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‘GMA’ dream slowly fades for Gustavus couple
Lipps Farm Aftermath from Good Morning America
Gallery
The lifestyle of the Lipps family has now returned to normal.
GUSTAVUS — What do you do after presidential candidate John McCain has conducted a live interview from your backyard and country superstar Brad Paisley has entertained 1,000 fans from a stage next to your barn?
If you’re Henry and Linda Lipps of Gustavus, you get back to life as usual.
“It will take a while for things to feel normal again, but we’re doing the things we normally do,” Henry, 68, said during a Friday morning interview. “So far we’ve done some grocery shopping and went out to eat.
“It’s nice that the phone has stopped ringing off the hook,” Linda, 65, added. “That’s helping us get back to normal. It’s nice to have some quiet.”
The Lipps had gotten accustomed to a constantly ringing telephone.
After months of secret planning and several days of intense preparation for last Wednesday’s “Good Morning America” broadcast at their Barclay North Road farm, the Lipps were getting used to the frenetic pace of live television.
“I don’t know how the [‘GMA’] news anchors and producers do it day after day,” Linda remarked. “Everything is so fast-paced. Everything has to be timed right down to the last second. So much planning went into these [whistle-stop] broadcasts. I have a great appreciation for it. It’s amazing.”
The Lipps also are amazed at how fast the “Good Morning America” crews have cleaned up and cleared out.
“We still have a front-end loader and some flood lights here at the farm, but pretty much everything else is gone,” Linda said. “The crews had most of their sound and stage equipment packed up by Wednesday afternoon and were on their way.”
Although the equipment is gone, the Lipps’ yard is full of evidence of Wednesday’s festivities. “It’s a little muddy and trampled, but who cares? We had a party!” Henry said.
Boy, did they ever.
“I felt like I was having a dream,” Linda said. “One thing I’ve realized is that we’ve made history here in Gustavus. Nothing like this has ever happened in Gustavus before, and nothing like this will probably ever happen again. The local historical society is working on putting things together to preserve this day.”
Meanwhile, the Lipps have been answering lots of questions about their own history. Since “GMA,” they’ve become local celebrities.
“My father and I bought this farm in 1958, and Linda and I have lived here since we got married in 1962,” Henry said.
The Lipps’ red bank barn that served as a backdrop for the Paisley concert is about 90 years old.
“We used to milk cows in the barn, but now we just use it for storage,” Henry said.
The Lipps’ farmhouse was built around 1890.
Henry grew up on the neighboring farm where his brother, John Lipps, now lives.
John and wife, Jerry Lipps, were also featured on the “GMA” live broadcast.
John Osborne of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees was disappointed his chapter — Local 101 — didn’t receive credit by the media for the work they did for the event.
“‘GMA’ called me about three weeks ago and hired about 26 of us to put up the Paisley stage and take it down and do other things to prepare for the live broadcast,” Osborne said. “The news media reported that it was ABC’s crews that did all the work. We just want some credit for our part in it.”
Osborne said his people were hard at work at the Lipps’ farm from Sunday through Wednesday in preparation for the live broadcast.
Some locals also expressed disappointment that Wednesday’s show didn’t include more interaction with “GMA” news anchors Diane Sawyer, Robin Roberts and Chris Cuomo.
Ruthie Palich, of Kinsman, attended Wednesday morning’s live broadcast with her 6-year-old daughter, Devon.
After rising at 3 a.m. and waiting for hours in the morning chill, Palich said she was disappointed that the crowd didn’t get to interact more with the anchors.
“I know lots of people were hoping for a chance to shake Diane Sawyer’s hand,” she said.
Palich said many people were also hoping to see McCain in person.
“Most of us didn’t even get to see McCain’s bus when it passed by [on its way to the Lipps farm] because we were waiting in the rodeo arena at the Double L Ranch, and it was so dark and foggy.”
“A lot of people were also disappointed that they didn’t get to see McCain in person,” Henry added. “But the Secret Service was very strict. They had our farm locked down and even searched some of our own family members. We never felt so safe in our lives!”
Of course, many people in Wednesday’s crowd didn’t give a hoot if they saw the Republican presidential nominee.
“A lot of people just came to see Brad Paisley,” Linda said, adding, “Other people didn’t care if they saw Brad Paisley or John McCain. They were just tickled that [‘GMA’] had come to Gustavus in the first place. To them I say ‘Bless you.’ We are honored that they chose our town. Our area is a good representation of farm life and small-town America.”