Those who have attended closely so far have no doubt figured out that my friend the Texas lawyer Kirk Purcell had—maybe he’s matured with the passage of time—a wicked sense of humor. (I mean, the fact that he was once a Rodeo Clown tells you something about the man.) A sense of humor that I found appealing. For example, Kirk would write long letters to celebrities in which he would, as the saying goes, piss on their shoes while he told them it was raining. The thing is, these folks would, apparently, think he was on the up and up and write him back (or else at least have their minions fulfill his usual request for an autographed photograph). Understand, this was before celebrity stalking had become so common, so I guess it just was a more trusting time. I have personally seen letters to and from Norman Mailer (Purcell offered to stage a grudge no-holds-barred wrestling match between Mailer and Gore Vidal), Alabama Governor George Wallace (Purcell asked if it was okay to name his son after the Governor), Gerald Ford, Julie Nixon Eisenhower, and Anita Bryant. I remember seeing correspondence between Purcell and Pat Boone. Boone was the white buck wearing singer/movie star who was wholesome almost to a fault. Purcell wrote him fan letters that were, to my mind, transparently tongue-in-cheek, and Boone responded. There were letters sent to Richard Nixon—“the only president I’ll ever have.”
The Lawyer Kirk Purcell
Purcell’s stage and letter-writing persona was that of the Reverend Billy Joe Bob $weeney, spiritual leader of the “Anti-UnAmericanism Crusade” whose motto was “Always Grab a Republican by the Neck.” He once wrote to Ugandan President (and despot) Idi Amin telling him that the Anti-UnAmericanism Crusade had named him “The Crusade’s Honorary American of 1978” and had named a grocery store after him “in recognition of your many accomplishments as a military leader, statesman, and race car driver.”
And I once read a short biographical blurb on Purcell which described him as leaning “to the left politically, and to the right when he dances.”
I haven't been in touch with him in years. I hope Kirk’s well and happy and prosperous and that he’s allowed to move about unsupervised.
And I once read a short biographical blurb on Purcell which described him as leaning “to the left politically, and to the right when he dances.”
I haven't been in touch with him in years. I hope Kirk’s well and happy and prosperous and that he’s allowed to move about unsupervised.
