Editing Garner Ted Armstrong (section)

==Brief biography==
Armstrong's genealogy is described in his father's autobiography. The elder Armstrong reported that the Armstrong ancestors arrived in America in the late 17th century with [[William Penn]]. The ancestry was traced to [[Edward I of England]]. Armstrong's grandmother was "something like a third cousin to former President [[Herbert Hoover]]".<ref>{{cite book|last=Armstrong|first=Herbert|title=Autobiography of Herbert W. Armstrong, Vol. I|year=1967|publisher=Worldwide Church of God|pages=25–26}}</ref>

Armstrong was born in [[Portland, Oregon]], to Loma Isabelle (Dillon) and Herbert W. Armstrong.<ref name="Ancestry of Garner Ted Armstrong">{{cite web|url=http://www.wargs.com/other/armstrongg.html|title=Ancestry of Garner Ted Armstrong|access-date=April 15, 2017}}</ref> He was raised in [[Eugene, Oregon]], the youngest of four children. He was named for a great-grandmother on his mother's side, Martha Garner, who was born in [[Suffolk, England]], in 1841 and died in Iowa in 1923, seven years before he was born.

Following service in the [[United States Navy]] during the [[Korean War]], Armstrong returned to [[Pasadena, California]], where his father had moved the church's operations in 1946. He was baptized in early 1953 (Origin and History, p.&nbsp;36). He enrolled in [[Ambassador College]], founded by his father and supported by the church. Ambassador was not regionally accredited, and Armstrong eventually completed [[Unaccredited degree|bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees]] in the only discipline offered, [[theology]]. He was ordained a minister in 1955 and held key administrative posts in both the Worldwide Church of God and Ambassador College until he was disfellowshipped (excommunicated) by his father in 1978. Prior to his removal, he was executive vice president of the church and president of the college and was widely considered to be heir-apparent to succeed his father as head of the church and its operations.<ref name="nytimes_obit"/>

===Personality===
[[File:Garner Ted Armstrong playing guitar, 1979.jpg|thumb|left|Armstrong performing at the [[Christian observances of Jewish holidays|Feast of Tabernacles]] in San Antonio, Texas, 1979]]
Armstrong was described as "movie star handsome" and was noted for his broadcasting talents. In radio and TV programs he mixed political, economic, and social news of the day with religious commentary.<ref name="latimes_obit">{{cite news |last1=Oliver |first1=Myrna |title=Garner Ted Armstrong, 73; TV Evangelist Formed Own Church After Break With Father |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-sep-16-me-armstrong16-story.html |access-date=August 18, 2019 |work=Los Angeles Times |date=September 16, 2003}}</ref> He was noted for adding "wry humor" into sermons that preached about the biblical prophesied return of Jesus Christ to the Earth.<ref name="nytimes_obit">{{cite news |last1=Martin |first1=Douglas |title=Garner Ted Armstrong, Evangelist, 73, Dies |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/17/us/garner-ted-armstrong-evangelist-73-dies.html |access-date=August 18, 2019 |work=New York Times |date=September 17, 2003}}</ref>

In 1975, Garner Ted Armstrong arranged for his friend, [[Hee Haw]] co-host [[Buck Owens]], to entertain attendees on Family Night at the annual fall Feast of Tabernacles church convention. Buck Owens and his band the Buckaroos traveled to five U.S. Feast of Tabernacles sites and performed before about 15,000 people.  The concerts were attended by festival attendees and were also open to the general public.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/stroudsburg-pocono-record-sep-19-1975-p-43| title=Stroudsburg Pocono Record Newspaper Archives| date= September 19, 1975|page=43 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=September 1, 1975|title=The Worldwide News|url=http://www.herbert-w-armstrong.com/other_materials/ww_news/WWN%201975%20(Prelim%20No%2018)%20Sep%2001_w.pdf|website=herbert-w-armstrong.com}}</ref>

To reciprocate, in 1976 Owens asked Armstrong to guest star on the ''Hee Haw'' show that starred Buck Owens and [[Roy Clark]]. He popped up out of the "corn patch" on the show to say "Sa-loot" to his hometown of Eugene, Oregon. He sang a country-western song he had written titled "Working Man's Hall of Fame" and joined "the whole Hee Haw gang" to sing the popular Ocean gospel song [[Put Your Hand in the Hand]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tv.com/shows/hee-haw/dottie-west-garner-ted-armstrong-charles-ginnsberg-1129157/|title=Hee-Haw: Dottie West / Garner Ted Armstrong / Charles Ginnsberg|publisher=TV.com|access-date=April 15, 2017|archive-date=May 25, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170525135111/http://www.tv.com/shows/hee-haw/dottie-west-garner-ted-armstrong-charles-ginnsberg-1129157/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Country music star [[Merle Haggard]] said that his most popular song "[[Okie From Muskogee]]" was inspired by listening to a Garner Ted Armstrong radio program of ''The World Tomorrow''.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sbkwDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA192|title= Proud to be an Okie: Cultural Politics, Country Music, and Migration to Southern California|isbn= 9780520248892|last1= Chapelle|first1= Peter La|date= April 3, 2007|publisher= University of California Press}}</ref>