“Doug Howard, senior vice president of A&R at Lyric Street Records, has been named senior vice president and general manager of the new soon-to-be-opened Disney Music Publishing/Nashville. The record label and publishing company are both part of the Buena Vista Music Group, the recorded music and music publishing division of the Walt Disney Company.” – CMT.com
Doug is a good ole boy from Kennett, MO who could actually get your lame-ass country song published.
I was only five but remember some of the big events of that year. The first tests of the Salk polio vaccine; Dwight Eisenhower was in the White House (with Dick Nixon); Edmund Hillary (and his Sherpa guide) were the first to reach the summit of Mt. Everest; Patti Page was singing "How Much Is That Doggie In the Window?" on the radio; and the best movie of the year was From Here to Eternity. And the median family income was $4,242. (Okay, I looked that shit up)
I thought a little context might help you appreciate these photographs of some high school basketball teams from southeast Missouri. Holcomb Boys; Hornersville Girls; Steele Girls #1 and Steele Girls #2. The photos were taken by Johnny Mack Reeder, the news director at Kennett radio station KBOA. Email me if you can identify any of these folks and I’ll update the captions. Makes me want to watch Hoosiers one more time.
If you can ID any of the players (for any of the photos), please use comments link below.
A recent entry in the Sundance Film Festival, Hustle & Flow — written and directed by Memphis native Craig Brewer, and produced by John Singleton– has been purchased by Paramount.
“Djay is a pimp suffering a midlife crisis and although nominally successful, he yearns to record his flow and become a respected rapper. Galvanized by a gospel song, he sets his dream in motion–recruiting his motley crew and building a studio in his home. And though he succeeds in putting his rap, “It’s Hard for a Pimp,” onto tape, the barriers to fame and fortune are many, and getting there becomes an elusive goal.”
Kennett Senior Correspondent Viretta, proudly reports that her baby boy, Luke, worked on the soundtrack. She adds that she’s not bothered that the film is about “pimps & ho’s.”
My friend John reports Sheyrl Crow and Lance Armstrong were sited in the Kennett, Missouri, Wal-Mart yesterday (Wednesday). Those two could be anywhere on the planet for the holiday. I love that Ms. Crow goes back to our little town and that Mr. Armstrong goes with her.
Musicologist, Barbeque God and Good Friend Terry McVey has been recognized by the Missouri Bar for “outstanding legal service.” Terry was presented with a Pro Bono Publico Award (no connection to Irish rock singer) for outstanding pro bono service to indigent or low-income persons in need of legal assistance. These awards are presented to three persons a year–one each from St. Louis and Kansas City and outstate Missouri. This is the first time the award has been given to an attorney in the Bootheel.
The annual Fall Festival Parade will kick off the Delta Fair on Monday. The parade is a rich part of the history of my family. In 1951 my father rode through the streets of Kennett in a wheelbarrow, pushed by a man wearing a skunk costume.
I can claim no such honor but on several occasions I co-anchored broadcasts of the parade. Gigantic, expensive farm implements. The Adelphian Club float. The Hayti Marching Band. The Poplar Bluff Shriners on their tiny motorcycles. It taxed my humble talents to even begin to describe the spectacle.
I broadcast many parades during my dozen years at KBOA. The Senath Christmas Parade. The Hornversville Watermelon Festival Parade. I was there for them all, droning on… mustering up more excitement than these sad little caravans deserved. You’d have thought I was in prime-time at the Rose Parade. My first Delta Fair Parade was in 1972 and I interviewed Jack McDaniel and Bill Walsh, the two Kennett businessmen responsible for organizing the event. I called my friend John last night and he said Jack and Bill are still in charge of the parade. Sweet Jesus, is there anything I care about that much?
As a general rule, you couldn’t get me to a baby shower at gun-point. But I’m thinking Helen’s (at the Kennett’s Jones Park Pavilian) might have been fun. Photo by Special Correspondent Terry McVey.
The Reverend Slick returned to Kennett last night to infuse new life into my good friend Viretta.
You can skip this post if you’re not from Kennett. If you are, and 50+, perhaps you can help me ID some of the people in this photograph. I can only get a handful. Front row (seated): Terry Reeder, Steve Mays. Second row: Karen McAlister (?), Larry Cowgill, Jim Henson, Unknown3, Gene Overall, Unknown4, Mike French. Third row: Unknown5, Unknown6, Unknown7, Mary Talbert, Buddy Shivley, Mike Neeley. You can help me fill in the blanks at stevemays@gmail.com
“Steve, if my memory serves me correctly, you and tom colvin use to play characters when you both were at KBOA. what were they? I just remember when I was little going to a picnic of some sort on the front lawn of the radio station and one or both of you being dressed in drag? Have I lost my mind? thanks, Eric Raspberry, former Kenneth resident”
No, Eric, you haven’t lost your mind. During the Early Days I made many sacrifices for my art, including dressing in drag. I don’t recall Tom Colvin stooping so low but that was due, in part, to the challenge of finding nice things in his size.
