Is Lawrence Welk still relevant to viewers in 2020?

The Big Lead

On Sunday Night Football last night, Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth reacted to the New York Post using the headline "Lawrence? Welp" as a pun on Welk's name in reaction to the New York Jets possibly losing out on top QB prospect Trevor Lawrence by upsetting the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday. But how many viewers would get the reference to a TV personality whose The Lawrence Welk Show ended in 1982? Over the past decade, Saturday Night Live has done numerous sketches mocking The Lawrence Welk Show that have attracted millions of views. "But here's the question: Does Welk still resonate with the masses? I am 36, an oldish soul, and my only frame of reference is Fred Armisen playing him in an Saturday Night Live sketch," says Kyle Koster. "Logically, a newspaper audience is going to skew a little older as the kids are all getting their news online these days. So I've heard. If Welk is still connecting, though, that's big news. News we can use. That would mean a Mamie Van Doren or Art Linkletter headline allusion would be worth the SEO hit."