DAWSONVILLE — Last week was a unique, star-studded time for the city of Dawsonville.

On April 29, Daniel Whitney, better known as Larry the Cable Guy, showed up at the Dawsonville Pool Room after a long day in the woods filming for a television show.

Dawsonville’s Gordon Pirkle acted as a sort of a tour guide for the Blue Comedy Tour star and camera crew, taking them to a makeshift model of a moonshine still in the woods and later to the well-known eatery.

Pirkle will co-star in an episode of the History Channel documentary series “Only in America.” Larry the Cable Guy is host of the show.

Pirkle said the episode will have a “whole lot of Dawsonville history ... all the good stuff.” It’s set to air in early fall.

As word spread of the celebrity’s visit, a crowd gathered at the Pool Room awaiting his arrival.

Brandon Harkness, 13, of Dawsonville waited inside, watching Larry the Cable Guy get out of a car. He ran out the door, pen and paper in hand.

“I got his autograph,” said Brandon, a longtime fan. “When I saw him, I was like ‘holy crap, it’s really him!’ Yeah, I was pretty excited.”
Larry the Cable Guy said meeting local residents was a good experience for him, too.

“I love Dawsonville,” he said, while signing autographs inside the Pool Room. “I feel right at home here. These people are good. It’s a good place. I wouldn’t mind coming back sometime for a longer visit.”

Pirkle said he enjoyed working with Larry the Cable Guy.

“He was great. Real nice guy,” Pirkle said.

He added that at one point during a film shoot off Ga. 136, a school bus was stopped on the highway letting kids out.

“Larry the Cable Guy goes and gets on the school bus and started talking to the kids, joking with them,” Pirkle said. “Boy, I bet they were thrilled about that.”

Pirkle spent nearly 15 hours following the film crew Thursday.

“By the end of it, I was whooped. I’m still whooped,” he said. “That was a long day, but I’ll never forget it. It was something else.”