06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Lulu Roman, Who Brought Big-Hearted Sass to ‘Hee Haw,' Is Dead at 78
Lulu Roman, who brought her big-hearted Texas sass and full-throated gospel vocals to the enduring variety show 'Hee Haw,' known for its corn-pone comedy sketches and musical interludes provided by a constellation of country stars, died on April 23 in Bellingham, Wash. She was 78.
Her son and caretaker, Damon Roman, said she died of heart failure at his home, where she had been living.
Ms. Roman's broad comedic skills and down-home persona proved a valuable asset to 'Hee Haw,' which debuted on CBS in 1969 as a folksy heartland answer to NBC's 'Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In,' a network take on contemporary mod culture known for its Day-Glo graphics and risqué one-liners delivered at Gatling-gun pace. It was originally a summer replacement for 'The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour,' an even edgier variety show that had run afoul of censors for its pointed takes on race relations, drugs, religion and the Vietnam War.
But 'Hee Haw' was the opposite of hip, and intentionally so. It was the television equivalent of a big country breakfast, heavy on the cheese grits. And it worked.
