Okemah, Oklahoma
The little town of Okemah had a small park devoted to Woody Guthrie set between two tall buildings. I was disappointed the light wasn't good for photos but I wasn't about to wait till noon for the sun to shine down upon Woody. I mean, there wasn't anything at all to do in Okemah, believe me.
Every July the town holds the Woody Guthrie Folk Festival.
I bet there is a lot to do then.
You too can donate and have your name on a brick of Woody's pedestal. I never saw Woody perform. In fact I would not have known about Woody if I hadn't been a Bob Dylan fan. Maybe in time I would have because of his son Arlo Guthrie. See his name in with the rest of the Guthrie family? I did see Arlo perform. It happened to be the one time he chose not to do his Alice's Restaurant Massacree song. Was I ever disappointed? You don't have to ask.
There was this bronze plaque all about Woody set high upon another piece of brickwork. It was difficult to get a photo of it without it looking like you are reading the opening story line to Star Wars.
5 comments:
Another funny little story but I agree with you. Not enough to spend a complete day. I like the bricks with the words in it to memorize a history or a person. Something I see in most english speaking country's but not in others .
Nice sculpture.
the star wars reference made me laugh. :)
woody looks comfy there.
Now I liked Woody Guthrie and it's a fine statue. It's a little disappointing to see woody crammed between two buildings. I also liked Arlo Guthrie and Bob Dylan so you give me some good memories.
For me, Woody's songs for kids are just the best, Howdy Do, Car-Car, Washy, Washy, all fun and most appealing to little ones (my son loved these songs 45 years ago!)
I notice Wiki mentioned the Folk Festival:
"Folk Festival [edit]Main article: Woody Guthrie Folk Festival
The Woody Guthrie Folk Festival is held annually in mid-July to commemorate Guthrie's life and music. The festival is held on the weekend closest to Guthrie's birth date (July 14) in Guthrie's hometown of Okemah, Oklahoma. Planned and implemented annually by the Woody Guthrie Coalition, a non-profit corporation, the goal is simply to ensure Guthrie's musical legacy.[80][81] The Woody Guthrie Coalition commissioned a local Creek Indian sculptor to cast a full-body bronze statue of Guthrie and his guitar, complete with the guitar's well-known inscription: "This machine kills fascists".[82] The statue, sculpted by artist Dan Brook, stands along Okemah's main street in the heart of downtown and was unveiled in 1998, the inaugural year of the festival."
Cheers,
Jo in MN
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