Celebrities of the highest magnitude certainly have an aura about them that differs from the rest. Though that comes with the territory of being famous. What also comes with the territory is being the subject of some incredible folkloric and oratory tales. Willie Nelson has often found himself as the subject of these tales. Consequently, they have turned Nelson into a contemporary Western cowboy character.
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Stories such as the one we are about to relay can always be taken in whatever way you want. As the only people who know the pure facts of the happenings are the ones who were in attendance. So, there is truly no way to know what is true and what is not. Though with these types of stories, the truth is somewhat, but not completely, trivial. Instead, it is the actual story itself that is seemingly more important.
With all that in mind, in 1979, at the Birmingham Coliseum, Willie Nelson reportedly broke up a gunfight in the venue’s parking garage without even firing a single round. The man who lived to tell the tale was Nelson’s longtime road manager, Poodie Locke.
Willie Nelson, the Peacemaker
In the 1988 biography, Willie: An Autobiography, written by Nelson and Bud Shrake, Nelson’s longtime road manager wrote a passage recalling the events of the shootout and how Willie Nelson resolved it in a very cinematic manner.
“All of a sudden, we hear ‘Kaboom! Kaboom!’” Locke wrote. “It’s the sound of a .357 Magnum going off in the parking garage. The echoes sound like howitzer shells exploding. It’s kind of semi-dark, and this guy comes blowing through this parking deck. “Here come the cops from every direction. They’re flying out of their cars, hitting the parking deck, spread-eagling the whole crowd… Because the cops don’t know who is shooting at who. All these cops are squatting down in the doorjambs, turning people over, frisking them, aiming guns at everybody, just waiting for the next shot to be fired.”
Quite the scene, right? Yes, but one that Willie Nelson resolved with his cool aura and dual Colt 45s.
“And here comes Willie. He walks off the bus wearing cutoffs and tennis shoes, and he’s got two huge Colt .45 revolvers stuck in his waist. The barrels are so long they stick out of the bottom of his cutoffs,” wrote Locke. “Willie just walks over and says, ‘What’s the trouble?’ Well, he’s got some kind of aura to him that just cools everything out. The cops put up their guns, the people climb off the concrete, and pretty soon Willie is signing autographs.”
Interpret this story in any way you’d like. Regardless of what you believe and don’t believe, you can’t ignore the fact that this moment likely didn’t just come out of thin air. Thus, in some way, Willie Nelson did break up a gun fight, and for lack of a better word, that is just, well, cool.
Photo by Michael Putland/Getty Images
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