Sports Illustrated hinted at Kris Kristofferson’s greatness long before he wrote his first hit song or starred in his first movie. The magazine highlighted him in its March 31, 1958, Faces in the Crowd section.
The blurb said he was a senior honor student majoring in English at Pomona College. He starred in rugby and football. He was a Golden Gloves boxer and a soon-to-be Rhodes scholar. The magazine even noted that he played guitar and wrote music.
Kristofferson died September 28 at his home in Hawaii. He was 88.
After leaving Oxford and turning down a teaching job at the U.S. Military Academy, Kristofferson moved to Nashville to pursue songwriting. His parents disowned him, calling him a disgrace.
Kristofferson worked as a janitor at the Columbia Studios. He worked part time as a helicopter pilot ferrying workers to and from oil rigs.
One day, Kristofferson, who also flew helicopters for the Army Reserve, took a detour and landed at the home of Johnny Cash. He hoped to give him a demo tape. Cash said Kristofferson landed with a beer in hand, gave him the tape and left. Kristofferson called Cash’s story hyperbole.
Cash decided to record one song, “Sunday Morning Coming Down,” which became a hit. Kristofferson wrote the song at a low point in his life, when he had no money and was separated from his family. He’d walk around Nashville, pondering his life and observing his surroundings.
That song allowed him to quit working. Kristofferson became one of the most successful singer-songwriters of the 1970s and ‘80s. Check out the list of songs.
He also became a movie star, starring in several movies, including “A Star Is Born” and “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.”
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