Ramblin Rhodes: Former Marine never gives up

Web posted July 21, 2000

 Have a thought? Go to the @ugusta Forums.

By Don Rhodes
Columnist

Meeting country star ranks with long-ago encounter with Monroe and DiMaggio

Don Rhodes has written about country music for 29 years.

When R.L. Workman, a Marine Corps veteran who lives in Bath, sets his mind to meet somebody, you can bet it will happen.

Thanks to his tenacity, he spent three days with actress Marilyn Monroe and baseball legend Joe DiMaggio in Hollywood in 1952 and, more recently, met Doug Kershaw, regarded as the world's greatest Cajun music fiddler.

The memorable time spent with Mr. DiMaggio and Miss Monroe was sparked by a scrapbook containing more than 1,000 photos of Miss Monroe that Mr. Workman - then a young Marine serving in the Korean War - had made out of a C-ration carton, boot laces and paste created from flour and water.

He wrote Miss Monroe about the scrapbook, and she wrote back that she would like to see it. Mr. Workman took her at her word and tracked her down in Hollywood when he got back to the United States.

Mr. DiMaggio liked the young Marine so much that he invited Mr. Workman to stay at their home and gave him some money to take his wife to lunch. Mr. Workman even got to watch Miss Monroe film some movie scenes on the 20th Century Fox lot.

The recent meeting with Mr. Kershaw (he wrote the classic Louisiana Man and popularized Diggy Diggy Lo) came about when Mr. Workman called me recently, saying that he would like to meet Mr. Kershaw. At the very least, he said, he wanted to write Mr. Kershaw a letter telling him how much he liked his music.

I contacted Melodee Miller of Downer's Grove, Ill., the Web master of Mr. Kershaw's Internet site (www.dougkershaw.com). She said that if Mr. Workman would write Mr. Kershaw a letter and mail it to her, she would hand it to Mr. Kershaw at a concert the next weekend.

I subsequently got an e-mail message from Mr. Kershaw, who wrote, ``I got Mr. Workman's letter and would you pass on to him that, if he comes to the Creek casino in Atmore, Ala., I will be glad to meet with him.''

R.L. Workman of Bath holds some of the autographed material he received from Cajun music star Doug Kershaw at a concert in Alabama. MICHAEL HOLAHAN/STAFF

Now, this was a Wednesday and the show was only three days away. But Mr. Workman decided it was worth the chance to meet his musical hero.

Mr. Workman, who also served in Vietnam, boarded a Greyhound bus in Augusta at 5:30 a.m. and arrived in Atmore about 5 p.m. I sent Mr. Kershaw an e-mail note that Mr. Workman was on his way and that he seemed like a nice guy.

The following Tuesday, I got an e-mail message reading simply, ``Thanks, Don. It was indeed a pleasure meeting Mr. Workman. Doug Kershaw.''

Mr. Workman later related: ``The bus driver told me about a motel near Atmore and pointed me in the right direction. I walked up to this motel and saw a young fellow coming out of the motel's restaurant. I was going to ask him if the motel had any rooms available, but, as soon as I said that I had just got off the bus from Augusta, Georgia, he said, `You must be Mr. Workman.'

``He turned out to be Doug's son, who plays drums in his band. He said: `I read your letter to my dad. Come on right now, and I'll take you to see him.'

``He took me to a room where Doug was just coming out of the shower. Doug said, `Mr. Workman, how are you doing?' We shook hands, talked for a while, and he said that he had to get ready for his show.

``I ended up getting a seat on the front row for the show. Excuse my language, but I had one helluva time. They had some comment cards, and I wrote on one saying, `Doug, when it comes to putting on a show, nobody can hold a candle to you.'

``I've never seen a concert like that in my life. It was the best I've ever seen. I even jumped up and started dancing to Jambalaya. Doug looked at me two or three times during the show and pointed his (fiddle) bow at me. You can't beat him. He's a fine fellow.''

Don Rhodes has written about country music for 29 years. He can be reached at (706) 823-3214 or at ramblin@groupz.net.