Old Phonies, Cronies and Other Baloney

By Ray Steelman

Like is a curious turn of events down roads that are often as twisted as a tub of pretzels. It's not the straight and true course that we had envisioned when we set out on this journey that we, with no choosing of our own, were cast head long into nine months before we existed. This book is a series of things experienced by the author during his journey through life. This a series of short stories...all true.. written by the author and published in magazines across the country.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ray Steelman
• Release date: Jul 27, 2016
• ISBN: 9781370115921

Ray Steelman

The AuthorsSharon and Ray SteelmanDuring the past forty years, Sharon and Ray Steelman have started and run six successful businesses. Their most recent accomplishment is Bama Jammer TM Promotions. Beginning from scratch, with no money, no equipment, and no office, in seven years they transitioned a modest business into an advertising specialty and Identity- clothing company with markets stretching across the US and abroad. After trial and error, long hours and lots of sweat equity, the pieces finally began to fit.It is amazing enough to build six successful businesses, but to do so completely debt-free is even more amazing. By applying Biblical principles, frugal business practices and good work ethics, Sharon and Ray have proven that anyone can realize the “American Dream!”Ray's Abbreviated Bio:Born in Fayetteville, TN .. Lincoln Co. Schools .. MTSU (MA & BS) .. Post graduate studies.. HS Teacher/Coach/Administrator .. Runner/Walker .. Entrepreneur .. Many businesses .. Avid harmonica player .. Some banjo .. 400+ recordings .. General aviation pilot .... Kentucky Colonel .. Retired .. Writer .. Author .. Poet .. Hobby songwriter .. Hobby historian .. Storyteller .. Aviation videographer .. Diet and workout nut .. Saw Bigfoot .. Hit 400’ HR .. Former garbageman .. Sings like Alfafa .. 4 simultaneous state harmonica championships...100s of YouTube videos .. E-Books .. Audio artist.. Married the homecoming queen.. Trophy husband.. Wrote 13 books.. TV personality for four years (NBC Affiliate).. 15 appearances at Opryland.. Owned 8 airplanes.. 7 grandkids.. National and regional business awards.Sharon’s Abbreviated Bio:Born in Ft. Ord, CA .. Lived in Panama... Huntsville City Schools .. Homecoming queen.. University of Alabama Huntsville .. Runner/Walker .. Life-long entrepreneur .. Many businesses .. Married her HS vice-principal .. Speaks Chinese.. Great cook and homemaker.. Retired .. Gardener.. Author ... Makes the world’s best homemade ice cream.. Trophy wife .... A great listener.. A tireless worker.. Diet and workout nut .. E-Books .. Ray’s best friend.. Professional shopper.. A good conversationalist.. Co-wrote 13 books.. A visionary.. Scholarship benefactor.... Humanitarian.. Taught Sunday school.. Lifelong Biblical student.. Co-owned 8 airplanes.. 7 grandkids... Everyone’s best friend.. National, local and regional business awards.. Doubts Bigfoot exists.. Didn’t see Ray hit that 400’ home run either.Our autobiography:We reached down to pull ourselves up by our boot straps. We realized that we had no boots. We improvised.

Book preview

Old Phonies, Cronies and other Baloney

by

Ray Steelman

International Standard Book Number: 978-0-9853931-3-7

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: pending

Copyright Registration Number: Applied For

Copyright 1996 / 2012 by Ray Steelman and Sharon Steelman,

17 Stockton Street, Huntsville, Alabama 35806

Published on Smashwords

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All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any mechanical or electronic means whatsoever, including any retrieval systems or information storage systems, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in an article, without prior permission in writing from Sharon or Ray Steelman

Smashwords Edition

This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

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Contents

The Cover Photo

Preface

Mama Believed in Ex-Lax

The Hanging of Sam Davis

The Night that I Met Johnny Mathis

The Ghost Light at Flintville

The Great Rabbit Hunting Safari of 1956

Joe Ferguson, Our Family’s Free Man

Lonnie Glosson, Ambassador for the Harmonica

A Tear for Lonnie

T. Euclid Rains, The Most Inspiring Man that I Ever Met

The Phil Niekro Story

DeFord Bailey, the Harmonica Wizard

Going Home

Stealing Third Base

Inspiring Obituaries

Foreword to the Book, The Best of Yesterday’s Memories

Lots of Flies Follow a Garbage Truck

Learning to Fly

On Empathy

Women and the Restoration Movement

My Most Successful Students

About the Author

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The Cover Photo

On the cover of this book, you will see a photograph of some of my ancestors on my mother’s side of the family. This family was the Rudd family of Lincoln County, Tennessee. They farmed the rocky black soil on Pea Ridge just east of Fayetteville. I am not exactly sure when or where the photograph was taken or the identities of the people in the picture. I do remember as a small child looking at this picture while sitting in my grandmother’s lap. At that time, she identified all of the people in the picture and told me about each of them. I believe that the picture was taken around 1910. My grandmother is one of the two young children on the right side of the picture. Since I know her date of birth, and I can guess at her approximate ages of the children in the picture, I think that 1910 is fairly accurate. This was my grandmother’s immediate family.

When my grandmother died, and we were going through her things, I saw the photograph again. By then it was worn and ragged as you see it today. The picture brought back memories of her warm lap and sweet hugs that were a comfort and refuge for me when I was a child. I could again smell the scent of her body and feel her hand as she stroked my hair and held me close.

All of the people in this photograph have been dead for many years. Yet, they once were as you and me … alive, active, loving and caring. They had emotions, fears, ambitions and dreams as we do today. I look into their eyes and wonder where life took each of them. I wish that I had asked my grandmother more questions.

Ray Steelman

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Preface

Over the last 35 years or so, I have written several books and been a contributing writer for many different magazines and other publications. This book, Old Phonies, Cronies and other Baloney, is a best of collection of some of those works. These are human-interest stories about a multitude of subjects. Some of the stories go back to my childhood growing up in Fayetteville, Tennessee at 616 West College Street, and being a part of the Dead-End Gang. We were kids that were thrown together by circumstance and grew up with each other on a dead-end street. There were no tattoos; no pierced body parts; no bad attitudes or motorcycles. Our rag-tag gang was more similar to the Little Rascals. We had an abundance of characters and colorful personalities that today gives an author a multitude of subjects about which to write. Through these stories, the reader gets a glimpse of what it was like growing up in a small Tennessee town in the late 50’s and early 60’s. There is a story about the Great Rabbit Hunting Safari of 1956. Rabbit hunting with a shot gun shell taped to the end of a BB gun barrel was quite an adventure. It’s a wonder that any of us made it out of that ordeal alive!

In other material below, there are a couple of stories pertaining to two of the harmonica professionals that I heard on our family radio many years ago. They inspired me to learn to play the harmonica. Later in life, I met one of those two men, Lonnie Glosson, at one of the Smithville, Tennessee annual Fiddler’s Conventions, where I was a competitor. I corresponded with Lonnie until his death. This story will pull at your heart strings. There is one story below that tells of the life of the most unforgettable character that I ever met. That person was T. Euclid Raines, an Alabama Legislator who earned his degree at Jacksonville State University. While in college, Mr. Raines hitch hiked back and forth to Jacksonville State. That was really not that remarkable except that Mr. Rains was completely blind. He may have been blind but he was never handicapped in any way. This book also has a couple of stories about the Civil War. One story is about the useless loss of the life of young Sam Davis from Smyrna, Tennessee, who was hanged for being a spy for the South. In this book, Going Home, tells of that great civil conflict and how treacherous it was for the southern soldiers making the long journey home after the war was over. From their own written testimony and in their own words, you will hear their stories pertaining to their trip home.

As stated in the first story below, my mama believed in Ex-Lax, that little chocolate nightmare that made us all afraid to squirm in our seats or do anything strenuous. As stated below, it was the best thing that you could take for a cough, since after you took it, you were afraid to cough! You will also read about my experiences as a garbage man, hanging on the back of a garbage truck as it sped through the alleys and back streets of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. That was the only job that I could find one summer while I was a student at Middle Tennessee State University. That job turned out to be one of the best character building experiences of my life.

There is another interesting story about my meeting Johnny Mathis when I was a freshman in college. He didn’t exactly walk up, stick out his hand and introduce himself. But, in a way, we did meet. Since I could not afford a ticket to his concert, I met him on the steps behind the gym when our paths crossed for an instant.

Settle back, get a good cup of coffee, and let me take you back to the days when people lived closer to the soil; when the footpath to the outhouse was worn smooth and bare; when families with ten children were commonplace; and two week gospel meetings were eagerly anticipated. In our mind's reflection many can remember when we had real heroes. Those times gave us heroes like Charles Lindberg, Lou Gehrig, Jackie Robinson, Roy Rogers, Helen Keller, Whitey Ford, Audie Murphy and many others. Entertainment in those days was provided on those enormous old tube radios by live shows such as Lum and Abner, The Green Hornet, The Lone Ranger, Amos and Andy and other masterpieces. DeFord Bailey’s harmonica and Uncle Dave Macon's banjo echoed around the warm glow of many pot-bellied stoves and was the prelude to Lonzo and Oscar, Cousin Wilbur, the Crook and McGee Brothers, Curly Fox, Lonnie Glosson, Texas Ruby and countless others. Back then, you could buy a coke of five cents; cotton sacks were easily found; the single wing was football's only offense; doctors made house calls; and there were real bootleggers.

Happy reading!

Ray Steelman

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Mama Believed in Ex-Lax

When I was growing up many years ago, a trip to the doctor was a rare event. If rubbing alcohol, a band aide or methylate did not fix an illness or injury, then you simply had to tough it out and hope that you were strong enough to live through it. Turpentine and a scalding hot rag repeatedly pressed against one’s chest was a sure cure for a chest cold or the flu. This was accompanied with a mixture of horehound candy, Jack Daniel sipping whiskey and another secret ingredient that my mother protected along with her best recipes. Whether or not this concoction cured any colds is yet to be determined, but one thing is for sure, it prevented me from becoming an alcoholic. Even today, I have no desire to take a drink of liquor. Another thing that I cannot eat, or even stand to smell today, is dark chocolate. My mama is responsible for that also. Anytime that I smell dark chocolate, I get flashbacks, the dry heaves and have a tendency to curl into a fetal position. You see, of all of Mama's home cures her favorite was Ex-Lax.

Yes, Mama liked Ex-Lax. If anyone in the family had a slip of the tongue and made the mistake of mentioning that they did not feel real spiffy, here Mama would come with her box of Ex-Lax. She relied upon Ex-Lax like Willie Mays relied