Beto O'Rourke and Ethan Hawke in Conversation

[TexasTowelie]

By Ethan Hawke

Two Texans discuss politics, fear, and the power of Willie Nelson to bring us back together


I met Beto O'Rourke after hearing him speak at a fundraising event for Texans in Man­hat­tan. The room was hypnotized. Everyone had been instantly impressed. It felt a little like meeting a 2018 Jimmy Stewart. Tall, humble, sincere, and funny, he seems like a person who can do something significant. I asked him for an interview with the Chronicle. He said yes. It turned out to be a hard interview to nail down, as he is a seriously busy congressman currently campaigning for a seat in the U.S. Senate. I finally caught up with him on August 4. It was blazing hot in Brooklyn, but I'm sure it was hotter in Del Rio, Texas. He spoke to me by phone as his kids played in the Holiday Inn pool.

Ethan Hawke: I heard you played with Willie Nelson at his Fourth of July picnic.

Beto O'Rourke: "Played" is an exaggeration. I got onstage with him for a couple songs. Fumbled my way through "Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die."

EH: My first concert was Willie's Fourth of July picnic in 1976. My dad and I drove from Fort Worth to Austin in a Plymouth Barra­cuda. I was 6 years old.

BO: That's how you spent the bicentennial!

Read more: https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2018-08-17/beto-o-rourke-and-ethan-hawke-in-conversation/

[dameatball]

1. I like Beto a lot. I would love to see him pull it off. Ethan Hawke is also an interesting guy.

I recently read a book Ethan co-wrote with Greg Ruth. The name of the book is "Indeh." It is an account of the Apache wars in the late 19th century, from the Apache point of view. Fully illustrated. In the Afterword portion of the book, he talks about camping in a remote area along the Arizona-New Mexico border with his recently divorced father. They were traveling in that same Plymouth Barracuda.

[mahina]

2. Thank you. Even with the storm coming, after sharing the video of Beto answering the question about

NFL players taking a knee and whether that was disrespectful or not, a local friend told me she’d never heard about Beto before and made a donation as a result.

This is nice to read. Mahalo TexasTowelie.

[TexasTowelie]

3. Please thank your friend for the donation.

It was a great get-acquainted article that gives a solid portrayal of how relatable Beto is to voters.

[onecaliberal]

4. Beto is an intelligent, down to earth, and funny guy.

IMO He is Presidential material in the future.