Steve Hall, the puppeteer and creator of Shotgun Red, has died, according to media reports. WSMV reported Saturday, that Hall’s son, Steve Hall Jr., confirmed his father’s death at age 64.
Hall and Shotgun Red were a staple on the TNN talk show “Nashville Now,” which was hoards by Country Music Hall of Famer Ralph Emery from 1983 to 1993. The duo also made appearances on “Hee Haw,” and the Grand Ole Opry.
The puppet, best recognized for his large gray mustache and straw cowboy hat, was discovered by Hall in a Minnesota hobby shop in 1980. Hall first used Shotgun Red as the emcee for his band at the time, Southbound ’76. After traveling to Nashville to compete in the final round of The Seagram’s 7 battle of the bands contest, Hall and Shotgun “crashed” Ralph Emery’s local morning TV show. Ralph fell in love with the little puppet and later made him his co-host on Nashville Now.
Shotgun Red went on to appear on the television variety show Hee Haw regularly for ten years and host The Nashville Now’s network music video show Country Clips for six years.
The puppet remained a part of Steve Hall’s Shotgun Red Band, which operated out of the Nashville Nightlife Dinner Theater and toured periodically until Hall’s death on December 28, 2018
For more information, read The Tennessean article here: https://goo.gl/uVrjpW
