Country music singer Kris Kristofferson calls the late music icon his 'hero' and 'champion' and his face should be up on Mount Rushmore but Kris' parents were not impressed.
- April 6, 2020
AceShowbiz - Kris Kristofferson wants to see idol Johnny Cash's face up on Mount Rushmore alongside the heads of former U.S. Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln.
Speaking to Britain's The Sun newspaper, the country music star gushed over the "Hurt" hitmaker, calling him "my hero and my champion."
"I'm sure he didn't remember it, but to me that moment was electric. He was everything I expected," he said. "He was skinny, eating a soda cracker and looking like death. I just shook his hand."
"He was my hero and he became my champion. Once I got to know him, he always encouraged me."
Reflecting on the enduring legacy of The Man In Black, Kristofferson said, "To think that John was on the cover of Time magazine when he died and considered a father of the country... his face should be on Mount Rushmore."
However, his appreciation of the star wasn't shared by everyone, with Kristofferson's parents disowning him as he developed a penchant for hard-drinking before shows, blaming Cash's influence for the development.
"I got a letter from my mother saying, 'We thought it was cute when you were a kid and idolised Hank Williams.... Now you're a grown man and you idolise Johnny Cash, who everybody knows is a drug addict."
When Cash got to see that crushing note, he joked, "It's always nice to get a letter from home."
