Elvis, Paul Newman, and Dad

When my Mother first brought Dad home to meet her family of 13 brothers and sisters they all said that Bill Rhoades was the most handsome man they had ever seen. My uncle Jimmy said ” Why that man will never have to hit a lick of work in his life, he can stand on any street corner of Broad street in downtown Augusta and make a living just by selling autographed pictures of himself for $25 dollars apiece.”
When I was just a little boy I would lean my head way back and look up at my Dad who was the tallest man in his family and think “Wow, is that what I’m going to look like when I grow up?” Evidently not, as I favor my Mother more. So much for hoping. At one time Paul Newman was considered one of the most handsome men on the planet, then along came Elvis who was a very good looking young young man but my Daddy could have held his own with either of them as you can see by the picture on this Blog Page. He probably wouldn’t appreciate being compared to Elvis but wouldn’t mind as much being compared to Hollywood stars like Gary Cooper or Clark Gable. When Dad’s hair turned silver he and Mother used to go to a breakfast buffet in downtown Covington. When he would pass through the line he would tell this one lady server that “I’ll take a bowl of those grits”….”I said I’ll take a bowl of those grits.” Then he’d look up at her with her serving spoon dangling in her hand and she would be staring at him like a love-sick teenager in a trance. He had this effect on women.