Killer of Hee Haw's David "Stringbean" Akeman paroled after 41 years
10-17-14, 06:48 PM
#1
Killer of Hee Haw's David "Stringbean" Akeman paroled after 41 years
A lot of the people on this forum weren't even born when this happened (November 1973)!
David Akeman and his wife, Estelle, were murdered when they arrived home. Two burglars, John Brown and his cousin Marvin Douglas Brown, were charged with the crime.
The msn article claims Akeman was shot when he entered; the wikipedia article quotes from a Tennessee court document that Akeman "evidently offered some resistance." Estelle was shot as she begged for her life.
Each cousin blamed the other for the killings. Each was sentenced to two consecutive 99-year sentences; there was no death penalty in the United States from 1972-78, per the US Supreme Court ruling. Marvin Douglas Brown died in prison in 2003. John Brown was granted parole Oct. 15, 2014 and is scheduled to be released in four to six weeks.
Akeman had quite a career as a banjo player and comic, performing regularly at The Grand Old Opry, as well as playing semi-professional baseball.
But most of us remember Akeman, better known as Stringbean, from his appearances on Hee Haw. He would be made up as the scarecrow in the cornfield, make a comment, and the puppet crow would caw in his ear. He had a recurring skit where he would sit on a porch, surrounded by other cast members and mention a letter from home. "Got it right next to my heart," he would say. He would then fumble through each pocket until he pulled it out of his hip pocket. It got to be so common, that Stringbean and the cast would say, in unison, "heart, heart, heart, heart..." He'd then go on to read the humorous letter.
I remember reading about the murders in '73 and being shocked; that kind of thing didn't happen to celebrities! I didn't think about it until maybe four or five years ago, wondering if the killers had ever been caught and looking up the information online. And now this. A lot of angry comments on the msn article. What was the parole board thinking?!?!
http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/...d=ansnewsreu11
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_%...bean%22_Akeman
David Akeman and his wife, Estelle, were murdered when they arrived home. Two burglars, John Brown and his cousin Marvin Douglas Brown, were charged with the crime.
The msn article claims Akeman was shot when he entered; the wikipedia article quotes from a Tennessee court document that Akeman "evidently offered some resistance." Estelle was shot as she begged for her life.
Each cousin blamed the other for the killings. Each was sentenced to two consecutive 99-year sentences; there was no death penalty in the United States from 1972-78, per the US Supreme Court ruling. Marvin Douglas Brown died in prison in 2003. John Brown was granted parole Oct. 15, 2014 and is scheduled to be released in four to six weeks.
Akeman had quite a career as a banjo player and comic, performing regularly at The Grand Old Opry, as well as playing semi-professional baseball.
But most of us remember Akeman, better known as Stringbean, from his appearances on Hee Haw. He would be made up as the scarecrow in the cornfield, make a comment, and the puppet crow would caw in his ear. He had a recurring skit where he would sit on a porch, surrounded by other cast members and mention a letter from home. "Got it right next to my heart," he would say. He would then fumble through each pocket until he pulled it out of his hip pocket. It got to be so common, that Stringbean and the cast would say, in unison, "heart, heart, heart, heart..." He'd then go on to read the humorous letter.
I remember reading about the murders in '73 and being shocked; that kind of thing didn't happen to celebrities! I didn't think about it until maybe four or five years ago, wondering if the killers had ever been caught and looking up the information online. And now this. A lot of angry comments on the msn article. What was the parole board thinking?!?!
http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/...d=ansnewsreu11
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_%...bean%22_Akeman
Last edited by digidoh; 10-17-14 at 06:59 PM. Reason: Spelling errors
