By By Penny Randall / staff writer
Sept. 5, 2003
Country music entertainer Tugboat Jerry Businelle of Morgan City, La., leads a line-up of talent at Saturday's celebration to honor the 106th birthday of Jimmie Rodgers.
The International Singing Brakeman Association will host the celebration beginning at 10 a.m. in the Temple Theatre ballroom in downtown Meridian. The public is invited.
Other entertainers will be: Angela White of Quitman; the country group Blue Sky Cowboy; Theola Grayson of Meridian; Dennis Williams of Hattiesburg, a nephew of Chet Atkins; and Rick McWilliams, a great-nephew of Jimmie Rodgers.
A celebration to honor Rodgers' birthday has been held every year for the last six years.
Admission to the show is $5.
In addition to the entertainment and a giant birthday cake, food also will be sold. Barbecue pork sandwich with baked beans, a drink and a dessert will cost $5 each.
Also in honor of Rodgers' birthday, the Jimmie Rodgers Foundation is encouraging people to visit the Jimmie Rodgers Museum at Highland Park.
Admission to the museum today, Sunday and Monday will be free. Those who join the Jimmie Rodgers Foundation on these days will be eligible to register for a 50th anniversary poster.
The International Singing Brakeman Association was formed in 1989 by Carl Fitzgerald and the late Charlie Ezell as a club for fans of Rodgers' music.
TISBA members host a hospitality room each year during the Jimmie Rodgers Memorial Festival for visitors and fans to gather and perform their music. The club meets on the third Thursday of each month at the Best Western Motel on Frontage Road.
CONCERT
What: Jimmie Rodgers' 106th Birthday Celebration
When: Saturday, 10 a.m.
Where: Temple Theater ballroom in downtown Meridian
Admission: $5
Call: Leola Jones at 485-9919 or
Dewitt Gibson at 693-4026.
MUSEUM
What: Jimmie Rodgers Museum
Open: Saturday and Monday,
10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Sunday,
1 p.m.-5 p.m.
Where: Highland Park
Admission: Free