Bret Bertholf is best known in these parts as Halden Wofford from the Colorado-based country band Halden Wofford and the Hi-Beams. The boys play all over – most notably on the Denver Post Cheyenne Frontier Days Train every July.
Bertholf has written and illustrated “The Long Gone Lonesome History of Country Music,” just out from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. He covers everything from country hair to country outlaws to country rodeos.
“I always loved illustrated books and thought I would try it,” he says from a book signing in Los Angeles. He went to NYC with an idea, found an agent, who found a publisher – and four years later here’s the book.
The best part of the tome is it helps you find your country nickname. Go to my blog at denverpostbloghouse.com/ husted to see what your country name is, which is much different than your porn name.
My country name is Curly Toejam. Bertholf tells me his country name is Goober Loudbottom. You can hear the band Friday at the Skylark Lounge.
The pause
Denver is Menopause City on Sunday. “Menopause: The Musical” reopened at the New Denver Civic Theatre on Friday night – the cast planned to party later at Strings.
Also Sunday, Suzanne Somers is at the Adam’s Mark Hotel with her “Beat Menopause Naturally” seminar, just $15. It starts at 2 p.m., but I’m already feeling cranky.
Nekked
Denver band Mid-Life Crisis was skedded to play Saturday night’s spring dance at Mountain Air Ranch, the nudist resort above Tiny Town. Don’t ask. I did a TV remote from the colony once with radio jock Michael Floorwax and I’m still trying to get images out of my head.
And this news reminds me to tell you that May 5 is the Third Annual World Naked Gardening Day. “It’s fun, costs no money, is a great activity for people of all ages, shapes and geographic locations,” says organizer Marie Kephart.
Hambones
The big event every June at Aspen’s Food & Wine Classic is the oddball seminar NYC restaurateur Danny Meyer and Bacon of the Month Club founder Dan Philips cook up.
Last year it was “major palate aerobics” pairing wine and salami. Before that it was wine and bacon, wine and hot dogs, wine and barbecue.
This year: Green Grapes and Ham: “What to drink with ham after you’ve run out of pineapple juice!”
City spirit
When “Golden Girl” actress Rue McClanahan reads and signs her book “My First Five Husbands …” at the Tattered Cover Highlands Ranch on May 4, she’ll probably share some Denver stories. Seems she lived with husband Norman Hartwig in Aurora in the ’50s … The Rev. Ted Haggard ranked No.98 in the “100 Unsexiest Men from Boston Phoenix.” “These guys couldn’t turn on a radio,” says the independent weekly. No.1 is Donald Trump … Check out the summer music lineup in today’s A&E section … Sez who: “There is no such thing as fun for the whole family; there are no massage parlors with ice cream and free jewelry.” Jerry Seinfeld
Bill Husted’s column appears Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Husted also appears Tuesdays and Fridays on “Good Day Colorado” on Fox 31. You can reach him at 303-954-1486 or at bhusted@denverpost.com. Take a peek at Husted’snext column at denverpostbloghouse.com/husted.
