Reviews and Programs

NEW:  Arundel by Kenneth Roberts
            Part book review, part travelogue and part glimpse of American History, Kenneth Robert’s classic novel of Benedict Arnold’s failed expedition to conquer Canada during the Revolutionary War is presented. The presentation includes observations made from a tour along the route he used conducted by Mr. Williams in October, 2008.  

The Pumpkin Rollers, by Elmer Kelton
            The real history of Texas is in the struggle of every-day, common people trying to scratch out a living in uncertain times, and no one tells their stories better than Elmer Kelton.  Trey McLean is one of Elmer’s most appealing characters, and we will follow his story from boy to cowboy to cowman.  Historical context will be added.

Measuring America: How the United States Was Shaped By The Greatest Land Sale In History    by Andro Linklater
            Do we live in the world’s greatest democracy because of an awkward looking construction of metal parts called Gunter’s chain?  The author says yes – and goes about proving it in a totally engrossing book that reads like “a magical mystery tour” and that’s partly historical novel, partly social history and partly populist science. 

The Cowboy Ain’t Dead –You Just Can’t See Him From The Road! 

            A highly entertaining program of cowboy poetry, stories and cowboy wisdom, served up with charm, wit and a dash of mischievousness by Charles Williams.

BIO

It’s a long way from a small dairy farm in upstate New York to an internationally know performer, but Charles Williams has been able to make that journey.  His early experiences with various types of livestock (cows, of course, but also including horses, sheep, pigs, chickens, dogs and cats) close up gave both an appreciation for the foibles of domesticated animals and fodder for many based on true-life stories.  After graduating from a small high school in Western New York, he took advantage of a New York State Regents Scholarship to attend the New York State School of Ceramics at Alfred University.  He emerged from Alfred University five years later with a degree in Ceramic Engineering, several trophies and medals from a surprisingly successful (especially to those who know him now) career as a distance runner, a life-long love of knowledge, both for learning and sharing, and high expectations  Then he went to work for a living.

His first employment was with Dow Chemical Company’s Rocky Flats Plant in Colorado.  His first task in what he was sure would be a Nobel Prize-winning stint in industry was shockingly like what he had been used to on the farm—he was handed a wrecked piece of gear and told to fix it.  Thus, he learned early on that “engineer” was just another way of saying, “Find a way to make it do,” sort of like “cowboy” and “farmer” are.  Engineers do get to play with more expensive toys, and Charles has many stories based on what happens when you mix high technology with high jinks and highly active imaginations.   

After a tour of duty with Dow Rocky Flats and Coors Porcelain Co. in Golden, Colo., Charles went further west, to Fairchild Semiconductor in California.  Not only did he change address and industry, but also he changed real reality for California reality.  California was sort of an advance degree in alternative thinking, and Charles dived in with both feet.  His repertoire of strange experiences in sciences mushroomed, as he was in Silicon Valley during some of the heady early days of the semiconductor industry. He ended up in San Diego, and there his life took another twist.  He entered the folk scene, first as a partner in a coffee house in Escondido, Calif., and then as a storyteller in schools in the San Diego area.  His exposure to the folk singers and musicians on the circuit in California at that time convinced him that he had too little talent and too much sanity to become a successful folk singer, which was his first desire.  What he did have was a heritage as a storyteller.  Both his father and mother were storytellers--his mother as a librarian, and his father as a storyteller in the true folk tradition of the person in a group who knows all the stories and loves to tell them.  Combing family stories with researched stories (mostly tall tales), Uncle Charlie was born.  Over the years Uncle Charlie’s repertoire has grown and expanded to all sorts of traditional tales and stories, but his enjoyment of kids (and their enjoyment of him) has remained a constant. 

Meanwhile, his professional career had taken him to Dallas, Texas and Texas Instruments.  His highly productive career at TI spanned quarter of a century.  He had the honor of working with Jack Kilby on the solar energy project for several years.    Evidence of his technical expertise can be seen in the fact he was granted 14 patents during his tour of duty. In many ways his career had came full circle, because many of his responsibilities with TI was involved taking broken things and fixing them, although in this case, many of the things were processes as well as equipment.   His work took him to the four corners of the globe (well, Mexico, Taiwan, Japan and Europe, anyway) and each place he visited added more grist to his story mill.

No one can live in Texas without being affected by cowboys and the Western experience, and Charles was no exception.  He first started telling professionally in Dallas, branching out from schools into festivals, corporate events and banquets.  He went to “The School of Ho Ho Ho” and became a very successful Santa Claus.  It was at a festival in the late 1980’s that he first heard about a new phenomenon on the entertainment scene-- Cowboy Poetry.  Not knowing what to expect at a Cowboy Poetry Gathering, he wrote a poem based his experience with cows --“The Drunken Cow”—and headed off to Oklahoma City to the First Annual Cowboy Poetry Gathering at The Cowboy Hall of Fame.  It was a life-changing experience.

He learned right away that these were his kind of people--friendly, gregarious, and not only slightly out of plumb but totally off the wall.  He fit right in.  His early experiences with cows and, more importantly, his view of life, dovetailed perfectly with what the cowboy heritage movement is all about.  His first actual performance was at Abilene’s Ranching Heritage Festival a couple months later, and he has never looked back.  In the two decades plus since then, he has appeared at dozens of gatherings both large and small, from the granddaddy of them, Elko, to fledgling first timers all over in small town Texas.  He has a tape out called  “Up The Trail”; a CD entitled “Smoke From Distant Campfires” and has been published in an anthology, “Humorous Cowboy Poetry.” 
As well as being a performer, Charles has gained a reputation as a reliable and entertaining Master of Ceremonies.  He has even written and published a cookbook, called “Fly Leaf Cooking”

Charles Williams mixes cowboy poetry, humorous stories and historical stories into an entertaining show for all ages.  He also continues to perform as Uncle Charlie, bringing traditional folktales, fairy tales and tall tales to school children and campfire gatherings. A lifelong love of books and reviewing skills he learned from his mother has made his book review programs knowledgeable, entertaining and informative.