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Thoughts on Lewis Grizzard?

Posted on 3/14/23 at 12:09 am
Posted by GreenieTiger
New Orleans
Member since Sep 2014
103 posts
Posted on 3/14/23 at 12:09 am
Listening to sports talk radio, Lewis Grizzard is often mentioned as one of the great humorists and journalists, especially in places like the Finebaum Show. Somehow I never got around to reading him. I'm 1/4 way through If I Ever Get Back to Georgia, I'm Gonna Nail My Feet to the Ground and it is a way less humourous P.J. O'Rourke autobiographical type. Kind of what I expected, but somewhat disappointing.

Are their better Grizzard books to read? Is he remembered in the South more fondly than deserved?
Posted by Big Chipper
Charlotte, NC
Member since Sep 2008
2778 posts
Posted on 3/14/23 at 7:34 am to
I don't imagine his schtick aged well.
Posted by WG_Dawg
Hoover
Member since Jun 2004
86556 posts
Posted on 3/14/23 at 8:10 am to
quote:

Is he remembered in the South more fondly than deserved?



He probably deserves more praise IMO.

The guy was an absolute treasure for the deep south and provided that voice to the rest of america. Of course I'm a bit biased being that he's a Georgian and a dawgs fan, but I love his work regardless of that affiliation. I've read 5 or 6 of his books but it's been such a long time I can't specifically recommend any one above another. I would say if you're only 1/4 of the way through one of them, you may want to keep going and see where it takes you.
This post was edited on 3/14/23 at 8:31 am
Posted by Toroballistic
Tallahassee
Member since Dec 2017
1911 posts
Posted on 3/14/23 at 8:13 am to
I loved Grizzard, but I grew up in the 60s and 70s. Hell just the titles of his books were great:

"Shoot Low Boys - They're Riding Shetland Ponies"

"Don't bend Over in the Garden Granny, You Know Them Taters Got Eyes"

"Chili Dog's Always Bark at Night"

"When My Love returns From the Ladies Room, Will I Be Too Old To Care"
Posted by blueridgeTiger
Granbury, TX
Member since Jun 2004
20326 posts
Posted on 3/14/23 at 10:54 am to
One of my favorite authors - read most of his books at least twice.
Posted by rebelrouser
Columbia, SC
Member since Feb 2013
10681 posts
Posted on 3/14/23 at 12:37 pm to
He was great and really filled a void concerning southern humor, sports, cuisine, and culture in general before the internet. He wasn't a mainstream standup type comedian but was so much more. Kind of like Garrison Keillor for the South rather than Midwest. I think Mark Twain was similar to him too.
Posted by FightinTigersDammit
Louisiana North
Member since Mar 2006
34833 posts
Posted on 3/14/23 at 3:31 pm to
Wrote a great book about his father, titled " My Daddy Was a Pistol, and I'm a Son of a Gun"
Posted by DaleGribble
Bend, OR
Member since Sep 2014
6821 posts
Posted on 3/14/23 at 4:33 pm to
I read all of his books when I was in high school in the 80s and really enjoyed them. From what I can remember, most of them are just compilations of his articles for the AJC.
Posted by beachdude
FL
Member since Nov 2008
5663 posts
Posted on 3/14/23 at 9:00 pm to
He said something funny once. He defined the southern term nekkid. “Naked is when you ain’t got no clothes on. Nekkid is when you ain’t got no clothes on and you’re up to something. Vanessa Williams was nekkid.”
This post was edited on 6/3/23 at 10:23 pm
Posted by Thurber
NWLA
Member since Aug 2013
15402 posts
Posted on 3/16/23 at 12:03 am to
Elvis is Dead, and I don’t feel too good myself.
Posted by Gaggle
Member since Oct 2021
5678 posts
Posted on 3/16/23 at 1:12 pm to
I read all his books back 30 years ago. I'm a big sucker for that now dead genre of lighthearted southern humor. I pick em up at antique stores for $1 apiece
Posted by bawbawbaw350
Member since Nov 2022
108 posts
Posted on 3/16/23 at 5:01 pm to
Haven't heard that name in decades. I remember I was 10 yrs old around 1985 and my parents loved him. They made me and my older brother sit and listen to the whole cassette tape.

But they did the same w/ Bill Cosby's standup in the early 80s. They didn't like that my brother and I loved Murphy and Pryor. Hmm.
Posted by DLSWVA
SW Virginia via Baton Rouge
Member since Nov 2012
781 posts
Posted on 3/18/23 at 10:15 am to
To really appreciate him, you have to listen to his audiobooks. His voice and timing made him so memorable. I first heard him on a road trip to the Smokies as a kid. It seemed like the shortest drive we ever had.
Posted by jctiger73
Baton Rouge
Member since Nov 2009
255 posts
Posted on 3/19/23 at 5:54 am to
Saw him live at the Centroplex. I left hurting from laughing so much. He was a Southern treasure. Left us way too soon. A section of I-85 in Georgia is named after him.
Posted by Auburn80
Backwater, TN
Member since Nov 2017
7576 posts
Posted on 3/20/23 at 10:59 pm to
Well worth reading one of his books.
Posted by Telecaster
Memphis
Member since May 2017
1689 posts
Posted on 3/25/23 at 1:52 pm to
He was a Georgia Bulldog fan. He understood SEC football and what it means.

Dude was hilarious and would be cancelled in today’s environment.
Posted by p0845330
Member since Aug 2013
5704 posts
Posted on 4/2/23 at 8:32 pm to
Lewis Grizzard was a treasure. I read his columns and read all his books. Try placing yourself in his place and time and you will have a deeper understanding. I legitimately mourned when he died, especially after reading about his deepest fears with his heart issues.
Posted by prplhze2000
Parts Unknown
Member since Jan 2007
51480 posts
Posted on 4/16/23 at 6:02 pm to
Yes. Read him. Funny.
Posted by Jefferson Dawg
Member since Sep 2012
31968 posts
Posted on 4/16/23 at 6:34 pm to
quote:

Is he remembered in the South more fondly than deserved?

“Deserved”? frick off

What gives you the right to judge what he meant to so many
Posted by VinegarStrokes
Georgia
Member since Oct 2015
13324 posts
Posted on 5/11/23 at 11:55 am to
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