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"The Last Outlaw Poet"

Discussion in 'Anything goes' started by dargan, Apr 8, 2009.

  1. dargan

    dargan Active Member

    Interesting story from Rolling Stone about Kris Kristofferson, who is a legend to those of us who are outlaw country patrons. Story was written by Ethan Hawke. It's long, but good stuff if you have the time to read it.

    http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/27113898/the_last_outlaw_poet/1
     
  2. ifilus

    ifilus Well-Known Member

    Toby Keith didn't like the story:

    "I don't know Ethan Hawke. Ethan Hawke wanted to do some kind of superficial Rolling Stone article. And he did everything he could to make his story the greatest story ever in Rolling Stone," Keith said. "And it was a fictitious (expletive) lie. O.K?

    "He didn't even call me by my name. ... He called Norah Jones, Ray Charles, everybody else by name. Willie (Nelson), Kris (Kristofferson). Why didn't he call my name? Why didn't he say Toby Keith walked through and said this (expletive)? Right? You know why. You know why. You know as good as anybody why. He didn't want to (expletive) deal with the aftermath."

    In the story, Hawke claimed he witnessed the confrontation backstage at Nelson's tribute concert for his 70th birthday at the Beacon Theatre in New York. The article does not name Keith but says it was a country singer who "had a monster hit about bombing America's enemies back into the stone age." In 2002, Keith had the song "Courtesy of the Red, White & Blue (The Angry American)" that threatened retribution for the 9/11 attacks.

    Hawke said the argument began with the "Star" telling Kristofferson: "None of that lefty (expletive) out there tonight, Kris."

    Hawke said Kristofferson then angrily confronted and asked him if he had ever served in the military.

    "Have you ever killed another man? Huh? Have you ever taken another man's life and then cashed the check your country gave you for doing it? No, you have not, so shut the (expletive) up," Hawke recounted Kristofferson as saying. "You don't know what the hell you are talking about."

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/06/toby-keith-rages-at-ethan_n_183715.html
     
  3. dargan

    dargan Active Member

    Yeah, but Toby Keith's a jackass.
     
  4. STLIrish

    STLIrish Active Member

    It would seem that this little spat between Ethan Hawke and Toby Keith could be resolved with a fairly simple question to Willie Nelson or Norah Jones or Paul Simon or anyone else in the room that night.
    But it's sort of a chickenshit move to describe a scene like that involving someone in such detail that anyone reading the magazine would know who it is, and then not name the guy.
    Which brings up the obvious question - Why is Ethan Hawke writing 8,000 word tree-killers for Rolling Stone? Couldn't they find a professional to do this story? Or didn't they care to?
    I know the answer. It just pisses me off. Most writers can't act, and most actors can't write, at least not long-form magazine journalism. Really, what, aside from maybe access, did Ethan Hawke bring to this story? Is Ethan Hawke's mancrush on Kris Kristofferson really that interesting?
    I don't know. Railing at the wind, I guess. It's just that our industry is in bad enough shape without turning it over to celebrities, and then watching them make a blunder my high school newspaper editor wouldn't have let in the paper.
     
  5. Inky_Wretch

    Inky_Wretch Well-Known Member

    Oh, that could be a good hook for a country song. Maybe mention momma, trains, trucks, prison and gettin' drunk in a verse.

    And STL, Kristofferson's statement sounded like a non-confirmation confirmation of the story to me.
     
  6. dargan

    dargan Active Member

    I see I'm the only one interested enough in Kristofferson, rather than Keith, to get beyond the first page.
     
  7. pallister

    pallister Guest

    Nice.
     
  8. zeke12

    zeke12 Guest

    I love me some Kristofferson.

    I might have to buy a copy of Rolling Stone for the first time in a long time.
     
  9. STLIrish

    STLIrish Active Member

    No, I read the whole thing. It was interesting. Kristofferson's one of those guys you hear about, but don't always know the whole story of (or at least I didn't). I'm curious now to see the movie he made when he was on top of the world. And Hawke did a perfectly serviceable job telling it, except for the rookie mistake on his lead that's going to distract from the entire rest of the piece. Which is too bad, but the price RS pays for hiring a rookie and, apparently, letting that lead slide.
     
  10. dargan

    dargan Active Member

    Good to hear.

    And when you go back to watch his role in that movie, don't forget this timeless Kris Kristofferson masterpiece ...

    [​IMG]
     
  11. KG

    KG Active Member

    I miss being able to find a station with outlaw hours (at least on the weekend). That was always the best "drankin" music.
     
  12. dargan

    dargan Active Member

    Get the Sirius and tune to channel 63. It's literally named "Outlaw Country."

    My top preset since the XM B.B. King Bluesville channel replaced the original Sirius Blues 74.
     
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