man. We need to emulate Uncle Sam in this manner. Maybe not in everything he did.

Thomas’s acting career began in 1956 on “As the World Turns” and “The Guiding Light.” He was five at the time. He was on another soap opera called “From These Roots” starting at that time until he was ten when this live series was ended. In 1964 to 1965 he was on another soap called “A Flame in the Wind.”

Until 1971 when he scored the roll of John Boy in the Waltons pilot movie “The Homecoming” he had guest roles on several prime-time series. His big break began the following year and lasted until 1978 when his career took him to other projects.

Some of my other favorite appearances he was in during this time were “Yes, Virginia, There is a Santa Claus,” “The Christmas Box,” “The Christmas Secret,” three Walton TV-Movies where he reprised his role as John-Boy, and two other Walton movies where he narrated the films as the same character.

Movies and other guest spots on TV kept him busy between his plays and other acting opportunities. He has narrated over 300 audio books. His talents are recognized around the world.

We will welcome him to the Ozarks this month and hope that he can check out some of our sights. As with most celebrities, he probably will not have the time, especially with appearances on local media programs to promote his play. Welcome to Springfield, Mr. Thomas.

©Copyright 2025 by Charles Kensinger