2008 Woodie Awards
Kinky Friedman comes to perform in Denton
Carrie Sands
Issue date: 7/3/08 Section: ARTS & LIFE
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Former Texas governor candidate and musician, Kinky Friedman, headlined the tour. The Texas Poet Laureate Steven Fromholz and his sidekick, Little Jewford, raised money for the Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch.
Friedman, his friend Nancy Parker-Simmons, also known as "Cousin Nancy," and her husband, Tony Simmons created the ranch in 1998. It is a no-kill haven in Medina, which, according to the Utopia Rescue Web site, has rescued more than one thousand abandoned or abused animals.
This was Friedman's first time at Dan's Silver Leaf, but not in Denton. He spoke highly about visiting Denton when he ran for governor last year.
"There seems to be real people here, not a bunch of condominiums and Starbucks," Friedman said. "There are real Texans in it."
When asked about the tour's name, he said he would rather it be called "Legends and Strays" because "Puppies" is not Kinky style. Friedman's humor continued as he performed several songs. For example, one song was about a woman getting her biscuits in the oven and her buns in bed.
Kinky sang and played the guitar along with Fromholz, who shared similar humor. A verse from Fromholz's song was, "I gave her a ring and she gave me the finger."
The crowd laughed and applauded as the Texan trio performed and told jokes. Little Jewford added his own flair and talent as he played the keyboard and kazoo.
According to Kinky Friedman's Web site, Fromholz was named Texas Poet Laureate in April 2007 and had his songs recorded by Hoyt Axton, John Denver, Lyle Lovett, Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker and dozens of others. Fromholz did not brag about this information to the crowd, but said he went to junior high in Denton.
After suffering from a near-fatal stroke four years ago, he has returned to the stage with Friedman.
"We met in 1977 in New York at Lone Star Café. I opened for him and we became good pals," Fromholz said. "I feel [Legends and Puppies] is a good project with a good cause."
After a couple songs and a few Jew jokes, Friedman had an auctioneer named Carl Naylor get on stage to auction off a guitar signed by Willie Nelson as well as other items from Friedman's private memorabilia collection.
Friedman said all the money raised on tour will go toward the ranch, minus the costs to put on the shows. He said the tour has earned $50,000 with Naylor doing the auction.
Towards the end of the show, Friedman read passages from his new book, "What Would Kinky Do?-How to Unscrew a Screwed up World."
A member of the audience, Linda Hafiz said, "I didn't come as a fan, but I have really enjoyed his show and found it thought-provoking."
Besides the new book and the tour, Kinky has been writing for Texas Monthly and said he plans to for governor again as a Democrat. He said he has to make sure he has enough money first. But speaking on running as a Democrat rather than independent, he said, "I will bring the rednecks back to Democrats."
"It's great for" Friedman, crowd member Zafar Hariz said. "I know he spent a lot of money and time to come to Denton and I love that he is doing this for animals."
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