Kris Kristofferson
Wow! Where do I begin? He wrote some of the most memorable landmark songs of all time. Everyone knows his “Me And Bobby Mcgee” because the enormity of Janis Joplin’s talent immortalized it. Everyone from Johnny Cash to Shawn Mullins recorded his “Sunday Morning Coming Down.” “For The Good Times” sums up loss and sorrow like few other songs. Kris Kristofferson wasn’t part of a chapter of modern American music. He was the chapter. There is not a strain of American music that was not impacted by his work. Country, rock and roll, and all of the progenitors and descendants of those genres felt his mark.
Who will ever forget his work in the movies? He played opposite Barbara Streisand in A Star Is Born and also opposite James Coburn in Pat Garrett and Billy The Kid, a Sam Peckinpah blood and gun smoke drenched masterpiece in which Kristofferson perfectly balanced The Kid’s natural kindness with his cold code of honor. Kris Kristofferson made Michael Cimino’s Heaven’s Gate seem larger than life and helped move its narrative at a lively pace despite its overlong running time. He brought needed grit to Martin Scorsese’s Alice Doesn’t Live Here Any more before eventually ending up a co star in the Blade film series with Wesley Snipes.
Kristofferson was known in every country. After his participation in the controversial ABC television mini series Amerika, which supposed life in the United States after being invaded and controlled by the Soviet Union, Kristofferson visited the U.S.S.R. to discuss the movie as well as efforts to end the proliferation of nuclear weapons. While there, he went on stage to sing with a Soviet rock band. It spoke volumes about the singer-songwriter-film actor’s desire to build bridges with people.
American singer-songwriter and musician Kris Kristofferson performs on stage, 1979. (Photo by Michael Putland/Getty Images)
As a film actor, Kristofferson knew which way the wind was blowing, opting to star in trendy pictures like Convoy, Semi-Tough, and Big Top Pee Wee.
Known to spar with Willie Nelson and other country and western stars over his “lefty views,” Kristofferson made his mark in the world of political opinion. A Rhodes scholar who became an Army Ranger in the 8th Infantry Division, Kristofferson played sports, took up boxing, and became a helicopter pilot, flying copters for a living when he worked for an oil company. He wasn’t afraid to console Sinead O’Connor when she was booed at Madison Square Garden’s tribute to Bob Dylan concert.
Rejecting an offer to teach literature at West Point, Kristofferson made the daring decision to leave the army, work small jobs, and struggle to make it in the music business. He made the wise decision to become a janitor at Columbia Records and the questionable decision to land a helicopter on Johnny Cash’s front lawn to deliver one of his demos, showing unusual determination to make his presence known in the music industry.
Possessing the vigor of an athlete, the spirit of a fighter, the fearlessness of a pilot, and the intellect of a scholar, he saw no barriers between himself and what he wanted to accomplish in music and film. He was one of the best American songwriters ever, one of the most successful film actors ever, and he left this world as the embodiment of true American fiber.
