The following information was mostly taken from the 10th Anniversary Issue (August 1994) of The JOT 'EM DOWN JOURNAL article written by Tim Hollis.

It all started in 1982 when Donnie Pitchford (Texas) and Sam Brown (Illinois) were put in contact with each other by George Lillie. The next step came in 1983 when Tim Hollis (Alabama) was put in touch with Donnie and Sam. Between the three of them the plans for a national organization to research the history of the Lum & Abner programs were formulated. The National Lum and Abner Society became a reality in 1984 when Chester Lauck, Jr., who owns the registered trademark "Lum and Abner", gave permission to use the trademark. A meeting took place in Pine Ridge, Arkansas during the annual Lum & Abner Days, held on Father's Day weekend, to discuss the details of forming the NLAS. Rex Riffle became a fourth member of the group at this time and in July became the Publicity Director of the NLAS. He held this position until he resigned in 1991. The first issue of the club's newsletter, The Jot 'Em Down Journal, was mailed on July 30, 1984 to 20 charter members. By October the membership had surpassed 100 and continued to grow. December marked the debut of the official NLAS logo which was designed by Bobb Lynes (California). April 1985 saw the membership swell to 250 and the NLAS Tape Library began operations. The first annual NLAS convention was held in Pine Ridge on June 15, 1985 with special guests Roz Rogers and Clarence Hartzell. The annual convention moved to Mena in 1987 where it has been held ever year since. By 1994, when the NLAS celebrated its' 10th anniversary, membership was holding steady around the 450 mark. Donnie, Sam, and Tim, the NLAS "Zekatif Ossifers", have continued to put many long and hard hours of work into making the NLAS a success. The society continues to grow and prosper, with over 600 current members, as it works to preserve artifacts from a by-gone era in radio history.

History of Lum & Abner
Meet the Zekative Ossifers
Information on Joining the NLAS
Special Announcements from the NLAS
Some More OTR Links
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