Pickrick Chronicles

With all the famous people who've died recently, Lester Maddox seems to have been lost in the shuffle. That's a shame, as he was without question one of the most peculiar figures in recent American politics. No one should miss a chance to read about him.

For a quick but solid overview of his career, examine this obit by Reason's Charles Oliver. For a longer discussion, go to this fascinating 1999 profile in Creative Loafing—surely the only essay to compare Maddox to the folk artist Howard Finster. That article, in turn, provoked this angry response from Maddox himself.

Neither piece, alas, includes any information about Maddox's presidential campaign in 1976, on the American Independent Party ticket. You might have to take a trip to Louisville for that.

(Thanks to Todd Morman for the Creative Loafing link.)