David Akeman (June 17, 1915 – November 10, 1973), better known as Stringbean (or String Bean), was an American country music banjo player and comedy musician best known for his role on the hit television show, Hee Haw, and as a member of the Grand Ole Opry. Akeman and his wife were murdered by burglars at their rural Tennessee home in 1973.
Born in Annville, Jackson County, Kentucky, Akeman came from a musical family. He was taught to play the banjo by his father, James Akemon. He got his first real banjo when he was 12 years old in exchange for a pair of prize bantam chickens. Akeman began playing at local dances and gained a reputation as a musician, but the income was not enough to live on. He joined the Depression-era Civilian Conservation Corps, building roads and planting trees.
Eventually, he entered a talent contest judged by singer-guitarist-musical saw player Asa Martin. He won and was invited to join Martin's band. During an early appearance, Martin forgot Akeman's name and introduced him as "String Bean" because of his tall, thin build. Akeman used the nickname the rest of his life.
Akeman originally was only a musician, but when another performer failed to show up one night, he was used as a singer and comic. From then on, Akeman did both comedy and music. He appeared on WLAP-AM in Lexington, Kentucky, and played with several groups in the late 1930s.
Akeman also played semi-professional baseball. It was as a ballplayer that he met bluegrass pioneer Bill Monroe, who fielded with another semi-pro team. From 1943 to 1945, Akeman played banjo for Monroe's band, performing on recordings such as "Goodbye Old Pal". He also teamed with Willie Egbert Westbrook as String Beans and Cousin Wilbur, a comedy duo who appeared on the same bill as Monroe's band. When he left Monroe, he was replaced by Earl Scruggs, a banjoist with a very different style.
In 1945, Akeman married Estelle Stanfill. The same year, he formed a comedy duet with Willie Egbert Westbrook, and they were invited to perform on the Grand Ole Opry. The following year, Akeman began working with Grandpa Jones, another old-time banjo player and comedian. Jones and Akeman worked together at the Opry and years later on the Hee Haw television series. They also became neighbors near Ridgetop, Tennessee. Akeman became a protégé of Uncle Dave Macon, one of the biggest Opry stars. Near the end of his life, Macon gave Akeman one of his prized banjos.
Akeman was modest and unassuming, and he enjoyed hunting and fishing. Accustomed to the hard times of the Great Depression, Akeman and his wife Estelle lived frugally in a tiny cabin near Ridgetop, Tennessee. Their only indulgence was a Cadillac. Depression-era bank failures caused Akeman not to trust banks with his money. Gossip around Nashville was that Akeman kept large amounts of cash on hand, even though he was by no means wealthy by entertainment industry standards.
On Saturday night, November 10, 1973, Akeman and his wife returned home after he performed at the Grand Ole Opry. Both were shot dead shortly after their arrival. The killers had waited for hours. The bodies were discovered the following morning by their neighbor, Grandpa Jones.
A police investigation resulted in the convictions of cousins John A. Brown and Marvin Douglas Brown, both 23 years old. They had ransacked the cabin and killed Stringbean when he arrived. His wife shrieked when she saw her husband murdered. She begged for her life, but was shot as well. According to the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals, "Upon their return, Mr. Akeman spotted the intruders in his home and evidently offered some resistance. One of the Brown cousins fatally shot Mr. Akeman, then pursued, shot, and killed Mrs. Akeman. At their trial (where Akeman's fellow cast member and friend Grandpa Jones testified, as he recognized one of the stolen firearms in the defendants' possession as a gift he had given Akeman), each defendant blamed the other for the homicides."
The killers took only a chain saw and some firearms. In 1996, 23 years after the murders, $20,000 in paper money was discovered behind a chimney brick in Stringbean's home. The money had deteriorated to such an extent that it was not usable and had to be turned in to a bank.
For the puzzle, the coordinates take you to the gates of Forest Lawn Cemetery, you must search for Music Row section and find Stringbean's grave. From here project a waypoint 31.791 degrees for 7717.5 feet to the final. As usual you must bring your own writing utensil, and maybe some tweezers. The final may be hunted at night but the cemetery is only open from sunrise to sunset. As always, good luck and happy caching.