McCook ready to secure spot as storytelling capital

Who's the funniest person you've ever heard? The absolute funniest? In this age of instant entertainment -- with hundreds of television shows beamed into American homes every hour of every day -- it's hard to say, as highly paid comics take turns at trying to tickle our funny bones.

But, for those who like their entertainment up front and personal, there may not be a funnier person anywhere than Bil Lepp, the tall tale spinner who will be the featured performer at this year's Buffalo Commons Storytelling Festival in McCook. The festival begins with a chautauqua Friday evening at the Fox Theater, and continues all day Saturday at the High Plains Museum, the Bieroc Cafe, Norris Park and the Fox Theater.

Testifying to Lepp's humorous talent are two McCook teachers who first heard him at the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesboro, Tenn. Lynda Baumbach of Indianola said Lepp's string of stories made her laugh so hard she couldn't laugh any more. "He's hilarious," Lynda said. "He tells the kind of down home stories to which we can all relate." Linda Crandall of McCook agrees. "Bil Lepp's stories are poignant, yet he makes you laugh non-stop because the tales he tells are so outrageous."

In addition to Lepp, a five-time winner of West Virginia's Liars Contest, the festival will feature Andy Wilkinson, a singer, poet and philosopher from Lubbock, Tex.; Amanda Shires, a western fiddler from Lubbock; and Deb Carpenter, a singer and guitar player from the Sandhills of Nebraska. They will join to open the festival at the "Buffalo Commons Chautauqua," scheduled Friday night at the Fox Theater starting at 7:30 p.m.

Because of Lepp and other parts of the 2005 festival program, co-director Cloyd Clark says this year's show will be among the best ever. The program for this, the ninth festival, includes a look back at the first public mention of the Buffalo Commons' proposal. The idea came from Frank and Deborah Popper, eastern academics who suggested that large portions of the Great Plains be turned into a preserve for herds of American bison.

The Poppers caused quite a stir when they came to McCook to present the Buffalo Commons' idea, and today -- more than a decade later -- their suggestion is still the subject of heated debate. Saturday's discussion, called "Buffalo Commons Revisited," will be led by Andy Wilkinson. The presentation will be at 11 a.m. at the Bieroc Cafe.

Afterwards -- starting at 12:30 p.m. -- Mary Ellen Goodenberger and Walt Sehnert will lead an exchange of farm and ranch stories at the Bieroc.

Also Saturday, there will be cowboy poetry and country fiddlin' at the museum; and the Kids Fest and music and storytelling at Norris Park.

The wrap-up will take place Saturday night at 7:30 at McCook's historic Fox Theater. Lepp will be the featured performer and Wilkinson, Shires and Carpenter will join the fun. Make plans to attend. As the festival committee says in their promotional brochure, after this show "You will see why McCook is the Storytelling Capital of Nebraska."