OCEAN CITY, MD - Wednesday was the first of five special screenings of Scorchy’s Corner episodes at the Museum of Ocean City, a program highlighting the beloved WBOC broadcaster Scorchy Tawes.
Scorchy was born Charles Norris Tawes in Crisfield, Maryland, on January 20, 1921. A true Eastern Shoreman, World War II veteran and masterful storyteller, Scorchy’s tales captivated audiences on Delmarva for more than a decade.
Scorchy began his career with WBOC in 1975 and continued telling stories into his seventies. He passed away in 2007 at the age of 86, leaving behind a treasure trove of stories.
Honoring his legacy and highlighting those uniquely Delmarva stories is the goal of the Museum Society of Ocean City’s five-week video series, Scorchy’s Corner: Wandering Our Delmarvalous Land.
"People that know Scorchy and remember Scorchy to go down memory land and then for our younger generation, it's education,” Museum Curator Christine Okerblom said. “What was important then and maybe what should be important now."
Each hour-long installment compiles the best of Scorchy’s stories. The first series showed the Eastern Shore icon on shark and tuna fishing expeditions in 1988.
The Museum Society acquired VHS tapes showcasing Scorchy’s work about two years ago.
"We came across the tapes for Scorchy's Corner, and we thought, what a great idea to just kind of feature this on-time only, five-week series,” Interim Museum Coordinator Erin Jones said.
There are four more chances to wander the delmarvalous land alongside this Eastern Shore legend. Attendance is free for museum members. Tickets for non-members are $5. The Scorchy’s Corner movie series runs Wednesdays through March 4 at the Museum of Ocean City.