THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, March 9, 1996 TAG: 9603080072
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Column
SOURCE: Larry Maddry
LENGTH: Medium: 53 lines
A LOT OF readers can probably remember the stir that Jeff Foxworthy's ``You Might Be a Redneck If. . . '' caused when it was published a few years back.
It was more popular than a Florida gator ranch in the tourist season. And more rewarding than an afternoon of lake fishing with dynamite.
Since then Brother Foxworthy has taken his redneck act into some of the biggest comedy clubs in the nation and is starring in ``The Jeff Foxworthy Show'' on ABC. That ain't all. Two of his comedy albums on CDs have gone platinum faster than a redneck can steal a red traffic cone for Christmas decoration.
While climbing the ladder of success faster than kudzu on Miracle Gro, he has been writing more books - ``Red Ain't Dead,'' ``Hick Is Chic,'' ``You're Not a Kid Anymore . . . Check Your Neck,'' and ``Games Rednecks Play.''
Big sellers, all of them, particularly in the South. Foxworthy cranks his books out so easily, other writers turn pond scum green with envy just thinking about him.
And, according to his publisher, he is making more than a comfortable living, which explains why he knows the bowling alleys in Detroit and Atlanta that have valet parking.
His latest book is ``Redneck Classic, The Best of Jeff Foxworthy.'' Illustrated by David Boyd, it is published by Longstreet Press in Atlanta. It's his best yet.
And, like the others, it is destined to be hotter than summertime sex in a satellite dish, for it contains some of his own drawings, too. And they're great. Foxworthy is working on a book of his drawings, with captions. The sketches were dashed off while waiting in airports and in line at barbecue houses. It'll be released by Longstreet Press in the spring.
Here are some samples of you-might be-a-redneck-ifs that I enjoyed, all taken from ``Redneck Classic'':
There is more oil in your baseball cap than in your car.
There are more fish on your wall than pictures.
You bring a bar of soap to a public pool.
Your chili's secret ingredient comes from a bait shop.
The odds against there being any might-bes out there that Foxworthy hasn't considered are probably longer than a redneck's jumper cable. But if you've got one, please drop me a line by mail at The Virginian-Pilot, 150 W. Brambleton Ave., Norfolk, Va. 23510, or by fax at (804) 446-2414. ILLUSTRATION: Drawing by Jeff Foxworthy
by CNB