Post by Ron Wallace (Scotshawk) on Feb 25, 2008 0:18:10 GMT -5
Some of you may already know since his obituary is appearing around the country now, mainly because of his work on Broadway in "August Osage County", but I'd like to take a minute to praise a man who served as my mentor, my editor, my teacher, and most importantly my friend of over thirty years; Dennis Letts.
He wrote the introduction to my first book, "Native Son". If you have the book reread his moving and eloquent words and you will see the kind of man he was. I've reread them a dozen times or more today. His wife Billie and Dennis invited me and my family to sit with them less than a year ago at the Oklahoma Book Awards and rooted for me to win. He was pure Okie and bought a copy as I was signing at the finalist table because it had a different cover from the one I gave him. Billie had bought 25 copies to give away and promote my book, but he said he wanted one with a "Finalist" sticker on it. I love Dennis and Billie Letts.
He thought it was wonderful that my son Matthew wanted to marry Billie since he was five or six because she used his birthday in "Where the Heart Is" and she had beautiful red hair. Dennis told Matthew anyone would be a fool not to want to marry her.
He was an intelligent, talented, honest man. I learned a lot about friendship from him, and don't regret a second I spent in his company or spent talking on the phone to him in New York, Chicago, Austin, Los Angeles or just north of me in Tulsa. My heart is broken that I will be denied the chance to greet him again as we draft our fantasy baseball teams this year as we have done for over twenty years. Bless his heart, he was an Indian fan.
I'll be attending a memoral for him in Wagoner, Oklahoma where he grew up this Thursday. Half of Durant will make the three hour drive; that's the kind of guy he was. Do me a favor and keep his beautiful family in your thoughts, and you might keep me there to. I have lost a brother, a big brother, an Okie brother.
He wrote the introduction to my first book, "Native Son". If you have the book reread his moving and eloquent words and you will see the kind of man he was. I've reread them a dozen times or more today. His wife Billie and Dennis invited me and my family to sit with them less than a year ago at the Oklahoma Book Awards and rooted for me to win. He was pure Okie and bought a copy as I was signing at the finalist table because it had a different cover from the one I gave him. Billie had bought 25 copies to give away and promote my book, but he said he wanted one with a "Finalist" sticker on it. I love Dennis and Billie Letts.
He thought it was wonderful that my son Matthew wanted to marry Billie since he was five or six because she used his birthday in "Where the Heart Is" and she had beautiful red hair. Dennis told Matthew anyone would be a fool not to want to marry her.
He was an intelligent, talented, honest man. I learned a lot about friendship from him, and don't regret a second I spent in his company or spent talking on the phone to him in New York, Chicago, Austin, Los Angeles or just north of me in Tulsa. My heart is broken that I will be denied the chance to greet him again as we draft our fantasy baseball teams this year as we have done for over twenty years. Bless his heart, he was an Indian fan.
I'll be attending a memoral for him in Wagoner, Oklahoma where he grew up this Thursday. Half of Durant will make the three hour drive; that's the kind of guy he was. Do me a favor and keep his beautiful family in your thoughts, and you might keep me there to. I have lost a brother, a big brother, an Okie brother.
