Richard Samet "Kinky" Friedman (born November 1, 1944)
is an American singer, songwriter, novelist, humorist, politician, and former columnist for ''
Texas Monthly
''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. ''Texas Monthly'' was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy and has been published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. since 1998 and is ...
'' who styles himself in the mold of popular
American satirists Will Rogers and
Mark Twain.
Friedman was one of two
independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
candidates in the
2006 election for the office of Governor of Texas. Receiving 12.6% of the vote, Friedman placed fourth in the six-person race.
Biography
He was born as Richard Samet Friedman in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
in 1944 to Jewish parents, Dr. S. Thomas Friedman and his wife Minnie (Samet) Friedman.
Both of his parents were the children of
Russian Jewish immigrants.
When Friedman was young, his family moved to a ranch in Kerrville, Texas in
Texas Hill Country and opened a summer camp called Echo Hill.
Friedman had an early interest in both pop music and
chess
Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to dist ...
, and was chosen at age seven as one of 50 local players to challenge U.S. grandmaster
Samuel Reshevsky
Samuel Herman Reshevsky (born Szmul Rzeszewski; November 26, 1911 – April 4, 1992) was a Polish chess prodigy and later a leading American chess grandmaster. He was a contender for the World Chess Championship from the mid-1930s to the mid-196 ...
to simultaneous games in
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
.
Reshevsky won all 50 games, but Friedman was, by far, the youngest competitor.
Friedman graduated from
Austin High School in
Austin,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
in 1962. He went on and earned a Bachelor of Arts from the
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,07 ...
in 1966, majoring in
Psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between ...
. He took part in the
Plan II Honors program and was a member of the
Tau Delta Phi
Tau Delta Phi (), whose members are commonly known as Tau Delts, is a national social fraternity founded on , in New York City. Since its inception, dozens of chapters have been founded and thousands of men initiated into its membership. Today, T ...
fraternity. During his first year,
Chinga Chavin Chinga Chavin is the stage name of American musician and advertising executive Nathan Allen "Nick" Chavin. Chavin released the album ''Country Porn'' in 1976 on Attic Records.
Life and career
Nick "Chinga" Chavin was born in 1944. He achieved cons ...
gave Friedman the nickname "Kinky" because of his curly hair.
Friedman served two years in the United States
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John F ...
, teaching in
Borneo
Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and ea ...
,
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
with John Gross. During his service in the Peace Corps, he met future road manager Dylan Ferrero, with whom he still works. Friedman lives at
Echo Hill Ranch Echo Hill Ranch is a summer ranch camp of about 400 acres (1.6 km2) in the Texas Hill Country. The ranch was founded in 1953 by Dr. S. Thomas Friedman and Minnie Samet Friedman. It is located south of Kerrville near Medina. Echo Hill was foun ...
, his family's summer camp near
Kerrville,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
. He founded Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch, also located near Kerrville, whose mission is to care for stray, abused and aging animals; more than 1,000 dogs have been saved from
animal euthanasia
Animal euthanasia ( euthanasia from el, εὐθανασία; "good death") is the act of killing an animal or allowing it to die by withholding extreme medical measures. Reasons for euthanasia include incurable (and especially painful) conditi ...
.
Music career
Friedman formed his first band, King Arthur & the Carrots, while a student at the
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,07 ...
. The band, which poked fun at
surf music
Surf music (or surf rock, surf pop, or surf guitar) is a genre of rock music associated with surf culture, particularly as found in Southern California. It was especially popular from 1958 to 1964 in two major forms. The first is instrumental su ...
, recorded only one single in 1966 ("Schwinn 24/Beach Party Boo Boo").
By 1973, Friedman had formed his second band, Kinky Friedman and The Texas Jewboys, which many took to be a play on the name of the famous band
Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys.
In keeping with the band's
satirical nature, each member had a comical name: in addition to Kinky there were Little Jewford, Big Nig, Panama Red, Wichita Culpepper, Sky Cap Adams, Rainbow Colours, and Snakebite Jacobs.
More conventionally named roadie Jack Slaughter and road manager Dylan Ferrero rounded out the crew and provided most of the driving of the "tour bus", a
Cadillac with 10-year-old expired license plates and a propensity to break down (but, according to Friedman, her talent lay in her ability to stop on a dime and pick up the change).
Friedman's father objected to the name of the band, calling it a "negative, hostile, peculiar thing", which gave Kinky even more reason to choose the name.
Arriving on the wave of
country rock following on from
Gram Parsons
Ingram Cecil Connor III (November 5, 1946 – September 19, 1973) who was known professionally as Gram Parsons, was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and pianist who recorded as a solo artist and with the International Submarine Band, ...
,
The Band, and
Eagles
Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, jus ...
, Friedman originally found cult fame as a
country and western singer. His break came in 1973 thanks to Commander Cody of
Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen
Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen were an American rock band founded in 1967. The group's leader and co-founder was pianist and vocalist George Frayne IV, alias Commander Cody (born July 19, 1944 in Boise, Idaho, died September 26, 2021 ...
, who contacted Vanguard Music on his behalf. Friedman released ''Kinky Friedman'' in 1974 for
ABC Records, then toured with
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
in 1975–1976. His repertoire mixed
social commentary
Social commentary is the act of using rhetorical means to provide commentary on social, cultural, political, or economic issues in a society. This is often done with the idea of implementing or promoting change by informing the general populace ab ...
("We Reserve the Right to Refuse Service to You") and maudlin ballads ("Western Union Wire") with raucous humor (such as "Get Your Biscuits in the Oven and Your Buns in Bed"). His "Ride 'Em Jewboy" was an extended tribute to the victims of
the Holocaust
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...
.
One of his most famous songs is "They Ain't Makin' Jews Like Jesus Anymore," a song in which Kinky verbally and physically beats up a drunken white racist who berates blacks, Jews, Italians, Greeks, and
Sigma Nus in a bar, with lyrics such as,
Oh, they ain't makin' Jews like Jesus anymore,
They ain't makin' carpenters that know what nails are for
Other Friedman tunes include "The Ballad of Charles Whitman," in which Friedman lampooned
Charles Whitman
Charles Joseph Whitman (June 24, 1941 – August 1, 1966) was an American mass murderer who became known as the "Texas Tower Sniper". On August 1, 1966, Whitman used knives to kill his mother and his wife in their respective homes, then went to ...
's
sniper attack from the
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,07 ...
's
Main Building tower on August 1, 1966. He also covered
Chinga Chavin Chinga Chavin is the stage name of American musician and advertising executive Nathan Allen "Nick" Chavin. Chavin released the album ''Country Porn'' in 1976 on Attic Records.
Life and career
Nick "Chinga" Chavin was born in 1944. He achieved cons ...
's "Asshole from
El Paso
El Paso (; "the pass") is a city in and the seat of El Paso County in the western corner of the U.S. state of Texas. The 2020 population of the city from the U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the 23rd-largest city in the U.S., the s ...
", a parody of
Merle Haggard
Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler.
Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled a ...
's "
Okie from Muskogee
''Okie from Muskogee'' is the first live album by Merle Haggard and the Strangers released in October 1969 on Capitol Records.
Background
The album was a recorded performance at the Civic Center in Muskogee, Oklahoma on October 10, 1969, the da ...
".
One of Friedman's most infamous concerts was a 1973 performance in
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...
; upon performing "Get Your Biscuits in the Oven and Your Buns in the Bed" (a song that lampoons
feminism
Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
), a group of what Friedman described as "cranked-up lesbians" entered into a fight with the band and forced the concert to end early while Friedman and the band were escorted off stage. The
National Organization for Women
The National Organization for Women (NOW) is an American feminist organization. Founded in 1966, it is legally a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization. The organization consists of 550 chapters in all 50 U.S. states and in Washington, D.C. It ...
awarded Friedman the "Male Chauvinist Pig Award" later that year, an award Friedman took with pride. Friedman would not return to Buffalo until 2012. Another was at
The Boarding House in early-March 1975 when an offended
Buffy Sainte-Marie
Buffy Sainte-Marie, (born Beverly Sainte-Marie, February 20, 1941) is an Indigenous Canadian-American ( Piapot Cree Nation) singer-songwriter, musician, composer, visual artist, educator, pacifist, and social activist. While working in these ...
rushed on stage and snatched the
war bonnet
A modern-day dog soldier wearing a feathered headdress during a pow wow">Dog_Soldiers.html" ;"title="Cheyenne Dog Soldiers">dog soldier wearing a feathered headdress during a pow wow at the Indian Summer festival in Henry Maier Festival Park, M ...
that Friedman was wearing while he and his band were performing "Miss Nickelodeon," a composition that spoofs the
indigenous peoples of the Americas
The Indigenous peoples of the Americas are the inhabitants of the Americas before the arrival of the European settlers in the 15th century, and the ethnic groups who now identify themselves with those peoples.
Many Indigenous peoples of the A ...
.
Friedman and his band taped an ''
Austin City Limits
''Austin City Limits'' is an American live music television program recorded and produced by Austin PBS. The show helped Austin become widely known in the United States as the "Live Music Capital of the World", and is the only television show to ...
'' show on November 11, 1975, which was never aired. According to the show's executive producer, Terry Lickona, this is the first and only time in the show's long history that an episode went unaired. Lickona told the ''
Austin Chronicle
''The Austin Chronicle'' is an alternative weekly newspaper published every Thursday in Austin, Texas, United States. The paper is distributed through free news-stands, often at local eateries or coffee houses frequented by its targeted demogra ...
'' "I've seen it many times – it's a very popular party tape among friends. I think it was a great show, and it might be as offensive today as it was back then."
In early 1976, he joined
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
on the second leg of the
Rolling Thunder Revue
The Rolling Thunder Revue was a 1975–1976 concert tour by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan with numerous musicians and collaborators. The purpose of the tour was to allow Dylan, who had now become a major recording artist and concert perfor ...
tour.
Friedman was the musical guest on the
Season 2 Season 2 may refer to:
* ''Season 2'' (Infinite album)
* '' 2econd Season''
See also
*
{{disambig ...
fifth episode of ''
Saturday Night Live
''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock (streaming service), Peacock. ...
'' which aired on October 23, 1976. He performed his own composition "Dear Abbie".
Although hard to verify, given the number of Jewish-origin entertainers in country/hillbilly-tour circles (e.g. Gilbert Maxwell "
Broncho Billy" Anderson), Friedman claims to have been the first full-blooded Jew to take the stage at the
Grand Ole Opry.
In February 2007, Sustain Records released a compilation of the songs of Kinky Friedman sung by other artists called ''Why the Hell Not ...'' The compilation includes contributions by
Dwight Yoakam
Dwight David Yoakam (born October 23, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter, actor, and film director. He first achieved mainstream attention in 1986 with the release of his debut album ''Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc.''. Yoakam had considerabl ...
,
Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album '' Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of '' Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (1 ...
,
Lyle Lovett, and
Kelly Willis
Kelly may refer to:
Art and entertainment
* Kelly (Kelly Price album)
* Kelly (Andrea Faustini album)
* ''Kelly'' (musical), a 1965 musical by Mark Charlap
* "Kelly" (song), a 2018 single by Kelly Rowland
* ''Kelly'' (film), a 1981 Canadia ...
.
On July 20, 2007, Friedman hosted the Concert to Save Town Lake to honor the memory of
Lady Bird Johnson
Claudia Alta "Lady Bird" Johnson (''née'' Taylor; December 22, 1912 – July 11, 2007) was First Lady of the United States from 1963 to 1969 as the wife of President Lyndon B. Johnson. She previously served as Second Lady from 1961 to 1963 whe ...
and her efforts to protect and preserve the shores of
Town Lake in Austin, Texas.
On April 27, 2011, Friedman launched his Springtime for Kinky Tour (cf. "
Springtime for Hitler
''Springtime for Hitler: A Gay Romp With Adolf and Eva at Berchtesgaden'' is a fictional musical in Mel Brooks' 1967 film '' The Producers'', as well as the stage musical adaptation of the movie, and the 2005 movie adaptation of the musical. It ...
") in
Kansas City, Missouri, at
Knuckleheads Saloon
Knuckleheads is a music venue in Kansas City, Missouri. The facility is a complex of four stages: a large outdoor stage with a converted caboose to one side as a VIP seating area; an indoor stage; a large indoor stage known as Knuckleheads Garag ...
; it included dates in Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Kentucky before heading towards the
East Coast
East Coast may refer to:
Entertainment
* East Coast hip hop, a subgenre of hip hop
* East Coast (ASAP Ferg song), "East Coast" (ASAP Ferg song), 2017
* East Coast (Saves the Day song), "East Coast" (Saves the Day song), 2004
* East Coast FM, a ra ...
. This was followed by a tour of Australia with
Van Dyke Parks
Van Dyke Parks (born January 3, 1943) is an American musician, songwriter, arranger, and record producer who has composed various film and television soundtracks. He is best known for his 1967 album ''Song Cycle'' and for his collaborations with ...
.
Discography
Albums
Singles
Writing career
After his music career stalled in the 1980s, Friedman shifted his creative focus to writing
detective novels
Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator or a detective—whether professional, amateur or retired—investigates a crime, often murder. The detective genre began around the same time as specu ...
. His books have similarities to his song lyrics, featuring a
fictionalized version of himself solving crimes in New York City and dispensing jokes, wisdom, recipes, charm and
Jameson's whiskey in equal measure. They are written in a straightforward style which owes a debt to
Raymond Chandler. The Kinky character views himself as a latter-day
Sherlock Holmes and he is aided in his investigations by his close friend
Larry Sloman
Larry "Ratso" Sloman (born July 9, 1950) is a New York-based author.
Career
Sloman was born into a middle-class Jewish family from Queens. His nickname Ratso came from Joan Baez who said Sloman looked like Dustin Hoffman's character Ratso Rizzo ...
aka Ratso who assumes the role of
Dr. Watson
John H. Watson, known as Dr. Watson, is a fictional character in the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Along with Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson first appeared in the novel ''A Study in Scarlet'' (1887). The last work by Doyle f ...
.
To date, he has written two novels that do not star the Kinky Friedman character: ''Kill Two Birds and Get Stoned'' and ''The Christmas Pig.''
Friedman also wrote a regular column for the magazine ''
Texas Monthly
''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. ''Texas Monthly'' was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy and has been published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. since 1998 and is ...
'' from April 2001 to March 2005 which was suspended during his run for governor of Texas.
[List of Friedman's articles](_blank)
an
Hail to the Kinkster
from ''Texas Monthly
''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. ''Texas Monthly'' was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy and has been published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. since 1998 and is ...
''. In 2008, ''Texas Monthly'' brought his column back on a bimonthly basis.
Two books have been published collecting some of these nonfiction writings, as well as previously unpublished ones: Scuse Me While I Whip This Out'' and ''Texas Hold'em''. He has also published a travelog (''The Great Psychedelic Armadillo Picnic'') and an etiquette guide.
Friedman's early books have been republished by Friedman's own Vandam Press as ebooks. During March and April 2011, Vandam released seven of Friedman's early titles including: ''Greenwich Killing Time, A Case of Lone Star, Musical Chairs, When The Cat's Away, Frequent Flyer, Roadkill'' and the rarely seen ''Curse of the Missing Puppet Head''. ''Elvis Jesus and Coca-Cola, God Bless John Wayne, Blast From The Past, Armadillos and Old Lace'' and two nonfiction books, ''Drinker With A Writing Problem'' and ''Heroes of A Texas Childhood'' were released in 2011. E-book releases are announced on Friedman's Twitter feed and Facebook page, "TheRealKinkster".
Friedman also announced (via Jim Bessman's column at examiner.com) the upcoming release of all Vandam Press titles as unabridged audio books "read by the author".
The recurring character "Rambam", a New York private investigator and friend of the Friedman character in the books, is based on the real-life investigator,
Steven Rambam, who acts as a technical advisor for the real Friedman. Old Peace Corps friend and long time road manager Dylan Ferrero is also a recurring character in Kinky's mystery novels; his character is known for only speaking in rock and roll quotes, a trait taken from real life.
Politics
![Kinky friedman 2006](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/33/Kinky_friedman_2006.jpg)
In 1986, Friedman ran for
Justice of the Peace in
Kerrville, Texas
Kerrville is a city in, and the county seat of, Kerr County, Texas, United States. The population of Kerrville was 24,278 at the 2020 census. Kerrville is named after James Kerr, a major in the Texas Revolution, and friend of settler- ...
, as a
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
but lost the election.
In 2004, Friedman began an ostensibly serious, though colorful, campaign to become the
Governor of Texas in
2006. One of his stated goals is the "dewussification" of Texas.
[ccrayz.com: News](_blank)
Among his campaign slogans were "How Hard Could It Be?", "Why The Hell Not?", "My Governor is a Jewish Cowboy", and "He ain't Kinky, he's my Governor" (cf. "
He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother
"He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" is a ballad written by Bobby Scott and Bob Russell. Originally recorded by Kelly Gordon in 1969, the song became a worldwide hit for the Hollies later that year and also a hit for Neil Diamond in 1970. It h ...
").
Friedman had hoped to follow in the footsteps of other entertainers-turned-governors, including
Jimmie Davis,
Jesse Ventura
Jesse Ventura (born James George Janos; July 15, 1951) is an American politician, actor, and retired professional wrestler. After achieving fame in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), he served as the 38th governor of Minnesota from 1999 to 2 ...
,
Arnold Schwarzenegger, and
Ronald Reagan. Jesse Ventura even campaigned with Friedman for his election. When the campaign finance reports came out after the second quarter had ended, Friedman had raised more funds than the
Democratic nominee, former
Congressman Chris Bell.
On election day, however, Friedman was defeated, receiving 12.6% of the votes in the six-candidate matchup.
Friedman released a statement on October 15, 2013, announcing his intent to again run for Texas agriculture commissioner as a Democrat. Friedman previously ran for the post in 2010, losing in the Democratic primary.
Issues and positions
Friedman supports the full legalization and cultivation of hemp and marijuana, declaring that the end of the prohibition is a health, education funding, prison reduction, border security, and state's rights issue.
On education, he supports higher pay for teachers and working to lower Texas's dropout rate.
[Kinky Friedman , Independent Texan](_blank)
He supports more investment in harnessing Texas's
alternative fuel resources such as wind and
biodiesel
Biodiesel is a form of diesel fuel derived from plants or animals and consisting of long-chain fatty acid esters. It is typically made by chemically reacting lipids such as animal fat ( tallow), soybean oil, or some other vegetable oil ...
.
Friedman is opposed to the
Trans-Texas Corridor
The Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC) was a proposal for a transportation network in the U.S. State of Texas that was conceived to be composed of a new kind of transportation modality known as supercorridors. The TTC was initially proposed in 2001 and a ...
since it relies on toll road construction.
[Kinky Friedman for Governor :: The Issues :: FAQ](_blank)
.
On capital punishment, he previously summed up his position, "I am not anti-death penalty, but I'm damn sure anti-the-wrong-guy-getting-executed."
More recently, he has clarified his position: "The system is not perfect. Until it's perfect, let's do away with the death penalty."
On
illegal immigration, Friedman wants to increase the number of Texas National Guard troops on the border (from the current 1,500 to 10,000), impose $25,000 and $50,000 fines on companies that hire illegal immigrants, and require foreign nationals seeking employment to purchase a foreign taxpayer ID card once they have passed a criminal background check. "Texas can no longer wait for our federal government to solve our illegal immigration problem," Friedman said. "These are steps that Texas can immediately take to help stem the tide of illegal immigrants penetrating our border." Had he been elected, he had promised to meet regularly with Governor
Bill Richardson
William Blaine Richardson III (born November 15, 1947) is an American politician, author, and diplomat who served as the 30th governor of New Mexico from 2003 to 2011. He was also the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and Energy Secretary ...
of
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Tiguex
, OfficialLang = None
, Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ke ...
and Governor
Janet Napolitano
Janet Ann Napolitano (; born November 29, 1957) is an American politician, lawyer, and university administrator who served as the 21st governor of Arizona from 2003 to 2009 and third United States secretary of homeland security from 2009 to 20 ...
of
Arizona
Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
to develop a coordinated border state plan to supplement federal efforts to curb illegal immigration.
Previously, Kinky put forth the "Five Mexican Generals" Plan, to pay Mexican officials to halt immigration on their side of the border. Although he originally stated "When I talk about the five Mexican generals, people think I'm joking but I'm dead serious", Friedman later told the ''Dallas Morning News'' that the plan, never meant to be carried out, was a joke with an element of seriousness.
According to his official website,
Friedman's answer to the question "How does Kinky feel about abortion?" is "Kinky believes in a woman's right to choose." In person, he hedges his bets, saying "I'm not
pro-life
Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respon ...
, and I'm not
pro-choice
Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their pr ...
. I'm
pro-football." On social issues, he has supported
gay marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...
, answering an
Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. ne ...
reporter's question on the subject on February 3, 2005, by saying, "I support gay marriage. I believe they have a right to be as miserable as the rest of us."
(Friedman himself has never been married.)
According to ''
Cigar Aficionado
''Cigar Aficionado'' is an American magazine that is dedicated to enjoying the good life and the world of cigars. Published since September 1992, the magazine is known for its profiles on celebrities including Michael Jordan, Jack Nicholson, Th ...
'' magazine, Friedman plans to roll back "any and all smoking bans" if elected. One of his favorite quotes comes from
Mark Twain: "If smoking is not allowed in
heaven, I shall not go."
Friedman supports the decriminalization of
marijuana, though he doesn't advocate making its sale legal. "I'm not talking about like
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...
," he noted, "We've got to clear some of the room out of the prisons so we can put the bad guys in there, like the pedophiles and the politicians."
Further political activities
![Kinky Friedman](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/Kinky_Friedman.jpg)
On August 9, 2007, the ''
Austin American-Statesman'' reported that Friedman was considering another run for governor of Texas in 2010. "I'm open to running", Friedman said, adding that he wouldn't make a final decision until after the 2008 elections. On February 10, 2009, Friedman confirmed to the
Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. ne ...
that he was still interested in running.
In an August 23, 2007 interview with the ''
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
The ''Fort Worth Star-Telegram'' is an American daily newspaper serving Fort Worth and Tarrant County, the western half of the North Texas area known as the Metroplex. It is owned by The McClatchy Company.
History
In May 1905, Amon G. Carter ...
'' and a February 10, 2009 interview with the Associated Press, Friedman stated that if he did run in 2010, he would run as a
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
, citing that "God probably couldn't have won as an Independent" and that he was a Democrat all his life.
On April 14, 2009, Friedman announced in an email to supporters that he intended to make a second gubernatorial run, this time as a Democrat. Friedman then announced on December 14, 2009, that he was leaving the gubernatorial race and would instead seek the party nomination in March 2010 for Texas Agriculture Commissioner. He lost the nomination to rancher Hank Gilbert in the primary held on March 2, 2010. Gilbert was in turn defeated for a second time by the incumbent Republican
Todd Staples
Douglas Todd Staples (born August 24, 1963)
is the former two-term Texas Commissioner of Agriculture. He unsuccessfully ran for the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor in 2014.
On September 18, 2014, Staples announced that he would ...
of
Palestine, who vacates the office in January 2015, following his defeat for the Republican nomination for
lieutenant governor in the March 4, 2014 primary.
In 2014, Friedman made another bid for state agriculture commissioner. He finished a strong second in the Democratic primary, forcing a
runoff election with his party's top vote-getter, the politically unknown Jimmy Ray "Jim" Hogan (born c. 1950), a farmer and widower from
Cleburne in
Johnson County, southwest of
Fort Worth, whose campaign was conducted mostly from the public computers in his hometown library.
Friedman polled 184,992 (37.7 percent), behind Hogan's 190,205 (38.8 percent), but ahead of rancher and former educator Hugh Asa Fitzsimons, III (born 1954), of
San Antonio
("Cradle of Freedom")
, image_map =
, mapsize = 220px
, map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = United States
, subdivision_type1= State
, subdivision_name1 = Texas
, subdivision_t ...
, who received a critical 114,953 votes (23.5 percent). Fitzsimons carried the endorsement of the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, his hometown
State Senator Leticia Van de Putte
Leticia Rosa Magdalena Aguilar Van de Putte
( San Miguel; born December 6, 1954)
is an American politician from San Antonio, Texas. She represented the 26th District in the Texas Senate from 1999–2015. From 1991 to 1999, Van de Putte was a me ...
, who is running on the ticket headed by State Senator
Wendy R. Davis of
Fort Worth. Friedman lost the May runoff to Hogan, 54 percent to 46 percent, who then faced Republican Sid Miller in the November election.
Other work and references in popular culture
Friedman appeared in the 2004 documentary film ''Barbecue: A Texas Love Story'' by Austin-based director
Chris Elley
Chris Elley (born September 15, 1977 in San Antonio, Texas) is the founder and current director of the Austin, Texas-based film production company Electro-Fish Media Inc. He holds two Emmy awards and two additional nominations.
Early career
Ell ...
. In the film, narrated by Governor
Ann Richards
Dorothy Ann Richards (née Willis; September 1, 1933 – September 13, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 45th governor of Texas from 1991 to 1995. A Democrat, she first came to national attention as the Texas State Treasurer, w ...
, Kinky exclaims that "Jesus loved Barbecue" and analyzes the speech patterns of Texans versus New Yorkers. Raw footage from Friedman's interview appears in the 2005 DVD release of the film. He has appeared in other movies as well including ''
Loose Shoes
Loose may refer to:
Places
*Loose, Germany
*Loose, Kent, a parish and village in southeast England
People
* Loose (surname)
Arts, entertainment, and media Music Albums
* ''Loose'' (B'z album), a 1995 album by B'z
* ''Loose'' (Crazy Horse album), ...
'' and ''
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2
''The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2'' (also known as ''The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2'') is a 1986 American black comedy slasher film directed by Tobe Hooper. It is a sequel to ''The Texas Chain Saw Massacre'', also directed and co-written by Ho ...
''.
Friedman's persona as a
politically incorrect
''Political correctness'' (adjectivally: ''politically correct''; commonly abbreviated ''PC'') is a term used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to members of particular groups in socie ...
raconteur
A humorist (American) or humourist ( British spelling) is an intellectual who uses humor, or wit, in writing or public speaking, but is not an artist who seeks only to elicit laughs. Humorists are distinct from comedians, who are show business ...
has been likened to that of movie critic and commentator John Irving Bloom, better known in print as
Joe Bob Briggs
John Irving Bloom (born January 27, 1953), known by the stage name Joe Bob Briggs, is an American syndicated film critic, writer, actor, and comic performer. He is known for having hosted ''Joe Bob's Drive-in Theater'' on The Movie Channel fr ...
, with whom he appeared in the
B movie ''The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2''.
Friedman prefers to smoke
Montecristo
Montecristo, also Monte Cristo (, ) and formerly Oglasa ( grc, Ὠγλάσσα, Ōglássa), is an island in the Tyrrhenian Sea and part of the Tuscan Archipelago. Administratively it belongs to the municipality of Portoferraio in the province ...
No. 2 Cigars, the same brand once smoked by
Fidel Castro. However, he also smokes
Bolivars, noting that "
Simón Bolívar is the only person in history to be exiled from a
country named after him."
Friedman now makes eponymous cigars under the name Kinky Friedman Cigars.
Friedman is given brief praise in
Joseph Heller
Joseph Heller (May 1, 1923 – December 12, 1999) was an American author of novels, short stories, plays, and screenplays. His best-known work is the 1961 novel ''Catch-22'', a satire on war and bureaucracy, whose title has become a synonym for ...
's 1976 novel, ''
Good as Gold'', in which a governor (meant to satirize
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...
), tells the main character, Bruce Gold: "Gold, I like you. You remind me a lot of this famous country singer from Texas I'm crazy about, a fellow calls himself Kinky Friedman, the Original Texas Jewboy. Kinky's smarter, but I like you more."
Friedman is friends with
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
and
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
, and he has visited both at the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...
. He wrote about his friendships with them in his November 2001 column ("Hail to the Kinkster")
for ''
Texas Monthly
''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. ''Texas Monthly'' was founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy and has been published by Emmis Publishing, L.P. since 1998 and is ...
''.
The play
''Becoming Kinky: The World According to Kinky Friedman'', directed by Ted Swindley (Always...
Patsy Cline
Patsy is a given name often used as a diminutive of the feminine given name Patricia or sometimes the masculine name Patrick, or occasionally other names containing the syllable "Pat" (such as Cleopatra, Patience, Patrice, or Patricia). Among I ...
), starring
Jesse Dayton, Little Jewford, Alan Lee, and Andross Bautsch, premiered in
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
, Texas on March 28, 2011.
Friedman is responsible for the quote "you've got to find what you love and let it kill you," which is often falsely attributed to the poet and novelist
Charles Bukowski
Henry Charles Bukowski ( ; born Heinrich Karl Bukowski, ; August 16, 1920 – March 9, 1994) was a German-American poet, novelist, and short story writer. His writing was influenced by the social, cultural, and economic ambience of his adopted ...
.
Friedman hosted the live concert music television show "Texas Roadhouse Live" around 2011, which would air on over-the-air network television late Saturday night (or midnight Sunday morning) in some Texas markets.
On the 2017 album entitled ''Out of All This Blue'',
Mike Scott of
The Waterboys
The Waterboys are a folk rock band formed in Edinburgh in 1983 by Scottish musician Mike Scott. The band's membership, past and present, has been composed mainly of musicians from Scotland, Ireland, Wales and England. Mike Scott has remained ...
composed a song called "Kinky's History Lesson" where the singer attempts to correct Friedman on a number of false statements he has allegedly made.
Bibliography
Kinky Friedman Mysteries
* ''Greenwich Killing Time'' (1986, )
* ''A Case Of Lone Star'' (1987, )
* ''When The Cat's Away'' (1988, )
* ''Frequent Flyer'' (1989, )
* ''Musical Chairs'' (1991, )
* ''Elvis, Jesus and Coca-Cola'' (1993, )
* ''Armadillos and Old Lace'' (1994, )
* ''God Bless John Wayne'' (1995, )
* ''The Love Song of J. Edgar Hoover'' (1996, )
* ''Roadkill'' (1997, )
* ''Blast From The Past'' (1998, )
* ''Spanking Watson'' (1999, )
* ''The Mile High Club'' (2000, )
* ''Steppin' On A Rainbow'' (2001, )
* ''Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch'' (2002, )
* ''Curse of the Missing Puppet Head'' (2003, )
* ''The Prisoner of Vandam Street'' (2004, )
* ''Ten Little New Yorkers'' (2005, )
Other novels
* ''Kill Two Birds and Get Stoned'' (2003, )
* ''The Christmas Pig: A Fable (2006, )
Non-fiction & humor
* ''Kinky Friedman's Guide to Texas Etiquette: Or How To Get To Heaven Or Hell Without Going Through Dallas-Fort Worth'' (2002, )
* Scuse Me While I Whip This Out: Reflections On Country Singers, Presidents, And Other Troublemakers'' (2004, )
* ''The Great Psychedelic Armadillo Picnic: A "Walk" In Austin'' (2004, )
* ''Texas Hold 'Em: How I Was Born In A Manger, Died In The Saddle, And Came Back As A Horny Toad'' (2005, )
* ''Cowboy Logic : The Wit And Wisdom Of Kinky Friedman (And Some Of His Friends)'' (2006, )
* ''You Can Lead A Politician To Water, But You Can't Make Him Think: Ten Commandments For Texas Politics'' (2007, )
* ''What Would Kinky Do? How to Unscrew a Screwed Up World'' (2008, )
References
External links
*
Texas for KinkyKinky Friedman's campaign website for Texas Agricultural Commissioner
{{DEFAULTSORT:Friedman, Kinky
1944 births
20th-century American novelists
21st-century American novelists
American columnists
American country rock singers
American country singer-songwriters
American humorists
American male novelists
American male singer-songwriters
American satirists
American mystery novelists
American detective fiction writers
Austin High School (Austin, Texas) alumni
Epic Records artists
Texas Independents
Jewish American male actors
Jewish American musicians
Jewish American novelists
Jewish American people in Texas politics
Jewish singers
Jews and Judaism in Texas
Living people
Musicians from Austin, Texas
Peace Corps volunteers
People from Kerr County, Texas
Singer-songwriters from Texas
Texas Democrats
Texas Republicans
Writers from Austin, Texas
Writers from Chicago
Journalists from Texas
Candidates in the 2006 United States elections
Candidates in the 2010 United States elections
21st-century American politicians
20th-century American male writers
21st-century American male writers
Novelists from Texas
Novelists from Illinois
20th-century American non-fiction writers
21st-century American non-fiction writers
American male non-fiction writers
Country musicians from Texas
Country musicians from Illinois
21st-century American Jews
Singer-songwriters from Illinois