people of lesser or greater notoriety who visited my Home in Alabama

    this blog will be a work in progress so come back to it often in the next ten days. And pardon the typos as on laptop with mind of its own.

    My home in Alabama was built by my grandfather and his brother on a small rise on hwy 11 in the 1930s after my Mom was born down the hill in 23.

    I lived there for thirty years between Dec of 86 and Feb 1 2020.

     My great grandfather Vanzant, my Mother's grandfather died in the house in the early thirties, fell down the steps inside the house. His three sons were all medical doctors and one grand daughter was president of the Student Bodyin Montgomery Huntingdon college in 39, mommas first cousin. She married well, did well herself with the rocket center in Huntsville and traveled extensively. She was a classmate of the great Alabama Storyteller Katheryn Tucker Windham.

     All my cousins with the possible exception of Nathan have been to the house, four of the five on the Fox Side now deceased.

    All Dad's brothers and sisters with the exception of Aunt Virginia who almost married Charlie Culberson's grandfather have been to the house

    Grady Cothen a noble past President of Southern Baptist Foreign Mission Board was in my home early nineties. He was working on a book about the fundamentalist takeover and Jack Harwell recommended he talk to me. The local preacher John Morgan was astounded when the two of us dropped by the church to make some copies of my files..  Bob Morrison former President of the Baylor Alumni Association stopped by also early nineties on way to his hometown in Virginia from San Antonio. For a while he was married into the Baugh family.

     Late January of 1992 on the back porch by the wood heater were two personalities later on the inside with the Rolling Stone. Documentarian Brett Morgen and his crew where there for farewell party after his month long stay in Collinsville to film the small town. The next year after Bob Dylans son Sam and others in LA edited the film he was back for a preview at the Baptist church. Film was shown on Statewide PBS. I was his local consultant.

     Brett produced Cross Fire Hurricane about 2010. You can still see it on occasion on AXS Cable. Last year he got a six minute standing ovation at Cannes Film Festival for his doc on David Bowie

    Also coincidentally there that night was great friend of friend in town, Karen Krattinger, who was tour manager for the Stones a few years later. She also worked with Dixie Chicks and others.

    Micah Robertson and her Mother Mot Mot Christie of Woodruff SC and Son and Brother were at 2470 HWY 11 Thanksgiving 95 for Owen's proposal to my sister. I was there waiting on Dinner when they surprised Marsha and the rest of us. They spent the night in Gadsden and caught 11 up the valley three miles inside the Dekalb County Line. 

    Owen was nervous, my Dad was Crying, I was hungry and My Brother Jim Willie held Owen's hand for support. 

    Raymond Weaver's daughter Susan has been to the house and her cousin Ross, doubles champion with Paul Scarpa's son for state of SC in the nineties. And SW's friends Andrea, Casey Mattos a loobyist for the Koch brothers in DC, Pam Blackwell and Sean Owens.

     Joan who a friend of the son of Viola Liuzzo, a Civil Rights Martyr has been to the house, on One occasion with James Trail, the fix it man of South Dekalb county. Joan grew up in Mtn Brook Alabama but settled on a farm in the other valley. She also knew Jane Fonda's onetime flame the sixities radical, Tom Hayden. She talked to Hayden on the phone a few years before he died. . And Luke Of Luke my friend what about young Anna Lee of the Band's song The Weight; He spent a night in his car on her goat farm several years ago.

     Gaffney legend Football Line coach and Principal Wayne Whiteside came down in fall of 86 on the Rah Rah Gaffney High WhoopEm Fan bus with several men from Dad's Bethany Baptist church to work on the House of a week. It was a godsend.

    Whiteside was back for Momma's funeral in 88  as was Jack Phillips and Buggy Neal and others. I remember as we rode into town a courtege of about 11 girls, a pretty young girl who was only in Collinsville for a year, was in the yard down the road at the house Momma was born. I road my bike the three miles into town on average of three times a week in the ensuing years.

     James Kiser stopped by the house early in the 21st Century. I wasnt home but he took a picture and sent it later. I didnt know until reading his obituary at decade later he flew several combat Missions in WWII. His family were outstanding members of Bethany in Gaffney. His son in law was a running back at South Carolina, his son a mid 60s Center for Presbyterian Basketball and his older daughter married a preacher and has a grand daughter, a Furman grad.

   Trinka Payton brought some food by after the Collinsville congregation voted me out of the church. Her Husband James a Gideon never came but often spoke to him at Turkey Trot. They were members of Liberty Baptist in the Other valley and whole Family Auburn people except for Cousin Avery a high end Pastry Chef in Vermont and his sister Chloe who is going to Miss State on Vet Scholarship.

      In 1931 Dietrich Bonhoeffer rode up 11 on way back to NYC. He didnt stop by

    Furman grad Steve Miller has been to the house and Oliver Hall. Both dabble in conspiracy theories from opposite sides of the spectrum but both are great story tellers.  Oliver is a big stones fan.,

.    World traveler Todd Heifner has been there, once with his first wife. His great friend Mart Gray has graced the property.   Todd had a sweet piece today about Lloyd Elder at Baptist News global. I called Jack Causey and told him about it.

       That for starters. I will think of more.