Isn’t it funny how we choose our heroes? Maybe yours is a president, a performer, an athlete or even someone at your church or in your neighborhood. Whatever the case, in these people, we see something that we would love to see in ourselves. Maybe it’s their talent or abilities. Maybe it’s the money they make from their talent and abilities. Maybe it’s the people they attract with the money from their talent and abilities. As they say, the possibilities are endless.
I was thinking about my heroes the other day and wondering to myself what this array of personalities says about me, and who I really am. Let me lay them out for you, in order of my awareness and fascination: Glen Campbell, Johnny Carson, Ronald Reagan, Kenny Rogers and David Letterman. Sure, I have admired other people. Don’t for a moment let these five characters of varying reputation narrowly define who I am.
And as a Christian, I realize that my ultimate role model is Jesus Christ, who by his grace allows me to make mistakes, but accepts me anyway, bridging the gap between God and me as only He, and He alone, can do. But enough preaching, I feel an offering coming on.
Let’s see if I can explain this Hall of Fame I created in my youth. Why Glen Campbell? The music, his singing, the guitar. “Try a Little Kindness” was the first 45 record I ever bought in a place we used to call a record store. I brought it home and played it until the needle burned permanent scarring into the vinyl. (Kids, for an explanation of 45s and vinyl, ask your parents. No, wait. Your grandparents. No, just shoot me an e-mail.)
Glen Campbell had it all: “Wichita Lineman,” “Galveston” and “Rhinestone Cowboy.” He had a hit TV series on CBS and amazing hair that was parted on the side and seemed to hang in mid-air, as if designed by George Lucas and Industrial Lights and Magic. Back then, I wanted hair like that. Today, I’m not as picky and any hair will do. Glen had a cavernous dimple in his chin, which seemed to impress the ladies. That explains why my mom found me rubbing a quarter into my flat, void of all character chin one day in order to make a dimple of my own. It didn’t work, but I learned something about metal burns.
Johnny Carson was the guy I wanted to be: Life of the party, topical humor, laughs with a simple double-take and a clothing line with his name on it. Before the DVR, you had to beg your parents to stay up late and watch Johnny at 11:30 PM weeknights. Once a year, he did an anniversary show, with all the best clips from the show’s history. I would come home and take a long nap so I could stay up and watch it. And the best thing about being Johnny? The cool people came to him, while he sat comfortably behind an impressive desk and a nighttime skyline of Los Angeles.
But if not Johnny, then Ronald Reagan. He’s still on my short list of the first people I want to meet in heaven. I first noticed him in the mid-70s, when he would appear on talk shows or give speeches. He was the master communicator, with the perfect mix of facts, inspiration and humor. I know others wrote the speeches, but Ronnie delivered them. That “aw shucks’ twinkle in his eye, and unashamed optimism for this country. I was so proud to cast my first vote in a presidential election for Ronald Wilson Reagan in November, 1984. Not gonna lie to you, I teared up a little. But that was nothing compared to the day he was shot by Hinkley, or when the word came that he had finally given in to a body and mind ravaged by Alzheimer’s. We say it about a lot of things, but there will never be another.
This photo was taken just before the TV interview with Kenny Rogers at the Fox Theater in Atlanta, Fall, 2001.
Kenny Rogers was all about a girl. Doesn’t it work that way most of the time? At 17, I had a girlfriend who loved Kenny Rogers and asked me to get tickets to his upcoming concert at the Omni in Atlanta. I drove down early one Saturday for a shot at the best seats. At the concert, I found that I knew and liked most of his songs. But more than that was his personality. It was captivating, and I loved to see him work an audience. The relationship with that girl ended, but the one with Kenny did not. I went back every year, sometimes twice a year when he was in nearby towns. My two daughters have grown up listening to his music, and often singing along. I have had the honor of interviewing Kenny on TV and this Christmas, my oldest daughter Holli sang backup for him with a small choral ensemble at Anderson University in South Carolina. “You got to know when to walk away, and know when to run,” but I never have from Kenny Rogers.
And then there’s Dave. Never liked him when he used to fill in for Johnny. Maybe it was jealously, because I envisioned myself behind that desk and the cool microphone. But then in 1980, while on summer vacation, I caught a new morning show he was doing on NBC. It was unlike anything I had ever seen: Viewer mail, stupid pet tricks, Larry Bud Melman. I couldn’t get enough. Before long, he was moved to Late Night, right after Johnny. The VCR had come along by then, so you know what dominated by personal library. Followed Dave over to CBS in the early 90s, and am still disappointed Johnny’s throne somehow went to Jay. They’ll talk about this along with the Fall of the Roman Empire in future generations of history classes…or at least journalism.
So, there you have it, my heroes in life. Among them are numerous divorces, alcohol abuse, egos and other vices, but I admire and love them still. I have learned to separate art from the artist in many cases. They will never be perfect. And for that matter, I won’t either.
Which brings us back to Jesus.
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