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03 Feb 09 - 12:45 PM (#2556282) Subject: Celebrity personalities? From: Deckman I was talking with "bride Judy" this morning and I stumbled on an interesting thought. This might make for good postings: At my age of 171 years, I have run into many, many folksingers. Some have reached "celebrity status". I have a theory, and I'd love to read your opinions on this, that those "celebrities" who last ... survive well ... are those same people who are really "nice people." Define niceness however you want. I'm going to suggest a few names of "celebrities I've run into that fit this category. People who know me well might notice that there are lot's of "celebrities" I've met that are NOT on this list. They shall remain nameless ... and with darned good reason. My list of really "good hearted and nice celebrities": Pete Seeger,Guy Carawan, Jeff Warner, Jed Marum, Linda Allen, Tom Paxton, Merritt Herring, Don Firth. As soon as I close this, I know I'll think of scores more. Bob(deckman)Nelson |
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03 Feb 09 - 05:01 PM (#2556493) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: GUEST Bob: I would surely add Mike Seeger, the recently departed Nick Reynolds, John Stewart, Travis Edmonson and Sam Hinton, among others. Dick Smothers and Pat Paulsen were two guys I did business with and both always treated me kindly. In the larger "show biz" world, Bob Newhart and Jonathon Winters are pretty much the way you'd imagine them. Jon still goes down to the corner store in Montecito and hangs with the locals. One of the most beloved local characters while living near San Diego was Jimmy Durante, who seemed kind to everyone. In this age when so much bad behavior from prominent performers only seems to get them more press coverage and make them more popular, I really value those who keep their values and their friends once they have become public figures. Hey!!!Be sure to use a name when you post. By rights, I should delete this post. Please see our Posting Policy. Thanks.-Joe Offer, Forum Moderator- |
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03 Feb 09 - 06:39 PM (#2556558) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Deckman You know, you're completly right about Sam Hinton. I only met him twice ... the first time at a hoot in the "U" district of Seattle, in the late fifties. I visited with him again when he did a children's concert in Santa Cruz. A very, very nice guy. The older I get, and I'm working on that every day, the quality of "niceness" becomes more noticable. Bob |
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03 Feb 09 - 07:00 PM (#2556582) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: GUEST,TJ in San Diego Joe: I realize I blew the rule and left out my name. I will take pains to recognize myself properly in future. Thanks for the alert. |
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03 Feb 09 - 07:05 PM (#2556588) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Weasel It isn't just on the folk scene - I've found exactly the same on the classical music scene. Sure, there are some notorious "bad smells" but the majority of the big names are really "nice" people with it. |
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03 Feb 09 - 07:54 PM (#2556627) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Deckman One of my real surprises was Bob Hope. I'd always heard that he was a real jerk. Back in 1864 ... er 1964 ... I was living in a village in the Santa Cruz mountains by the name of Felton. One Sunday morning I got up early and walked a block to the local bakery shop for my usual coffee. Bob Hope and his business manager were there, negotiating to buy the shop ... as a tax write off. We chitter chatted and he bought my coffee. Nice guy! bob |
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03 Feb 09 - 09:46 PM (#2556681) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Amos I've known a good dozen or so names that would be recognized in some circles, and by and large the rule has held true that taking the trouble to be decent to one and all is a key ingredient. I've never met a genuinely well-known or celebrated person who was seriously antisocial. It comes with the territory. I have heard stories about antisocial traits among the "manufactured" celebs in show biz, but no those who made their way up on merit. A |
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03 Feb 09 - 09:55 PM (#2556690) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Deckman One of the "qualities" by which I've always measured the "goodness" in folksingers is their treatment of beginners. I've known some, nameless, that wouldn't give you time of day. And I've also known others that go out of their way to show you a chord, give you verse, give encouragement, etc. This is the quality of "niceness" that I feel is so imortant. bob |
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04 Feb 09 - 10:25 AM (#2557044) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Deckman Here's another examnple of the kind of "niceness" I'm talking about. By the way, this is NOT about name dropping. "Celebrities" have NEVER impressed me. We all put our pants on the same way ... right! Back in 1957, Pete Seeger, Sonny Terry and Sonny's cousin J.C. Bourroughs (sp?) stayed at my house in the Seattle area for a few days. They were in town for a concert. While there, Pete went out of his way to be friendly to me, had me play his banjo and gave me a lesson. Sonny and J.C. asked me to record a practise session they were having in preparation for the upcomming concert. I still have that tape. They certainly didn't have to do that, but they did. Those were nice people who spent some extra time with me. That lesson was not lost on me. We are all travelers on the same planet ... right? So ... what successful performers have you run into that went out of their way for you? Bob |
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04 Feb 09 - 11:09 AM (#2557075) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Wesley S George Winston is an old friend from my college days. He's mostly known as a new age or folk piano player even though he can play both guitar and harmonica relly well. He doesn't seem to have been changed one iota by his success. One thing that has impressed me is that in the programs for his concert he always devotes a page of two to listing his influences. His point is - if you like my music you really need to check out artists like Bola Sete, Professor Longhair, Fats Waller ect. And George usually arranges for a local food bank to collect donations and pass out information at his concerts. He's also made a point of recording and producing lots of CD's by Hawaiian Slack Key guitar players. |
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04 Feb 09 - 11:39 AM (#2557105) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: GUEST,TJ in San Diego Deckman: Felton, you say? In the "small world" category, my late uncle, Andy Andersen was a teacher there for many years and loved that bakery coffee shop, if it's the one I'm thinking of. I still have cousins in Watsonville and Pacific Grove, not far away. There must have been music in those redwoods back in '64, no? |
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04 Feb 09 - 12:16 PM (#2557133) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Deckman TJ ... you bet there was lot's of music there in the mid sixties. Did your uncle happen to teach at "San Lorenzo High School?" bob |
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04 Feb 09 - 04:41 PM (#2557337) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: GUEST,TJ in San Diego I believe he did. The "back story" is that I was adopted at six weeks of age, in 1940. I did not meet my biological mother until 2001, when I became acquainted with her and found that Andy, her youngest brother, had been with her in California when I was born. Knowing he was about to pass, he asked a nephew (my eldest newfound cousin)to hire a detective and find me, just about the time I located them. He had always wanted to know what had become of me. He, another sister and my mother were the only ones out of a family of eight who ever knew. They kept the secret all those years. Andy passed away just a year or so before I finally met all of them. In 1960, I was on the program staff of a camp in the central Sierras. One of my fellow leaders, quite a bit older, was a teacher from Felton named Andy Andersen, to whom I took an immediate liking. We never realized we were related and I never saw him again. Life sure plays funny tricks. I believe San Lorenzo was the high school he was with. I know he also did a lot of youth work with troubled kids, probably with county programs in the area. You know, I had always wondered why I loved music so much when my adoptive parents were rather ambivalent about it. It turns out that my birth mom loved music and had played piano all her life. Several others in the family are talented musicians. Sorry; you only asked the time and I told you how to build a watch! Tom |
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04 Feb 09 - 05:05 PM (#2557350) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: ClaireBear I live about a mile and a half from Felton. It now boasts no bakery, sadly, but it does have a majorish folk venue these days (Don Quixote's) and a whole lotta redwoods. Was your uncle a science teacher, by any chance? If so, he might know SLV High's resident eccentric, who's been teaching there since 1956 (and whose wife sits next to me in choir). If you visit their Web site, wander around and be sure to check out the pipe organ and the catacombs! Claire |
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04 Feb 09 - 06:24 PM (#2557405) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Deckman This is a TERRIBLE thread creep ... but it's MY THREAD! "Claire" ... did your husband and I used to go bird hunting together ... did I give you guitar lessons around the early 60's? Is "Heavenly Hamburgers" still there? How about "The Purple Sage"? Shall I shut up now? bob |
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05 Feb 09 - 12:14 PM (#2558087) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: ClaireBear Hi Deckman, I doubt my husband ever went bird hunting, and sadly I never took guitar lessons from you unless you've changed your name from Bill Munday...I took lessons in Los Gatos...but I wish I had; I bet we would've got on well. Never liked Bill all that much, even if he was my brother's partner (my brother taught classical and flamenco; Bill taught folk and misc.). I was going to say that Heavenly Hamburgers is no more, but then I remembered that when I turn right onto Mount Hermon from my road, the first building I come to is the Heavenly Cafe...so I rather imagine it has not departed after all, but morphed into something a tad more formal. The Purple Sage sounds interesting, but not quite familiar -- remind me what it was? On a related note, I see that the New Riders of the...'s bass player lives in Felton. Coincidence? Looking on the bright side, nearby Ben Lomond still has the Tyrolean Inn, and the Brookdale Lodge has thus far stood the test of time as well...in fact, it's recently been refurbished, probably with the money they got from that Halloween special livecast on "Haunted America." If walls could talk! Now I'd better cease creeping... |
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05 Feb 09 - 03:15 PM (#2558249) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Big Al Whittle That's set me thinking. I don't think I actually know anyone who you would call famous. I went to school with the actor Jim Broadbent and we swap christmas cards - but we don't keep in close touch. Whenever I've been with Jim - he gets immense pleasure out of people not quite recognising him. One time we visited Laurence Sterne's house together. the woman on the counter says - I know you - you're from the nest village....is it your sister I know? |
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05 Feb 09 - 04:07 PM (#2558305) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Bobert Well, I reckon the most celebrated celebrity that I used to know is Bruce Springteen... He was in a couple of bands in 69 -70 (Child and Steelmill) that I booked several times when I was promotion manager for "The Center" in Richmond, Va... Also got to party a little with him when he was in town... BTW, he was a fine "folk singer" back then... I also had the luck of booking the Allman Brothers... Not exactly folkies, Doctor John, also not a folkie... Folkies I've met: Pete Seegar, Don Williams (country), Sparky Rucker (mah main man), Paul Siebel (long time ago), and a number of fine folkies here from Mudcat (ya'll know who you are)... B~ |
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05 Feb 09 - 04:42 PM (#2558339) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Deckman Another "celebrity" I got to know was Walt Robertson. I've never forgotten when I was a brash kid of about 17 when, during a hoot, he took me into an empty room and spent a half hour teaching me the guitar part to "In The Pines." He sure didn't have to do that, but for some reason he did. We became lifelong friends. I'm thinking that one aspect of this music that tends to separate the jerks from the "nice people" is their respect, or lack of it, for the music itself. I well remember a wonderful half hour I spent with Merritt Herring, years ago, trading different versions of songs we knew in common. bob |
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05 Feb 09 - 04:57 PM (#2558363) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Gurney I've met a few 'famous' folkies over the years, too. Maybe the significant part is 'I've met.' Folksingers may be closer to their audience than singers in other fields, because they need less protecting from them. Another possibility is that many folkies are performers, so the top echelon are only 'better' than the audience by a degree. It isn't a genre that encourages arrogance nor elitism. Then again, maybe it is that the people who are attracted to people's music are mostly nice people. |
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05 Feb 09 - 05:14 PM (#2558380) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Deckman You know ... you make a LOT of good points. bob |
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05 Feb 09 - 07:48 PM (#2558512) Subject: RE: Celebrity personalities? From: Deckman Interesting comments. I'll be off line for the next four days. Bob |