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Jim and Jon Hager were born August 30, 1941 in Chicago. (Jon was the “eldest,” born 20 minutes before Jim.) Put up for adoption at birth, the boys’ adoptive parents were Jack and Frances Hager, a Methodist preacher and a schoolteacher, respectively. They grew up in a religious household and began singing in church. They attended high school (Class of 1959) in Park Ridge, IL, a suburb of the Windy City. While still in their teens, the brothers sang on a WGN-TV Saturday show and sang in some Greater Chicago Area clubs before they were drafted into the US Army. They would go on to serve in both Europe and Vietnam. After their service, they returned to the stage and played clubs throughout the Midwest. (Originally billed as just “The Hagers,” they later adopted the name “The Hager Twins.”) After slowly expanding their touring region, the brothers eventually landed in California. On the West Coast, they continued playing the clubs backing up or opening for such artists as the Carpenters and Kenny Rogers. Later, they went to work performing at Disneyland. There, they were spotted by California country star Buck Owens who asked them to join his band and touring show that also included singer Susan Raye and Sheb Wooley. Owens, who was under contract to Capitol, also helped the brothers get signed to their first record deal. No one can ever do harmony quite like family—since you tend to pronounce words exactly the same way, among other reasons. And, who are closer family than identical twins? Hence, the Hagers often achieved a truly remarkable sound. And they were good players, too. Both played guitar and drums. (Though Jim would become the primary guitarist in later years.) These attributes along with the novelty of being good looking and look-alike handsome brothers didn’t hurt their appeal at all. In 1969, the Hagers (as they were again billed) had a Top 40 hit with the song “Got to Get to Oklahoma, (‘Cause California’s Getting to Me).”
“Got to Get…” was featured on the Hagers’ first album released in 1970. Titled simply “The Hagers,” it also featured one of the duo’s best-remembered songs, “Loneliness Without You.” Later that same year, they released “Two Hager Are Better Than One.” This LP included their cover of “Silver Wings” and also a couple of tunes written by the brothers. In 1971, they released “Motherhood, Apple Pie & the Flag.” All three of these albums were released over Capitol Records. But, despite some critical success, the three LP’s were only modest sellers. After “Motherhood,” the boys switched to Andy Williams-owned Barnaby Records to release their next album, “Music on the Country Side.” Later still they were with the Elektra label. Regardless of their radio play however, the Hagers would soon become very famous and highly visible thanks to TV. The show “Hee Haw” was conceived as a country-flavored “Laugh-In,” a rapid-paced hour of (very corny) one-liners. But, unlike “Laugh-In,” for this show, the gags would be interspersed by straight country music performances by some of the industry’s top stars including Loretta Lynn, Conway Twitty, and innumerable others.
Like “Laugh-In,” the program had two male hosts/ringleaders. Respected instrumentalist Roy Clark was one and Buck Owens was the other. When Owens came to television, he brought his band and the Hagers with him. Like “Laugh-In,” “Hee Haw” had an expansive cast of supporting players that included Archie Campbell, Gordie Tapp, Lulu Roman, Don Haron, Stringbean and, from very early in the series, the Hagers. “Hee Haw” began on CBS in 1969 and aired over the network until 1971. When CBS axed it (as part of their early 1970’s “rural purge”), it went into first-run syndication where it would air for the next 22 years. Later names to join the cast included Minnie Pearl, Barbi Benton, George Lindsey, Roni Stoneman, Slim Pickins, Roy Acuff, and Misty Rowe. According to show producer Sam Lovullo, the Hagers were partially hired for their handsomeness, a counter-balance to such female show regulars as Lisa Todd and Gunilla Hutton. He said, “They were also the answer to the Hee-Haw Honeys. We were always looking for the other side of the gender--for good-looking hunks. They fit the bill very nicely.” Though it would always air a full slate of new episodes every season, “Hee Haw” would later adopt a very unique production schedule. A season’s full of content was usually filled in two to three weeks of break-neck, non-stop production every year. This allowed its cast to continue with the program for years, since each season didn’t require a major time commitment, allowing them to tour or take on other projects for the rest of the year. Along with participating in various sketches during the show, the Hagers would also regularly perform, usually doing songs that had a country-rock vibe to them like “Lodi” or “When Will I Be Loved?” With time, however, the duo seemed to get less screen time for their music and more time for their comedic antics. (Something that was quite common for the entire cast even though the show contained some immensely talented performers.) But the brothers were well-skilled in that arena and, in time, they became known as much comedians as musicians. In 1973, the duo got even greater, um, exposure when they were featured buck nekkid in the second ever issue of “Playgirl” magazine. The twins, posed together, were not nude, per se, but certainly they were not clothed either and both showed a bit of pubic hair. Though pretty tame by today’s standards, the photo was a lot for the staid country music community at that time. Supposedly it even caused legendary country comedienne Sarah Ophelia Cannon to clutch her (Minnie) Pearls! In 1976, the Hagers made a bid for greater TV stardom when they headlined their own made-for-TV movie, “Twin Detectives.” The self-explanatory film aired on ABC and was produced by Charles Fries Productions. Perhaps due to Jim and Jon’s relative inexperience as actors, the producers of the film surrounded them with some seasoned vets. In the cast were Patrick O’Neal, Barbara Rhodes, Lynda Day George, Michael Constatine, Randi Oaks and Lillian Gish. (Yes, Lillian Gish! One of the most superlative artists in the history of cinema had a role in “Twin Detectives”!)
It was a unique concept for a film and was intended to inspire a series. But, despite pretty positive reviews for the brothers—the “Hollywood Reporter” called the brothers “charming”--in their first (and only) starring roles, the network didn’t pick it up. Except for their regular “Hee Haw” appearances, the Hagers would not act on primetime again until a 1978 episode of “The Bionic Woman.” In this installment, “Sanctuary Earth,” they were cast as clones sent from outer space. In this episode, they co-starred with future Oscar winner Helen Hunt. The Hagers would remain with “Hee Haw” until 1986 when they, along with many other long-term cast members, departed the series due to a contract dispute. (The show itself ceased in 1993.) Throughout all these years, however, the Hagers toured relentlessly playing clubs, rodeos, fairs and other venues. It was a milieu that they seemed to like and thrive in. According to one of their onetime managers, “Neither ever met a stranger.” The Hagers augmented these performances with TV talk show appearances and guesting on other artists’ specials, including the Osmonds in 1971. And they appeared on “Celebrity Bowling” in 1976 taking on the team of Greg Morris and Bill Dana. In 1978, they attempted to launch a TV talk show titled “Nashville County Fare,” but that show did not get picked up either. Throughout the Hagers’ career they also gave regularly to charity, performing for free, and doing various telethons. Avid fishermen and sportsmen, late in their careers, they also began to sponsor an annual “Musky Hunt” (a musky is a type of fish) up in Wisconsin, with its proceeds going to good causes. Throughout it all, by and large, the brothers kept their personal lives private but, in the mid 1970s, the Hagers, or at least Jon, was a regular in some of the gossip mags of the era since he had a high-profile romance with “Room 222” actress and game-show regular Karen Valentine. In fact, the couple was supposedly even engaged at one time but a marriage never took place. (Their relationship however was not one that was blessed by Valentine’s “Hollywood Square’s” co-star Paul Lynde, who, apparently, felt no one was ever good enough for her.) Yet, despite that relationship and all its press coverage, rumors have since emerged—mainly online--that one of the brothers was gay and the other was bisexual. But by 1974, it was already being mentioned in newspaper articles that Jim was married (his wife’s name was Betty) and was the father to a son. Later Jon married a woman named Catherine and also had at least one child. As mentioned, as their careers progressed, the Hagers seemed to become as know for their comedy as for their more “serious” music. In 1979, when kidvid star Soupy Sales briefly came back to TV, the brothers appeared on his show singing an ode to pizza. The tune—which DID NOT make the top 10 of any chart—is now described on Youtube as the “WORST SONG EVER.”
Then, in 1984, when the Soviets boycotted the Olympic games in the Los Angles, the Hagers debuted their “Olympic Song,” written by Bill Baker. Its lyrics: “I don’t care if the Russians stay home this summer / I don’t care if they never go to LA / It’s no fun behind the Iron Curtain / Why else would so many comrades stay away?” The comedy partnership of the Hagers also found a home on various The Nashville Network (TNN) programs of the ‘80’s and ‘90’s like Florence Henderson’s cooking show “Country Kitchen.” Finally, the Hagers began to relax their pace later in their lives. Both living in Nashville, the brothers continued to perform but also took it easy. Then, one day, while walking out of his favorite coffee shop, Jim Hager collapsed in the parking lot. He was rushed to the hospital but it was too late. Jim Hager died of a heart attack on May 1, 2008. His brother, would survive only nine month after the death of this twin. He died in his sleep on January 9, 2009. Many of the Hagers’ “Hee Haw” performances (though by no means all of the over 100 appearances they made on the show) can now be found on Youtube. (Also to be found there, their 1970s TV movie “Twin Detectives.”) In 2002, Omnivore Records released the Hagers’ three Capitol albums as a box set. 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Before there was Kate and Ashley, before the Property Brothers, show biz’s most famous set of twins were probably the Hagers, the country-singing, “long-haired” and handsome brothers best known for their long association with the TV show “Hee Haw,” an association that has, too often, overshadowed their skilled musicianship.