No Abraham Lincoln impersonator with a shred of dignity would do the things we wanted and needed him to do. And we knew a cartoon might not impress upon the audience the real-life grandeur of Springfield. No, we needed someone we could control like a puppet to be the face and voice of our Springfield. But not just any puppet, a finger puppet. We thought they were funnier anyway.

We called him Lil’ Abe and the rest, as they say, was history.

We enjoyed endless opportunities to have fun with Lil’ Abe, especially the videos which were shot guerrilla-style – and often one-handed – using a simple camcorder on a shoe-string budget. All while educating meeting planners on the appeal and potential Springfield held for their meetings, conventions, or special events.