Pretty Paper

When I was a child, my father told me about a disabled man who sold pencils outside of Leonard's Department Store in Fort Worth. It seemed like the man was always there, and he left an impression on my father. The man also left an impression on Willie Nelson, who lived in Fort Worth in those days. Willie's "Pretty Paper" was actually written about this hard-working street vendor. I first learned about the connection at the M & O Museum in Fort Worth.

Here is a link to a Fort Worth Star-Telegram story about the street vendor and the song.

http://www.star-telegram.com/opinion/opn-columns-blogs/bud-kennedy/article122865859.html