Knowledge Seeker
  • Home
  • Articles

Little Big Man (Two Minutes to Read)

10/21/2012

 
I’m writing this because Paul Williams  deserves to not be forgotten. If you remember he was five foot two, had long blond hair, and always wore large sunglasses. He was raised in Omaha, Nebraska (not the usual place for artists to come from). He had one brother who became a
rocket scientist for NASA while the other brother ended up being a songwriter ike Paul and wrote the hit “Drift Away.” He was all over television and was in the movie Smokey and the Bandit.
Johnny Carson had Paul on his show several times because he was so funny that he could’ve been a comedian. 

Although he was a professional actor, musician, singer, song writer, and Academy Award Winning composer, songwriting was his bread and butter. He’s arguably one of the most talented song writers of all time (of course he’s in the Hall of Fame). A few years ago and at the age of 69, he was elected Chairman and President of the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers. 

I can’t cover all his amazing feats but some of his acting accomplishments include: The
Hardy Boys, Hawaii Five-0, The Love Boat, The Odd Couple, Babylon 5, Star Trek Voyager, and The Muppet Show
.   
 
Besides being unique for looking completely different than what a successful person in the movie and music industry usually looked like he was also unique for writing many hit songs for a wide variety of music genres. He appeared in Hank Williams’s Jr. Video: “All My Rowdy Friends
are coming over Tonight.” He wrote hit songs for Anne Murray, Barbara Streisand, The Carpenters (Rainy Days and Mondays, We’ve Only Just Begun), Daft Punk, David Bowie, Helen Reddy, and Three Dog Night (Just an Old Fashioned Love Song), and The Monkeys. But surprisingly one of his greatest hits came from a song he wrote for The Muppet Movie called: “The Rainbow Connection.” He won an Academy Award for this one. Is there anyone in the modernized world who hasn’t heard this song?

A documentary will be coming out soon about his life and it does include some embarrassing moments. When interviewed Paul said a documentary should be about the truth both good and bad. He’s been sober from alcohol and drugs since 1990 and he has been counseling addicts for years as a way of helping others get their lives back like he did his. 
 
I think we too often move on with our lives and leave the past behind; certainly some things are worth forgetting but some memories have great value. Paul Williams is a genius who in my opinion deserves a bit of space in our accessible memory banks.  I think when we remind ourselves of
greatness that it inspires us even if we don’t feel it right away. We are inundated with bad stimuli every day of our lives and if we don’t do something to proactively seek good stimuli the bad will rule our beings; as they say: “Garbage in garbage out.” One of my favorite quotes is from Gandhi and it is: “As you thinkso you shall become.” In this case think smallnot big…the five foot two phenom, Mr. Paul Williams.

Kevin
10/21/2012 06:23:11 am

I remember Paul and can picture him in a three piece suade suit with a cowboy hat I think. I knew he was amazing but I had no idea just how much until I read this blog. If we can remember the Beatles and the Rolling Stones Mr. Williams deserves at least as much!

Wendy
10/21/2012 06:25:12 am

I just read your blog and Kevin's comments so I don't need to say much more other than I agree with you...he's a genious!

Dan
10/21/2012 06:27:35 am

Absolutely amazing! I had no idea he had written so many huge hits and I definitely didn't have a clue about all the television shows he was in. Thanks for the info it was great!

Matt
10/24/2012 09:20:18 am

There are so many awesome stories out there that too many people will never know about. Thanks for sharing Mr. Williams'.


Comments are closed.

    Author: John Mann

    Picture

    Archives

    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly