The cornpone humor continues, as even the rabbit is gob smacked to see this retread from a 1960s sitcom showing up in Lost Forest. It seems that the veil of propriety has been lifted from this area and we’re discovering that it is filled with a growing variety of oddballs.
The apparent proximity of Lost Forest (near the coast of Georgia, it seems) to Florida must have something to do with the influx of creeps, kooks, and connivers. As another link to the influence of Florida weirdness, the moment I saw Ernest’s work van, a slice of tv trivia dropped into my bread pan. How about you? Think back to cop shows in Florida, around 1984. Okay, so there was only one. Miami Vice featured an undercover surveillance van disguised as a pest control truck, with a “flying ant” on top.
This is just one version of the van; there were several, including a white one. Any influence on Rivera? Other than a general “Florida Weirdness” vibe that Rivera favors, it’s hard to say. Still, you don’t usually see such things any longer, as workers tend to use their van tops for holding ladders.
Well, Honest Ernest may be a cloddish jerk and kind of simple, but I have to admit to liking the pun-name Bee-heading; the name, not the technique. Anyway, is Mark just going to keep on holding that bag of plant soil?
The Daily Trail 
The van is more Dale’s Dead-Bug.
After starting out in Georgia & moving to the St. Lawrence, it looks like Lost Forest is going to remain mobile.
Ah, good catch, Downpuppy! Who could forget Dale and the rest of the characters on King of the Hill? Well, I did, of course. I watched it a lot, but not religiously, so the van fell out of my memory. Anyway, it’s a more likely inspiration, I bet, than M.V.
I like the idea of a mobile Lost Forest, too. Place it where it needs to be so you can stock it with whatever props you need!