Lester Maddox, famous segregationist and former governor of Georgia, died Wednesday, June 25, 2003 at age 87.

He became notorious in 1964 for standing in the doorway of his chicken restaraunt with a pistol, flanked by crackers bearing ax handles to keep black people from entering. Ax handles became his big symbol.

In 1966 he beat, among others, Jimmy Carter to become governor of Georgia.

Fun detail: he later opened a restaraunt/gift shop in Atlanta where he actually sold signed ax handles. Except for the part about being stupid and evil, I must admit that I appreciate his pure gall.

Well, the old dude's dead, so how to pay tribute? Randy Newman, of course.

In "honor" of Lester Maddox, then, let us conclude with a Randy Newman song from his classic album Good Ol' Boys.

"Rednecks"

Last night I saw Lester Maddox on a TV show
With some smart ass New York Jew
And the Jew laughed at Lester Maddox
And the audience laughed at Lester Maddox too
Well he may be a fool but he's our fool
If they think they're better than him they're wrong
So I went to the park and I took some paper along
And that's where I made this song

We talk real funny down here
We drink too much and we laugh too loud
We're too dumb to make it in no Northern town
And we're keepin' the niggers down

We got no-necked oilmen from Texas
And good ol' boys from Tennessee
And colleges men from LSU
Went in dumb. Come out dumb too
Hustlin' 'round Atlanta in their alligator shoes
Gettin' drunk every weekend at the barbecues
And they're keepin' the niggers down

CHORUS
We're rednecks, rednecks
And we don't know our ass from a hole in the ground
We're rednecks, we're rednecks
And we're keeping the niggers down

Now your northern nigger's a Negro
You see he's got his dignity
Down here we're too ignorant to realize
That the North has set the nigger free

Yes he's free to be put in a cage
In Harlem in New York City
And he's free to be put in a cage on the South-Side of Chicago
And the West-Side
And he's free to be put in a cage in Hough in Cleveland
And he's free to be put in a cage in East St. Louis
And he's free to be put in a cage in Fillmore in San Francisco
And he's free to be put in a cage in Roxbury in Boston
They're gatherin' 'em up from miles around
Keepin' the niggers down