When I was interviewing subject/star/co-writer Ray Benson for “Comin’ Right at Ya,” he told a lot of very funny stories about the fabulous Dolly Parton, a buddy of his for decades. Most of Ray’s stories about her went into the book chapter titled “The Film Industry Is a Series of Peaks and Valleys.” And something that figured prominently into that chapter was “Wild Texas Wind,” a 1991 made-for-television movie starring Dolly as honkytonk singer “Big T” (hey, it was their joke, not mine) alongside co-stars Gary Busey as her abusive slimeball boyfriend Justice Parker, and Ray Benson as bandleader “Ben Rayson.”
I had a good laugh at that, and then I asked Ray if I should make a point of seeing “West Texas Wind” for research purposes. He kind of cringed.
“Aw, please don’t,” he said, we both laughed and that was that.
But then, wouldn’t you know it, darned if Ray himself didn’t recently post the opening segment of “West Texas Wind” to the Asleep at the Wheel Facebook page. And so I share it here with you. You can watch all six 15-minute segments of the film here. All I’ll say is it’s quite a period piece, down to the fonts used in the credits; and there are worse ways you could spend your Memorial Day.
Losering Books 