Kinky Friedman, eccentric singer-songwriter, novelist, humorist & Texas governor candidate, dies at 79

Eccentric singer-songwriter, novelist, humorist, and former Texas gubernatorial candidate Kinky Friedman died Thursday after a battle with Parkinson's disease.  He was 79.

Friedman died at his home at Echo Hill Ranch in Medina.

"Kinky Friedman stepped on a rainbow at his beloved Echo Hill surrounded by family & friends," a statement announcing his death said on the social media site X. "Kinkster endured tremendous pain & unthinkable loss in recent years but he never lost his fighting spirit and quick wit. Kinky will live on as his books are read and his songs are sung."

Born on Oct. 31, 1944, Friedman was known for his unique storytelling style modeled after American satirists such as Mark Twain and Will Rogers.

Majoring in psychology, Friedman was a 1966 graduate of the University of Texas at Austin.

His band – Kinky Friedman and the Texas Jewboys – gained attention in the 1970s with satirical songs written in a folksy cowboy style.  Titles included "Get Your Biscuits in the Oven and Your Buns in Bed" and "The Ballad of Charles Whitman."

His best-selling mystery novels in the 1980s and 1990s featured a protagonist named Kinky Friedman.

In 2006, Friedman ran a colorful campaign as an independent candidate for Texas governor.  He garnered 12 percent of the vote and finished fourth in the race against Republican incumbent Rick Perry.

Friedman also sought but failed to receive the Democratic nomination for Texas Agriculture Commissioner in 2010 and in 2014.

As a political candidate, he supported the legalization of marijuana, casino gambling, same-sex marriage, cracking down on undocumented immigration, hiking pay for teachers, and halting the death penalty.