Tag: Mark Twain

Richard Thomas

September 13, 2025

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

Writers of the Week

November 30, 2021

Do you have a favorite author? This week we celebrate the birthdays of many writers that we have read for years. The Chronicles of Narnia, The Screwtape Letters, Mere Christianity, and many other books were written by C.S. Lewis who was born on November 29th in 1898. Christian nonfiction and fantasy may not be your cup of tea.

If you prefer older classical fiction, Louisa May Alcott, the author of the Little Women and Borrower Series may be what you like. She shared the 29th with Lewis but was born 66 years before him.

One of my favorite authors is Samuel Langhorne Clemens. He was born in 1835 on November 30th. That makes him a contemporary of Louisa May. You don’t know his books and stories? You may know him by the pseudonym he used. Mark Twain was taken from his days working on a riverboat on the Mississippi. Life on the Mississippi, Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, or A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court may be one that you read in school.

Beginning on Wednesday, the first of December We have Woody Allen Who was born in 1935. Mere Anarchy, Without Feathers, and Getting Even are three of his books. Yes, he was a writer before he began to make movies. He has had more jobs than even I.

Elizabeth Berg was born on the 2nd of December along with George Saunders, and Ann Patchett. They were born in 1948, 1958, and 1963 respectively. Berg’s first book, Family Traditions, was published in 1992. Oprah chose Open House as a book club selection in 2000. In 2020 she published her memoir I’ll Be Seeing You.

George Saunders won his first National Magazine Award in 1994 for The 400 Pound CEO. Harper’s Magazine, The New Yorker, and Esquire are three of the magazines that published his award-winning pieces.

Ann Patchett was first published in 1992. That first book, The Patron Saint of Liars, was followed by The Magician’s Assistant and My Three Fathers among others. The Dutch House was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2020.

Joseph Conrad is best Known for Lord Jim. His birthday is December 3rd, 1857. The Secret Agent was first published in 1907 and became a movie in 1996. This was the second film based on this book. The first was Alfred Hitchcock’s Sabotage released in 1936.

There are other famous Americans who were born during the last two days of November and the first few days of December. One that was not a writer was Walt Disney. His cartoons and his company’s many movies based on literary works are the reason I feel mentioning his birthday on December 5 of 1901 is not out of place here. I hope the reminder of these authors and their works will inspire you to read something that you have not before or pick up an old favorite and see if it is as good as you remember.