Rolling Thunder (person)

Rolling Thunder
Born John Pope[1]
Spouse(s) Spotted Fawn

Rolling Thunder (birth name: John Pope; 1916–1997[1]) was a hippie spiritual leader who self-identified as a Native American medicine man.[2] He was raised in Oklahoma and later moved to Nevada.[3]

In print

John Pope is the subject of Rolling Thunder (1974), a book by the American journalist and author Doug Boyd, and Rolling Thunder Speaks: A Message for Turtle Island (1998), a narrative edited by his second wife, Carmen Sun Rising Pope. Rolling Thunder also figures prominently in Mad Bear (1994), Boyd's follow-up book to Rolling Thunder, which chronicles the life of Mad Bear Anderson, who Boyd says was a peer and mentor to Rolling Thunder.[3]

In film

Rolling Thunder had bit parts in The Trial of Billy Jack (1974), Billy Jack (1971) and Billy Jack Goes to Washington (1977).[4]

In music

Rolling Thunder appears on Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart's album Rolling Thunder, a 1972 release. In 1975/76, Bob Dylan organized and headlined a nationwide series of concerts called the Rolling Thunder Revue (named for thunder itself, according to Dylan.)[5]

Life and legacy

In 1975 he and his wife Spotted Fawn founded a non-profit community on 262 acres (1.06 km2) of land in north-eastern Nevada (just east of the town of Carlin) that they named Meta Tantay. It operated until 1985; visitors over the years included Mickey Hart.[6]

Death

Rolling Thunder died in 1997 from complications associated with diabetes. He also suffered from emphysema in the later years of his life.[3]

Controversy

Rolling Thunder's given name was John Pope.[1] At times he claimed to be part Cherokee[1] and at other times Shoshone or Hopi. He never provided proof of any Native heritage. He has been criticized for cultural appropriation and in that context mentioned as an example of people who teach Native-style ceremonies to non-Natives, often for money.[7]

He claimed the movie Billy Jack was loosely based on his life; he was a bit player in the film.[4]

Bibliography

Discography

Filmography

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 Panther-Yates 40
  2. ↑ Mystics, Magicians, and Medicine People: Tales of a Wanderer
  3. 1 2 3 Rolling Thunder Speaks
  4. 1 2 Rolling Thunder at the Internet Movie Database
  5. ↑ "I was just sitting outside my house one day thinking about a name for this tour, when all of a sudden, I looked into the sky and I heard a boom! Then, boom, boom, boom, boom, rolling from west to east. So I figured that should be the name." Rare photos of Bob Dylan's epic Rolling Thunder tour, CBS News, retrieved April 14, 2016
  6. ↑ Mickey Hart at Meta Tantay
  7. ↑ Ivakhiv 278

References

Further reading

  • Dream Catchers: How Mainstream America Discovered Native Spirituality By Philip Jenkins (2005) Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19-518910-8, ISBN 978-0-19-518910-0. 2004.
  • Hollywood and the Supernatural by Sherry Hansen and Brad Steiger – St. Martin's Press (1990).
  • Mad Bear: Spirit, Healing, and the Sacred in the Life of a Native American Medicine Man by Doug Boyd (1994) Touchstone
  • Mystics, Magicians, and Medicine People: Tales of a Wanderer by Doug Boyd – Marlowe & Co (1995) ISBN 1-56924-880-X, ISBN 978-1-56924-880-5
  • Personality Theories: Critical Perspectives by Albert Ellis, Mike Abrams and Lidia Abrams (2008) Sage Publications, Inc. ISBN 1-4129-1422-1, ISBN 978-1-4129-1422-2
  • Rolling Thunder: A Personal Exploration into the Secret Healing Powers of an American Indian Medicine Man by Doug Boyd – Delta (1976) ISBN 0-385-28859-X, ISBN 978-0-385-28859-0
  • Rolling Thunder Speaks: A Message for Turtle Island by Rolling Thunder and Carmen Sun Rising Pope (editor). Clear Light Publications (1999). ISBN 1-57416-026-5, ISBN 978-1-57416-026-0.

External links

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