East Bound and Down, Jerry Reed dead at 71
Jerry Reed, whom most of The Juice* faithful will remember not for his songs but as Snowman in Smokey and the Bandit, has died of complications from emphysema at 71.
His longtime booking agent, Carrie Moore-Reed (no relation) said Reed died early Monday, the AP reports.
"He's one of the greatest entertainers in the world. That's the way I feel about him," Moore-Reed said.
As a singer in the 1970s and early 1980s, Reed had a string of hits that included Amos Moses; When You're Hot, You're Hot (which won a Grammy); East Bound and Down; and The Bird. But besides Bandit, he also starred in the Burt Reynolds-directed Gator and 1998's The Waterboy with Adam Sandler.
"I used to watch people like Richard Burton and Mel Gibson and think, 'I could never do that,' " Reed said in a 1998 interview. "When people ask me what my motivation is, I have a simple answer: Money."
Make this your daily (heck, hourly) stop for a fresh serving of pop smarts and cool things from around Tampa Bay and the nation. Compiled by tbt* jack-of-all-trades Joshua Gillin and his merry band of rogue journalists, it pokes fun at ridiculous celebrity worship, collects entertainment tidbits and features fun links to amuse and amaze you and your friends.
R.I.P JERRY you got the gold mine and they just got the shaft be at peace my brother from the Fatman moon lake Florida burt im truly sorry for the loss brother ...L.B.
Posted by: LEE (FATMAN) | September 02, 2008 at 07:49 PM