CHAUTAUQUA–It has become common for historical figures to grace the lectern of Advocates for Balance at Chautauqua, or ABC.

In 2021, James Madison took time away from the federal city to come to Chautauqua to rekindle the American spirit.

“No free government can long endure without virtue, without frugality, and without a frequent recurrence to fundamental principles,” Madison said. “Our constitution is the careful work of reflection.”

In 2022, Thomas Jefferson came on horseback. Riding comfortably at about five miles per hour, it took 10 days to travel through, and arrive here in the wilderness.

Jefferson brought tears to audience members’ eyes as he called the loss of his wife in 1782 “the deepest of my emotions” and called “the 10 short years of our marriage … 10 years of uncheckered happiness.”

In 2025, the Marquis de Lafayette will follow suit.

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For the final ABC event of the 2024 season, the guest was Mark Twain, whose real name is Samuel Langhorne Clemens.

The Hannibal, Mo., native shared reflections on many subjects and spun an amusing tale or two.

“The whole human race is insane. All Democrats are insane, but only the Republicans know it. All Republicans are insane, but only the Democrats know it,” Twain said.

He announced his campaign for president and said with a straight face, “It is better to be popular than right.”

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Twain is played by Mike Randall, who was on the air for decades at WKBW, the ABC television affiliate on channel 7 in Buffalo.

Randall fills the role of Twain superbly, as if he could with ease hold the audience’s attention throughout the day and into the evening with the adventures of Tom Sawyer or Huck Finn.

Randall’s program for his Twain appearance notes that Randall began impersonating Twain at age 17. What he calls “his first ‘official show'” was at Daemen University–then called Rosary Hill College–in 1972.

In the next few years, he found himself on stage at the Buffalo Showboat, at the State Department in Washington, D.C., and at the Little Hippondrome, a dinner theatre in New York City.

In 2007, he began his second solo show, Charles Dickens Presents: A Christmas Carol, which Randall performs at Christmas time.

He has played other roles for Shakespeare in Delaware Park, Jewish Reparatory Theatre, TOY The Theatre Company, Kavinoky Theatre, and the New Phoenix Theatre.

Randall’s first work as a playwright was Shoot the Weatherman, at the Alleyway Theatre. His second, Guns & Roses, took first place in a competition and was also produced by the Alleyway Theatre.

At WKBW, his program notes he was chief meteorologist, an award-winning feature reporter, a morning-show host, and Captain Mike on the new Rocketship 7.

Some locals may remember another familiar WKBW face, Commander Tom, in a similar role.

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Randall’s program also notes that Twain’s many jobs included being a newspaper reporter, a riverboat pilot, and that Twain shone “brightest on stage and was considered one of the funniest, most sought-after speakers in his day. His lecturing career began before he was a nationally known, much-loved celebrity and may have contributed to his unparalleled popularity. Several national and international lecture tours and hundreds of speaking engagements helped the humorist refine his storytelling to an art form.”

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On its website, https://www.abcatchq.com, ABC posts videos of most of its speakers.

ABC was formed in 2018. Its mission is “to achieve a balance of speakers in a mutually civil and respectful environment consistent with the historic mission of Chautauqua Institution”. ABC is its own Section 501(c)(3) organization, legally separate from the institution.

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At 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. from Aug. 31 to Sept. 6, Dr. Randy Elf is the guest on Chautauqua People, Dr. John Viehe’s half-hour Access Chautauqua television program on cable channel 1301 in Chautauqua, Mayville, North Harmony, Portland, Ripley, Sherman, and Westfield. The program is also available at https://works.bepress.com/elf/310.

COPYRIGHT 2024 BY RANDY ELF