Lynyrd Skynyrd teacher who inspired name dies

[swag]

Source: The Guardian

Leonard Skinner, the PE teacher whose name was immortalised in rock'n'roll history by his students, has died in Florida, aged 77.

The teacher's distaste for the long hair of pupils at Robert E Lee high school in Jacksonville in the 1960s led to many a shaggy-fringed student being sent to the headteacher's office – among them the founding members of Lynyrd Skynyrd.

The band adopted, then adapted, the sports tutor's name – its spelling purported to be a homage to the vagaries of southern American pronunciation – before achieving worldwide fame with rock anthems such as Sweet Home Alabama and Freebird. The group later befriended their former nemesis.

"I just went along with the flow," Skinner said of the backhanded tribute during a 1996 interview. "There was not much I could do about it."


Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2010/sep/21/lynyrd-skynyrd-teacher-dies

[Lochloosa]

1. The original band smoked live.

http://rockandtalkradio.net/featureartists/images/skynyrd/Lynyrd+Skynyrd+img041.jpg

[Froward69]

4. out lived the long haired rule breakers

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x9170056

because of a plane crash.

[boomerbust]

2. Robert E. Lee High School

:evilgrin:

[Dappleganger]

8. In his later years he was an excellent softball ump...

a friend of mine who used to play locally said he was one of the best but he was tough as nails.

[Warpy]

3. My favorite coach story

The guy was an assistant football coach in a southern school, which meant he was a great coach and they didn't bother to look at much else. Well, he got euchred into substitute "teaching" history classes one day. He zeroed in on the biggest loudmouthed lout in the classroom, dumped him ass first in a trash can next to the desk, and proceeded to read to us out of the book, stopping occasionally to consult the kid in the trash can, "What's this here word, boy?"

It was that particular class's finest hour.

[SkyDaddy7]

5. I was a soccer player in high school...

I went out for the football team as small freshman but was told I was to small...The next season I was on the practice field after soccer practice kicking field goals with some of the kickers on the football team. No football player at that time could even come close to the power & accuracy of a soccer player. Well, this got the coaches attention & he ask me to come out to practice the next day. I told him I was to small, remember? I was a freshman & yes I was small but I had played soccer my whole life & kicking has a lot to do with technique. Anyway, I continued playing soccer & never stepped foot on the football field. Not to toot my own horn but I was really good at soccer seeing how I had played since I was 5yrs old. I had had a very good freshman season leading in scoring & assist.

Well, this same coach was a biology "teacher" (WHAT THE FUCK EVER!) and I got assigned to his class the following school year. So on the first day of class as he is taking attendance he starts on this diatribe about Communist & how they can't be trusted (this was the mid 80's so communist were the top bogeyman at the time as you know)...I was thinking to myself is this science class or history and about that time this coach says there is a "Communist Leader" in the classroom that all of us especially me will have to keep an eye on this year! After all Communist can't be trusted! Do you know what sport Communist like to play? Nobody says anything & he says "its soccer!" Then he called my name out and pulled a desk up right next to his and that is where I had to sit the entire school year! "Only Communist play soccer!"

Soccer back then was not what it is today by a long shot! Especially in the deep south where I grew up!

I played the role & annoyed the hell out of him the entire school year!

[groundloop]

9. Well, it is called "Communist Kickball"

:)


As far as Lynyrd Skynyrd, I had a chance to see them live while I was in college but decided not to go 'cause I had a test the next day. I figured they'll be here again, I'll see them then. Well, obviously that never happened.

[Warpy]

12. I spent the entire seventh grade walking around with a copy

of the Communist Manifesto with a ridiculously garish orange and green cover, upraised fist clutching an upraised rifle.

This was in the south, too. You can lick 'em, join 'em, or goof on 'em.

[hugo_from_TN]

15. Sounds like you cut off your nose to spite your face.

[SkyDaddy7]

23. WTF?

Care to explain your ASS of a comment? I was just telling funny story and you come in out of no where with a comment that not only makes no sense but appears to be done just to be an ASS!

Having a bad day?

[CRK7376]

6. Never liked

that band, and I'm a Southerner too. Of course my son likes them and never fails to switch radio channels to Lynyrd every chance he gets. Especially when he's driving. Rule in our family is driver gets to select radio station....oh well.

[HomerRamone]

7. You remember Leonard Skinner--

He got ptomaine poisoning last night after dinner.
("Hello Muddah Hello Faddah")

[ElsewheresDaughter]

10. I never liked them....and I am a southerner who came of age in the 60's

[Enrique]

11. play Free bird at the funeral

:headbang:

[Uncle Joe]

13. One of my favorite bands.

Thanks for the thread, swag.

[Honeyporter735]

14. LOVED them n/t

[John Kerry VonErich]

16. Nowadays the band is nothing more than right wing hacks.

nt

[Ter]

17. Really?

Never knew that.

[John Kerry VonErich]

18. They did those Hannity shows 2 years in a row

nt

[Uncle Joe]

19. They're a hybrid liberal/conservative band and their music is hybrid as well.

Their music is hybrid as well.

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/brad-wilmouth/2009/10/13/lynyrd-skynyrd-group-talk-god-guns-hannity-fnc


HANNITY: Yeah, and that's what's Skynyrd's signature. You know, you guys have always done this.

MEDLOCKE: Well, we knew that going into it that when we named the album-

HANNITY: You've got, you got that mischievous young grin. And, by the way, there's a great story about how you-

MEDLOCKE: I love how he cuts me off. Go ahead. No, go ahead. I want to hear this.

HANNITY: You're not even a liberal. I usually only cut off liberals. By the way, any of you big Obama supporters, any liberal Democrats in this band?

MEDLOCKE: Like I said, going into this record-

VAN ZANDT: You know what? We do have a few Democrats in this band.

HANNITY: You do?

VAN ZANDT: Yeah, yeah. Not here tonight, but, you know.

Was Hannity playing ignorant?

I don't agree with all their poltical views but I believe them to be more complex than to simply label them as "right wing hacks."

Furthermore, I believe Hannity to be a total dipshit, but on the face of it, the cause seems worthy.

HANNITY: We've now done these Freedom Concerts. We do it to raise money for the Freedom Alliance Scholarship Fund, which is for the children of these slain heroes. These guys go off and fight for our liberty, for our freedom, for my right to have a big mouth on TV and radio, for you guys to produce "God and Guns" and sing the songs you love. And so we, you know, we kind of forget these kids that left behind that don't have their moms and dads, so we put these concerts together. And last year was a record. We did eight shows.

[John Kerry VonErich]

20. Check this story out

http://www.veteranstoday.com/2010/03/19/debbie-schlussel-hannitynorth-scam-troops-with-freedom-alliance/

[Uncle Joe]

22. Then the question becomes

when was the last concert and who knew what and when?

[knitter4democracy]

21. I wonder if my aunt had him.

She dated the lead singer for the band in high school for awhile. We played "Freebird" at her funeral when she was taken from us too damn early.