Slim Pickens' Sheee-iitt!

About a month ago I wrote a proposed post about the country accented Slim Pickens (1919 - 1983), and was holding off flushing it down the cyber cables until his birthday, December the 8th.

December the 8th came and went. I forgot.

I was reminded again yesterday when my friend Monty sent me a link about the old western stars. Slim Pickens’ name slid before me on the monitor and I was reminded. The link is very nostalgic.

To see it, click here: Those Old Westerns

Slim Pickens was born Louis Burton Lindley, Jr. in Kingsburg, California. He was a good horse rider. At age 12 he quit school and went looking for jobs at rodeos. He said jobs were “Slim Pickens”… thus was born his stage-name.

In time he became a very popular clown in rodeo riding circuit.

I have always enjoyed watching Slim Pickens act. I think he stood out the most playing Major T. J. "King" Kong in DOCTOR STRANGELOVE. I will always think of him waving his ten gallon hat back and forth while riding the atomic bomb down to the “0” target-mark and yelling a cowboy yell.


In Stephen Spielberg’s 1942 he played a similar character as Major Kong. A very patriotic flag-waving person, even old, was really to give his life to defend his country, in a comical way, of course.

Ironically, Slim was really a pilot, a civilian pilot, and love flying his plane while wearing a green US Air Force flight suit and his 10-gallon hat…just like he did in the movie.

Slim died after brain surgery for a tumor. He was 64.

What stands out to me about Slim Pickens is his way of saying the word “SHIT”. He could say SHIT in such a way your senses could almost smell it. I think it was the way he made the word a two-syllable word: “SHEEE-ITTT” If that doesn’t want to make you pinch your nose nothing verbal will.


Whew!