After we posted the story and the autographed photo Kris Kriostfferson gave the staff and owners of the El Charrito Cafe on Central Blvd., we received a few comments about it.
Some questioned whether the "Juanita"Kristofferson called his mother in the inscription was really his blood mother. Others say that his family had disowned him after he joined the hippie movement in the 1960s.
Unless we were biographers, we really couldn't tell you who "Juanita" Kristofferson is referring to or whether the woman is still alive. When we asked the waiters athere, one woman said she comes in regularly to eat.Someone else told us that the "Juanita" mentioned in the photo was really his Mexican (Mexican-American?) nanny for whom he still nurtured a strong attachment. During those days, it was not uncommon for ladies from Matamoros to assist the mother of the house hold with domestic chores and indirectly rearing the children well into adulthood. They became, in effect, surrogate mothers in the absence of the parent.
A slightly better documentation of Kristofferson's stay here was the grainy newspaper black-and-white that Rene Torres said he found in a 1949 edition of the Brownsville Herald. The caption accompanying the photo reads:
Shown in the photo is the family of Henry C. Kristofferson, former residents of Brownsville. The picture was made here during Col. Kristofferson’s service during the war. Left to right: Kristy, Col. Kristofferson, Karen, Mrs. (Mary Ann?) Kristofferson and Kraighver.
Kristofferson is referred to in the caption as "Kristy," probably a family nickname. The photo, if we infer from the caption, was probably taken somewhere in the West.
According to an online biography: "Kristofferson was born on June 22, 1936 in Brownsville, TX. His father, Henry, was a major general in the Air Force, whose frequent relocations eventually brought the family to San Mateo, CA where Kristofferson attended high school and became a Golden Gloves boxer...A former U.S. Army captain who turned to songwriting and helped rejuvenate the country-and-western scene in the late 1960s and early 1970s with songs like "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down," "Help Me Make It Through the Night" and "Me and Bobby McGee," Kris Kristofferson made the rare successful segue into films."
Some commenters volunteered this information:
Anonymous said...
"Kris went to West Brownsville School, which today is Russell. His younger brother also went there. There are still a few of us who remember Kris from "back in the day". I am glad he did well.
Anonymous said...His home was 28 West Levee. His Dad worked with Pan Am Airlines.
Anonymous said...
I think there is a little fiction going on here. Kris's mother's name was Mary Ann. Kris is 77 years old. His mother, if she were alive, would be over 100 years old. Their family left Brownsville around 1950 and ended up in San Mateo, Ca. Kris's family later disowned him for leaving the military and joining up with the Hippies in 1960's.
I think there is a little fiction going on here. Kris's mother's name was Mary Ann. Kris is 77 years old. His mother, if she were alive, would be over 100 years old. Their family left Brownsville around 1950 and ended up in San Mateo, Ca. Kris's family later disowned him for leaving the military and joining up with the Hippies in 1960's.
Anonymous said...Kistofferson went to school with my Dad. On top of my Dad was a cop, he wouldn't lie to me. IG.
Anonymous said...His mother isn't named Juanita. Does she live in Brownsville?
For the sake of putting some of these doubts to rest, does anyone really know and wants to share the information with our three readers?
Our thanks to one of our anonymous three readers who sent in this link giving Kristofferson's own explanation on Juanita's identity. http://johntonline.com/documents/music/2007_04_kris_kristofferson.pdf Look on page four. Juana (Juanita) Cantu owned Can-2 Fence. There have been some articles in the Herald about Mrs. Cantu and Kristofferson...
And just today (Saturday) we get confirmation that Juanita is still alive and is related to many well-known people in town.
"No great mystery here... Juanita is still alive and lives in Brownsville. She is my grandmother. She is also the ex-grandmother to former city commissioner Anthony Troiani. One of her grand-daughters is his ex-wife. She was Kris's caregiver since his birth (she was age 12 at the time). I'll send in a more complete story with pictures asap." - Jaime Rodriguez
Our thanks to one of our anonymous three readers who sent in this link giving Kristofferson's own explanation on Juanita's identity. http://johntonline.com/documents/music/2007_04_kris_kristofferson.pdf Look on page four. Juana (Juanita) Cantu owned Can-2 Fence. There have been some articles in the Herald about Mrs. Cantu and Kristofferson...
And just today (Saturday) we get confirmation that Juanita is still alive and is related to many well-known people in town.
"No great mystery here... Juanita is still alive and lives in Brownsville. She is my grandmother. She is also the ex-grandmother to former city commissioner Anthony Troiani. One of her grand-daughters is his ex-wife. She was Kris's caregiver since his birth (she was age 12 at the time). I'll send in a more complete story with pictures asap." - Jaime Rodriguez
6 comments:
Juanita is his nanny who took care of him when he was growing up in Brownsville. When he visited here a couple of years ago as a guest of the Brownsville Jr. Service League, Juanita was the center of his attention. He regularly flies her to Hawaii for visits. There is a lot of love there.
it's "hippie," Juan. And you lived through the era. Loser
(He regularly flies her to Hawaii for visits. There is a lot of love there)
Thanks. And, you are believed.
IG.
In a movie he starred in around 1970, cannot remember the title, there is a line where he says the happiest days of his life were spent as a child sitting on the porch of his home in Brownsville.
petrified wood
Glad kris made it big in this cruel world and from brownsville yea yea yea
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