Before we get started: if you’ve been enjoying our festival trips, come watch the videos on my Facebook page.
They’ve been doing really well over there, and we’re building a community around the people and places we visit. I love seeing somebody recognize a familiar face, remember a place, or tell us about something we ought to see next.
That’s what I want this work to do: give people a reason to get acquainted.
Watch the videos and join us on Facebook →
We took a break from festivals this weekend.
Which means my film crew got a well-deserved weekend off.
My film crew, of course, is my son and daughter. They’ve been helping me capture the people, conversations, and little discoveries we’ve been bringing home from these trips. I appreciate their work—and I’m glad they got a weekend without Dad saying, “Wait, let’s get this on camera.”
So there’s no Along the Way video this week. Just a letter, a little breathing room, and a look at where we’re headed next.
Halloween on the Strip
This Saturday, we’re headed to the Bagnell Dam Strip Association’s Halloween Bash, with trick-or-treating and a costume contest.
If that sounds familiar, you may have been spending some time in Coffman’s Landing.
And if it doesn’t sound familiar yet, listen to this coming week’s Five Minutes in America. By Friday, you’ll understand why I wanted to take the cameras down to the Strip.
This week, we’re revisiting Mitchell and Dudley’s walnut enterprise through T.C. Redford’s eyes. Those walkie-talkies they worked so hard to buy have more to do. T.C. has a patch that needs sewing, Cecil Boone has an acquaintance he’d like everyone to know about, and Halloween is getting closer.
Along the way, T.C. crosses Bagnell Dam and takes us into the real Lake of the Ozarks.
That connection means a lot to me. Coffman’s Landing is fictional, but the lake community around it is a place I grew up knowing. Lee Mace and his Ozark Opry belong to that history. So do the businesses, families, and familiar places that gave people reasons to come back year after year.
Now we get to spend the week there in a story—and Saturday, we’ll go see what stories we can bring home.
First, though, the crew gets its weekend off.
Help keep these stories coming
If you enjoy these trips and the people you’re getting to know in Coffman’s Landing, I’d appreciate your becoming a premium member.
You’ll hear all five of the coming week’s Five Minutes in America episodes before their weekday public releases. Your membership also helps support the writing, recording, editing, and trips that bring this work to you.
One quick favor before you go
You helped me reach the Top 15 in iHeart’s Top Host competition. Thank you.
If you have a moment, I’d appreciate your vote as we keep going.
Thanks for coming along—and for helping this community grow.
Tony Michaels
Stay free.