May 19, 2005
I have wondered how long it would take for one or our Western friends to tap into the China market. Well, wonder no more. Got this Email this morning:

"'The Great American Cowboy China Tour' starts in San Francisco at the historic Masonic Theater on March 26th, 2006. From March 27th—April 2nd, 'The Great American Cowboy' will be performed throughout China. Starting with a Cowboy concert on the Great Wall of China, the Kansas Cowboys will perform at children's hospitals and schools as well as the largest theaters in both Beijing and Shanghai."

My Irish documentary friends are working their way through New Mexico even as you read this. They are filming Dr. Paul Hutton in Santa Fe tomorrow. After a couple of days shooting in northern New Mexico they will wend their way back across Monument Valley and down to Cave Creek on June 1, where I will tape another interview for their four part BBC series on the American West. And yes, their bench seat is still in my garage.

Got a packet from Henry Martinez in Reserve, New Mexico today. He is heading up the drive to honor "Frisco's" most famous gunfight. Henry and his committee have chosen a sculpture for the Elfego Baca monument. Arizona sculptor James Muir got the gig and says, in the Mountain Mail, "What I'm trying to dramatize is the fight against tyranny." Reserve was originally called Upper Frisco, in Baca's time. We are going to design the billboard for the site and I need a better photo of the sculpture. The sculpture will be unveiled in October of 2006. The artist is from Greer, a beautiful White Mountain village in northeastern Arizona.

The Graduate is coming into town this morning. Thomas "Edison" Bell is supposed to arrive around 11. He told me he met a beautiful black girl named Ivory last week. I told him this is fine with me because we need better point guard genes in the family. To this his mother quipped, "How sweet, Edison and Ivory." One thing's for sure: we don’t need any more zane genes.

Allen Barra's book Inventing Wyatt Earp is going back on press. He sent me a bonus check (my drawing of Wyatt with a pistol is part of the cover montage). I may buy a '57 T-Bird with the money. Kath and I were at the Dairy Queen on Sunday and longtime Creeker Hank Z. pulled up in a canary-yellow custom Bird. I was so jealous I crammed a blizzard into his face as he tried to get out of the car and he cried like a little baby.

Well, half that's true, except I was the one who cried like a baby. I WANT MY OWN T-BIRD DADDY!

"Everybody in Country music is two decisions from dry-walling. So we're happy to be here."
—Jeff Foxworthy on why Country stars are so nice