Bessie the Evangelistic Cow

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on February 9, 2009

Perhaps the most mocked and ridiculed element of the controversial Billy Graham Library is Bessie the cow. But the kids love her.

Bessie is an animatronic cow that greets visitors to the Billy Graham Library. Seriously.

She has the Southern twang and low, sugary voice of an old black woman (an early voice over was determined to be “too Yankee”) and serves to draw kids into the experience. Bessie talks with pride of young ‘Billy Frank’ and emphasizes how God used Billy Graham. She also urges kids to take a quiz and exchange it for a prize at the end of the tour.

Watch a YouTube video of Bessie:

Check out the Ashville Citizen-Times virtual tour, which includes a complete video of Bessie’s speech.