Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

dorkzilla

(5,141 posts)
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 07:07 PM Jan 2014

My Pete Seeger story...

MANY years ago--30 now that I think of it, I was 18 at the time--I was on my way up to Albany for the weekend to visit some pals who were attending SUNY Albany; I had to work full time to support myself and wasn't lucky enough to attend college at that time, so trips to visit girlfriends at University was as close as I got. The train stopped in Beacon, a tall, older man with a gig bag and a smile got on. He sat next to me and I looked up from my book and said "Wow! Pete Seeger!". He chuckled and said "yes, young lady, I'm afraid so!" and I told him I was absolutely delighted to meet him. He looked at me quizzically and said "you're far too young to know who I am…how is it that you knew me? Were your parents hippies?" he asked with a laugh, and i said "Noooo, it wasn't my parents!" "Don't tell me, it was your grandparents?!" he asked me with a note of disappointment in his voice. "Nope!" I responded at last, "I used to watch you on Sesame Street!!" He laughed so hard that he got turned beet red in the face.

As luck would have it, the book I had in my hand was "Walden" and we spent the trip talking about the environment and philosophy, and it was one of the most wonderful train trips of my life. He was kind, open-minded and big-hearted.

When we were parting company he said "well, I'm sure happy that Channel 13 did such a splendid job with your education".

RIP Mr. Seeger. You had a big influence on my young mind, and you'll leave a big hole in my middle aged heart.

72 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
My Pete Seeger story... (Original Post) dorkzilla Jan 2014 OP
Lucky you! frazzled Jan 2014 #1
That's a wonderful story, dorkzilla. elleng Jan 2014 #2
Thanks for sharing that story B Calm Jan 2014 #3
wonderful story, thank you ! nt steve2470 Jan 2014 #4
K&R for you and for the best man ever. Ron Green Jan 2014 #5
Nice story! n-t Logical Jan 2014 #6
What a lovely experience malaise Jan 2014 #7
Ah Sesame Street, that subversive little show! reformist2 Jan 2014 #8
Wasn't it just... dorkzilla Jan 2014 #15
It was a Pete and another person I just happen to know who shall remain nameless dipsydoodle Jan 2014 #9
So does this close personal friend also have the initials DD? LOL!!! nt dorkzilla Jan 2014 #16
Yes, there was an ax. And yes Pete was furious. But in the end, he didn't do it. 2banon Jan 2014 #22
Pete's story about the axe.... MyOwnPeace Jan 2014 #63
Thanks, good reporting. 2banon Jan 2014 #68
Pete Seeger and Oscar the Grouch struggle4progress Jan 2014 #10
+1000000000 dorkzilla Jan 2014 #13
and Oscar returned for Pete's 90th celebration Adenoid_Hynkel Jan 2014 #35
wonderful story rurallib Jan 2014 #11
Lovely story mcar Jan 2014 #12
Nice story RoccoR5955 Jan 2014 #14
YES!!!! Please! We're all celebrating him, and what a better way to do that then share... dorkzilla Jan 2014 #17
Please do - would love to hear them! nt TBF Jan 2014 #28
Oh, man! Le Taz Hot Jan 2014 #18
Sounds like a Conspiracy Theory if i ever heard one! :) 2banon Jan 2014 #19
Now that you've told yours.... zentrum Jan 2014 #20
What a nice story and I can picture him singing that song to your sister dorkzilla Jan 2014 #23
Agree with you. No one like him. zentrum Jan 2014 #55
Excellent! n/t DirkGently Jan 2014 #21
What a great memory for you to treasure Generic Other Jan 2014 #24
I don't remember seeing him on Sesame Street hfojvt Jan 2014 #25
He was, though. MineralMan Jan 2014 #31
I don't doubt it hfojvt Jan 2014 #38
great experience for an 18 year old.. so glad you knew who he was mountain grammy Jan 2014 #26
That's what immediately warmed my heart... dorkzilla Jan 2014 #45
He informed you and changed you, like he did with everyone who listened mountain grammy Jan 2014 #61
And the great great thing is you got to let him know. aquart Jan 2014 #69
K&R ReRe Jan 2014 #27
A lovely memory. MineralMan Jan 2014 #29
A wonderful story! This is not how I met Pete, but how my little boy did: s-cubed Jan 2014 #30
How sweet! dorkzilla Jan 2014 #47
Such a special memory Little_Wing Jan 2014 #32
Wow, that was awesome! onlyadream Jan 2014 #33
Pete made you rich in ways that are different from money. Botany Jan 2014 #34
I had the memorable experience of singing and marching with Pete and Toshi longislandAnnie Jan 2014 #36
Thanks for the tribute to a wonderful, iconic senseandsensibility Jan 2014 #37
WOW !!! - Thank You For That !!! - K & R !!! WillyT Jan 2014 #39
That was my first remembrance of him too! BuelahWitch Jan 2014 #40
Lol, I don't remember him on the Smothers Brothers either! dorkzilla Jan 2014 #48
I only know because I saw it on the DVD a few years back BuelahWitch Jan 2014 #50
The book "Dangerously Funny" MyOwnPeace Jan 2014 #64
Yes! I read it, which is why I began watching the DVDs BuelahWitch Jan 2014 #67
Holy mackeral! babylonsister Jan 2014 #41
Of course you can! dorkzilla Jan 2014 #43
cool story warrior1 Jan 2014 #42
Thank you for that memory. Paka Jan 2014 #44
Thanks dorkzilla!!! blaze Jan 2014 #46
A truly wonderful story! n/t etherealtruth Jan 2014 #49
soooooo cool! BlancheSplanchnik Jan 2014 #51
Thanks so much for sharing that wonderful story. nt adirondacker Jan 2014 #52
What a nice story. Beacool Jan 2014 #53
a treasure. spanone Jan 2014 #54
Thank you so much for sharing that wonderful story Hekate Jan 2014 #56
Something really cool about meeting that man on a train! Jetboy Jan 2014 #57
A beautiful meeting, dorkzilla! A gift from Cha Jan 2014 #58
Cool! Dark n Stormy Knight Jan 2014 #59
What a fabulous story! n/t DFW Jan 2014 #60
WONDERful encounter dorkzilla. Here are my few brushes with Pete: FailureToCommunicate Jan 2014 #62
Great stories! dorkzilla Jan 2014 #65
You really should! Besides the great music, of course, there was cutting edge FailureToCommunicate Jan 2014 #66
I know, as Mark Twain said, that each person is a moon and a has a dark side deutsey Jan 2014 #70
Message auto-removed Name removed Jan 2014 #71
This message was self-deleted by its author cyberswede Jan 2014 #72

dorkzilla

(5,141 posts)
15. Wasn't it just...
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 07:43 PM
Jan 2014

I think of the really cool ways they tried to teach us to count, while simultaneously exposing us to other cultures. Like this little ditty….




By the way, I still sing "Lady Bug Picnic" when I'm doing the dishes.

dipsydoodle

(42,239 posts)
9. It was a Pete and another person I just happen to know who shall remain nameless
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 07:28 PM
Jan 2014

that got close to putting an axe through the power cable at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival when Dylan went electric.

If you search you'll find that has gone down as being only a rumour but as I said - I know who was with him .

 

2banon

(7,321 posts)
22. Yes, there was an ax. And yes Pete was furious. But in the end, he didn't do it.
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 08:11 PM
Jan 2014

fortunately for everybody, the cables did not suffer the wrath of the purist at heart and remained intact. I'm a huge fan of both Seeger and Dylan and will remain so through eternity..

R.I.P. Pete, you gave us more than you'll ever know.

rurallib

(62,344 posts)
11. wonderful story
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 07:29 PM
Jan 2014

and the great part was that he was just another human, not some self important a-------.

I have been sort of celebrating his life in my mind today.

 

RoccoR5955

(12,471 posts)
14. Nice story
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 07:37 PM
Jan 2014

Perhaps I should post some of my many stories of my adventures with Pete from the mid 80s to the 00s.

dorkzilla

(5,141 posts)
17. YES!!!! Please! We're all celebrating him, and what a better way to do that then share...
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 07:45 PM
Jan 2014

…especially if you knew him and knew what kind of a person he really was.

 

2banon

(7,321 posts)
19. Sounds like a Conspiracy Theory if i ever heard one! :)
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 08:00 PM
Jan 2014

Here's something that came along way before Sesame Street was even thought of:

(Tip of the hat to fellow Du'r randr for posting this in another thread)

"To Hear Your Banjo Play - 1947" (an Alan Lomax Film Production)




zentrum

(9,865 posts)
20. Now that you've told yours....
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 08:02 PM
Jan 2014

...Pete was a friend of my parents, who were WPA artists temporarily in Colorado because of political organizing actions. Do you know "The Salt of the Earth" movie--about immigrant miners organizing? Well it was for that. One night, sitting in the kitchen of their house, and it was time for my older but still very young sister to go to bed, Pete took out his Banjo and inserted her name into the song, "Goodnight Ilene". (it was a name that rhymed.) Magical.

Years later, my mother donated a water color drawing of Pete's wife to Listener's Sponsored radio in NYC for them to auction off and make some money.

Pete was adored by everyone and very important to workers and artists for many decades, right up until his last breath.

dorkzilla

(5,141 posts)
23. What a nice story and I can picture him singing that song to your sister
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 08:13 PM
Jan 2014

He seemed to really love young people and it felt like that love also was concern for them and the kind of world they were living in.

He was one of the good ones, and I can't think of another who inhabits the earth that is anything like him. He'll be missed, truly missed.

zentrum

(9,865 posts)
55. Agree with you. No one like him.
Wed Jan 29, 2014, 12:46 AM
Jan 2014

He was so natural and compassionate with everyone. A Bard for working people. Active in causes for over 70 years.

Generic Other

(28,979 posts)
24. What a great memory for you to treasure
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 08:17 PM
Jan 2014

Thank you for sharing that with us all.

I really appreciate the outpouring of feelings and sharing of stories today. I feel less alone in my sadness.

hfojvt

(37,573 posts)
38. I don't doubt it
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 09:19 PM
Jan 2014

but being almost 52, I never caught his name on any of the episodes of Sesame Street that I watched.

mountain grammy

(26,568 posts)
26. great experience for an 18 year old.. so glad you knew who he was
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 08:42 PM
Jan 2014

so you could appreciate the encounter. Just think, 30 years ago he was 64 and he was surprised you recognized him because that's the kind of man he was. There shouldn't be a living American who doesn't know Pete Seeger.

dorkzilla

(5,141 posts)
45. That's what immediately warmed my heart...
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 09:58 PM
Jan 2014

I could have been just another gushing fan, but he was genuinely surprised at my reaction, then this living legend sat with this girl and LISTENED to HER, talked with her, exchanged ideas, imparted wisdom and encouraged me to be an activist, even if it was in some small way "write a letter, make a phone call, volunteer your time and your heart and mind"...and he may as well have burned it into my flesh because I've never forgotten his words, nor his passion, to this day.

To him it was a small encounter but to me, it was a momentous occassion.

I told him the "Garbage" song with Oscar the Grouch single-handedly turned me into a tiny environmentalist...and he flashed the braodest smile at hearing it. He was very clearly happy, maybe even a little proud, to have made such an impact on a child.

mountain grammy

(26,568 posts)
61. He informed you and changed you, like he did with everyone who listened
Wed Jan 29, 2014, 10:11 AM
Jan 2014

because he also knew how to listen. We've lost a wonderful man, but very grateful for 94 years.

aquart

(69,014 posts)
69. And the great great thing is you got to let him know.
Wed Jan 29, 2014, 01:15 PM
Jan 2014

As kind as he was to you, you did a lovely thing for him, too.

ReRe

(10,597 posts)
27. K&R
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 08:50 PM
Jan 2014

Thanks, dorkzilla. That was heart-warming truth about the gentleman that Pete Seeger was. He was a giant character in this country's history and will be treasured now for all the ages. You should send that story to his family. I know they would appreciate it.

longislandAnnie

(13 posts)
36. I had the memorable experience of singing and marching with Pete and Toshi
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 09:15 PM
Jan 2014

During the anti War, anti Bush protest at the RNC convention in New York City back in 2004. They were marching along with a few other musicians and activists from upstate NY somewhere near the rear of the blocks and blocks of marchers. They welcomed my sister, my college age son, and I to join them and made an already amazing day, exhilarating. We'll miss you Pete.

senseandsensibility

(16,713 posts)
37. Thanks for the tribute to a wonderful, iconic
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 09:19 PM
Jan 2014

human being. You have just opened another window into his personality that most people would never hear about. Thank you for sharing that with us.

BuelahWitch

(9,083 posts)
40. That was my first remembrance of him too!
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 09:28 PM
Jan 2014

Although I know he was on other shows that we watched when I was growing up, namely The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, I don't remember seeing him there. However, I do remember his appearances on Sesame Street!

dorkzilla

(5,141 posts)
48. Lol, I don't remember him on the Smothers Brothers either!
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 10:03 PM
Jan 2014

I do remember Steve Martin on their show though!

MyOwnPeace

(16,887 posts)
64. The book "Dangerously Funny"
Wed Jan 29, 2014, 11:52 AM
Jan 2014

by David Bianculli (NPR - Fresh Air) tells the story of the Smothers Brothers show - including a chapter about Pete and "the Big Muddy" as well as many others on the show, including Steve Martin.

babylonsister

(170,962 posts)
41. Holy mackeral!
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 09:33 PM
Jan 2014

I love your story! Sesame Street wasn't a part of my youth, so it's nice to know where their hearts were.

Can I share this? Great memory, thanks!

dorkzilla

(5,141 posts)
43. Of course you can!
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 09:49 PM
Jan 2014

A man like Pete Seeger deserves all the remembrance we can muster, even if the story is once removed.

Paka

(2,760 posts)
44. Thank you for that memory.
Tue Jan 28, 2014, 09:54 PM
Jan 2014

I was around in the '60's and heard (and sang with him) in concert. Everyone sang at his concerts. What a wonderful experience to sit and chat with him on the train. He was a true American and a hero to so many of us.

Hekate

(90,189 posts)
56. Thank you so much for sharing that wonderful story
Wed Jan 29, 2014, 03:33 AM
Jan 2014

I can tell that the encounter warmed you forever, as it would have done for me.

Jetboy

(792 posts)
57. Something really cool about meeting that man on a train!
Wed Jan 29, 2014, 04:11 AM
Jan 2014

Sharing the rails with Pete puts you in fine tradition.

Cha

(295,899 posts)
58. A beautiful meeting, dorkzilla! A gift from
Wed Jan 29, 2014, 05:07 AM
Jan 2014

the Universe.. you were meant to be there at that moment in time.. to enrich your life and Pete Seeger's.

And, to enrich ours 30 years later~ mahalo

FailureToCommunicate

(13,989 posts)
62. WONDERful encounter dorkzilla. Here are my few brushes with Pete:
Wed Jan 29, 2014, 11:37 AM
Jan 2014

All the Seegers -Pete, Peggy, Mike were familiar recordings around our house as I grew up, so when I was fortunate to 'work' along side of Pete at numerous Hudson Clearwater Revival festivals back in the 1970's Pete seemed more like a kindly uncle than a folk superstar. Not sure if any of us really actually 'worked along side of him'. It felt like we were always trotting behind him trying to keep up with his seemingly boundless energy! As we ended late nights of singing in a dining area, Pete would quietly get up and resume sweeping up the place. Early in the mornings, as we were just getting up, there was Pete already picking up litter from the fields. I said good morning Pete, how ya doing, and he'd say: "Oh, strugglin on, strugglin on"

One other time I got the chance to sing FOR Pete at a singer/songwriter weekend event. Pete was very kind to each of us in his critique of our songs, even if you could tell he wasn't too impressed. To me he said "Well, but don't take my opinion as gospel, long ago I told Woody that I didn't think much of his new song "This Land is Your Land"" Pete was always so encouraging of ANYONE to make music and sing your heart out.

Thanks Pete for all the courage you showed, by example, to stand up for progressive causes with grace. And for inspiring generations of kids to feel like they could (should!) get up and sing. That music for humans, like for birds, was in our nature, and we should not just leave it to the professionals and pop stars!

I picture you in heaven rousing a group of harp players to join in one of my favorite songs of yours as you got older: Old Devil Time:



May you ever keep on "strugglin on, strugglin on"

dorkzilla

(5,141 posts)
65. Great stories!
Wed Jan 29, 2014, 11:56 AM
Jan 2014

"...Pete seemed more like a kindly uncle than a folk superstar"

Exactly. He made you feel instantly comfortable and warm.

I live less than 2 miles from Croton-on-Hudson and although I haven't been to a Revival in years (which is ridiculous as I could literally walk down my hill and be there in 10 minutes) we used to go all the time when I was a kid. I think I'll make it a point to attend this year as my own tribute to Pete.

FailureToCommunicate

(13,989 posts)
66. You really should! Besides the great music, of course, there was cutting edge
Wed Jan 29, 2014, 12:22 PM
Jan 2014

(for the time) ecology presenters, traditional boat builders, crafts, and record sellers (one of my roles, Rounder Records) and street dancers (another of my involvements)!

It will be tough next time with both Toshi and Pete gone, but their legacy is monumental! I'm sure it will carry on.

deutsey

(20,166 posts)
70. I know, as Mark Twain said, that each person is a moon and a has a dark side
Wed Jan 29, 2014, 02:04 PM
Jan 2014

and I'm sure Pete had his all-too-human side...however, I would truly be disappointed if I heard he was anything other than the way you describe him here most of the time.

Response to dorkzilla (Original post)

Response to Name removed (Reply #71)

Latest Discussions»General Discussion»My Pete Seeger story...