Podcasts about Popcorn Sutton

Super Bowl mess. Army ad! Halt penny production! Messi's bodyguard. Skol! Lyme disease, hmm. Maxine Waters. Trump: False accusers, false convictions?The Hake Report, Monday, February 10, 2025 ADTIMESTAMPS* (0:00:00) Start: Super Bowl* (0:02:02) Super Bowl, other stuff* (0:04:07) France is not competitive in AI* (0:07:38) Hey, guys! Mexican Monday, kids* (0:09:33) WILL, Australia: French, Anger stupidity* (0:13:29) WILLIAM, CA: Super Bowl review* (0:18:59) WILLIAM: Mexican gal threatened police* (0:20:22) WILLIAM: Greggatron* (0:21:23) WILLIAM: Maxine Waters* (0:23:53) WILLIAM: Booed T Swift, Trump cheered … France* (0:27:37) US Army is back* (0:32:50) Shrew dangerous* (0:34:06) Penny production halted* (0:39:47) Messi's bodyguard* (0:47:21) Skol, Norseman for cheers — or skål* (0:52:44) Lyme disease* (1:00:03) STEPHEN, MD: Negro National Anthem, Creoles* (1:13:39) WILLIAM 7, CA: Lyme disease, others* (1:19:26) WILLIAM: Super Bowl drama, insurance commercials* (1:23:19) Coffee: Maxine Waters* (1:31:13) Popcorn: Trump is not guilty!* (1:40:54) JOHN, KY: Trump, Popcorn Sutton* (1:43:45) JOHN: Cincinnati white nationalists; Trump bandwagon?* (1:49:41) JOHN: Slavery a good thing? They not your friends!* (1:50:16) Grupo Mojado - "Tonta"LINKSBLOG https://www.thehakereport.com/blog/2025/2/10/the-hake-report-mon-2-10-25PODCAST / Substack HAKE NEWS from JLP https://www.thehakereport.com/jlp-news/2025/2/10/hake-news-mon-2-10-25Hake is live M-F 9-11a PT (11-1CT/12-2ET) Call-in 1-888-775-3773 https://www.thehakereport.com/showVIDEO YouTube - Rumble* - Facebook - X - BitChute - Odysee*PODCAST Substack - Apple - Spotify - Castbox - Podcast Addict*SUPER CHAT on platforms* above or BuyMeACoffee, etc.SHOP - Printify (new!) - Spring (old!) - Cameo | All My LinksJLP Network: JLP - Church - TFS - Nick - Joel - Punchie Get full access to HAKE at thehakereport.substack.com/subscribe

Marvin "Popcorn" Sutton was born on October 5, 1946. He was as Appalachian as you can get. The accent was off the charts and he had moonshine in his blood.Legend says that he only lit one cigarette in this life, the rest lit by the other cigs he was smoking. He was a moonshiner, a boot-legger and an outlaw. LINK TO FILM COMPOSER STEVE'S GOFUNDME: https://gofund.me/51ad26edSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

GUEST: Crishaun the Don of Misfit Nation: Trump realignment. "Genocide" drama. Excited Calls, Supers, and CRITICISM. Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul. The Hake Report, Friday, November 22, 2024 AD Crishaun the Don LINKS  youtube.com/@MisfitNation  |  x.com/CrishauntheDon  |  misfitnation.podbean.com  |  shopmisfitnation.com  TIMESTAMPS * (0:00:00) Start * (0:02:38) Hey, guys! * (0:03:56) Crishaun the Don - black votes, mostly anti-Trump * (0:09:55) Where from here? Normies… * (0:13:36) JLP, Jamaican * (0:15:35) The intellectuals vs reality. Messaging. Simple politics. * (0:21:11) Cool to be a Republican? No, Trump supporter. Podcast media. * (0:26:27) The realignment: Competence… * (0:30:35) Genocide is a g— word… whites… Lay bricks… * (0:32:51) Anti-woke content is lame. Right wing intellectuals, admit wrong * (0:36:15) All musicians, artists are liberals… * (0:41:46) JOE, AZ: Putin don't respect Trump * (0:49:49) JOE: Govt don't care. Nobody should vote Trump. * (0:56:07) JOE: Why'd people vote Trump? * (0:56:43) JOE: Sudy: racism and stupidity? … Intellect. * (1:03:01) Coffee: Trump cabinet * (1:07:30) Coffee: The Don? * (1:10:17) Coffees: Bible study? Mike Tyson* (1:11:39) Pay Day for Mike Tyson, Paul brothers* (1:19:05) Coffees: Bible thumpers, Jesus return * (1:20:58) Popcorn Sutton … * (1:24:34) Coffee: Everybody wants our culture, nobody wants our blues * (1:27:19) Supers: Lin Yen Chin * (1:31:43) MARK: Joe. Use the word "Genocide"! * (1:45:41) WILLIAM: Crishaun. Trump. AG picks. * (1:51:31) ROBERT, KS: Bibi. Hate. * (1:55:00) Jacky Cheung - 擁有 (LIVE) - Yong You, "Have" LINKS BLOG  https://www.thehakereport.com/blog/2024/11/22/crishaun-the-don-trump-incoming-fri-11-22-24 PODCAST / Substack  HAKE NEWS from JLP  https://www.thehakereport.com/jlp-news/2024/11/22/hake-news-fri-11-22-24 Hake is live M-F 9-11a PT (11-1CT/12-2ET) Call-in 1-888-775-3773 https://www.thehakereport.com/show VIDEO  YouTube  -  Rumble*  -  Facebook  -  X  -  BitChute  -  Odysee*  PODCAST  Substack  -  Apple  -  Spotify  -  Castbox  -  Podcast Addict  *SUPER CHAT on platforms* above or  BuyMeACoffee, etc.  SHOP  Spring  -  Cameo  |  All My Links  JLP Network:  JLP  -  Church  -  TFS  -  Nick  -  Joel  -  Punchie   Get full access to HAKE at thehakereport.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode I discuss Honeysuckle and Horse Radish as edible and medicinal herbs, talk a bit about moonshining, my old friend Popcorn Sutton and I give you my recipe for Redneck Kimchi, which is the best topping ever on a hot dog!  Then, I begin to tell you about the Solanum or poisonous Nightshade family; these are useful, but hallucinogenic and poisonous plants, that are cousins to tomatoes, potatoes, peppers and eggplant. It is a wild ride!Get your Magic Mind subscription here:  https://www.magicmind.com/JUDSONCARROLL20 You get up to 48% off with my code:  JUDSONCARROLL20Email: judson@judsoncarroll.comBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/southern-appalachian-herbs--4697544/supportRead about The Spring Foraging Cookbook: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2024/01/the-spring-foraging-cookbook.htmlAvailable for purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CRP63R54New today in my Woodcraft shop:https://judsoncarrollwoodcraft.substack.com/p/wild-cherry-salt-bowl-1Medicinal Weeds and Grasses of the American Southeast, an Herbalist's Guidehttps://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2023/05/medicinal-weeds-and-grasses-of-american.htmlAvailable in paperback on Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C47LHTTHandConfirmation, an Autobiography of Faithhttps://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2023/05/confirmation-autobiography-of-faith.htmlAvailable in paperback on Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C47Q1JNKVisit my Substack and sign up for my free newsletter:https://judsoncarroll.substack.com/Read about my new other books:Medicinal Ferns and Fern Allies, an Herbalist's Guide https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/11/medicinal-ferns-and-fern-allies.htmlAvailable for purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BMSZSJPSThe Omnivore's Guide to Home Cooking for Preppers, Homesteaders, Permaculture People and Everyone Else: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/10/the-omnivores-guide-to-home-cooking-for.htmlAvailable for purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BGKX37Q2Medicinal Shrubs and Woody Vines of The American Southeast an Herbalist's Guidehttps://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/06/medicinal-shrubs-and-woody-vines-of.htmlAvailable for purchase on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B2T4Y5L6andGrowing Your Survival Herb Garden for Preppers, Homesteaders and Everyone Elsehttps://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/04/growing-your-survival-herb-garden-for.htmlhttps://www.amazon.com/dp/B09X4LYV9RThe Encyclopedia of Medicinal Bitter Herbs: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/03/the-encyclopedia-of-bitter-medicina.htmlAvailable for purchase on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B5MYJ35RandChristian Medicine, History and Practice: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2022/01/christian-herbal-medicine-history-and.htmlAvailable for purchase on Amazon: www.amazon.com/dp/B09P7RNCTBHerbal Medicine for Preppers, Homesteaders and Permaculture People: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/2021/10/herbal-medicine-for-preppers.htmlAlso available on Amazon: www.amazon.com/dp/B09HMWXL25Podcast:  https://www.spreaker.com/show/southern-appalachian-herbsBlog: https://southernappalachianherbs.blogspot.com/Free Video Lessons: https://rumble.com/c/c-618325 Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/southern-appalachian-herbs--4697544/support.

Now we take you to the good ole moonshine days of the Appalachian Mountains. This is one of the biggest legends of them all.

In this episode the boys Moonshine, Mary Jane, and Mennonites. -Popcorn Sutton gets busted.-Way to chill or way too sketch.-Service is terrible.-No shoes strikes again.-Skylink.-Covid is back.-Tyler doesn’t like the Amish.-Poor Prigozhin. Check us out on social media, or send us an email at regrettablejtp@gmail.com. All music and production credits host Tyler Massey. Jay Lindly... The post Episode 132: Beards first appeared on The Ouachita Podcasts.

On today's episode we have a glass of Woodinville port finish!  We continue our Finishing series with another port finish, this one out of Washington state and finished with ruby port.We talk about the experiences we remember around bottles,  how climate affects the finishing process, and distilling maple syrup!  All that and more on today's episode of Whiskey Chasers!Our Website is www.whiskeychaserspod.com, check us out! Thanks, and enjoy the show!Be sure to show some love for the company that brought you today's bottle!https://www.woodinvillewhiskeyco.com/products/woodinville-straight-bourbon-whiskey-port-finished/ Our patreon is https://www.patreon.com/Whiskeychaserspod  You can also sign up through buzzsprout!Apparently the year to start a distillery was in 2010! A large majority of craft and some big named distilleries got their start in that year, woodinville was one of them.Two buddies decided they wanted to create the greatest whiskey, but had not a clue in the world how to do so. With the help and services of a consulting company called Oak View Spirits, they were able to learn and build a brandDave Pickerell (was the master distiller at makers mark)The Sons of Liberty in RI; The George Washington Mount Vernon Distillery, Belmont Distillery, Copper Fox, and Ragged Mountain distillery in VA; High Wire in SC, Asheville Distillery, and Troy and Sons in NC; Saint Augustine in FL; Louisiana Spirits Bayou Rum in LA; Short Mountain, Ole Smoky, Popcorn Sutton, Corsair, Nelson's Green Brier, and Tenn South in TN; Rocktown in AR; Old Pogue in KY; Watershed in OH; Two James in MI; Chicago Distillery, FEW, Whiskey Acers, and Blaum Brothers in IL; Driftless Glen in WI; Panthers Distillery, and Far North Distillery in MN and Woodinville in WA are just a few that he worked with before his passing in 2018All of their grain that they use is from a local farmer's family farm3 generational family farmsThis bottle was released in 2020 and was only supposed to be limited to the state of Washington.It is said to be a 5 year old high rye bourbon finished in used Ruby port wine barrels for another 6 months. 90 proofMashbill: Corn 72%Rye 22%Malted Barley 6%$70Chris complaint to angels envy is its to friendlyThis one has barrel spiceRye likeMerlot wine likeCody thoughtsVery friendly But you still know your drinking a bourbonFinishes dryNickRed wine likeRed wine drinkers will love itSupport the showWebsite:www.whiskeychaserspod.comPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/WhiskeychaserspodFacebook:https://www.facebook.com/whiskeychaserspodcastInsta:https://www.instagram.com/whiskeychaserspodcast/TikTok:https://www.tiktok.com/@whiskeychaserspodcastThanks For Listening! Tell a Friend!

Shop Talk discusses the business acumen of former Apple leader, Steve Jobs. Caught My Eye discovers that a newscaster covering Hurricane Ian used a reservoir tip condom to protect her mic from the elements. Also, as of January 1, 2023, jaywalking will no longer be a crime in California. Famed moonshiner, Popcorn Sutton, is our business birthday.We're all business. Except when we're not.Apple Podcasts: apple.co/1WwDBrCSpotify: spoti.fi/2pC19B1iHeart Radio: bit.ly/2n0Z7H1Tunein: bit.ly/1SE3NMbStitcher: bit.ly/1N97ZquGoogle Podcasts: bit.ly/1pQTcVWPandora: pdora.co/2pEfctjYouTube: bit.ly/1spAF5aAlso follow Tim and John on:Facebook: www.facebook.com/focusgroupradioTwitter: www.twitter.com/focusgroupradioInstagram: www.instagram.com/focusgroupradio

In this episode Neil and Will touch (and taste) on the heritage of 'spirits' in Appalachia, as well as the craft brew industry that has taken hold in the region.  The guys had the pleasure of sitting down with Oscar Wong, the "Godfather" of Beer in Appalachia and founder of Highland Brewing, the first craft beer brewery in the "Craft Beer Capital of America."  Aside from the beer, they discuss the economic impact it has had on the region.  Oscar explains how it all started, what the future holds for the local brewery and how he will forever be Appalachian.  Take a listen, you might even hear the guys thoughts (and tastes) on White Lightning, what it was like growing up "dry" and one (or two) references to 'Ol Uncle Popcorn.  Also, don't forget about the #AppBiz(s) of the week: Tim Smith's Climax Moonshine; Ole Smoky Tennessee Moonshine; Junior Johnson's Midnight Moon; Troy and Sons Platinum; Stillhouse Clear Corn Whiskey; Bill Elliott's Moonshine; George Dickel White Corn Whisky; and Popcorn Sutton's Tennessee White Whiskey!    Highland Brewing: www.highlandbrewing.com  Tim Smith's Climax moonshine: www.timsmithspirits.com  Ole Smoky Tennessee Moonshine: www.olesmoky.com  Junior Johnson's Midnight Moon: www.juniorsmidnightmoon.com   Troy & Sons Platinum: www.ashevilledistilling.com  Stillhouse Clear Corn Whiskey: www.stillhouse.com  Bill Elliott's Moonshine: www.dawsonvillemoonshinedistillery.com  George Dickel White Corn Whisky: www.georgedickel.com  Popcorn Sutton's Tennessee White Whiskey: www.popcornsutton.com 

Guest: DAN PIERCEIn this episode, you'll learn about moonshine history, how NASCAR emerged from the Prohibition Era and how moonshine runners' lives have an impact on today's world. Joseph is joined by our special guest Dan Pierce, he is a renowned author, columnist, and consultant. He earned degrees from WCU, the University of Alabama, and the University of Tennessee before becoming a history professor at UNC Asheville. Dan is an avid outdoorsman, passionate about NASCAR, moonshine history, Appalachian culture, environmental issues, and race relations. He lives with his family in Black Mountain, N.C. He joins us to talk about Tar Heel Lightning: How Secret Stills and Fast cars Made N.C. the Moonshine Capital of the World, NASCAR, and more.Don't miss this out!Tune in for this fun conversation at TalkRadio.nyc or watch the Facebook Livestream by Clicking Here.SHOW NOTESSEGMENT 1Pierce grew up in West Asheville, and was born in Arkansas but moved at the age of 3. Father moved to pastor the Grace Baptist Church. Joseph discusses how he was born and grew up in Haywood County which is right next to Asheville but relocated to NYC and stayed for 27 years. Eventually, he moved back to Asheville because it's a great place. Joseph and Pierce discuss the nostalgia of their childhoods in Asheville comparing it to how it is currently. They discuss good changes such as the dining expansion and interesting changes such as seeing more wildlife up close to their homes.SEGMENT 2When asked about his dedication to being a teacher and writer Pierce responds by saying he arrived at wanting to be a teacher in his late teens. He liked kids as he ran a park and majored in education. Ironically he recalls himself as an awful student but had a widowed sixth-grade teacher who influenced him. She took him and another boy over the summer to Europe, and her kindness encouraged him to be an influential teacher as well. After becoming a coach in Nashville he ended up going back to school for a Ph.D. at 40 years old. At 45 he came out with a book, he enjoyed reading early on but couldn't imagine himself becoming a writer. With great mentors, he got grounded with discipline and mastered writing. He enjoyed his thesis as it surrounded him hanging around the Moonshine or a stock race. His second book is Real NASCAR, White Lightning, Red Clay, and Big Bill Frogs. The France Family were/still are the owners of NASCAR. Perce dives into the rough and aggressive origin of NASCAR.SEGMENT 3Moonshine helped NASCAR and now Joseph wants to discuss how the roles were reversible, in that NASCAR helped NC become the Moonshine Capital. When the federal excise tax was put in place in NC after the Civil War, there was always a tradition in NC to make whiskey and so they made it illegal to upkeep the tradition whilst avoiding the tax. This would still be a strong local option during the prohibition. This made it a great market for Moonshine to thrive and it became a “two-way street” when it came to NASCAR. Successful drivers realized they could make more money with Moonshine than by winning races. There was an economic emergency or young people would get started with work with Moonshine. It became a part of the culture where people accepted the fact that it was needed for people's livelihoods. Both Pierce and Joseph discuss how it's still a lively product as they both are often gifted Moonshine. Popcorn Sutton was the bad image painted onto Moonshiners, but Pierce describes them as entrepreneurs and smart. He also talks about how there were also African Americans, women, and Native Americans. A.A. was actually a step ahead of white folks with illegal handmade liquor.SEGMENT 4Pierce wrote many books about the Great Smokies National Park. One of the most popular books is, “ From Natural Habitats to Natural Parkings”. Another book was, “Moonshine and the Smokies, Corn from a Jar'' which sold the most. He also did a book on the Community of Hazel Creek in Swain County, which surrounds the long controversy about the road to nowhere. The most recent one was a collaboration with an old friend regarding the art of the Smokies, “Illustrated Guide to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park”. Pierce also discusses his book about ​​NASCAR vs the merits of college football. He was in a debate on the South Carolina Public Radio on a series called Tell About the South. Hardy Jackson from Jacksonville State in Alabama argued for football and Pierce argued for NASCAR. He won a lifetime award, the “Western NC Historical Association Outstate Achievement Award''. Pierce is big on equal rights and racial diversity, he's leading a Railroad Incarcerated Committee to honor the forced labor of the 1870's inmates.-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------TRANSCRIPT00:00:41.010 –> 00:00:43.320 Joseph McElroy: Welcome to the gateway to the smokies.00:00:43.320 –> 00:00:52.260 Joseph McElroy: podcast this podcast is about America's most business National Park, the great smoky mountains national park, and the surrounding towns.00:00:52.710 –> 00:01:01.470 Joseph McElroy: These areas are filled with natural beauty deep storied history and rich mountain cultures that we explore with weekly episodes.00:01:01.950 –> 00:01:10.440 Joseph McElroy: I'm Joseph Franklin McElroy man of the world, but also with deep roots in these mountains My family has lived in the great smokies for over 200 year.00:01:11.160 –> 00:01:18.540 Joseph McElroy: My businesses and travel, but my heart is in culture today we're going to talk about tar heel lightning talking past NASCAR and.00:01:19.080 –> 00:01:34.620 Joseph McElroy: and other mountain cultural touchstones with Dan Pierce, but first, our sponsors imagine a place evocative of motor courts of the past, yet modern and vibrant with a chic Appalachian feel.00:01:35.250 –> 00:01:46.650 Joseph McElroy: a place for adventure for relaxation imagine a place where you could fish in a mountain parent is trout stream real the catch on fire, and he accompanied by fine line or craft beer.00:01:47.340 –> 00:01:58.710 Joseph McElroy: Imagine a place in the old-time music world cultural cell, there is no other place like the middle like motel Maggie valley you're a smoky mountain adventures start with where you stay.00:02:00.630 –> 00:02:12.780 Joseph McElroy: The smoky mountains and surrounding areas is a vacation destination for all seasons, some of the nation's best hiking trails waterfalls outdoor adventures and family entertainment can be found, right here.00:02:13.470 –> 00:02:32.130 Joseph McElroy: start your adventure by using smokies adventure calm at smokies plural adventure senior.com to explore all the wonderful features of the great smoky mountains National Park trails waterfalls kids Code, the elk, and more and check out all the awesome family attractions.00:02:34.050 –> 00:02:49.260 Joseph McElroy: slinky and interesting logical, it was facilities and entertainment, you and your entire family can enjoy the goal the smokies adventure calm is to be your meeting information source for adventures and experiences and the great smoky mountain.00:02:50.850 –> 00:02:59.880 Joseph McElroy: Some upcoming events, I want to tell you about on June 18 at 4 pm is part four of the heritage books series with Bob Bob.00:03:00.600 –> 00:03:11.790 Joseph McElroy: it's another informative and entertaining and fun afternoon of history, food, and music as a part of part four of our heritage book series, and its an award-winning author and.00:03:12.330 –> 00:03:15.930 Joseph McElroy: meadowlark smoky mountain heritage Center general manager Bob blog.00:03:16.620 –> 00:03:31.710 Joseph McElroy: Discussing his fourth book colorful characters the great smoky mountains and then these books, he leaves the library stories of vibrant and intriguing characters, such as the Cherokee chiefs you don't agus got okay Nice.00:03:32.490 –> 00:03:44.610 Joseph McElroy: Oh, can I should have gotten this before I got on the cocoa know stone soda sorry if I really I'm really butchered that they have dragon canoe and their allies such as john will watch, along with their combat.00:03:45.240 –> 00:03:57.210 Joseph McElroy: Robert Rogers quitting Kennedy King hailer the Stockbridge Mohicans Francis Marion and others and then there's modern-day icon such as von plot Charles matt Miller and URL and.00:03:57.900 –> 00:04:16.830 Joseph McElroy: there'll be a book signing and Barbecue dinner, as well as a evening of acoustic music by Michael Guthrie in France it's the Venice free to motel guests and heritage club Members but there's an admission charge $10 for are all of the people call eight to 89261717 to reserve your place.00:04:17.910 –> 00:04:33.270 Joseph McElroy: On July July night a mountain icon I the Iowa I a hatter is going to have a program called wild crafted and mothers nature natural guard and it starts on July 9 at 10 am and.00:04:34.380 –> 00:04:43.050 Joseph McElroy: it's a program featuring a legendary wildcrafting expert I had her and she was also a renowned author filmmaker instructor and tour guide.00:04:43.410 –> 00:04:49.410 Joseph McElroy: For the great smoky mountains National Park elite DSM field school education Program.00:04:49.920 –> 00:05:01.350 Joseph McElroy: She is an expert on edible plants medicinal herbs of anything pertaining to wild craft forging and Appalachians plant trees and flowers, she is going to give it a presentation on.00:05:01.860 –> 00:05:08.730 Joseph McElroy: On all sorts of stuff related to walk crafting and then she's actually going to take our the guests, and people are on.00:05:09.060 –> 00:05:24.510 Joseph McElroy: an adventure, on the grounds and the surrounding area to actually forge things and learn how to do it right your own backyard so costs eight to 89261717 to reserve your place is free for guests and heritage heard this club members and there's a $20.00:05:25.830 –> 00:05:27.960 Joseph McElroy: price per for admission for everybody else.00:05:29.700 –> 00:05:36.750 Joseph McElroy: And then on August six six there's going to be a chair the launch of cherokee heritage series with Davey art.00:05:38.280 –> 00:05:47.490 Joseph McElroy: Davey arts is a world-famous Cherokee tribal historic and award-winning craftsman of traditional Turkey crafts, specifically masks and baskets.00:05:47.880 –> 00:06:07.200 Joseph McElroy: And a beloved spokesman for the Eastern Cherokee tribe the event will be followed by a Barbecue dinner and music is $20 per guest and it's free for hotel guests call eight to 89261717 to reserve your seat now and for all events at the Meadowlark motel so.00:06:08.220 –> 00:06:16.110 Joseph McElroy: Today we're gonna be talking with Dan pierce, who is a renowned author columnist consultant who earned degrees from Western Carolina University.00:06:16.500 –> 00:06:22.380 Joseph McElroy: The University of Alabama and the University of Tennessee before becoming a history professor at unc Asheville.00:06:22.890 –> 00:06:36.090 Joseph McElroy: Dan is an avid outdoorsman passionate about NASCAR moonshine history Appalachian culture environmental issues and race relations, he lives with his family and black mountain North Carolina hello, Dan how are you doing.00:06:36.600 –> 00:06:37.980 Daniel Pierce: i'm good i'm good.00:06:38.280 –> 00:06:38.760 yeah.00:06:40.110 –> 00:06:43.680 Joseph McElroy: it's good to be here it's a little hot right now but we're getting over it right.00:06:44.130 –> 00:06:45.330 Daniel Pierce: Hopefully, hopefully.00:06:45.660 –> 00:06:52.860 Joseph McElroy: yeah so so like me euro you're a native Western or throw you grew up my sash all right.00:06:53.220 –> 00:07:04.560 Daniel Pierce: I did you know I hesitate call myself a native because I was born in Arkansas but, as I say, I got here as quickly as I could I was three when I.00:07:06.090 –> 00:07:17.100 Daniel Pierce: arrived in West Asheville I've always said, the good Lord i'm thankful to the good Lord for calling my dad to come to pastor the Grace Baptist Church in West Asheville, and so I grew up there.00:07:17.910 –> 00:07:28.590 Daniel Pierce: kind of an as I put it, a combination of Mayberry and a cotton mill town in will stifle at that time, which is not at all what West Asheville is today.00:07:28.680 –> 00:07:30.210 Joseph McElroy: I know it's changed a little bit.00:07:31.230 –> 00:07:32.190 Daniel Pierce: he's a little lot.00:07:33.570 –> 00:07:39.240 Joseph McElroy: Well, you know I just relocated with my family back you know I grew up in a wood county yeah right next to Asheville.00:07:39.660 –> 00:07:53.970 Joseph McElroy: My family's been in that county for over 200 years, so you know I got I was born and raised and all that sort of thing, but that has spent 27 years in New York City where my kids were born and I just reload your head the whole kit and caboodle back to Asheville so.00:07:56.280 –> 00:08:09.930 Joseph McElroy: it's you know it's a it's a great place to common yeah, as you can say, as you, as you mentioned this changed a lot, I think, in a positive way, but it was it was I thought it was pretty cool we were growing up what was it like growing up in West asheville.00:08:10.530 –> 00:08:21.870 Daniel Pierce: Well, like I said it was kind of a combination of Mayberry and cotton mill town, you know when and course we were very much free-range kids at the time, and you know ride our bikes all ever West asheville and Walt.00:08:23.190 –> 00:08:29.790 Daniel Pierce: You know I remember one particular Saturday bye buddy Steve Harris, and I just decided on the spur of the moment we'd walk despite.00:08:30.180 –> 00:08:38.550 Daniel Pierce: to the top of the mountain, which is out in the last area, so we walked out Lester highway and we we remind me, you know 1112 years old and and.00:08:39.210 –> 00:08:48.870 Daniel Pierce: Well, to the top of the mountain and back nobody knew, you know I mean it's probably I don't know 1015 miles when we walk that day, but that was the place, I grew up you.00:08:48.870 –> 00:08:49.650 Daniel Pierce: know I mean we.00:08:50.070 –> 00:08:51.510 Daniel Pierce: knew everybody and.00:08:53.400 –> 00:08:54.570 Daniel Pierce: pretty much and.00:08:55.770 –> 00:09:03.510 Daniel Pierce: It was just one of those kinds of neighborhoods so and the other great thing was being in western North Carolina and typically once.00:09:04.710 –> 00:09:09.150 Daniel Pierce: You got a little more mobile and wheels, you know we went to the mountains, a lot and.00:09:10.770 –> 00:09:16.830 Daniel Pierce: You know, we go the top of mountain play capture the flag and stuff like that a row rocks off the side of the mountain there.00:09:19.290 –> 00:09:26.340 Daniel Pierce: and go to swimming holes and all that kind of stuff so it was a great I didn't know at the time, but it was a great great place to grow.00:09:27.060 –> 00:09:35.460 Joseph McElroy: it's still good you know I I went right in our backyard so far we're North asheville right and we're on a real real wonderful street.00:09:35.880 –> 00:09:42.840 Joseph McElroy: You know, and our kids bike on the street, just like you, you, you know you remember, they were out there with other kids and.00:09:43.140 –> 00:09:56.430 Joseph McElroy: All you have to use your car and all the kids get off the road but it's not there's not really that much traffic but what's interesting is is that in the in the week that we've been here we've seen had a BlackBerry to deer in our backyard.00:09:57.510 –> 00:10:01.350 Joseph McElroy: which I don't really remember Asheville being that prevalent for big wildlife.00:10:01.650 –> 00:10:16.260 Daniel Pierce: yeah there were no turkeys there he never saw a bear unless you're in the smokies and their head was in a garbage can and you never solved there you know it was it's it's really one of the great changes recent well.00:10:17.700 –> 00:10:26.250 Daniel Pierce: I prefer to see bears a little less frequently in my yard actually one got up i've got my bird feeder strong about.00:10:26.940 –> 00:10:42.930 Daniel Pierce: 15 feet up off the ground and one of them figured out how to get up there and kind of twine the wire and got one of the bird feeders to bounce off today, so a lot we we saw i'm trying it the other day and I shot him with a bb gun I don't know if I can say that.00:10:43.200 –> 00:10:43.500 yeah.00:10:44.520 –> 00:10:45.420 Daniel Pierce: Is that legal.00:10:48.210 –> 00:10:51.090 Daniel Pierce: And scare them off, but he got my bird feeder today and I.00:10:51.090 –> 00:10:51.360 can't.00:10:54.270 –> 00:10:59.790 Joseph McElroy: bit bb guns and rocks over the thing back in the day and I think they're probably still could have their uses.00:11:02.700 –> 00:11:10.080 Joseph McElroy: So what do I think it's interesting you grew up in West Asheville it's changed a lot like you mentioned What would you think is the biggest change.00:11:10.950 –> 00:11:12.600 Daniel Pierce: Well, the real estate prices for.00:11:12.600 –> 00:11:13.890 Joseph McElroy: Oh yeah.00:11:14.520 –> 00:11:21.090 Daniel Pierce: They were just talking about you know, is it going to be a million-dollar bungalow for sale and West Asheville soon you know it's.00:11:21.960 –> 00:11:37.920 Daniel Pierce: crazy, you know the House, it was very blue-collar when I when I grew up there, and, of course, you had the actual speedway down there having races and or or, as some people put it, you know what went to the fights and a race broke out, you know.00:11:40.710 –> 00:11:48.120 Daniel Pierce: Pretty rough place but you know and the and the only dining establishment really was the tasty diner you know and.00:11:49.470 –> 00:11:53.670 Daniel Pierce: Where you could go sit at the bar with jack ingram you know, is in the nascar hall of fame so.00:11:55.320 –> 00:11:59.820 Joseph McElroy: Great foodie place now man there's some great restaurants out there, look jargon right.00:12:00.240 –> 00:12:04.410 Daniel Pierce: Now those weren't there you know it's kind of one of those deals, you know I hear they're good.00:12:04.890 –> 00:12:05.490 Joseph McElroy: yeah.00:12:05.940 –> 00:12:07.350 Daniel Pierce: I don't get the West Eiffel much.00:12:09.450 –> 00:12:15.780 Joseph McElroy: jargon is good there's a there's a really great coffee place i'm drawing a blank on the name, right now, but then there's.00:12:16.740 –> 00:12:22.590 Joseph McElroy: You know the early girl is opened up West Asheville, which is a really good you have farm to table thing so.00:12:23.580 –> 00:12:35.580 Joseph McElroy: it's it's become a great place to go and pick up some really good food i'm telling you right now, everybody should go visit there and then they got the artsy sort of seeing going on and performance and things like that.00:12:36.240 –> 00:12:38.250 Joseph McElroy: And I read an interview that's.00:12:38.280 –> 00:12:41.190 Daniel Pierce: Not my day was the chili dog at the surfside.00:12:41.220 –> 00:12:41.910 Joseph McElroy: yeah right.00:12:42.570 –> 00:12:48.150 Joseph McElroy: Or, I remember driving back you know and we'd always stopped West actual at the denny's after being at the nightclub but.00:12:50.340 –> 00:13:06.270 Joseph McElroy: I don't see to be open anymore so ready very interview that she said something the effect that folks around that actually had no pretense that are they they are who they are take it or leave it I you know, do you feel that's that's the way they are now to.00:13:06.840 –> 00:13:09.240 Daniel Pierce: A it's hard to say yeah.00:13:09.240 –> 00:13:09.630 Right.00:13:11.280 –> 00:13:14.070 Daniel Pierce: it's a different I don't have as good a raid on.00:13:15.630 –> 00:13:20.190 Daniel Pierce: The recent arrivals as I did the folks I grew up with.00:13:21.510 –> 00:13:28.500 Joseph McElroy: was very true but I grew up the same thing, and I think that the people that are local here are, and I think it rubs off, I do think that people.00:13:28.890 –> 00:13:42.990 Joseph McElroy: come from different areas get a little bit let it get lost a little bit of the pretense and they become a little bit more authentic I mean not as authentic as yeah what we grew up with but yeah like you know, there was somebody that I read somewhere that.00:13:44.010 –> 00:13:55.920 Joseph McElroy: Nobody really has a fancy car asheville you know it's yeah everybody has you know sort of you know, work practical cars right.00:13:56.790 –> 00:14:01.440 Daniel Pierce: Well, mine is minus the truck with us still a possible bumper sticker on it.00:14:01.470 –> 00:14:07.320 Joseph McElroy: So I'm still I'm driving my dad's 1984 GMC truck so.00:14:09.900 –> 00:14:12.780 Joseph McElroy: To get this current gas moment i'm not driver that much.00:14:12.840 –> 00:14:13.230 yeah.00:14:14.430 –> 00:14:20.520 Joseph McElroy: hey listen, we have to take a break and we'll come back talk a little bit more about your history and then get into some of your books all right.00:14:20.850 –> 00:14:21.180 Daniel Pierce: All right.00:16:37.200 –> 00:16:50.490 Joseph McElroy: howdy this is Joseph Franklin McElroy back with the gateway to the smokies podcast my guest Dan Pierce so Dan you grew up in Asheville, then you left it to go get your bachelor's.00:16:51.570 –> 00:17:06.510 Joseph McElroy: vs bachelor of science at Western Carolyn Carolyn diversity and your masters of Alabama and then your PhD at the University of Tennessee and now Lo and behold, you are renowned writer and history, Professor did you always want to be a teacher and writer.00:17:08.310 –> 00:17:08.880 Daniel Pierce: well.00:17:10.050 –> 00:17:15.840 Daniel Pierce: A teacher, I think, was something I arrived at, you know in my late teens I worked at a.00:17:17.610 –> 00:17:30.030 Daniel Pierce: Had a partner program and Asheville and I ran apart for a couple of summers I like kids a lot and so ended up majoring in education, I taught fifth grade for three years and I had.00:17:31.740 –> 00:17:39.270 Daniel Pierce: kind of a weird experience educationally I was a horrible student I was kind of a noxious kid but I had a sixth-grade teacher That was really.00:17:40.200 –> 00:17:51.180 Daniel Pierce: inspiring she loved history and then a weird thing happened, where she was she was a widow she asked me if i'd like to go to Europe and so.00:17:52.230 –> 00:18:00.210 Daniel Pierce: Taking me the next summer after my seventh-grade year to Europe me and another 12-year-old boy, it was.00:18:00.750 –> 00:18:01.800 Joseph McElroy: A lot of studying.00:18:02.280 –> 00:18:02.760 Joseph McElroy: Oh, my God.00:18:02.940 –> 00:18:04.710 Joseph McElroy: yeah it changed your life.00:18:05.580 –> 00:18:18.300 Daniel Pierce: yeah really strange and then she ended up being my mom's best friend so in just a deer name is Steve Bennett and just a wonderful person so she kind of inspired me to teach and then I had a lot of bad examples I think that I learned from.00:18:21.420 –> 00:18:27.540 Daniel Pierce: about what not to do, and so I taught fifth-grade love that but was young single went to.00:18:28.650 –> 00:18:34.710 Daniel Pierce: pulled up and went to Alabama, which is a great experience for two years and got my masters and.00:18:35.790 –> 00:18:40.440 Daniel Pierce: kind of cast my lot with southern history, at that point.00:18:41.550 –> 00:18:52.410 Daniel Pierce: Then I got married and moved to Nashville Tennessee and taught high school for eight years and I was coach peers for that time and really enjoy that stage of my life but, but then decided.00:18:53.670 –> 00:18:56.670 Daniel Pierce: With the help of my life to go back for a PhD so.00:18:57.960 –> 00:19:06.540 Daniel Pierce: I finished my Ph.D. at about the age of 40 and so you know I kind of came this late in life and then.00:19:07.890 –> 00:19:08.790 Daniel Pierce: You know the first.00:19:10.440 –> 00:19:21.360 Daniel Pierce: The first book, I guess, I was 45 when the first book came out, so I really never imagined, you know I've always been an avid reader but I never imagined being a writer and then.00:19:23.010 –> 00:19:28.260 Daniel Pierce: I just had some great mentors in graduate school that simplify things for me writing was always.00:19:30.000 –> 00:19:43.230 Daniel Pierce: painful for me, and then they simplified things made it much easier and and and and taught me how to sit down and write in and so, then that you know that I don't know you know seven oh.00:19:43.590 –> 00:19:46.500 Joseph McElroy: Would you start writing before you came to unc actual.00:19:47.400 –> 00:19:52.740 Daniel Pierce: Well, I could have had to write a dissertation I had to do a master's thesis and dissertation and such.00:19:53.190 –> 00:19:55.260 Joseph McElroy: A good writing the books and so you got to do and CA.00:19:55.410 –> 00:20:01.950 Daniel Pierce: yeah well the dissertation became the first book, but I had to do some significant rewriting on it and.00:20:03.060 –> 00:20:19.800 Daniel Pierce: And I've been very fortunate to be the places where I've been where I've kind of been able to pick and choose what I wanted to do research on to write about so you know you know, I have a good time with it, so there are some people I know who hated their dissertation topic.00:20:19.800 –> 00:20:19.920 Joseph McElroy: and00:20:20.910 –> 00:20:26.310 Daniel Pierce: You know they hate their research but they're kind of stuck because of the requirements of their tenure whatever and.00:20:27.120 –> 00:20:36.510 Daniel Pierce: I've just been able to do what I want, so I have a good time and I get to do research by you know going hiking in the mountains or going to a stock car race or hanging out with moonshine are.00:20:36.510 –> 00:20:37.530 Joseph McElroy: not bad research.00:20:37.530 –> 00:20:41.670 Daniel Pierce: Right like that are traveling in the West, recently, you know.00:20:41.850 –> 00:20:49.590 Joseph McElroy: how did you get I don't know if it's lucky or whatever that actually get to come back to your hometown to be a professor for so long.00:20:49.860 –> 00:20:54.600 Daniel Pierce: It was totally accidental I was in graduate school finishing up and.00:20:55.950 –> 00:20:58.500 Daniel Pierce: One-year position opened up at marcell.00:20:59.730 –> 00:21:07.740 Daniel Pierce: University and did that, for a year and then I was fortunate enough to get a one year deal at unc asheville.00:21:08.880 –> 00:21:21.390 Daniel Pierce: And then I was fortunate enough to get a one-year deal at Western Carolina University and then I kind of adjunct it for a while and, finally, I think unc Asheville figured I wasn't going to go away and they finally hired me on the tenure track.00:21:22.590 –> 00:21:24.150 Daniel Pierce: Oh yeah and.00:21:24.480 –> 00:21:25.110 Joseph McElroy: She actually.00:21:25.140 –> 00:21:31.320 Joseph McElroy: A very interesting place you know we were we moved on right there right, so I paid attention to what you know I actually.00:21:31.740 –> 00:21:39.600 Joseph McElroy: You know I've been an artist I've been in some museums and things but yeah one of my first actually my first formal training in art.00:21:40.110 –> 00:21:48.780 Joseph McElroy: was at unc Asheville I mean I'd gone to do and then had a career in technology and I burned out for a little while and just sort of tooled around in my first formal training.00:21:49.230 –> 00:21:58.980 Joseph McElroy: of any sort of school was at unc Asheville before I moved on up North and went to other places, but so sort of fun for me to be live in there, you know it's.00:22:00.690 –> 00:22:08.970 Joseph McElroy: it's a great place that they're having something very soon that thing is interesting you're having a world-class conference called the idea festival.00:22:09.390 –> 00:22:09.930 Daniel Pierce: yeah.00:22:10.050 –> 00:22:10.950 Joseph McElroy: Pretty crazy right.00:22:11.190 –> 00:22:11.940 Daniel Pierce: yeah I got.00:22:15.660 –> 00:22:16.530 Daniel Pierce: yeah lots of.00:22:18.270 –> 00:22:20.610 Daniel Pierce: Speakers john meacham.00:22:21.450 –> 00:22:23.430 Joseph McElroy: My major people really.00:22:23.880 –> 00:22:29.850 Joseph McElroy: yeah I am in the middle of moving I'm still doing this, I can't go, but I probably go next year, it looks great.00:22:30.300 –> 00:22:47.580 Joseph McElroy: yeah so your books and articles cover a pretty wide range of subjects, all of them interested you already started mentioning them, but in 19 to 2010 you released real NASCAR white lightning red clay and bill big bill France was that your first book.00:22:48.300 –> 00:22:58.080 Daniel Pierce: Now that was the second, the first one was 10 years before that actually was my dissertation it was on it's called the great smokies from natural habitat to the national park and it's.00:22:59.130 –> 00:23:10.800 Daniel Pierce: That was one of the great smoky mountain National Park, so it kind of cast that's kind of been, I guess, if I have an area, you know for my books are related to the great smoky mountains so.00:23:12.030 –> 00:23:15.120 Joseph McElroy: He looks are your series on Nascar to and moonshine so you have.00:23:15.450 –> 00:23:15.900 yeah.00:23:18.360 –> 00:23:22.230 Daniel Pierce: yeah there's some overlap there, so I did the NASCAR book and then.00:23:23.310 –> 00:23:35.610 Daniel Pierce: A guy with the great smoky mountains, association, and editor there asked me to do a book on moonshine the smokies, and then that turned into a bigger book I'll moonshine in North Carolina so well.00:23:35.970 –> 00:23:39.390 Daniel Pierce: So they all kind of run together in kind of a weird way.00:23:40.230 –> 00:23:44.670 Joseph McElroy: Why why, why did you write a book on NASCAR, I will get what was their interest there.00:23:45.210 –> 00:23:55.230 Daniel Pierce: Well, the big thing I always you know I grew up and I put it within earshot of the what they call the new Asheville speedway or the or the river, which was kind of a leg.00:23:56.700 –> 00:24:00.840 Daniel Pierce: yeah dental Nam boy road and West Asheville and it was a big hang out.00:24:02.550 –> 00:24:14.580 Daniel Pierce: I was kind of well easily influenced by my brother my older brother and he was all about kind of living down your West Asheville roots and.00:24:14.940 –> 00:24:27.510 Daniel Pierce: and your redneck roots in and hanging out with the North Asheville kids and all that, so I always I never went to a race there, I never thought about we just didn't do that kind of thing you know Baptist preacher son and.00:24:27.900 –> 00:24:31.920 Daniel Pierce: and always kind of make fun of it, but then I had a roommate at Western.00:24:32.700 –> 00:24:36.810 Daniel Pierce: Western Carolina who was avid I mean he still is and.00:24:38.310 –> 00:24:47.520 Daniel Pierce: And he kept trying to get me to get a races and then finally right, as I was finishing up my PhD work at Tennessee he was living in East Tennessee.00:24:48.360 –> 00:24:56.400 Daniel Pierce: He said I got take it so got a couple of tickets to Bristol why don't you come to go with me, and so I thought well you can't call yourself a southern historian if you've.00:24:56.910 –> 00:24:57.600 Joseph McElroy: never been done.00:24:58.770 –> 00:25:06.930 Daniel Pierce: You know, and so that was 1994 and I went to my first race was night race at Bristol I don't have a clue about anything.00:25:07.860 –> 00:25:17.760 Daniel Pierce: the first thing he didn't say anything about how loud, it was and I didn't have any earplugs or anything I thought I was going to go deaf and so fortunately I had a strap on my sunglasses and I was able to stuff that my ears and.00:25:18.360 –> 00:25:31.530 Daniel Pierce: And, but the thing that got me, I think I mean the racing was incredible I mean it was just really exciting, but the thing that got me where the fans that just were unreal I mean just the past.00:25:32.190 –> 00:25:34.680 Daniel Pierce: fanatics yeah yeah there was a guy.00:25:35.040 –> 00:25:37.050 Joseph McElroy: What explains that popularity yeah.00:25:37.110 –> 00:25:41.250 Daniel Pierce: You know I don't know I don't see it as intense as it was at that.00:25:42.570 –> 00:25:58.980 Daniel Pierce: But it was intense and I'll never forget, there was a guy sitting in front of us and we were way up near the top and we're 100 rose up or more, and this guy was sitting if he had a big old cooler he brought he and I don't know how many beers he driving but.00:25:59.130 –> 00:26:13.560 Daniel Pierce: yeah but he would they at bristol's a half mile track so they're coming by every 16 1516 seconds this guy would stand up every time Dale Earnhardt's car came by and she didn't bark.00:26:14.820 –> 00:26:16.290 Joseph McElroy: Ah, so.00:26:16.650 –> 00:26:18.840 Joseph McElroy: If it goes a little bit like pro wrestling there they.00:26:21.300 –> 00:26:22.140 Joseph McElroy: Had a little bit of a.00:26:24.210 –> 00:26:27.450 Joseph McElroy: Of a character that represented yeah.00:26:27.510 –> 00:26:40.920 Daniel Pierce: yeah but I mean there was a lot of that kind of it was very almost a moral drama almost, particularly at that time Jeff Gordon was coming on the scene is kind of clean-cut California kid you know and here's Dale earnhardt this rough.00:26:42.150 –> 00:26:51.480 Daniel Pierce: A rough and tumble God worked in a cotton mill you know, and you know Greece under his fingernails kind of guy which is not necessarily true but.00:26:52.110 –> 00:26:52.710 Daniel Pierce: But he had.00:26:52.740 –> 00:26:57.660 Daniel Pierce: Any image, you know, and so it was great you know I mean it was just intense you know.00:26:58.080 –> 00:27:05.940 Joseph McElroy: The first big name in NASCAR was William Henry Getty Big Bill France well what was this what was his position on sports?00:27:06.120 –> 00:27:06.900 Daniel Pierce: way he was.00:27:07.440 –> 00:27:22.800 Daniel Pierce: The founder basically the order, I mean the France family it's unique and professional sports and that that nascar is owned by the France family still as a woman, by the France family and so his.00:27:26.790 –> 00:27:38.640 Daniel Pierce: His brother or his side, Jim France is pretty much the head of it now, but then his his grandchildren well Brian Francis kind of out of the picture now he ran it for a while a grandchild and.00:27:39.990 –> 00:27:50.040 Daniel Pierce: Lisa France Kennedy is has a big hand and so it's still a family run business and then he kind of ran it with a with an iron fist back in the day and course it was.00:27:50.160 –> 00:27:52.650 Joseph McElroy: Back in those days, it was all those guys were like.00:27:52.740 –> 00:27:55.680 Daniel Pierce: yeah I mean it was it was a pretty rough crowd you.00:27:55.680 –> 00:28:06.510 Daniel Pierce: know the you know there was a lot of those guys, you know got their first high speed driving experience behind about you know, a 39 for coop you know Holland liquor.00:28:06.840 –> 00:28:08.820 Daniel Pierce: yeah right somewhere so.00:28:08.820 –> 00:28:16.890 Joseph McElroy: trying to get trying to get the front end of one of those coops we got the moonshine room, I was well put it in there yeah so you know.00:28:17.460 –> 00:28:30.660 Joseph McElroy: I would take a break soon, but you have you declare at the end of that book I would humbly suggest this time for Nascar to stop modernizing tradition and start embracing his tradition what's the simple explanation of that statement.00:28:31.230 –> 00:28:41.790 Daniel Pierce: Well, you know they are kind of hidden from their moonshine roots they're doing a little bit more now, but I think they ought to embrace it, you know, I think that they it's a great story you.00:28:41.790 –> 00:28:42.060 know.00:28:43.290 –> 00:28:52.020 Daniel Pierce: These guys, who had nothing you know but we're very creative and entrepreneurial and aggressive you know, maybe.00:28:52.320 –> 00:29:03.420 Joseph McElroy: Some of my relatives ran yeah moonshine and now they had souped up cars man and the stories of them racing through the hills, to avoid revenue, or is there a pretty heritage right so.00:29:06.210 –> 00:29:12.300 Joseph McElroy: cool we got to take another break when I come back i'll talk a little bit more about moonshine and your book so matt.00:31:22.080 –> 00:31:29.610 Joseph McElroy: howdy this is Joseph Franklin McElroy back with the gateway to the smokies podcast my guest is Dan Pierce so Dan you know you.00:31:30.300 –> 00:31:34.350 Joseph McElroy: You wrote another book you've actually written a couple of books about moonshine you wrote another one.00:31:34.650 –> 00:31:51.240 Joseph McElroy: That combined NASCAR and moonshine called tar heel lightning how secret stills and fast cars mean North Carolina the moonshine capital, the world, so we talked about how moonshine helped nascar how did nascar fast cars make North Carolina the moonshine capital.00:31:52.020 –> 00:32:03.510 Daniel Pierce: Well it's a long story, but from the very beginning, when you know, making whiskey became la or illegal, that is, if you didn't pay the federal excise tax, and that was.00:32:05.220 –> 00:32:07.950 Daniel Pierce: Well, went into effect in North Carolina right after the civil war.00:32:09.060 –> 00:32:24.720 Daniel Pierce: North Carolina from the very beginning, you know, there was a long tradition of making making whiskey in North Carolina I mean going back to the earliest white settlers who brought that skill with them and brought their skills, with them perfectly legal activity.00:32:26.340 –> 00:32:28.380 Daniel Pierce: With few exceptions, up until then.00:32:29.580 –> 00:32:37.260 Daniel Pierce: And you know they weren't about to give it up, you know, and so it was too important of economic activity, they couldn't make any money if they.00:32:37.740 –> 00:32:48.330 Daniel Pierce: On it, if they pay the tax, and so they made it illegally and, and so it just became very much ingrained in North Carolina history and culture as hard as the.00:32:48.810 –> 00:32:56.730 Daniel Pierce: Federal Government and then went around the turn of the century, you started getting probation and then North Carolina became one of the first states to.00:32:58.350 –> 00:33:00.900 Daniel Pierce: To have statewide probation in 1909.00:33:01.920 –> 00:33:13.110 Daniel Pierce: And it's it's kind of interesting there's that that that dynamic with prohibition and moonshine that they really go hand in hand and part of the reason North Carolina was.00:33:14.010 –> 00:33:24.150 Daniel Pierce: Such moonshine was so important in North Carolina and so big in North Carolina was because probation was so strong and so.00:33:24.510 –> 00:33:24.780 Joseph McElroy: You know.00:33:24.990 –> 00:33:35.430 Daniel Pierce: After national you know you had national prohibition when that ended you still had local option in North Carolina and so most counties were dry well into the 60s and 70s and.00:33:36.000 –> 00:33:47.460 Daniel Pierce: Even still have some dry municipalities and stuff like that around the state but but, again, it was long time before you know, most people could buy.00:33:47.910 –> 00:34:01.920 Daniel Pierce: Legal liquor in this state, so there was a great market for moonshine which course fed into nascar, you know as kind of a you know, a two way street, there you know you had people who who became successful drivers who.00:34:03.000 –> 00:34:05.580 Daniel Pierce: figured out, they could make more money hauling liquor then they could win.00:34:08.250 –> 00:34:14.640 Joseph McElroy: or an economic, it was I mean it had a it was an economic boom for people in the mountains, even though it was also.00:34:15.120 –> 00:34:25.200 Joseph McElroy: devastating you know and a lot of social ills from it as well, but now it was like quick money right yeah there was you couldn't get loans you couldn't get anything else, but you could make money with moonshine right.00:34:25.680 –> 00:34:35.790 Daniel Pierce: yeah for a lot of people, it was kind of an insurance policy, and you know, most people were not career moonshiners you know they weren't your popcorn sutton's you know who.00:34:36.210 –> 00:34:43.200 Daniel Pierce: Who did it all their life, you know they did it, you know, and they were there was kind of an economic emergency or there or they're young they're you know they're kind of.00:34:44.460 –> 00:34:56.790 Daniel Pierce: You know, starting out so a lot of people, you know you know it's kind of funny you know you talk to people everybody says Oh well, you know I in my family, you know someone so holic or something like that and.00:34:57.270 –> 00:35:03.000 Daniel Pierce: And it was just a common thing you know for a lot of people, it was one of the few ways that you could get cash money.00:35:03.330 –> 00:35:06.120 Joseph McElroy: yeah yeah hard to get cash.00:35:06.150 –> 00:35:18.990 Daniel Pierce: Right cash money, and you know if you're willing to take the risk, and so you know for a lot of people, it was you know almost unexpected depend on the Community you're in you know is almost an expected thing you know and.00:35:20.400 –> 00:35:22.230 Daniel Pierce: And for a lot of people it wasn't great.00:35:22.710 –> 00:35:35.730 Daniel Pierce: You know, particularly in rural areas that when a great disability, you know the preacher might preach against it but, but the preacher understood to that you needed to do what you which could put shoes on your kid's feet and.00:35:38.700 –> 00:35:39.840 Daniel Pierce: and feed them and so.00:35:40.980 –> 00:35:43.320 Daniel Pierce: And the preacher also knew that he got.00:35:44.340 –> 00:35:47.700 Daniel Pierce: You know that money in the offering plate often came from laker money so.00:35:47.820 –> 00:35:58.800 Joseph McElroy: I listened to all the general stores loved it, because who bought word they buy the sugar where they buy that you know the components that fed the economy in general, so you know it was a.00:36:00.000 –> 00:36:09.840 Joseph McElroy: And then yeah you hadn't things different you wrote a book called corn from a jar which we actually carry here at the metal Arc that explored, a lot of these issues didn't it.00:36:10.770 –> 00:36:13.260 Daniel Pierce: yeah like specifically at the smokies but.00:36:14.400 –> 00:36:15.630 Daniel Pierce: Again, you know that's a.00:36:17.850 –> 00:36:18.150 You.00:36:19.410 –> 00:36:21.330 Joseph McElroy: Know moonshine is good for cough.00:36:21.600 –> 00:36:22.290 Daniel Pierce: Well, it is.00:36:24.900 –> 00:36:27.660 Daniel Pierce: I got a freezer full of it people keep giving it to him.00:36:28.710 –> 00:36:29.250 Joseph McElroy: Oh yeah.00:36:29.310 –> 00:36:30.900 Daniel Pierce: we're still i'm pretty active.00:36:31.800 –> 00:36:39.990 Joseph McElroy: Oh man I get people showing up at the motel we have our pavilion we have like a will have a bluegrass festival or something man everybody's giving me boo chatting yeah.00:36:40.650 –> 00:36:41.340 So.00:36:42.570 –> 00:36:43.890 Daniel Pierce: I got a freezer full of it.00:36:44.370 –> 00:36:44.820 Joseph McElroy: yeah.00:36:45.600 –> 00:36:46.980 Daniel Pierce: I do need to go against it but.00:36:47.880 –> 00:36:53.640 Joseph McElroy: My dad you know here's a bunch of he probably still he used to eat popcorn he probably still have some popcorn.00:36:53.820 –> 00:36:57.330 Daniel Pierce: yeah well I think everybody has some purportedly.00:36:57.630 –> 00:37:01.200 Daniel Pierce: yeah a chat I've heard a lot of it, oh yeah I got some popcorn.00:37:03.960 –> 00:37:18.900 Joseph McElroy: So what's up you know, there was a lot of cultural representations of moonshiners and I think a lot of that you know was purposely you know denigrating people making them into bumpkins but what do you think is the side of moonshine that most people have never seen.00:37:19.680 –> 00:37:23.250 Daniel Pierce: Well, there guys, there are a lot of signs and that was what the book.00:37:26.070 –> 00:37:35.580 Daniel Pierce: Tar heel lighting is really bad it's kind of a lot complicating I guess the image, because if people's me to moonshiners kind of popcorn site, and you know.00:37:36.570 –> 00:37:46.500 Daniel Pierce: Guy with a beard and overalls and they'll truck and you know, in the file mouth, and you know and apparently popcorn was no dummy for sure and.00:37:48.360 –> 00:37:51.060 Daniel Pierce: But you know one they were.00:37:52.260 –> 00:37:58.410 Daniel Pierce: A lot of these people were very smart they were very entrepreneurial they were very skilled.00:38:00.360 –> 00:38:15.990 Daniel Pierce: have often talked about junior Johnson that famous car driver and car owner, but he, of course, got his start you know, in the family business, which was moonshine but I've often said about junior Johnson I think he's one of the smartest people he didn't come across is.00:38:17.040 –> 00:38:26.700 Daniel Pierce: Particularly intelligent, but he was one of the smartest people I've ever encountered often said he probably never read a physics book, but I think you could write one.00:38:29.160 –> 00:38:31.590 Daniel Pierce: A lot of these people were really smart The other thing was that.00:38:33.540 –> 00:38:50.700 Daniel Pierce: We had the same as the white mountain near and the fact of the matter is in North Carolina in particular and most of the South, it was all over I mean you know there are many coastal swap moonshiners is that we're mountain moonshiners you know lower in Piedmont, it was all over.00:38:51.930 –> 00:39:00.900 Daniel Pierce: And it was an end, and they weren't all fly there were a lot of native Americans particularly manga lambie down the eastern part of North Carolina.00:39:00.930 –> 00:39:03.450 Joseph McElroy: They sort of taught moonshiners about corners as.00:39:03.690 –> 00:39:04.530 Daniel Pierce: Well yeah you.00:39:05.550 –> 00:39:07.200 Daniel Pierce: Know actually the.00:39:08.190 –> 00:39:17.970 Daniel Pierce: The first moonshiners in North Carolina were African American and Native American because in the 1830s the legislature passed a law that said.00:39:19.140 –> 00:39:24.210 Daniel Pierce: said free persons of color could not make liquor or sell liquor.00:39:25.680 –> 00:39:30.570 Daniel Pierce: And so they were making it illegally before you know before white people were.00:39:31.140 –> 00:39:31.620 Joseph McElroy: made were used.00:39:31.770 –> 00:39:32.640 Daniel Pierce: to watch a nation.00:39:32.670 –> 00:39:36.120 Daniel Pierce: Plus, they were also traditions of slaves too.00:39:37.710 –> 00:39:43.290 Daniel Pierce: apply plantation distilleries using slave Labor so like a lot of African Americans knew how to make liquor.00:39:43.410 –> 00:39:44.640 Joseph McElroy: I knew very good.00:39:45.630 –> 00:39:51.360 Daniel Pierce: yeah, then the other thing I think that that's that kind of blows people's minds was the number of women involved.00:39:52.440 –> 00:39:55.350 Daniel Pierce: And that's just a fascinating story, you know.00:39:55.350 –> 00:39:57.930 Joseph McElroy: Especially on the brandy, they made from those that.00:39:57.990 –> 00:40:01.740 Joseph McElroy: moonshine right at it out yeah for things like.00:40:02.520 –> 00:40:17.370 Daniel Pierce: Well, if you had fruit trees, you know back in you know well before refrigeration became common if you had free trees, there was one reason why you did, and that was the to make brandy or apple jack or something.00:40:17.370 –> 00:40:19.590 Daniel Pierce: Like alcohol from it.00:40:21.570 –> 00:40:32.880 Daniel Pierce: Because you couldn't you know if you had a big orchard, I mean you couldn't preserve all that you couldn't get to market, but you could distill it and you could get that the market and it would really sale to.00:40:33.060 –> 00:40:44.790 Joseph McElroy: find the things that you can you know I just discovered, I can make me from hmi here at the motel and once we get our fortified wine and liquor license and I'm going to be making I'm gonna be making our own been.00:40:45.870 –> 00:40:47.730 Joseph McElroy: A tradition to figure out what you can.00:40:48.990 –> 00:40:50.700 Daniel Pierce: that's right, you have it handy.00:40:51.270 –> 00:40:56.700 Joseph McElroy: But you know I want to get to you know you said you'd wrote four books about the great smoky mountains and.00:40:58.350 –> 00:41:06.360 Joseph McElroy: You know, and I think the first one was natural habitat to national parks it seems you're a passionate environmentalist, can you tell us about this book?00:41:07.110 –> 00:41:15.060 Daniel Pierce: yeah well again it's on the establishment of the park and it's a yeah it's a great story, you know it's a unique story because.00:41:16.260 –> 00:41:18.240 Daniel Pierce: smokies and Shenandoah we're.00:41:19.650 –> 00:41:27.720 Daniel Pierce: Creating a unique way at that time and in the 1920s Congress said they would not purchase lands for national parks, all the national parks.00:41:28.440 –> 00:41:45.300 Daniel Pierce: Were were in the West, and they were in the federal domain, all you did was say to sign, basically, of which federal agencies managing it so, but the Congress wouldn't buy land for for national parks and so, but then they said, if the states will buy the land.00:41:47.070 –> 00:42:00.240 Daniel Pierce: And we approve this land is appropriate for national park, then, then the states can turn the land over to us and we'll make it a national park and so that's what happened, but it was a long slow process because they had to.00:42:02.550 –> 00:42:07.230 Daniel Pierce: They had raised the money to buy to buy the land, so they had private donations.00:42:09.990 –> 00:42:11.730 Daniel Pierce: They had state bonds and then.00:42:13.350 –> 00:42:21.180 Daniel Pierce: Finally, it was john D Rockefeller jr who who know $95 million to make it happen so.00:42:22.200 –> 00:42:23.700 Daniel Pierce: it's a unique thing so.00:42:26.520 –> 00:42:26.730 He.00:42:28.380 –> 00:42:31.140 Daniel Pierce: So people, the Western North Carolina and East Tennessee.00:42:32.190 –> 00:42:35.490 Daniel Pierce: feel a real sense of ownership about the.00:42:36.660 –> 00:42:36.990 Daniel Pierce: About.00:42:38.460 –> 00:42:40.680 Daniel Pierce: about the park that other places don't have.00:42:41.790 –> 00:42:47.640 Joseph McElroy: cool well you know we're good, I think we could take it that we could take a break, right now, and you get some more water and.00:42:49.770 –> 00:42:54.840 Joseph McElroy: And then we'll come back we'll talk more about some of your books and some of the other things that you've done in.00:42:56.640 –> 00:42:56.970 Daniel Pierce: Hello.00:45:00.630 –> 00:45:11.220 Joseph McElroy: howdy this is Joseph Franklin McElroy back with the gateway to the smokies podcasts and my guest Dan peers so, then you wrote several books about the great smoky National Park.00:45:12.360 –> 00:45:19.410 Joseph McElroy: That, I mentioned the one that was really popular from natural habitat to national party what are some of the others that people might look up.00:45:20.790 –> 00:45:21.510 Daniel Pierce: Well, I did.00:45:22.470 –> 00:45:26.760 Daniel Pierce: yeah I did the one on been shot in the smokies corn from a jars part of the book that sold the most.00:45:27.090 –> 00:45:28.710 Daniel Pierce: yeah and.00:45:29.880 –> 00:45:40.020 Daniel Pierce: And then I did a book on Community of hazel creek and swine county which was displaced and then there was a long, long controversy about the road to nowhere.00:45:41.430 –> 00:45:45.420 Daniel Pierce: There in that in that county that was that was resolved, you know, maybe 10 years ago.00:45:46.680 –> 00:45:49.170 Daniel Pierce: Finally, after 50 years or so.00:45:50.220 –> 00:45:52.620 Daniel Pierce: And that's just a really interesting community and.00:45:54.990 –> 00:46:01.440 Daniel Pierce: And kind of a legendary Community it's kind of now it's more kind of a legend is a trout fishing destination, but.00:46:01.680 –> 00:46:02.640 Joseph McElroy: yeah good job fish.00:46:02.880 –> 00:46:03.960 Daniel Pierce: yeah yeah.00:46:05.310 –> 00:46:12.870 Daniel Pierce: And then the, the most recent when I did I can kind of see in the background, there i'll leave my head over is a poster by.00:46:13.920 –> 00:46:25.050 Daniel Pierce: an artist graphic card is by the name of Joe Anderson gentlemen, our friends, when I lived in nashville 30 years ago, and then we lost touch with one another and.00:46:27.300 –> 00:46:29.850 Daniel Pierce: He went on to a very successful career.00:46:31.050 –> 00:46:41.580 Daniel Pierce: Start his own company and and then he gave up basically its advertising business that just do poster art full time and he has an incredible business.00:46:42.330 –> 00:47:00.210 Daniel Pierce: is best selling posters or national park posters and so he did a book in 2016 for the for the hundredth anniversary National Park service on all the national parks and use this poster art in the sun did the text and so.00:47:01.320 –> 00:47:06.990 Daniel Pierce: I brought in you and CA to do a program about art and the national parks and.00:47:08.010 –> 00:47:27.090 Daniel Pierce: Over dinner, he asked me if I would be interested in doing a book with him and on the smokies, and so I said sure, and so we made about seven seven or eight trips into the smokies had some great adventures sell some really cool places it was it was so much fun to take him and his son.00:47:28.710 –> 00:47:32.730 Daniel Pierce: Around to see a lot of these places that had meant so much to me.00:47:33.840 –> 00:47:46.740 Daniel Pierce: And I learned a lot in the process, but anyway that turned into a book called the illustrated guide to the great smoky mountain National Park, and which is solving all the bookstores now, this is a great kind of coffee table book, so it was a real.00:47:46.740 –> 00:47:47.250 departure.00:47:48.630 –> 00:47:58.710 Daniel Pierce: And so that was that was so much fun and we had so much fun doing them trips together and all that you know and again, you know doing quote research in.00:48:00.720 –> 00:48:01.440 Daniel Pierce: The park and.00:48:02.340 –> 00:48:05.190 Daniel Pierce: Then that morphed into one that just came out.00:48:06.240 –> 00:48:15.540 Daniel Pierce: This is an illustrated guide to the to the grand circle of Arizona and utah and so its southern utah.00:48:16.650 –> 00:48:17.460 Joseph McElroy: niche itself.00:48:17.730 –> 00:48:18.330 yeah.00:48:19.620 –> 00:48:23.220 Daniel Pierce: yeah that was just out and, but that was so much fun we.00:48:26.040 –> 00:48:28.260 Joseph McElroy: had some fun books, I saw that you Co.00:48:28.260 –> 00:48:33.870 Joseph McElroy: wrote a book debating the merits of NASCAR versus college football in the south, so.00:48:35.340 –> 00:48:35.820 Joseph McElroy: How did that.00:48:37.620 –> 00:48:40.980 Joseph McElroy: come out about what was the conclusion.00:48:41.880 –> 00:48:44.250 Daniel Pierce: Well, I won, but.00:48:44.910 –> 00:48:48.690 Daniel Pierce: It was actually a debate, you know that was done on the.00:48:49.950 –> 00:49:04.380 Daniel Pierce: South Carolina public radio, which was broadcast all over I think a lot, it was it was a series called tell about the south, and it was you know they brought on to scholars to discuss or debate some issue so.00:49:05.640 –> 00:49:16.200 Daniel Pierce: So getting the party to Jackson who's was from Jacksonville state and Alabama did the football side, and I did the NASCAR side and so.00:49:17.520 –> 00:49:18.690 Daniel Pierce: I got whipped him but.00:49:19.470 –> 00:49:30.240 Joseph McElroy: Alright cool and then you what have you books and I didn't find out which one you tell me one the Western North Carolina historical association outstayed achievement award which one was the book.00:49:30.720 –> 00:49:35.040 Daniel Pierce: Well, that was just that achievement awards is kind of a lifetime achievement.00:49:35.070 –> 00:49:36.210 Joseph McElroy: Over the lifetime of cheese and.00:49:36.210 –> 00:49:37.530 Daniel Pierce: Whatever book yeah.00:49:37.980 –> 00:49:41.010 Joseph McElroy: yeah okay well it's it's it's Nice, I mean.00:49:41.250 –> 00:49:41.610 Daniel Pierce: you've got.00:49:41.700 –> 00:49:45.360 Joseph McElroy: Great titles I think it's really great, but I also think that.00:49:47.460 –> 00:49:52.530 Joseph McElroy: That you are, you are you're very passionate about eight equal rights and racial diversity.00:49:53.940 –> 00:50:11.730 Joseph McElroy: And you know, and you know our associate Bob plot, you know it is a mutual friend wrote about a great book about his son and about the story of wmc are the railroad the mercury branch railroad built almost entirely by conflict Labor contract Labor.00:50:14.910 –> 00:50:22.290 Joseph McElroy: And it was a brutally inhumane form of legalized slavery, supported by both political parties for two decades.00:50:22.620 –> 00:50:37.050 Joseph McElroy: yeah few people are aware of this and the sacrifice made people to open up w Western North Carolina to the outside world, you are leading a committee dedicated honor to these inmates the railroad incarcerated Committee, can you tell us about that.00:50:37.530 –> 00:50:40.200 Daniel Pierce: yeah so I live at ridgecrest which is.00:50:41.370 –> 00:50:45.720 Daniel Pierce: One of the most storied section of the railroad.00:50:46.770 –> 00:50:51.930 Daniel Pierce: And the big roadblock to building railroad into Western North Carolina was.00:50:53.370 –> 00:50:56.040 Daniel Pierce: What was called a sua know upgrade or.00:50:57.390 –> 00:51:01.800 Daniel Pierce: Or the mountain division, the railroad so it was so hard to.00:51:04.710 –> 00:51:14.700 Daniel Pierce: So it's about a Three Mile stretch as the crow flies but it's it's nine miles a railroad so it twists and turns up the mountain there are seven tunnels in that section.00:51:16.020 –> 00:51:20.670 Daniel Pierce: It took three years, using over 3000.00:51:22.080 –> 00:51:25.980 Daniel Pierce: incarcerated libraries in the in the north Carolina state penitentiary.00:51:27.210 –> 00:51:28.200 Joseph McElroy: Basically, slavery.00:51:29.040 –> 00:51:36.090 Daniel Pierce: Yes, and it was it was it was brutal and again they're using nitroglycerin it's very dangerous work.00:51:37.140 –> 00:51:39.450 Daniel Pierce: Their crap together in horrible conditions.00:51:42.630 –> 00:51:43.590 Daniel Pierce: And we know.00:51:45.060 –> 00:51:58.350 Daniel Pierce: From the records that at least 139 of these people died in the process and countless other injuries and you know you know, probably permanent injuries as well we just don't know.00:51:58.980 –> 00:52:00.840 Daniel Pierce: yeah but there was no.00:52:01.920 –> 00:52:15.720 Daniel Pierce: there's really no I mean there have been a few books written and some you know there's a little awareness, but there's no public recognition there's a and so a group of us.00:52:17.460 –> 00:52:31.950 Daniel Pierce: Actually kind of started on my front porch over breakfast with a friend of mine, whose name is Steve little and he's a lawyer and the Mayor of Marion North Carolina but a big railroad buff and he's been fascinated by this section a railroad since he was a kid.00:52:33.360 –> 00:52:40.410 Daniel Pierce: And so we put We contacted some folks and put together a committee of people from McDowell county and bumping county.00:52:42.240 –> 00:52:42.720 Daniel Pierce: To.00:52:43.800 –> 00:52:58.920 Daniel Pierce: build a memorial, and so it, you know it really we you know, put it was kinda like a little rascals you know we didn't really know what you're doing you know it's gonna let let's put on a show and but we didn't have a clue as to what we're doing, and so we just kind of.00:52:59.970 –> 00:53:18.600 Daniel Pierce: You know what one of our committee members put together a website and we just started contacting people and got some good publicity and Western North a lot of historical associations partner with us and we were able to put a you know, a donate now button on the thing and.00:53:20.100 –> 00:53:23.970 Daniel Pierce: They started coming in and for we knew it was OK, now we.00:53:24.390 –> 00:53:29.880 Joseph McElroy: We got the money you know a lot of people here remember the railroads back in the day and my great grandfather.00:53:31.170 –> 00:53:37.350 Joseph McElroy: was an engineer for the logging railroads and my man, that was a brutal brutal brutal business.00:53:37.470 –> 00:53:43.320 Joseph McElroy: yeah yeah and the slaves, the slave Labor prison Labor got the worst of it, so I think it's a good thing that you're doing.00:53:44.700 –> 00:53:47.820 Joseph McElroy: And I appreciate it, you know we're getting close to the end here.00:53:49.620 –> 00:54:01.200 Joseph McElroy: And I want you to have the opportunity to shout out anything we haven't mentioned or where people can look up your books or get in contact with you or however you want them to remember from this this this podcast.00:54:01.890 –> 00:54:10.860 Daniel Pierce: Well yeah i'm always looking for folks to check out, I would encourage folks to check out Anderson design group.00:54:11.460 –> 00:54:26.850 Daniel Pierce: Has a coffee table books and it's just an incredible site with all you know if you love the smokies and you want to have something on your wall is posters are just incredible and so I would encourage you to do that to patronize the park.00:54:28.020 –> 00:54:38.190 Daniel Pierce: gift shops that con lefty and in Bryson city and all over the great smoky mountain National Park I'm on there I'm on their board and so.00:54:39.240 –> 00:54:43.560 Daniel Pierce: Just leads, you know come back to the park in a great way and they sell my book, so.00:54:44.850 –> 00:54:46.350 Joseph McElroy: Are you on Facebook or anything?00:54:46.830 –> 00:54:47.130 Daniel Pierce: But.00:54:47.430 –> 00:54:48.690 Joseph McElroy: Are you on Facebook you.00:54:49.350 –> 00:54:54.360 Daniel Pierce: know you know I'm not I haven't done social media as well.00:54:55.350 –> 00:55:00.210 Daniel Pierce: Okay I've done in the past, but it just kind of eats up your life and so.00:55:01.800 –> 00:55:06.210 Daniel Pierce: And so I don't but, but I would also encourage folks to.00:55:09.030 –> 00:55:12.720 Daniel Pierce: check out rail rei l dot.org.00:55:13.950 –> 00:55:30.990 Daniel Pierce: Which is our website for the rail project, one of the really cool things just real quickly we've done recently is to bring in human remains detection dogs and ground penetrating radar and have located some mass graves.00:55:32.010 –> 00:55:43.650 Daniel Pierce: Which is is is sad and tragic but we're going to be able to, we are looking for funds to be able to mark those places and you know.00:55:44.730 –> 00:55:51.480 Daniel Pierce: do what we can and you know we can't bring those people back, but it's it's important to work I think so.00:55:51.630 –> 00:55:58.380 Joseph McElroy: Thank you so much for being on the show you know I enjoy the books that you read you're written and.00:55:58.860 –> 00:56:08.670 Joseph McElroy: I've read a little bit of the corner of the JAR and bring some others of yours, and I look forward to seeing what you do in the future, and now we should keep in touch, so thank you for being on the show.00:56:09.030 –> 00:56:10.350 Daniel Pierce: But enjoyed it thoroughly.00:56:11.580 –> 00:56:22.380 Joseph McElroy: This i

This week Laura and Vanessa are sharing two biographies! Follow along as we learn about moonshiner Popcorn Sutton and Sasha Petraske, who was credited with inventing modern cocktail culture! If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe, rate, & review.   Music credit: 'Booze and Blues' by Ma Rainey.

Our guest in this episode is Neil Hutcheson, an Award-winning Filmmaker, Photographer, and Author.He resides in Raleigh, N.C. where he works as a producer and director of the Language and Life Project for N.C. State University, but spends a great deal of time in the Great Smokies, the location of several of his most popular projects.His most well-known works include books and films about Maggie Valley moonshine legend Popcorn Sutton, as well as books and videos on Cherokee culture and language, along with documentaries and books pertaining to Appalachian and African American vernacular, climate change, and heritage fisheries of the Outer Banks on the N.C. coast.Tune in for this fun conversation at TalkRadio.NYC or watch the Facebook Livestream by Clicking Here.SHOW NOTES:SEGMENT 1Tonight's show starts off with an introduction of what to expect from this episode. After announcements from the show's sponsors, our host Joseph McElroy introduces tonight's special guest: Neil Hutcheson. The two go through and lightly discuss Neil's well-known projects, his background, and Neil explains how he unexpectedly came to be in this industry and where his interest in language and filmmaking came from. The two swap origin stories shortly before the break.SEGMENT 2Coming back from the break, the discussion shifts into more of Neil's works, such as his documentaries. One project that they go more into depth about was a play about Louis Redman. Neil explains who Louis Redman was and what he did and how his case and the history surrounding it reflected the media at the time. He emphasizes that the media can get distorted and how no one really knows the true Louis Redman. The conversation moves on to the topic of “mountain culture.” Neil wrote about this culture in his book and explains how it has changed in recent years since he last wrote about it in the early 2000s. The two discuss what mountain culture is and dismantle the negative stereotypes and perspectives that surround it.SEGMENT 3Coming back from the break, Neil discusses how he got the local community to trust and accept him into their community. Additionally, Neil talks about how he got to get on a deeper level with Popcorn Sutton, especially since he often gave off the impression of always putting on a show. Neil explained how Popcorn Sutton could give off that impression, but he was a genuine performer and to an extent, was being himself. This leads to the conversation about how Neil was able to successfully capture who Popcorn Sutton is as a person in his movies and especially in his book. He goes on to talk about his more recent projects, many of which come from his own companies.SEGMENT 4The final segment starts off with an introduction of one of Neil's latest works, involving documenting another aspect of mountain culture: mountain music. The documentary can be found on YouTube and is called the Queen Family. Joseph and Neil talk about their favorite parts of the mountains and mountain culture in general. Neil explains why he loves nature in the mountains so much. They go further into their discussion by talking about more specific local spots at Maggie Valley and Neil tells what his itinerary would be like when visiting. The episode closes with special shoutouts where the audience can find more about Neil and his upcoming works.--------------------------------------------------------------------------TRANSCRIPT00:00:27.840 –> 00:00:32.310 Joseph McElroy: Thanks for joining us on this week's episode of gateway to the smokies.00:00:33.270 –> 00:00:41.970 Joseph McElroy: This podcast is about America's most visited National Park, the great smoky mountains national park, and the surrounding towns.00:00:42.330 –> 00:00:51.390 Joseph McElroy: these areas are filled with ancient natural beauty a deep storied history and rich mountain cultures that we explore with weekly episodes.00:00:51.840 –> 00:01:04.770 Joseph McElroy: I am Joseph Franklyn McElroy a man of the world, but also with deep roots in these mountains my family's lived in the great smoky for over 200 years my business is in travel, but my heart is in culture.00:01:05.340 –> 00:01:12.900 Joseph McElroy: today's podcast is about outlaws and outliers in the smokies, but first a little sponsorship information.00:01:13.530 –> 00:01:21.240 Joseph McElroy: I want you to imagine a place evocative motor courts of the past a modern and vibrant environment with a Chic Appalachian field.00:01:21.810 –> 00:01:28.740 Joseph McElroy: a place for adventure and for relaxation imagine a place where you can fish in a mountain here and it's a trout stream.00:01:29.010 –> 00:01:47.820 Joseph McElroy: grill the catch on fire and eat accompanied by fine lines or craft beers imagine it plays with old-time music and world cultural sounds, there is no other place like the Meadowlark Motel in Maggie Valley North Carolina your smoky mountain adventure starts with where you stay.00:01:48.840 –> 00:02:02.700 Joseph McElroy: smokies adventure.com that smokies plural adventure singular. COM has a site that features listings and information about the smoking's hiking wedding venues books trail Max resources.00:02:03.210 –> 00:02:21.150 Joseph McElroy: The emphasis on smoky adventures is outdoor recreation outdoor life events like weddings and adventures, along with providing information and lodging family and family entertainment events conventions and honeymoons and more it's the leading information portal of the smoky mountain.00:02:23.310 –> 00:02:28.740 Joseph McElroy: I want to mention some events coming up this is summertime in the smokies there are lots of events.00:02:29.790 –> 00:02:40.650 Joseph McElroy: So you can sort of search for them and find them just about anywhere I pick some that I think are great and also you know, relative to the businesses, the business I run in the mountains.00:02:42.360 –> 00:02:57.480 Joseph McElroy: And the first one is the Darren Nicholson bluegrass band camp and concert somebody that know anything about bluegrass know Darren Nicholson and he's a member of balsam range he has his own band he's a grammy award-nominated artists and.00:02:58.710 –> 00:03:08.310 Joseph McElroy: It has won many of the bluegrass towards this event is for aspiring musicians to learn and interact with some of the best artists in the business.00:03:08.700 –> 00:03:27.090 Joseph McElroy: And the venue culminate in an open to the public, all Stuart star concert on July 17 that's this Saturday this this this band camp will be repeated in future years so look forward if you're listening in the future to this podcast but for now July 17, 20100:03:29.130 –> 00:03:44.880 Joseph McElroy: Go to Meadwolarkmotel.com look under the mountain heritage smoky mountain heritage events and you'll find this event, and you can purchase tickets to come to it, you can also with lodging you get a free concert and you get half price on the band camp.00:03:45.990 –> 00:03:53.850 Joseph McElroy: They have him coming July 23 and 24th is hillbilly jam, the famous hillbilly Jam in Maggie Valley in North Carolina open the public.00:03:54.120 –> 00:04:09.270 Joseph McElroy: Both days music festival with crafts and food, food vendors moonshiners of the discovery channel car and bike show, and more so, go to the hillbilly jam.com or 82845-079795.00:04:10.560 –> 00:04:16.890 Joseph McElroy: This year is the 55th season of the shindig on the green presented by the folk heritage committee.00:04:18.090 –> 00:04:18.750 Joseph McElroy: Along with.00:04:19.800 –> 00:04:28.980 Joseph McElroy: headlining sponsor Allen's jewelry and pawn Finkelstein's loan office but it's a free event in the heart of downtown Ashville it goes over several days during the summer.00:04:30.090 –> 00:04:41.820 Joseph McElroy: And then the left to the left the days left in July or the 17th of 24th of the 31st as well as the August 14 and 20 21st and the heart.00:04:42.090 –> 00:04:57.420 Joseph McElroy: Of downtown Asheville parks what pack squares park Roger part pack square park called Roger McGuire Green that's pack square park Roger McQueen's that Roger McGuire Green I gotta learn to say that.00:04:59.400 –> 00:05:16.410 Joseph McElroy: it's got lots of music lots of vendors it's a great thing to go to has been going for 55 years I'm sure you'll find it, this is also the of the 94th annual mountain dance and folk festival as a ticketed event at the Pinsky hall auditorium at unc Asheville which is.00:05:18.450 –> 00:05:28.380 Joseph McElroy: 300 liberty lane Ashville it takes place every each of the nights Thursday through Saturday 6:30pm nightly.00:05:29.730 –> 00:05:30.150 Joseph McElroy: and00:05:31.170 –> 00:05:43.080 Joseph McElroy: I think the upcoming dates are August 5 Sixth and Seventh, so I advise you to go, that was a 94-year event, it has to be doing something else, and it showcases music dancers, and storytellers.00:05:43.650 –> 00:05:55.110 Joseph McElroy: And today, I have great and fabulous guests he is Neil Hutcheson is an award-winning filmmaker photographer, and author, who has one, among other things, three.00:05:55.770 –> 00:06:00.630 Joseph McElroy: One, among other things, three Emmy awards his work has been featured on.00:06:01.410 –> 00:06:12.180 Joseph McElroy: PBS the history channel discovery others he resides in Raleigh North Carolina where he works as a producer and director of the language and LIFE project for nc State University.00:06:12.540 –> 00:06:25.740 Joseph McElroy: But he also spent a great deal of time and the great smokies which have been the location of several of his most popular projects and famous subjects like popcorn suck Hello Neal,00:06:26.190 –> 00:06:27.840 Neal Hutcheson: hi thanks for having me.00:06:28.290 –> 00:06:32.520 Joseph McElroy: Oh I'm so glad, so you grew up in Chapel Hill right.00:06:32.910 –> 00:06:34.170 Neal Hutcheson: I did that's right yep.00:06:34.620 –> 00:06:42.360 Joseph McElroy: cool and then you went to Boone translate in Spain, and then the Raleigh where you studied at NC state is that all correct.00:06:42.510 –> 00:06:43.980 Neal Hutcheson: yeah you've got my whole rap sheet.00:06:45.450 –> 00:06:46.230 Joseph McElroy: sheet right.00:06:46.440 –> 00:06:48.480 Joseph McElroy: Well, I want to do so, I had to notice it.00:06:49.230 –> 00:06:50.520 Neal Hutcheson: Okay okay all right.00:06:51.360 –> 00:06:59.370 Joseph McElroy: So imagine you could have a pretty good conversation about basketball right yeah are you a fan of North Carolina sports.00:06:59.700 –> 00:07:06.960 Neal Hutcheson: Well, you know you can't really ignore them and growing up in Chapel hill like it was like you know it.00:07:07.590 –> 00:07:08.610 Neal Hutcheson: was like you know you.00:07:08.700 –> 00:07:13.920 Neal Hutcheson: got you your Carolina blue it's you know you don't even have a choice.00:07:14.670 –> 00:07:17.700 Joseph McElroy: You don't I mean and you would probably run a town if you didn't.00:07:19.680 –> 00:07:27.990 Joseph McElroy: It was a college town so but it's a great college and I went there a few times you know to see Duke Carolina but.00:07:29.460 –> 00:07:31.110 Joseph McElroy: I enjoyed it so.00:07:31.350 –> 00:07:34.380 Joseph McElroy: I grew up in a very strong culture part of the state of North.00:07:34.380 –> 00:07:35.010 Carolina.00:07:36.090 –> 00:07:53.220 Joseph McElroy: But you obviously you're a gifted art artist, with a passion for history and music and culture and colorful characters I understand to cut your teeth professionally by working with the NC State University linguist wall from and some other social scientist.00:07:54.420 –> 00:07:55.230 Neal Hutcheson: yeah that's it.00:07:57.960 –> 00:08:05.520 Neal Hutcheson: I'm hit the ground with working with Walt and doing language programs, I mean that's kind of what brought me to the mountains in the first place.00:08:05.850 –> 00:08:13.560 Joseph McElroy: yeah it was that is that when you did your for your sort of first real big step for a career when you did a film called mountain talk.00:08:14.190 –> 00:08:16.590 Neal Hutcheson: yeah that film was pivotal.00:08:17.640 –> 00:08:32.250 Neal Hutcheson: For sure um and I'd say you know that was the first full-length documentary that I had done and, and it really allowed me to spend a lot of time up there, where you are right now man and to meet people and just to kind of.00:08:33.420 –> 00:08:36.330 Neal Hutcheson: absorb the culture, the local culture.00:08:36.630 –> 00:08:41.580 Joseph McElroy: Is do you feel I mean, since you came through linguist do you think the sound of language is a.00:08:42.720 –> 00:08:43.890 Joseph McElroy: entree into your art.00:08:45.660 –> 00:08:54.960 Neal Hutcheson: I think um I always looked at language as an entree into the culture, you know so it's a different direction into looking at culture in it and it and it uh.00:08:55.560 –> 00:09:10.200 Neal Hutcheson: it's incredibly illuminating to look at the culture that way, instead of kind of you know, as opposed to whatever head-on, you know it's kind of a backdoor to looking at culture and the more you look at it it's incredibly fascinating.00:09:11.100 –> 00:09:15.780 Joseph McElroy: When you were young are you interested in language, are you addressing.00:09:16.020 –> 00:09:16.500 No.00:09:18.090 –> 00:09:19.440 Neal Hutcheson: totally unexpected yeah.00:09:20.880 –> 00:09:25.950 Neal Hutcheson: yeah I know, I find it interesting, but you know anything that you study becomes interesting.00:09:27.150 –> 00:09:30.030 Neal Hutcheson: The more you know about it um but.00:09:31.140 –> 00:09:39.720 Neal Hutcheson: No it's just that I happened to be at nc state, I was doing educational programs people said that what will for me to a video dude this was in the 90s.00:09:40.170 –> 00:09:50.520 Neal Hutcheson: And I stepped in his office and I said I you know if you have work, you know I can help you I'm freelancing and he said, are you any good, and I said, you know I think so so.00:09:51.300 –> 00:09:57.480 Neal Hutcheson: And so we started working and then that that has turned out to be a very fruitful collaboration and I'm still working with them.00:09:58.110 –> 00:09:59.190 Joseph McElroy: Is that how you been.00:10:00.750 –> 00:10:03.300 Joseph McElroy: With the job is a third of that relationship.00:10:03.480 –> 00:10:16.410 Neal Hutcheson: Yeah it wasn't a full-time gig you know, I was reluctant to let go of free time to do my own projects, so it wasn't a full-time gig for many years, but um I've still found time to do my own work as well on the side.00:10:17.160 –> 00:10:18.930 Joseph McElroy: What do you do at the language of my project.00:10:19.920 –> 00:10:21.300 Neal Hutcheson: Well, I produced documentaries.00:10:21.540 –> 00:10:24.270 Neal Hutcheson: but it's you know it's I'm.00:10:25.950 –> 00:10:31.980 Neal Hutcheson: Producing a documentary is do is wearing many, many hats, so I do a lot of things.00:10:32.790 –> 00:10:42.600 Neal Hutcheson: Right now, and preparing for a trip to Ghana, in August production trip and so very little of what I do is would be what people think of as production right now it's I'm not doing any editing or shooting.00:10:43.290 –> 00:10:49.140 Neal Hutcheson: Which is what I prefer to be doing, but you also have to do a lot of planning prep from you know logistical.00:10:51.330 –> 00:10:53.790 Neal Hutcheson: preparations and things like that too it's part of the job.00:10:55.530 –> 00:11:03.600 Joseph McElroy: Well, you know I'm interested I always like to know the origins of people's craft and you know I'm also an artist and it always.00:11:04.050 –> 00:11:08.460 Joseph McElroy: Had but I came at it, I had no clue I was going to be an artist, and so the.00:11:08.910 –> 00:11:15.780 Joseph McElroy: Even analyzing myself trying to figure out where where where the where is the evolution and all of a sudden, you become an artist, yeah a lot of people grow up.00:11:16.080 –> 00:11:23.400 Joseph McElroy: and consider themselves artists from the womb and other people just discovered along the way, where are you from the womb, or it is covered along the way.00:11:23.820 –> 00:11:28.650 Neal Hutcheson: Definitely along the way, and you know it'd be interesting, I don't know if you want to talk more about that, in particular, right now.00:11:29.070 –> 00:11:37.770 Neal Hutcheson: With limited time but you know to be interesting to know how you got started because for me it was kind of a lifeline that came to me unexpectedly in my college years.00:11:39.000 –> 00:11:49.800 Neal Hutcheson: I was kind of an intense young person with a lot going on, but I didn't have any means of self-expression, you know, and one way or another it's got to come out.00:11:50.400 –> 00:12:02.730 Neal Hutcheson: And I didn't have the discipline to develop skills that at writing at that time or at painting or some other craft to kind of get it out so I'm filmmaking kind of landed in my lap.00:12:04.410 –> 00:12:22.380 Joseph McElroy: Well, you know my story is actually fairly quick yeah I was arrogant a technology guy and somebody showed me some art and I looked at it and I didn't understand it, and I said, well, I can do that, and they said, well then do it and that started me on a journey of.00:12:22.740 –> 00:12:24.180 Joseph McElroy: Personal that I couldn't do it.00:12:26.070 –> 00:12:37.200 Joseph McElroy: yeah and a lot more depth and meaning and that journey led me along the way, but it was me being an arrogant ignorant cus that started my journey.00:12:39.090 –> 00:12:39.780 Neal Hutcheson: I love to hear.00:12:40.410 –> 00:12:40.830 yeah.00:12:41.910 –> 00:12:49.530 Joseph McElroy: Well we'll come back we'll jump into some of the stuff that you've done and dig deeper into your art and this way rooms.00:12:49.740 –> 00:12:50.100 Neal Hutcheson: Thank you.00:15:15.270 –> 00:15:26.340 Joseph McElroy: Oh sorry I was muted, so this is Joseph Franklyn McElroy back with the gateway to the smokies podcast and my guest Neal Hutcheson, Neal has an idea how you doing.00:15:26.970 –> 00:15:30.150 Joseph McElroy: Great Yes, that was my awkward entry.00:15:31.320 –> 00:15:33.180 Joseph McElroy: So I do that occasionally.00:15:34.980 –> 00:15:40.860 Joseph McElroy: So you know I mentioned mountain talk, but that wasn't your first documentary right.00:15:42.960 –> 00:15:46.410 Neal Hutcheson: It was probably the first one that I recognize is actually being a documentary.00:15:46.440 –> 00:15:49.920 Joseph McElroy: That was your first one that's your art okay cool.00:15:51.090 –> 00:15:51.750 Joseph McElroy: You know the.00:15:52.860 –> 00:16:01.260 Joseph McElroy: I yeah I entitled this episode outlaws and outliers because you've done some outliers and the most famous being popcorn sudden.00:16:01.680 –> 00:16:14.280 Joseph McElroy: But you've got some other you've done some documentaries and work about another you understand you had you have collaborated with a gifted writer and storyteller and play right there named Gary Carden of Cillo.00:16:15.780 –> 00:16:19.260 Joseph McElroy: And he's a colorful talented person, how did you two meet.00:16:20.430 –> 00:16:24.750 Neal Hutcheson: Well, I met him like I met so many other people when I came up here working on mountain talk.00:16:25.200 –> 00:16:34.860 Neal Hutcheson: um I spent about two years you know back and forth from Raleigh working on that particular film but I'm Gary was one of the people that I really connected with.00:16:35.340 –> 00:16:53.430 Neal Hutcheson: And of course, we've been working together, ever since um but somebody pointed him putting me in his direction, basically, they said they said he's you should talk to him, he talks about language, a little bit so that's how it started, I went and found him and I interviewed him and.00:16:55.140 –> 00:17:01.140 Neal Hutcheson: I just kept visiting him and in fact, I started working on a documentary about him in00:17:01.140 –> 00:17:03.930 Neal Hutcheson: Particular, and this is in maybe.00:17:05.460 –> 00:17:08.220 Neal Hutcheson: Alright, so I'm still hoping I'm hoping to finish it this year.00:17:09.840 –> 00:17:13.470 Joseph McElroy: Do you tell you to take your time with your subjects right.00:17:13.860 –> 00:17:17.040 Neal Hutcheson: I don't like I have any control over it sometimes they kind of work out.00:17:18.660 –> 00:17:22.530 Neal Hutcheson: process that uses me and I just think they're done when they're done, you know.00:17:23.070 –> 00:17:38.520 Joseph McElroy: So you'd Have you had him collaborate, and this is what was interesting to me the outlaw Lewis Redmond who was I guess the first king of the moonshiners, can you tell us a little bit about that project and him and it didn't he kill a man and get away with it.00:17:39.540 –> 00:17:58.800 Neal Hutcheson: yeah well, in the end, he didn't get away with that, but um yeah that's right it's a great story Lewis Redmond was, first of all, let me mention about Gary cartons also play right and the way I got onto this particular topic was Gary pardons play called the Prince of dark corners and.00:18:00.660 –> 00:18:08.970 Neal Hutcheson: And so I produced with Gary and with an actor named Milton Higgins, a really brilliant guy who, sadly, died last month, but.00:18:09.600 –> 00:18:12.510 Neal Hutcheson: So the three of us put you know did a production of that play.00:18:13.380 –> 00:18:18.810 Neal Hutcheson: that's how I got to know the story of Lewis Redmond because that's what the play was about, and then I did a follow-up documentary.00:18:19.230 –> 00:18:40.710 Neal Hutcheson: But Lewis Redmond was an outlaw active in were up where you are in southern Appalachian at the end of the 19th century, and he was active at the same time is billy the kid and Jesse James names that everybody knows, and he was actually more famous than either one of them.00:18:41.790 –> 00:18:43.740 Neal Hutcheson: Is paper articles about Lewis Redmond.00:18:44.250 –> 00:18:45.180 Neal Hutcheson: And even one of those.00:18:45.240 –> 00:18:51.180 Neal Hutcheson: Does too so that's amazing when you think about the fact that, obviously, most of your listeners have probably never heard of him.00:18:51.570 –> 00:18:55.440 Joseph McElroy: No, I didn't know until I started researching you I had never heard of them.00:18:56.460 –> 00:19:03.750 Joseph McElroy: So it's interesting, but he was quite a character, he killed the what was the Sheriff or something like that was trying to rescue.00:19:04.410 –> 00:19:06.030 Neal Hutcheson: yeah that's right.00:19:06.300 –> 00:19:07.890 Neal Hutcheson: He may have killed another man there's.00:19:08.040 –> 00:19:13.170 Neal Hutcheson: You know that that's one thing that's interesting about his story is that the historical record is very muddied.00:19:13.830 –> 00:19:15.930 Neal Hutcheson: kind of his money in a way that it's.00:19:16.110 –> 00:19:35.040 Neal Hutcheson: Interesting really reflects the kind of public media about Appalachia through a lot of America's history, which is, which is to say that in southern in mountain papers and regional papers, he was regarded as he was talked about in these very noble terms.00:19:35.430 –> 00:19:36.840 Neal Hutcheson: And in the northern papers.00:19:37.050 –> 00:19:38.550 Neal Hutcheson: He was.00:19:39.570 –> 00:19:49.110 Neal Hutcheson: talked about as a degenerate and it's outlawed and stuff like that you know and there was this very exaggerated kind of depictions of him so it's a really interesting subject.00:19:49.440 –> 00:19:54.120 Neal Hutcheson: And the truth is somewhere in the middle and nobody you know, has really sorted it all out but.00:19:54.390 –> 00:20:06.990 Joseph McElroy: Well, I mean yeah I mean you know you understand it because the moonshine was an important source of income for a lot of people, it helps save a lot of people's families at the same time, have destroyed a lot of people's families right so.00:20:07.500 –> 00:20:11.220 Joseph McElroy: Absolutely it's people used to worship the ones that could make a go of it.00:20:12.810 –> 00:20:33.390 Joseph McElroy: You know I remember growing up, you know and that which would have been the 60s, there was an early 70s, the that what people would say with it with a sort of a tongue in cheek but they would say you were more likely to get arrested for drunk driving, then you were for killing somebody.00:20:34.620 –> 00:20:36.480 Joseph McElroy: yeah yeah so.00:20:38.250 –> 00:20:48.630 Joseph McElroy: It was, it was a little bit rough and sort of some ways, but you know I read this quote from you right, I thought it was really insightful, you said you wrote you.00:20:49.260 –> 00:21:02.280 Joseph McElroy: told somebody if I forget who it was but mountain culture is surprisingly vigorous and surprisingly alive and will be until the current generation of 50 somethings dies out and it is dying out.00:21:02.760 –> 00:21:07.800 Joseph McElroy: psychologically there's a fundamental difference in the way they look at the world and treat each other.00:21:08.400 –> 00:21:19.560 Joseph McElroy: They wear masks and assume roles which is not necessarily a bad thing, but mountain people are not capable of that, I think that was like 2003 years, do you think that's still true what did you mean.00:21:20.820 –> 00:21:32.760 Neal Hutcheson: yeah I think a lot has changed since I said that, and I think what I was witnessing and what other people witnessing is the real-time change has taken place and.00:21:33.180 –> 00:21:46.110 Neal Hutcheson: um but no there's still this pockets of real mountain culture and people who come into the area can still experience that and meet people and get any you know and get to experience a little bit of that.00:21:46.650 –> 00:21:48.540 Joseph McElroy: um you know.00:21:49.380 –> 00:21:56.460 Neal Hutcheson: There is a there's a book that tends to be castigated called our southern highlanders by.00:21:56.730 –> 00:22:07.050 Neal Hutcheson: A very famous right yeah and he was right in the area like he was probably you're in Maggie Valley, right now, so he was camping you know, a couple of miles from where you're talking right now.00:22:07.410 –> 00:22:20.310 Neal Hutcheson: And when he was writing this book, so you know the people that he was writing about work if you're talking about the long term residents that are still there, they were the very people that are still there, their grandparents.00:22:20.550 –> 00:22:33.720 Neal Hutcheson: Right and um The funny thing is I got to because of my friendship with Popcorn Sutton and a few other people like I really got to see the inside of mountain culture and I'm.00:22:34.350 –> 00:22:52.260 Neal Hutcheson: Even though that book our southern Highlands is problematic and people have attacked it for good reasons, I got to see that they were very real characteristics in as people that are described perfectly in that book that was written almost 100 years ago.00:22:52.590 –> 00:22:54.930 Neal Hutcheson: mm hmm right so that shows you the strength of.00:22:55.980 –> 00:23:06.210 Neal Hutcheson: Culture and the character of the culture that, with all the changes in the last hundred years you, you still can see that same the same tendencies they're baked in.00:23:07.410 –> 00:23:07.860 Neal Hutcheson: Now.00:23:08.910 –> 00:23:14.070 Neal Hutcheson: I don't know you know what I said the quote, that you gave you know I don't know is the next generation inheriting those.00:23:15.300 –> 00:23:31.050 Joseph McElroy: University, you know this this this weekend, we had storytellers and singers over at the Meadowlark Heritage Center right and we had a 70-year-old storyteller tell a story, but he was brought there by a 20 something-year-old.00:23:32.040 –> 00:23:36.840 Joseph McElroy: Guy there who's a previous person in this podcast, Will Ritter.00:23:37.830 –> 00:23:38.580 Joseph McElroy: Yes, okay.00:23:38.910 –> 00:23:51.240 Joseph McElroy: yeah and he learned from all these old-timers you know the culture and heritage, and it was really fabulous, so there are young people out there, learning it and you know my.00:23:51.600 –> 00:24:04.020 Joseph McElroy: My family right there still people that live up in the hills and you know, are still very, very much in mountain culture, and you know it's a there's a beauty to it, I mean once you.00:24:04.530 –> 00:24:15.270 Joseph McElroy: pick you to know get through the what some people perceive is sort of the hard exterior it's a very loving culture and very funny yes yeah.00:24:16.050 –> 00:24:29.520 Neal Hutcheson: Right, you know when I was working in Cherokee which is not far from where you are a there, there was a story in there that we interviewed who suggested that I'm.00:24:30.390 –> 00:24:34.650 Neal Hutcheson: Mountain culture not only influences Cherokee culture but Cherokee called culture influence.00:24:35.190 –> 00:24:40.770 Neal Hutcheson: Mountain culture, and so what you're talking about this part of the exterior that you don't quite know.00:24:41.130 –> 00:24:49.350 Neal Hutcheson: What people are thinking you're not seeing their emotions and stuff like that, and what you get behind it it's very loving and very, very funny a lot of like.00:24:49.680 –> 00:25:01.200 Neal Hutcheson: poking fun at each other in a very smart and say like don't be fooled if you have not been to the mountains and you have the perception that you're going to be dealing with some simple yokels because they haven't necessarily been.00:25:01.710 –> 00:25:13.050 Neal Hutcheson: Like that they're going to be one step ahead of you, the whole time so like they may be making fun of you, and you never even catch it so now drop your attitude at the door, I say.00:25:15.300 –> 00:25:21.270 Joseph McElroy: Well yeah there seems to be a common thread in your work, I looked at it and you know and it's the, it is the.00:25:21.660 –> 00:25:39.570 Joseph McElroy: Preservation of various kinds of nature, culture native cultures, like the Cherokee Indian language Appalachian culture, you know African American dialects as well, as you know, mount musing moon shining so and even heritage fisheries out in the east coast so.00:25:39.840 –> 00:25:40.590 Joseph McElroy: Is that.00:25:40.650 –> 00:25:46.980 Joseph McElroy: Where your passion lies in a sort of like understanding these cultures and maybe giving a little to help preserve them.00:25:47.580 –> 00:25:59.760 Neal Hutcheson: Well, you know I would back up from preservation and say my passion really is in when I get on the scene and I find something that I'm really interested in, and I see how quickly it's changing I feel like.00:26:00.240 –> 00:26:10.770 Neal Hutcheson: You know, sometimes I feel like I am on the spot, with my experience and uh you know recording devices and I feel a duty to document things as they change.00:26:11.070 –> 00:26:11.580 Joseph McElroy: mom.00:26:12.030 –> 00:26:23.520 Neal Hutcheson: Can that lead to like preservation and specific instances, I think, so you know if people understand like fishermen like if you know.00:26:24.240 –> 00:26:29.760 Neal Hutcheson: People who are not from the community, may come down there and find them to be a very rough bunch of people they may.00:26:30.210 –> 00:26:38.220 Neal Hutcheson: have negative stereotypes about the way that they treat the resource and things like that, but then, as they get to know them that you know if they can understand their experiences a little more.00:26:38.550 –> 00:26:43.950 Neal Hutcheson: They kind of understand that it's much more nuanced than what they've been given to understand.00:26:44.370 –> 00:26:47.730 Neal Hutcheson: And though they actually will wind up being in sympathy with.00:26:47.820 –> 00:26:48.210 With.00:26:49.380 –> 00:27:06.780 Neal Hutcheson: Certain people that they might not have expected to previously because they had misconceptions about them and so can understanding people lead to I'm not doing the things that change their culture as much I, I hope, so I think so.00:27:08.160 –> 00:27:15.330 Joseph McElroy: I think, also, I think you know, yes, the world can be overwhelming at times and it can come in and try to force you to.00:27:15.690 –> 00:27:25.320 Joseph McElroy: You know, think that your culture is not important or stupid or silly and it can cause, especially younger people to say abandon it right.00:27:25.740 –> 00:27:35.250 Joseph McElroy: And I think that a lot of people can come to understand hey the culture, they grew up in was really important to who they are, and it was really beautiful and a lot of ways.00:27:35.820 –> 00:27:43.680 Joseph McElroy: Right and I, you know I started this podcast you know sort of the business intent, but you know I've also discovered that I love.00:27:44.520 –> 00:27:58.950 Joseph McElroy: You know, bringing this culture and the beauty of this culture to light, so you know I think what you're doing is fabulous in that regard so we're going to take a break and I guess we'll talk about a little bit about your famous subject.00:28:00.210 –> 00:28:00.540 Neal Hutcheson: Okay.00:28:02.880 –> 00:28:03.150 Neal Hutcheson: Good.00:30:33.480 –> 00:30:47.610 Joseph McElroy: howdy this is Joseph Franklyn McElroy back with the gateway to the smokies podcast and my guest Neal Hutcheson so know you mentioned him and Maggie valid, but I'm actually sitting in New York City I split my time between Maggie Valley.00:30:47.640 –> 00:30:58.200 Joseph McElroy: North cal okay so, but you know I when I left the mountains, you know I had to do sort of the reverse of you, I had to go outside the world and had to get people to.00:30:58.950 –> 00:31:14.700 Joseph McElroy: You know, open up to me and accept me, you know, and you know penetrate yeah whatever cultural norms that that existed in a place like new york's always sort of slightly testing you and you have to always you know to prove that you can handle it but.00:31:15.240 –> 00:31:17.070 Joseph McElroy: You know, when you came to.00:31:18.090 –> 00:31:20.130 Joseph McElroy: The mountains there's obviously.00:31:21.480 –> 00:31:30.660 Joseph McElroy: A big testing a barrier, you know dependent trading that you know, and so, how did you get your subjects to accept you and to warm up to you.00:31:31.770 –> 00:31:42.870 Neal Hutcheson: A bit well I just spent time there and I gave them um you know I always kind of knew intuitively not to.00:31:43.950 –> 00:32:02.910 Neal Hutcheson: Try to ingratiate myself or try as if, as if they wouldn't like to see through my efforts to kind of win their trust or what you know, so I just was always mindful of just being myself and just spending enough time that I had they had a chance to assess me and.00:32:04.350 –> 00:32:08.580 Neal Hutcheson: Consider, whatever it is, you know that I was after so that was basically it.00:32:09.330 –> 00:32:17.370 Joseph McElroy: Well, you know I I knew popcorn Sutton not particularly well, but I knew I knew him and he knows, he was a real kg guy.00:32:18.300 –> 00:32:21.900 Joseph McElroy: yeah he was he yeah he was smart and he's always sort of.00:32:21.960 –> 00:32:31.200 Joseph McElroy: I always felt he was putting on a little bit of her performance because it was you know I made his money, so how did, how did you break through and get to some real honest stuff from him.00:32:32.730 –> 00:32:40.500 Neal Hutcheson: Well, it did you know it took a long time in a way to get like you know, beyond the performance but I'm.00:32:42.330 –> 00:32:52.620 Neal Hutcheson: In a way, you know not that long because I would say, you may not agree with this, I don't know, but I would say like there was always a performance in the play.00:32:53.130 –> 00:33:06.630 Neal Hutcheson: When he was dealing with the public um, but it was kind of based on who he really was, and so is interestingly, it was like the performance was kind of close to who he actually was he was just giving.00:33:07.980 –> 00:33:17.310 Neal Hutcheson: You know, certain portions of the public, maybe more more more the tourist a version of a moonshiner that they would that was what they expected.00:33:17.520 –> 00:33:20.850 Neal Hutcheson: You know and but behind the scenes, he actually was that.00:33:21.270 –> 00:33:21.750 Neal Hutcheson: So.00:33:22.110 –> 00:33:30.000 Neal Hutcheson: You know, so I think he just kind of knew where to lean in and exaggerate and things like that sometimes he could lay it on a little thick.00:33:31.740 –> 00:33:37.500 Joseph McElroy: though he was better in the mountains, we have somebody that can make a deal really well we call them a horse trader.00:33:37.980 –> 00:33:45.120 Joseph McElroy: My dad's a hell of a horse trader he's from way back in the mountains finds creek and he input popcorn Sutton get along.00:33:45.570 –> 00:34:01.740 Joseph McElroy: Along really well because my dad was a contractor and you know popcorn would need some things every once in Australia with him to get some construction done an exchange for some variables of moonshine so I ended up getting a drink some popcorn moonshine over the years.00:34:03.150 –> 00:34:12.300 Joseph McElroy: So yeah so you would say, though, that he was a master promoting themselves right and making deals to get himself known against products out there.00:34:13.710 –> 00:34:24.540 Neal Hutcheson: yeah I think he was but I, you know I just I didn't want it it's true but and but you know along the way, some people have written them off and said he wasn't a real thing he was just playing a character.00:34:25.140 –> 00:34:26.250 Joseph McElroy: It was the real thing.00:34:27.390 –> 00:34:27.930 Neal Hutcheson: Right.00:34:28.140 –> 00:34:31.650 Neal Hutcheson: Jackie I just want to emphasize that yeah there's a performance all right, but.00:34:32.010 –> 00:34:32.370 Joseph McElroy: It was.00:34:33.240 –> 00:34:39.810 Joseph McElroy: To make moonshine you have to know it's almost instinctual when the turn to when.00:34:40.680 –> 00:34:47.550 Joseph McElroy: To cut it and when to stop you know when the what point in the distilling process to pull the liquor out and that's what you're going to drink.00:34:47.940 –> 00:34:59.640 Joseph McElroy: Right and the right water and things like that, if you don't do it exactly right and have so almost instinctual thing about it it'll just taste horrible but he's always tasted really good he had an art to it.00:34:59.970 –> 00:35:06.810 Neal Hutcheson: yeah that's true that's right there's the one aspect of it, which is the craftsman and that was all true, and that was there.00:35:07.290 –> 00:35:16.470 Neal Hutcheson: And, but then you know the art of performance is something I talked about a little bit in the book that I did on popcorn and I speculate that.00:35:17.190 –> 00:35:21.720 Neal Hutcheson: I don't have any you know other sources for this, but I speculate that what you were talking about.00:35:22.110 –> 00:35:31.140 Neal Hutcheson: About horse-trading and the talent for barter in the mountains, is that the talent for performance in the mountains, which is well known and incredible.00:35:31.590 –> 00:35:40.860 Neal Hutcheson: That that developed out of the little bits that you do around trading things and the and the kind of like well you know devaluing things and just that you know.00:35:41.190 –> 00:35:57.990 Neal Hutcheson: That skill that was honed over so much time and I think that when the park was founded and outsiders came in and stuff like that that I think that that led them naturally to some of them to find inner talent for performance.00:35:58.620 –> 00:36:00.630 Joseph McElroy: Well, you know I think if you look at.00:36:00.690 –> 00:36:13.590 Joseph McElroy: The traditional storytelling amount of storytelling is often an exaggeration right I caught 50 fish in the pant leg when I fell in the water or.00:36:14.400 –> 00:36:21.120 Joseph McElroy: That sort of thing is sort of the reverse of the horse-trading, which says well these trousers are no good I couldn't catch any fish.00:36:23.160 –> 00:36:27.000 Joseph McElroy: right there like obviously opposite of the same coin.00:36:28.050 –> 00:36:28.530 Joseph McElroy: yeah.00:36:28.830 –> 00:36:35.790 Joseph McElroy: yeah so um so you've done three movies on popcorn right documentaries.00:36:36.030 –> 00:36:42.270 Neal Hutcheson: yeah it's a little bit of a complicated history but yeah technically three movies, we did a cult classic.00:36:43.020 –> 00:36:51.210 Neal Hutcheson: Well, it would become a cult classic, the first thing that I made was really for the popcorn to sell out of his junk shop and something he wanted to do.00:36:51.480 –> 00:36:59.760 Neal Hutcheson: And that one's called that one's always that one's the most popular now 20 years later um it's called this is the last time round of liquor I'll ever make.00:37:00.600 –> 00:37:02.340 Neal Hutcheson: sense yeah.00:37:02.400 –> 00:37:11.850 Neal Hutcheson: we're still it's the whole thing on YouTube if anybody wants to check it out, but people are still discovering it and it's lasted longer than anything else I've done but um.00:37:12.540 –> 00:37:26.130 Neal Hutcheson: Then I did a TV version which came out at the tail end of 2008 called the last one, and that was a PBS family-friendly kind of version of that with cutaways for context and interviews and things like that it's a.00:37:26.430 –> 00:37:26.940 Neal Hutcheson: little different.00:37:27.660 –> 00:37:31.200 Neal Hutcheson: And then I did a more biographical piece called a hell of a life.00:37:32.430 –> 00:37:38.370 Neal Hutcheson: And that came out after he died in 2009 that came out in oh I forget, but maybe 2012.00:37:39.240 –> 00:37:53.010 Joseph McElroy: yeah cool well and you've also I saw you recently you've done a book recently like it's almost like a table talk book, but so more meaningful, I mean what was how did you come about doing that.00:37:53.370 –> 00:38:01.890 Neal Hutcheson: yeah well thanks for describing it that way it's it's deliberately designed to be enjoyable if you want to flip through idly or if you want to dig in so.00:38:03.150 –> 00:38:03.870 Neal Hutcheson: I.00:38:05.580 –> 00:38:14.970 Neal Hutcheson: knew that people would want to have copies because popcorn is is well known and intriguing and so I felt a duty to make it as good as I possibly could um.00:38:15.480 –> 00:38:18.600 Neal Hutcheson: You know, in a way, I feel like I was always working on that book and I just didn't know it.00:38:19.470 –> 00:38:35.910 Neal Hutcheson: While I was doing the documentaries, the real motivation was that you know nowadays popcorn is remembered as in some quarters as something akin to a folk hero and it's a very simplified version and a very kind of.00:38:37.230 –> 00:38:41.970 Neal Hutcheson: Noble you know version of who he was is a friend of mine, okay I'm not dragging down.00:38:42.450 –> 00:38:50.160 Neal Hutcheson: And I think that folk hero is interesting, and I think that that phenomenon with him turning into a folk hero is fascinating and I talked about that in the book.00:38:50.430 –> 00:38:54.840 Neal Hutcheson: But you know, the main purpose at the start of working on the book was to.00:38:55.500 –> 00:39:06.810 Neal Hutcheson: Make sure that he's remembered as I knew him as a person I knew he would want that that he did he really didn't want to be the hero he wanted to be that law and he wanted to be who he was.00:39:07.740 –> 00:39:19.590 Neal Hutcheson: And so I think that and so the book tries, and I think, to some extent, I would say if it's okay for me to say about my own book like succeeds in capturing him, you know fairly.00:39:20.700 –> 00:39:24.060 Joseph McElroy: cool what was the name of the book again what was the full title of it.00:39:24.390 –> 00:39:26.220 Neal Hutcheson: it's called the moonshiner popcorn sun.00:39:26.460 –> 00:39:30.450 Joseph McElroy: The moon cheddar popcorn Sutton and it's available on a lot of places you go to the.00:39:31.530 –> 00:39:39.570 Joseph McElroy: I think we have it up on smokies adventure.com and the Meadowlark motel and you can probably get it on Amazon right it's a great book and there's a DVD with it right.00:39:40.140 –> 00:39:56.610 Neal Hutcheson: If you get it on Amazon you're going to pay him because I held back because I want people to buy it from local places like the meadowlark and the other places that are supporting the book and that support community and culture, so I hope people will buy local first.00:39:57.690 –> 00:40:17.310 Joseph McElroy: Nice good local living economies it's we can promote that that's important you know that's why I keep the small business I have in the mountains going is to support local economies, I think it's important yeah so and you have a publishing company and a production company.00:40:17.760 –> 00:40:20.430 Neal Hutcheson: Well I've got a publishing company, now that I've published a book.00:40:22.260 –> 00:40:36.690 Neal Hutcheson: How many more books will publish we'll see it's a lot of work turns out um but yeah I've got a production company that's basically has facilitated my own projects it's more or fewer one-man-bands of still.00:40:38.340 –> 00:40:43.500 Neal Hutcheson: In recent years, I've been collaborating with other people I'm an independent project but.00:40:45.900 –> 00:40:46.140 Neal Hutcheson: yeah.00:40:46.170 –> 00:40:52.980 Neal Hutcheson: Just I just kind of invented and improvised all along the way to make whatever it was I was doing next Hampton.00:40:53.550 –> 00:40:56.340 Joseph McElroy: Why did you call it sucker punch productions.00:40:58.110 –> 00:41:01.680 Neal Hutcheson: Well there's triple entendre in that it's.00:41:03.090 –> 00:41:07.830 Neal Hutcheson: Nothing to be worried about, but mainly you know um.00:41:09.270 –> 00:41:17.820 Neal Hutcheson: I was thinking about it sounds kind of punky and brash and I was kind of I felt as the upstart like who what right do I have to just make.00:41:18.330 –> 00:41:34.380 Neal Hutcheson: Films without anybody's permission and be the kind of like octopus character, you know supine on sucker Punch and just and you know all the different jobs that I have to have in order to make a film, you know it's not just filming and editing.00:41:35.880 –> 00:41:38.400 Neal Hutcheson: It was funny to me the different arms alright.00:41:38.820 –> 00:41:39.300 city.00:41:40.500 –> 00:41:48.720 Joseph McElroy: No, I mean it's important to have something meaningful for your company, especially if you have an inside joke, I had a company called corporate performance artists.00:41:49.080 –> 00:42:00.750 Joseph McElroy: One time because somebody asked me while I was doing art and others do raising I raised some money for a startup in the.com era and they said what the hell, are you and I said I guess I'm a corporate performance artist.00:42:03.720 –> 00:42:08.040 Joseph McElroy: I named my company that I would tell people I'm performing my company.00:42:08.220 –> 00:42:18.510 Joseph McElroy: And it was an engine, it was an inside joke, but yeah it makes it, it makes it fun, it makes it something that's personal and the little secret that you can have.00:42:19.050 –> 00:42:25.050 Neal Hutcheson: Exactly what you know if you're going to do something for yourself, you should have fun and you know indulge a little bit and make it the way you want to.00:42:25.950 –> 00:42:26.640 cool.00:42:27.810 –> 00:42:35.040 Joseph McElroy: So I think you Bob are some you working on Bob Plott do introduce us right so yeah.00:42:35.970 –> 00:42:48.600 Joseph McElroy: So you see we're gonna need to take a break now, so I want to talk about a queen family that you're working on and then we're getting sent you know so much about the mountains now when I get your favorite things to go for people to go see.00:42:49.110 –> 00:42:49.620 Neal Hutcheson: sounds good.00:42:50.040 –> 00:42:50.550 All right.00:45:23.730 –> 00:45:33.000 Joseph McElroy: Howdy this is Joseph Franklyn McElroy back with the gateway to the smokies podcast with my guest Neal Hutcheson so Neil, you are working on.00:45:33.960 –> 00:45:43.200 Joseph McElroy: Something that's interesting to me, you know Maggie Valley calls itself the calling capital of the world right so we're always proud of dancing in the mountains, especially you know.00:45:44.070 –> 00:45:52.860 Joseph McElroy: square dancing and plugin so you're working on a project on the iconic queen family, one of the foremost musical advancing clans and the great smokies what you doing.00:45:54.150 –> 00:45:58.020 Neal Hutcheson: Oh well, you know that was actually a project that I did some years ago.00:45:58.380 –> 00:45:58.890 Joseph McElroy: Oh, really.00:45:59.070 –> 00:46:05.280 Neal Hutcheson: yeah it's already done and it was about music and the group that queen it, as you know, for us, you know.00:46:05.760 –> 00:46:15.690 Neal Hutcheson: yeah it's a huge huge name up there, and so there, there are great dancers, but the ones that are working with weren't really into dancing they were just in the music.00:46:15.960 –> 00:46:22.590 Neal Hutcheson: Okay, so they were in Jackson County off of Johns creek Canny fork.00:46:24.180 –> 00:46:24.960 Neal Hutcheson: You know that area.00:46:25.320 –> 00:46:27.330 Neal Hutcheson: yeah okay so.00:46:28.590 –> 00:46:37.020 Neal Hutcheson: And it was I started with Mary Jane Queen, who was the matriarch of the family and she knew balance that was hundreds of years old and so.00:46:38.430 –> 00:46:49.020 Neal Hutcheson: But I gradually got to know more of her family and they're all musical and when they get together, they would all play they're literally on the back porch and make incredible mountain music and it wasn't like it wasn't.00:46:50.160 –> 00:47:03.810 Neal Hutcheson: It was like the real thing you know it was like you just felt them expressing their love for each other by sharing that music with each other and so that's basically what I was documenting is looking at mountain culture through another window, which was, which was music.00:47:04.440 –> 00:47:08.730 Joseph McElroy: Well I'm very interested in seeing that what where do you have that documentary.00:47:09.570 –> 00:47:11.430 Neal Hutcheson: I think the whole thing is on YouTube right now.00:47:11.700 –> 00:47:12.600 Joseph McElroy: And what's it called.00:47:12.930 –> 00:47:14.070 Neal Hutcheson: it's called the Queen family.00:47:14.910 –> 00:47:15.510 Joseph McElroy: The Queen.00:47:20.040 –> 00:47:26.940 Joseph McElroy: So you bet a lot of visiting the mountains Okay, so what is your, what is your favorite natural.00:47:28.020 –> 00:47:29.340 Joseph McElroy: wonder in the mountains.00:47:30.270 –> 00:47:38.190 Neal Hutcheson: Oh that's a good question um you know I used to come up there backpacking a lot when I was a kid and I didn't know anything about the culture, but I really enjoyed the.00:47:38.790 –> 00:47:50.130 Neal Hutcheson: landscape and just interacting with the wild spaces and my favorite place was always Joyce Kilmer slick rock area, which is adjacent to Graham county.00:47:50.640 –> 00:47:53.580 Joseph McElroy: yeah what was that, what do you find special about that.00:47:54.540 –> 00:48:04.440 Neal Hutcheson: Well, I like to the trails you know for backpacking but then you know, one of the really special things about that spot is that they preserved, a small.00:48:05.310 –> 00:48:20.940 Neal Hutcheson: selection and that that was never logged right, so all the mountains most a lot of people don't even know this, that the great Appalachian wilderness was was absolutely incredible with these huge trees, there were 12 feet in diameter and those are all gone, they were all logged.00:48:21.360 –> 00:48:32.640 Neal Hutcheson: And um what we see now is what runs back right and it's beautiful but it's not the wild place that was there before and so Joyce Kilmer you could see that and.00:48:33.360 –> 00:48:39.300 Neal Hutcheson: You know the last time I went as the storm and taken out a lot of the big trees, unfortunately, it was kind of sad but it's still there.00:48:39.510 –> 00:48:46.050 Neal Hutcheson: And you can go there and park and there are short trails you can walk you don't have to go backpacking anything like that you can walk half a mile or a mile.00:48:46.320 –> 00:48:49.350 Neal Hutcheson: and get back in there cool and they create is just gorgeous.00:48:49.950 –> 00:48:54.300 Joseph McElroy: Oh yeah I haven't actually visited there, so I need to do that, that sounds really like a wonderful time.00:48:55.560 –> 00:49:05.070 Joseph McElroy: Now, your new popcorn sudden so you know a little bit about the distilleries I think you were involved with the moonshine or should they still have it right, it was inspired by your movie anyway.00:49:05.850 –> 00:49:07.050 Neal Hutcheson: I believe that it was.00:49:07.140 –> 00:49:20.310 Joseph McElroy: yeah so so you know local distillery So is there any of them doing anything any a quote-unquote moonshine it's not real moonshine if it's legal but moonshine that's pretty good compared to popcorn to brew.00:49:20.700 –> 00:49:23.340 Neal Hutcheson: Well, you know a lot of these things have sprung up fairly recently.00:49:23.670 –> 00:49:30.420 Neal Hutcheson: yeah and there's you know there's a lot of good beer, you can get in the mountains Now I will not turn down a good hipster IPA.00:49:32.430 –> 00:49:40.500 Neal Hutcheson: And you can find them whether you're in silver or there's a great place and Bryson city, but anyway and an inhaler brewing company I think they're called.00:49:40.800 –> 00:49:42.930 Joseph McElroy: I go to the gym in Waynesville yeah.00:49:43.200 –> 00:49:46.530 Neal Hutcheson: there's good beer around but it's not you know that's nothing traditional.00:49:46.740 –> 00:49:47.250 Neal Hutcheson: yeah i'm.00:49:47.730 –> 00:49:51.930 Neal Hutcheson: The only distillery that I know anything about is elevated mountain in.00:49:52.650 –> 00:50:02.400 Neal Hutcheson: In Maggie valley and I think people should go check it out, and they should see that because I'm the proprietor Dave Angel he puts on a great tour, and you get to sample the stuff.00:50:02.820 –> 00:50:12.150 Neal Hutcheson: And it's good quality and he's from there, and I think I'm not quite sure about his whole story, but I think he's he's like you in that he's been elsewhere and comes back.00:50:12.720 –> 00:50:15.600 Joseph McElroy: yeah he was actually in New York for a little while but he's a cousin he's my cousin.00:50:18.630 –> 00:50:19.110 Joseph McElroy: Down there.00:50:21.480 –> 00:50:36.450 Joseph McElroy: Let me do you go to sell a lot and that's a wonderful town, what would you say is a great itinerary one to build visit silver, starting with breakfast you know and then where you might go in the morning, then lunch in the afternoon and dinner in the evening for entertainment.00:50:37.110 –> 00:50:47.820 Neal Hutcheson: Well, silver has changed a lot, too, is it's developed but um it always had a little bit of stuff going on because it's its proximity to Western Carolina university um but.00:50:48.930 –> 00:50:53.610 Neal Hutcheson: You know, and you can spend a day in Silva and you can find good food morning.00:50:54.990 –> 00:51:05.760 Neal Hutcheson: morning, day and night but um if I was going up there and somebody was going up to explore the area, I would say, getting your current in or in motorcycle whatever drive a little bit and get around.00:51:06.240 –> 00:51:06.570 Joseph McElroy: and00:51:07.380 –> 00:51:14.280 Neal Hutcheson: I always like to in fact I just mentioned Joyce Kilmer well that's close to robin's bill and Robin so.00:51:15.030 –> 00:51:28.590 Neal Hutcheson: The last time I was there doesn't have a lot going on, but I always love going to Robin so you really feel like you're getting back into a mountain Community um and there's a place there, I think it's called lose know it's called.00:51:30.090 –> 00:51:42.540 Neal Hutcheson: Lucy lens something like lens place it's had different names of the rooms, but it's top of the hill one and robin's bill, and you won't miss it because there's not much else around and it's just a diner you're going to get breakfast there you're going to get regular.00:51:43.650 –> 00:51:48.270 Neal Hutcheson: You know diner kind of breakfast food, but what you're also going to get is you're going to be around local people.00:51:48.720 –> 00:51:59.070 Neal Hutcheson: In there and they're going to be friendly they're probably curious about what you're doing and it won't be hard to strike up a conversation, which I highly recommend and start your morning out that way.00:51:59.400 –> 00:52:07.350 Neal Hutcheson: that's fabulous right Okay, and then you can take a nice drive, if you want to go by Joyce Kilmer you take the roadster curvy and beautiful motorcyclists love them.00:52:07.650 –> 00:52:15.420 Neal Hutcheson: And you can take you can go I've never spent much time at Fontana village, but if you like, that kind of thing there's a lot of stuff out there.00:52:15.660 –> 00:52:17.070 Joseph McElroy: Historical stuff yeah.00:52:17.460 –> 00:52:26.850 Neal Hutcheson: And, and then you can see Fontana damn which is impressive a piece of work, and circle back around and come back to silver for lunch.00:52:27.330 –> 00:52:40.170 Neal Hutcheson: And you don't want to miss the coffee shop because it's just another place where real people gather it's been there forever, my friend Gary Carden who's now at six I think IQ as a kid he.00:52:40.890 –> 00:52:43.830 Neal Hutcheson: What do you call it car hopped or whatever he brought the burgers out to people in the car.00:52:44.880 –> 00:52:45.660 Joseph McElroy: coffee shop.00:52:46.380 –> 00:52:49.110 Neal Hutcheson: coffee shop, the signing, and so on, the main road gold and silver.00:52:51.030 –> 00:53:00.570 Neal Hutcheson: And they're going to have country food it's going to be hardy fair they're gonna have a special of the day they're going to cook a good meal, you probably need to take a walk afterward if you're planning to have dinner because you'd be full.00:53:00.960 –> 00:53:01.320 But.00:53:02.370 –> 00:53:09.000 Neal Hutcheson: But again it's also we're working people look people are going to go to so that's why I would give those answers.00:53:10.590 –> 00:53:19.530 Neal Hutcheson: And then, because you had me thinking about this before, so I was there was a place this place in Bryson City, so if you want to go for a really fine meal after.00:53:20.220 –> 00:53:31.710 Neal Hutcheson: All that um there's a place called the pork and bean in Bryson city and they cook they've got a great Jeff there and they and they cook a lot of like fresh healthy.00:53:34.020 –> 00:53:36.810 Neal Hutcheson: freshly sourced fair original.00:53:38.130 –> 00:53:43.410 Neal Hutcheson: an original menu oftentimes you can get mountain trout which is my favorite So if you can.00:53:43.440 –> 00:53:46.560 Joseph McElroy: Get that I would recommend getting it done well it's, the best thing to get.00:53:46.590 –> 00:53:55.230 Joseph McElroy: In the mountains yeah cool well, we have a few minutes left How do people get in touch with you or follow you and keep track of what you're doing?00:53:56.790 –> 00:54:00.750 Neal Hutcheson: Well um I'd say you know if you want to check out the work.00:54:01.050 –> 00:54:13.860 Neal Hutcheson: there's a lot of like extra clips and especially a lot with Popcorn Sutton on my YouTube channel and it's sucker punch pictures just look up that on YouTube you'll find a lot of clips and stuff like that and see what that's about um and.00:54:15.300 –> 00:54:32.700 Neal Hutcheson: If you let's see I don't know I've got a personal website Neil Hutchison.com, so you can see past projects and links to other things Oh, and also the language and languageinlife.org which is my work at nc state, which is a large part of what I've done over the last 30 years.00:54:33.420 –> 00:54:48.840 Joseph McElroy: cool well, thank you very much for being on my podcast has been very enjoyable having a conversation with you and very illuminating I really appreciate the work that you do, and you know documenting the culture of the mountains.00:54:50.010 –> 00:55:02.010 Joseph McElroy: You know I think there was a period of time that there was a unique culture is still there, but it is, it is disappearing somewhat so understanding and preserving and I think is great.00:55:03.330 –> 00:55:15.360 Joseph McElroy: I want to remind everybody this podcast is on the talkradio.NYC network with there are lots of fabulous podcasts for you to listen to me for a few commercials if you've listened to it, live.00:55:16.080 –> 00:55:25.710 Joseph McElroy: After this show is rediscovering New York on Tuesday nights from seven to eight or seven to eight.00:55:26.280 –> 00:55:35.760 Joseph McElroy: it's about visiting New York and there's a lot of inside stuff and unique culture of New York to explore as part of why I love being here when I when I'm not in the mountains.00:55:36.480 –> 00:55:43.800 Joseph McElroy: Is the uniqueness of culture in New York City and the multiple cultures that you can experience here, so this show is great to go visit you can.00:55:44.550 –> 00:55:51.510 Joseph McElroy: You can also watch this podcast on Facebook.com/gateway to the smokies podcast where.00:55:51.870 –> 00:55:57.720 Joseph McElroy: The live stream comes out with the zoom So you can see our faces, or you can go to the gatewaytothesmokies.fun.00:55:58.050 –> 00:56:09.630 Joseph McElroy: To see this podcast and other previous podcasts as well as the signing up for the newsletter be informed about events and future episodes and other things that we will do to00:56:10.050 –> 00:56:19.500 Joseph McElroy: illustrate and celebrate the culture of the smoky mountains and for things to do there and enjoy yourself that he much I'll see you next week when we have.00:56:20.430 –> 00:56:34.650 Joseph McElroy: For our show will be Wayne Ebinger, who is a well-known photographer in the smoky mountains and it has experienced a lot and we'll talk about the beauty of the smoky mountains talk to you soon.

This week the Geek Peak squad is playing movie soundtrack trivia hosted by Chris. Which Geek will have superior movie soundtrack knowledge in the forgotten recesses of their brain? Also, a brief history of Popcorn Sutton, father of moonshine in the United States. The dipshit of the week is a Walmart tough guy who was involved in an altercation over a copy of Pokemon snap on the Switch. #noshame | Geekpeakpod.com | Patreon.com/geekpeakpod | https://geekpeakpod.threadless.com/ | | Drink of the week: We Don't Need Roads - Eagle Park Brewing Company (Tabooze pod care package) | Popcorn Sutton Moonshine | Hidden Springs Bear Laser IPA | | Songs of the week: Alone Together - Fall Out Boy | What a Catch Donnie - Fall Out Boy | Thriller - Fall Out Boy | This Aint a Scene, It's an Arms Race | Muse - Origin of Symmetry 20th Anniversary |

Marvin “Popcorn” Sutton was a world-famous moonshiner and North Carolina native whose life, persona, moonshine, and death are things of legend. And believe it or not, most of it just happened within the past 20 years! On this episode of Tying It Together With Tim Boyum, Tim talks with Neal Hutcheson, an author and filmmaker who just released a new book, “The Moonshiner Popcorn Sutton.” In addition to his book, Hutcheson has also produced multiple documentaries on the moonshine legend. So, grab yourself a nice glass of “likker” and take a listen as he takes us behind the scenes of his relationship with one of the state’s most notorious characters of all time. JOIN THE CONVERSATION Do you have any thoughts or questions for Tim? Weigh in on Twitter with the hashtag #TyingItTogetherNC. Afterward, rate the podcast and leave a review to tell us what you think!

The Bros take a journey into the Appalachian Mountains with film maker and writer Neal Hutcheson. We talk about Appalachian culture, and take a trip into the Moonshiners' world. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/history-bros/support

To hell in a handbasket.  Newsletter sign-up: https://bardsofwarfilm.com Donate: https://www.bards.fm/p/donate-1584248352/ Support the work via PayPal: paypal.me/bardsofwar   Request membership to BDAD County by County GAB group: https://gab.com/groups/22984

We will be talking to Dave Angel, owner of Elevated Mountain Distillery in Maggie Valley, NC. We will be talking about the revival of the craft beverage industry in the Smoky Mountains and the history of Moonshine.Tune in for this fun conversation at TalkRadio.nyc or watch the Facebook Livestream by clicking here.Show NotesSegment 1Joseph McElroy's guest today is Dave Angel, his cousin through marriage and the owner of Elevated Mountain Distillery. The Scottish Gaeilic call it “Uisce Beatha,” which translates to “Water of Life.” When the Scottish arrived at the Smokies they didn't just bring their musical influence, they also contributed the practices of distilleries. To this day some believe that the medicine of the mountains only works with the help of moonshine. Throughout the 20th century, moonshine had its place within the local economy. Dave made his first moonshine when he was 14 years old. It was his goal to learn and pass on the tradition. Moonshine is alcohol that is not made legally. People often think of moonshine as a knock off but the only difference is the legality. Moonshine can be made from many things, including fruit. In the 1930s people used to distil grains and apples to make an Apple Brandy.Segment 2Whiskey is alcohol distilled from grain so it starts with beer, also known as mash. Whiskey boils at 174 degrees. After separating it from the water, you get the whiskey. When it comes down to making good whiskey you need to understand what the head and the heart are. The head is the toxic chemicals that are extracted. Ethanol in bad moonshine can make a person go blind. Once the head is gone you get the whiskey. This is normally a 20 hour process. As the ethanol comes out you start to get a lot of interesting flavor. That is when you get the tails, and depending on when you make certain cuts the flavor can change dramatically. A good distillery know how to make sure your whiskey has a long enough tail. Soft water with a good mineral base is also key. Dave believes that the water in the Smokie is great for moonshine, people come to Maggie Valley looking for moonshine because of it. It is part of the reason that he has his distillery where it is, the purity of the water. Maggie Valley has a long history of moonshine and David's business was welcomed with open arms.Segment 3Guests at the Elevated Mountain Distillery can enjoy their wide range of drinks, see how it's made, and even enjoy live music. Dave talks about the differences in how whiskeys are made. Tennessee whiskey is bourbon that goes through a charred mapple filter. Shotish whiskey and Irish whiskey are distilled in bourbon barrels. In his distillery they use this method and many more. According to Dave one of the most popular Distilleries in Tennessee is Ole Smoky Moonshine in Gatlin, TN. The water of the Smoky Mountains has allowed so many distilleries and wineries to produce incredible wine, beers, and whiskeys. The most visited winery in America is in Asheville, North Carolina.Segment 4The talk about Popcorn Sutton, an American Appalachian moonshiner and bootlegger who gained popularity when he appeared in the Neal Hutcheson documentary, “Mountain Talk.” People were so excited when his truck pulled up that they would rush to buy his moonshine. Moonshiners in the past cared more about making money over quality but there is a renewed interest, in part due to the popularity of shows such as “Moonshiner.”

Steve and guest cohosts Susie, McNew & Brian breakdown everything there is to know about legendary moonshiner Popcorn Sutton this show designed to let everybody know everything about something. Our Sponsors: Beam Suntory: beamsuntory.com Jim Beam: jimbeam.com Maker's Mark: makersmark.com Spirits of French Lick: spiritsoffrenchlick.com Neeley Family Distillery: neeleyfamilydistillery.com Stumpy's Spirits: stumpysspirits.com Check us out at: abvnetwork.com

Many people enjoy drinks labelled as "moonshine" today, but know little about its origins in Appalachia. Did you know NASCAR came from moonshining? Or that Popcorn Sutton, famous moonshiner, had six cats? Find out more in today's episode of the Curious Curators. NEW EPISODES EVERY TUESDAY! We are both curators at the Museum Center at 5ive Points! Check out our website at http://www.museumcenter.org/ Museum Center Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MuseumCenter/ Museum Center Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/museumcenter5/ Museum Center Twitter: https://twitter.com/MuseumCenter5

Unedited. The “Yes” show, Hot food, Popcorn Sutton, moonshiners, we run a space program, the dyatlov pass, and more...

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Jan M. Martin gained notoriety when she was featured on the front page of the NOGALES INTERNATIONAL newspaper for winning a national contest {and $1600.00} with her comedic poem about her messy kitchen. She still is fond of writing slapstick poetry on diverse topics such as Black Friday, Mother's Day, and her kitchen timer, some of which can be seen by clicking on "Writings" in the menu above. She was employed at Mariposa Community Health Center as a Nutrition Educator and Tobacco Prevention Coordinator until her retirement. She also has been teaching religious education to high school students for the past 30 years. Her extensive nutrition research led to her devising a . . . um . . . highly unusual murder weapon for HEIR OF DECEIT. Jan and her husband researched in North Carolina for HEIR OF DECEIT, where they met with local people, including famous moonshiner, the late Popcorn Sutton, whom she features briefly in her book. They visited the ancient Cherokee homeland, where they learned of the Cherokee culture, and a wealth of local traditions, folklore and ghost stories. Each place and tradition—even the ghosts--used in HEIR OF DECEIT are as genuine as she could craft them.  Every experience in North Carolina enriched HEIR OF DECEIT, and especially affected a major character, Tsali, the Cherokee firefighter, and his legendary ancestor by the same name. Jan M. Martin has been writing since age 11 when she wrote 4-H reports for her local newspaper. She has won several national contests with her comedic poems about Eskimo Pies, fishing, weight loss, and other comedy. Some of these now appear in her short, 100-page humor book, MY WORD, THAT'S ABSURD.  

Steve, Tracy, Adam (stumpysspirts.com) and Justine are schooled by McNew about Popcorn Sutton. Today’s show was sponsored by Steve Akley’s new book on classic bourbon cocktails: (https://goo.gl/J2d5Jt) and the 2019 New Orleans Bourbon Festival. Get your tickets at: neworleansbourbonfestival.com. The Bourbon Daily intro music (Welcome to the Show) and outro music (That’s A Wrap) are both by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Check us out at: abvnetwork.com. Join the ABV Network Revolution by adding #ABVNetworkCrew to your profile on social media.

Our Guests+Bob Brinkman+Andrew ShieldsShow Notes after the jumpGuest NotesBob BrinkmanSanctum Secorum podcastAndrew ShieldsFictive Fantasies blogShow NotesDrinkGlenlivet Archive 21-Year-Old ScotchMacWizard, Brewery Vivant, Grand Rapids, MINegra Modelo, MexicoSpinThe NecksDeru, 1979CongosAWOLNATION21 PilotsReadGaston Leroux, Phantom of the OperaRobin W. Bailey, Swords Against the ShadowlandsDoc SavagePoul Anderson, Three Hearts and Three LionsL. Sprague DeCamp, Fallible FiendJack Kirby, Kamandi the Last Boy On EarthPopcorn Sutton, My and My LikkerAndre Norton, Eye of the MonsterJethro Wall, Threat-N-Ink #7: Kreature Kompendium (with Mario Torrez & Chris Stieha)L. Frank Baum, Oz: The Complete CollectionFritz Leiber, Swords of LankhmarRobert Bloch, Mysteries of the WormRunLasers & Feelings becomes Ghostbusters in Andrew's handsYoon-Suin + Mad Monks of Kwantoom + Maze Rats (I totally misunderstood this as "Amaze Rats" at first. Oops.)Cyborg Commando. Turns out, it's playable!Call of Cthulhu via Mountain Monsters1e AD&DDonn wants to run The Emerald Enchanter for his DCC groupAdam explains DWIMMERMARS (OD&D-ified Barsoomian Dwimmermount via Warriors of the Red Planet)At GaryCon, Adam ran The Revenge of CHUD Strikes Back Again, The Musical, The RPGThanks for joining us for this episode of Drink Spin Run. If you like what you've heard, share us with your friends, leave us an iTunes review or send us an email at dsr@kickassistan.net. You can also support us at http://www.patreon.com/DSRCast. Our theme music was generously provided by the band Blue Snaggletooth (http://bluesnaggletooth.bandcamp.com). Once again, thanks for listening, you gorgeous listeners.

Chuck Cowdery, Bourbon Author and media pundit, joins to talk about Jim Beam backpedaling it’s way out of Booker’s price increase and the unique purchases Sazerac is making to expand their footprint. Talk about how you got into bourbon in the beginning Give the listeners a quick background on your books The Booker's thing is on everyone's mind and you had a article calling their actions dumb and embarrassing Sazerac has purchased the Popcorn Sutton, a building in downtown New Orleans and more recently. Possibly attributed due to the success of Fireball. What’s on the horizon for them? Chuck on Facebook http://chuckcowdery.blogspot.com  

The founders of Baltimore's Sagamore Spirits could have chosen to buy a distillery anywhere they wanted to, but they wanted to help revive Baltimore's heritage of making Rye whiskey - and help bring a long-suffering waterfront neighborhood back to life. Sagamore Spirit's new distillery will open next month, and this week, a new cask-strength version of Sagamore Spirit Rye was unveiled to go along with the original version that made its debut earlier this year. We'll talk with Sagamore Spirit's Brian Treacy on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth, along with Sazerac CEO Mark Brown, who finished off his year with more acquisitions. Sazerac has bought the Tennessee distillery built to make Popcorn Sutton moonshine, and will begin a long-term project to enter the Tennessee Whiskey business. In the news, yet another distillery has been sold, with Australia's Tasmania Distillery changing hands - and name. It'll share the name of its award-winning Sullivan's Cove single malt whisky, and distillery manager Patrick Maguire will explain the reasons behind the sale and why he's staying on under the new ownership.

The Scotch Malt Whisky Society is not only an independent bottler of Scotch whiskies, but also the world's largest whisky club - and it's looking to grow under new ownership. The SMWS has worked out a major change with its US chapter, and a marketing firm has been brought in to help increase membership. We'll discuss that and other changes with the Society's Paul Skipworth and Kai Ivalo, along with Gabby Shayne of the SMWS US chapter. In the news, another Dickel distiller has left to join Popcorn Sutton in Tennessee...a Scottish politician wants Diageo to give the old Dallas Dhu distillery to the government, and the original home of Scotch whisky will soon be home to a distillery once again.

In this episode, Will and the Greeze do a taste test of three un-aged, white whiskies: Nelson's Green Brier Tennessee White Whiskey, Popcorn Sutton, and  Maker's Mark White. Hilarity ensues. After the 15, the guys change pace with some Bowman Brothers Virginia Small Batch Straight Bourbon Whiskey. 

Neal Hutcheson is a documentary filmmaker with an ear for language and a knack for letting his subjects tell their own story. His day job is making films for the North Carolina Language and Life Project at N.C. State University. Neal has made films documenting the strange and wonderful dialects in North Carolina — from the rugged mountaineers to the Hoi Toiders on Okracoke Island and fishermen down east in Carteret County. For the past decade, though, Neal had an interesting friendship with Marvin “Popcorn” Sutton — the famous, or infamous — moonshiner from Maggie Valley, North Carolina. Neal’s latest documentary — “A Hell Of A Life” — shows a true and unvarnished picture of Popcorn Sutton, outside the glossy, popular myth that Popcorn — and popular culture — created about him in the last years of his life. Learn more about the film at Neal's website: http://www.suckerpunchpictures.com Audio excerpts from "A Hell Of A Life" and "An Unclouded Day" both produced by Neal Hutcheson.

Marvin “Popcorn” Sutton was an all-American moonshiner, hiding out in the backwoods of Tennessee making white lightning. Being a third-generation moonshiner, Popcorn Sutton spent the last three decades building a reputation as one of the South’s elite makers of white whiskey. He earned the name Popcorn Sutton after an unfortunate incident with a balky barroom […] The post Popcorn Sutton: The Father Of Tennessee Moonshine appeared first on Visit My Smokies.

Sam, Doc, and Keith get into some Doc News, Ask Dr. Doc, and a moonshine salute to the late great Popcorn Sutton.Check out Keith's new Podcast Stop Your Bitchin and visit Shel Reaux's myspace page and tell him we sent you. Call the comment line at (206) 309-7308. On twitter Doc is doctordoc and Sam is samtard. Visit insignificast.com and thegumbobrothers.com. Thanks for listening.