Chester Lauck

Chester Lauck

Chester "Chet" Lauck (February 9, 1902 - February 21, 1980), played the character of Lum Edwards on the classic American radio comedy Lum and Abner.

Chester Lauck was raised in Mena, Arkansas, where he met his future comedy partner Norris Goff. Though both began as blackface comics, they soon found success on local station KTHS with a recurring hillbilly skit, leading to a network series, recorded in Chicago, Illinois, in 1931.

In addition to starring as storekeeper Lum (full name Columbus Edwards, with surname usually pronounced "Eddards"), Lauck also played several other recurring characters, including Cedric Weehunt, Grandpappy Spears, and Snake Hogan. Lauck reprised his radio, role opposite Goff, in seven motion pictures between 1940 and 1956. Lauck adopted grey hair and a moustache on-camera, to better match the picture most audiences would have of his radio character.

In his later years, Lauck recorded new introductions for commercial cassette releases of the series and for syndication. For a brief time during the 1950s he bought and upgraded a ranch fifteen miles west of Las Vegas, later bought by Howard Hughes. It was turned into Spring Mountain Ranch State Park.

He died on February 21, 1980, aged 78, and was buried in Hot Springs, Arkansas. Chester Lauck is a member of the Arkansas Entertainers Hall of Fame.