 The puppet, best recognized for his large gray mustache and straw cowboy hat, was discovered by Hall in a Minnesota hobby shop in 1980.Hall first used Shotgun Red as the emcee for his band at the time, "Southbound '76".After traveling to Nashville to compete in the final round of The Seagram's 7 battle of the bands contest, Hall and Shotgun "crashed" Ralph Emery's local morning TV show.