When I was a kid growing up in the foothills of the Ozarks there wasn’t a lot of excitement, but that changed the summer I turned nine. The filming of “Where The Red Fern Grows” had come to town with all the glitz and bustle making a movie can provide. One school friend had a special relationship to the REAL stars of the movie.
One of the most-heard comments at showings of his work by Indian artist Bobby C. Martin is “But you don’t look Indian…” The theme of much of Bobby’s work centers around the subject of Indian identity – in fact, his last show took it’s title from that often repeated phrase.
Our conversation took place just a day or so after a national news story, involving Senator Elizabeth Warren and President Trump, ignited a debate about…Indian-ness.
Listen as Bobby describes his rediscovery of a Native American identity that was never really lost and what it means in the broader American culture of the 21st century.
The making of the film “Where The Red Fern Grows,” based on the book by Wilson Rawls, provided a little Hollywood excitement to the Oklahoma summer when I turned 10 years old. It was even made all the more exciting due to the stars of the movie being from my hometown! Listen to this story and a segment about Protection, Kansas and their 15 minutes of fame!
Within the Realm 