quote:Originally posted by bcmT:
Dewitt Dawson: I have no idea what religion he practised (if any) but I know his wife was a member of the Church of Christ. I know this because I went to her church. Dewitt would only show up occasionally for stuff like dinners or meetings. He was a friendly guy from the few times I remember seeing him around. I have no other info about him other than the stuff I hear. Dewitt was not a preacher -- the poster who said that has Dewitt confused with another guy.
Johnny Hood: He was a barber at one time (worked at King Cotton in Florence, I think. Someone else might be able to confirm this). I know some people who used to go up to his clubs in the 60's and early 70's. I don't really feel like going into any stories they told me (though I have many). Let's just say that those clubs could be a dangerous place for your health if you messed with the wrong people. Hood was not, from what I have heard, really a member of any organized group. He might have been loosely affiliated with some people and involved in some minor drugs or something, but I don't think he was involved in any really serious mafia activity (rackiteering, drug smuggling, etc.). He was mainly just a guy who often walked on the wrong side of the law and a guy no one wanted to mess around with. There were rumours that Hood had been involved with some murders, but those are just rumours and I have no idea if they are true. When you are talking about people like Hood, everyone has their own story and a lot of the stuff is just plain BS. People tend to exaggerate.
Buford Pusser: Some of my family is from Finger, TN and I have a distant cousin who was a deputy sheriff under Pusser in McNairy Co. I don't talk to these people very often, but I have heard stories 2nd hand from some of my immediate family. I have heard basically that there is a lot of falsehoods out there about Pusser.
Pusser didn't really have anything to do with Johnny Hood or Dewitt Dawson. Buford was in a different region all together (McNairy Co. TN and northeast MS.) I guess its possible that Buford knew of the Dawsons since the Dawsons might have been connected loosely to the "dixie mafia" as depicted in Walking Tall. I know that in one of the films the Dawsons are mentioned, but not by name. They are called "that gang from Alabama" or something like that. However, I am pretty sure that Buford didn't know who Johnny Hood was.
Buford Pusser never carried a stick. That's a myth.
It's funny that this thread was started. I have thought this would make a good book (even though some of the characters didn't have any connection to the others).
Fir Darrig, a post and paste for ya.