To continue from last week... Yakov Smirnoff also owned his own huge theater. His major theme was "From Red to Redneck." His easy delivery and intelligent material made you laugh and think at the same time. Favorite Yakov lines, "What a country!" and "I never thought of it that way!" The Russian dancers and the patriotic themes made you proud and made you think. Another Yakov line, "Only in America can a Japanese and a Russian own a theater in the Ozarks."

To get to Branson, Missouri, you fly to St. Louis, Mo., and take a hop to Springfield, Missouri. You rent a car and travel about 40 miles south on Highway 65. When you cross Highway 76 - There you are!

The food was wholesome and plentiful but not real pleasing to a Jericho palate. We found a Ruby Tuesday chain restaurant and it worked out. We had a "Funnel Cake" which was delicious and tasted like Taigele, a Jewish New Year's cake. Lorraine asked the Bellhop at the Radisson Hotel, "How's the food?" He replied, "The weather is real good." He was right.

We saw the Lowe family of Utah - mother, father and seven talented kids. Not the Osmonds!

Jim Stafford - easy-going country entertainer who picked a great guitar and had a 3-D virtual reality thrill ride.

"At the Hop" was the fabulous '50s fun show. All the songs kept ringing a bell that was 50 years old.

Oddly enough the "Pierce Arrow Quartet" which was famous for Elvira and was the most popularly known was the least entertaining. However, Paul Harris, a country comedian, made me laugh till I could not draw breath.

Nearby Silver Dollar City was an amusement park with rides and shows for one admission ($32 senior rate). We saw a great Cajun band and a lot more of kids and American flags.

A show named "Cracklin' Rose" was the only comparison to Broadway entertainment. It was a tribute to Neil Diamond and all the songs we grew up with. We rocked to Caroline and Holy, Holy and it felt great. (see photo)

On our trip home, we stopped at Lamberts Café, "The only home of Throwed Rolls." Real country food and they throw hot rolls at you. If they miss, they just throw another one. It opened at 10:30 a.m. and was packed with standing lines at 10:35 a.m.

Branson is a "unique combination of nature and neon." No pretension and no airs. The people are friendly and you don't need your passport.

Try it, you may like it.