American Hollow: Rural White Poor

[Knight1979]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9wyOJ4di0g

Amazing documentary. The whole thing is on youtube and its about the Bowlings. A poor exteneded family in rural Kentucky. Iree is 68 and has 13 children, 30 grandchildren and 6 or 7 great grand children. If you thought Yanks had trouble with Brit accents you ain't seen nothin yet!


The above link is the 1st part here are some "highlights" if you want to call them that:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdAfP58h5p8

 

[kippax_blueboy]

I just watched the first 6 episodes.

People living these kind of lives fascinate me.

I wonder if Iree is still alive. I wonder why their families moved there in the first place. There is very little to make money from. Look at how the Waltons struggled.

They take what they can from the woods and sell it.

All seem to have hard lives. It makes me wonder how many people in the US live like this. Without handouts how did they survive in previous generations.

On a positive note, it is a beautiful, peaceful place to love, the bond and love of the extended family is strong.

There are women who are prepared to leave cities and marry the men.

Most of Iree's children have stayed in the hollow, well as of 1998.

HBO should go back every 10 years to see whats changed.

I guess there are people living simple lives in Europe too, not sure how many don't have running water though.

I was amazed they had electrcity. The children go on a bus for an hour to go to school and the nearest police were a hundred miles away.

 

[Newlunar]

4:01- "And Reecky, She lives in Manchester, she's married to Chester Youngs. In a place called Har Puy Haaiy. Man, she Haaites it! It's alwaays raainin and boys in black keep stealin her roosters." She comin baaik real soon."

 

[Bigga]

Oh, fantastic post, Knight! I LOVE docu's like this!

Funny enough, I was thinking how down I felt the other night, looking at all the bricks around me! Just re-iterated my determination to get the fook outta Dodge, in the next few years!

 

[Knight1979]

I just watched the first 6 episodes.

People living these kind of lives fascinate me.

I wonder if Iree is still alive. I wonder why their families moved there in the first place. There is very little to make money from. Look at how the Waltons struggled.

They take what they can from the woods and sell it.

All seem to have hard lives. It makes me wonder how many people in the US live like this. Without handouts how did they survive in previous generations.

On a positive note, it is a beautiful, peaceful place to love, the bond and love of the extended family is strong.

There are women who are prepared to leave cities and marry the men.

Most of Iree's children have stayed in the hollow, well as of 1998.

HBO should go back every 10 years to see whats changed.

I guess there are people living simple lives in Europe too, not sure how many don't have running water though.

I was amazed they had electrcity. The children go on a bus for an hour to go to school and the nearest police were a hundred miles away.

I imagine Iree is alive still. She was only 68 when it was made (though she looks much older) and her mother was still alive although bedridden. There are pockets of places like these all over the US, its hard to tell how many live like this though. The way the adults even say, "Mommy" and "Daddy" kills me. Their accents have remained isolated and unchanged from probably over 100 years ago. I have been to cities in Kentucky and eventhough they have a thick accent it is nothing like this family's accent. Instead of saying "you all" or "yall" (in Texas) instead they say "you'ins" or sometimes "yi'ins". Interesting. TMQ should watch this I think he studies linguistics.

 

[Bigga]

I watched all of it and some of the posts below suggest that Iree IS alive, but diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease a couple of months ago.

Shame. Essentially a nice woman and a deeply loving family. I was even 'rooting' for Clint Bowling to be the first to break away, keep his word and never go back. He failed, BUT you have to wonder whether the impact of city life and its stresses, are what drove him home.

 

[kippax_blueboy]

It got me thinking how they could make money.

Tourism would be one. Must be loads of people who want some backwoodsman experience.

Also a cute B&B overlooking a small lake.

The house would only need to be timber and they have plenty of that.

It never said but need they make they're own alcohol.