The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia early 1973. Lawrence was, at the time, a regular performer on the ensemble variety comedy television show "The Carol Burnett Show"; on the final episode of the sixth season (March 24, 1973), Burnett surprised Lawrence by presenting her with an RIAA gold record for over a million copies sold. The song also scored number six on the Easy Listening chart, and it peaked at number 36 on "Billboard"'s Hot Country Singles chart. It was number one for two weeks on the "Billboard" Hot 100, and was finally topped by Tony Orlando and Dawn's "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole
Tony Orlando that followed Watergate. He represented simple, traditional values, a conservative return to pure entertainment. He drew a happy face in the "O" of his autograph. It was not terribly cool, but America loved him." The "Tony Orlando and Dawn" Show on CBS became a hit, a summer replacement for the "Sonny & Cher" show, and ran for four seasons from 1973 to 1976. It welcomed the biggest names in show business each week as Orlando's guests, including his boyhood idols, Jackie Gleason and Jerry Lewis. At the 1976 Republican National Convention in Kansas City, Missouri, Orlando danced to the tune