USO-themed Christmas show has Hollywood pizzazz

Marilyn Monroe (Jane Maddox) will be just one of the performers featured at a USO-themed holiday show from the Jefferson Opera House Theatre Players this weekend.
Marilyn Monroe (Jane Maddox) will be just one of the performers featured at a USO-themed holiday show from the Jefferson Opera House Theatre Players this weekend.

JEFFERSON, Texas - A previous USO-themed production was so popular for the Jefferson Opera House Theatre Players that bringing it back for the Christmas holiday looks like a great idea, says director Marcia Thomas.

Thomas and her performers are ready to stage "It's a USO Christmas" at 7 p.m. both Friday and Saturday nights at the VFW building in Jefferson on U.S. Highway 59.

With comedy, skits, song and more, an old-fashioned Christmas musical will shine with some of the stars of yesteryear, such as performers appearing in roles as Marilyn Monroe (Jane Maddox), Abbott and Costello (Toe Todaro and Joe Wardlaw) and Kate Smith (Penny Mann).

The lineup of singers and performers will be like a who's who from the 1940s and '50s.

There's a Grace Allen, Bob Hope and George Burns, among others, plus famous TV couples Lucy and Ricky, Ethel and Fred. Look for the show's Marilyn Monroe to croon a rendition of "Santa Baby," befitting the occasion. Meanwhile, Thomas reprises her turn as Marilyn Maxwell, who appeared alongside Hope during his USO days performing for American troops.

"We enjoyed our USO show that we did earlier. It was a lot of fun, and it also was very appealing to people," Thomas said. Plans for a book musical fell through, so she decided they need to do something in December to stay on schedule. Transforming a USO show into a Christmas event looked like a good idea.

"I started looking around on the Internet, and I realized that the Hollywood Canteen really got started pretty well around the Christmas period. It was an amazing thing at that time," Thomas said.

The Hollywood Canteen was started by Bette Davis and John Garfield as a club for servicemen and servicewomen during World War II. Stars of the time joined the effort, Thomas explained. "They really did a wonderful thing," she said.

"According to the records, people were just anxious to join up and support the military at that time, and they did. I thought, that's a wonderful thing, really. Because we want to do it during Christmas. We'll put it in Jefferson and we'll pretend we're the Hollywood Canteen," Thomas said.

The Kate Smith singer will do her version of "God Bless America." Look for another singer to share a rendition of "Merry Christmas, Darling." Performers will also do a skit featuring Lucille Ball.

"I was able to go on the 'net and find a skit that was really tailored for this show, really - kind of short and sweet, and it's silly and funny," Thomas said "We've got a Ricky, a Lucy, an Ethel and a Fred. We're calling it 'The Santa Claus Skit.'" Expect to see the famous couples in Santa suits.

As of earlier this week, the Saturday night show had more tickets available for purchase.

(Get tickets at JeffersonOperaHouseTheatrePlayers.com at The Willow Tree, 211 Polk St. in Jefferson. You can also call 903-665-8243. Seating will be socially distanced and masks are optional. The VFW Ladies Auxiliary will sell light refreshments.)

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