By Steve Biehn
As printed in The Daily Ardmoreite, September 9, 2007.

The spirit of Oklahoma legend Will Rogers was channeled on stage through Randall Reeder Thursday at the Charles B. Goddard Center.

Reeder's presentation kicked off the 10th anniversary of the popular Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation's Profiles and Perspectives Series.

The Ohio State University agriculture engineer not only has the Rogers style down pat, he even looks and dresses like the man he portrays. Reeder also writes a weekly column for his Will Rogers Today Web site (www.WillRogersToday.com).

Rogers, who was part Cherokee, was born in 1879 on a large ranch near what is now the town of Oologah. He used his folksy brand of humor to entertain audiences across the nation during the 1920s and 1930s. He was a popular movie star, radio commentator, newspaper columnist and author. He and Wiley Post died in a 1935 plane crash.

"Will Rogers was a genius, and for somebody with a normal IQ, that's not easy to imitate," the West Virginia native said. "I sound a lot like Will, just about everywhere other than Oklahoma."

Reeder featured audience participation (a roping trick) and physical humor (a story about corset convention) along with a steady stream of one-liners and longer quips. His personal observations about current events were filtered through his Rogers persona.

"There are now more taxi drivers than there are farmers," he said. "It's easier to get a ride from the airport than bacon and eggs for breakfast."

Reeder featured several of Rogers's more famous quotes when he slipped into character to bring the Oklahoma cowboy to life.

"All I know is what I read in the newspaper," he said as he pulled a copy of The Daily Ardmoreite from his suit coat pocket.

Rogers was introduced to President Warren G. Harding in the Oval Office, and the president was obviously a fan.

"Mr. President, would you like to hear the latest political jokes?" he asked.

"No, Will. I appointed most of them."

Congress, or the "old jokes factory," was a frequent target of his keen wit.

"I don't have to make up any political jokes," he said. "I just watch the government and repeat the facts. With Congress, every time they make a joke it's a law, and every time they make a law, it's a joke."

Reeder/Rogers ended his presentation with "the economic plan to end all economic plans."

"Don't gamble. Take all your savings and buy some good stock and hold it til it goes up, then sell it. If it don't go up, don't buy it."

This article appeared in The Daily Ardmoreite, www.ardmoreite.com, on September 9, 2007.