Guide to Idaho cultural history

Living and working in urban exile in Washington, D.C., sometimes in conversation it comes up that I am from Idaho. Often this fact triggers not even the faintest flicker of recognition, as if I had told someone I was from one of those European countries no one has ever heard of, like Estonia or Moldova. I-da-ho, they repeat, pronouncing each syllable as if deciphering an unfamiliar word from a strange, exotic language.

Even worse are those who know just enough about Idaho to think they know about Idaho. For these people, Idaho is a far away land of heavily armed white supremacist potato farmers who enjoy world class white water kayaking and downhill skiing on pristine powder. Not true, I tell them! Some prefer snowboarding! All of this, of course, is a gross exaggeration. That’s why today I will attempt to improve your understanding of Idaho.

I’m not talking about Idaho’s unsurpassed natural attributes  – mountains, deserts, canyons, evergreen forests, rivers, lakes – or that its state capital is one of the most livable cities in America. I’ve previously written about all that. The truth is most Idahoans are happy to allow you to wallow in your own ignorance about the state because they don’t want you and a bunch of your friends moving in and screwing everything up. Idaho is already overly Californicated. The last thing it needs is an influx of east coasters (who are currently restricted to spending money and building their second or third homes in Sun Valley).

What I want to do is create better awareness of Idaho’s contribution to the cultural fabric of the nation. We’re more than conspiracy-minded survivalists and politicians wearing cowboy hats. The idea to write about Idaho's presence on the national stage originated recently while hanging out with friends from Boise who, like us, are serving time in D.C. for career-related reasons. The topic of “Idaho” references in pop culture came up and we imagined an Idaho version of the Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon trivia game (i.e., Kevin Bacon was in The River with big deal actress Meryl Streep//Streep was recently in Rikki and the Flash with actor and former Saturday Night Live star Bill Hader//Hader is married to director and screenwriter Maggie Carey//Carey was a soccer star at Borah High School in Boise, Idaho. Four degrees. Boom).

Consider this your introduction to Idaho cultural history. It’s not a comprehensive compendium of Idaho’s contributions to our shared cultural heritage, but it’s a decent start.

Potatoes, Beer, and TV

Although much of Idaho’s landscape is dominated by mountains and desert, thanks to broad valleys, rich soils, and irrigation, agriculture is a big deal in Idaho and the benefits accrue to all of us. Idaho grows 30 percent of the nation’s potatoes (and the state’s first billionaire, J.R. Simplot, essentially invented McDonald’s French fries and tater tots). The Idaho Potato Commission is so powerful that every single Idaho license plate carries the slogan "Famous Potatoes" whether you want it or not. Also, in 1951, it somehow persuaded Marilyn Monroe to wear an Idaho potato sack. 

Idaho also grows a big portion of the nation’s barely and hops, the two essential ingredients in beer (in addition to water). Also, a guy named Philo Farnsworth who grew up in Rigby (pop. 4,000) contributed key inventions back in the 1920s leading to the development of the first television.

For all of this, you’re welcome, America.

Politics

Twin Falls (pop. 45,000) native Mark Felt, a senior FBI official at the time, was integral to bringing down the corrupt Nixon regime. You probably know him better as Deep Throat, Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward’s anonymous source in the Watergate scandal. It was Felt who advised Woodward and his partner, Carl Bernstein to “follow the money.”  Sarah Palin, a reality television star who briefly served as governor of Alaska, was born in Sandpoint (population 7,500) and studied journalism and communications at the University of Idaho. She ran unsuccessfully on the GOP ticket as the vice presidential candidate in the 2008 elections. Former U.S. Senator Larry Craig, the pride of Council (pop. 800) made national headlines a few years back when he was arrested for soliciting sex in a public restroom at the Minneapolis airport from a man who turned out to be an undercover cop. The family values promoting senator later claimed that his “wide stance” in the toilet stall was misinterpreted.

History

The famous Lewis and Clark expedition marks the start of recorded history in what would become the state of Idaho. Meriwether Lewis and William Clark and their crew (featuring Idaho-born Sacagawea, a Shoshone Indian) were the first explorers to cross the North American continent by land. They had a tough time in the mountains on the Idaho portion of their trip. Pretty much a standard story by now: east coast white guys show up unprepared, and natives save their asses. Gutzon Borglum, the son of a Danish immigrant, was born into a polygamist Mormon family near St. Charles (population 136). He grew up and carved Mount Rushmore in South Dakota and also helped restore the Statue of Liberty.

Movies and Television

The best movie written and directed by an Idahoan (Jared Hess), set in an Idaho town, and filmed in that same town is beyond debate: 2004 cult classic Napoleon Dynamite, a quirky story about an alienated teenager struggling to find his place in his small rural high school in the real-life Preston (pop. 5,000). The best television series featuring a central character portrayed by an Idaho actor: Breaking Bad, featuring Aaron Paul, who grew up in Emmett (pop. 6,500) and Boise (pop. 200,000) and who nailed the part of small-time meth dealer Jesse Pinkman. How would a kid from Idaho have the insight to nail the part of small-time meth dealer? We just don’t know. Rupert (pop. 5,500) native and University of Idaho grad Bill Fagerbakke is the voice of Patrick Star in the Nickelodeon series SpongeBob SquarePants. He also played “Dobber,” the dimwitted assistant football coach on the television show Coach. Mad Men actress Christina Hendricks grew up in Twin Falls where she began her career in children’s musical theater.

Music

Josh Ritter, singer/songwriter and all-around Americana music heartthrob grew up Moscow (Idaho, not Russia) (pop. 25,000). Critically acclaimed jazz vocalist, sax player, guitarist, songwriter, etc., Curtis Stigers grew up and learned his craft in Boise (@curtisstigers also brings a decent Twitter game)[UPDATE: @curtisstigers advised me via his decent Twitter game (#humblebrag) that I had omitted hot Boise-based indie band Built to Spill, led by frontman Doug Martsch. My shameful omission is now corrected]. Southern-fried rockers Lynard Skynard are not from Idaho, of course, but their epic Ode-to-the-One-Night-Stand, What’s Your Name, is set in Boise. Also, highly recommend roots rock/alt-country Idaho bred bands featuring the Braun brothers – Reckless Kelly (Willy and Cody) and Micky and the Motorcars (Micky and Gary), originally from Stanley (pop. 100) and now making great music in Austin, Texas. Once a year in August they invite a cast of all-star friends from Texas and Oklahoma to Challis (pop. 1,000) for Idaho’s best party/music festival, the Braun Brothers Reunion.

Literature

Anthony Doerr, author of All the Light We Cannot See (2015 Pulitzer Prize for fiction) is a resident of Boise. He once wrote the greatest Why Boise is So Much Better Than Where YouLive article ever written. Marilynne Robinson, raised in Sandpoint, won the 2005 Pulitzer for fiction (Gilead), was recently interviewed by President Barack Obama who wanted to meet the Iowa-based writer to discuss faith, democracy, education, and writing.  Vardis Fisher was born, raised, and spent nearly his entire life in Hagerman (population 850). Not widely known, but critically acclaimed.  Best known for Mountain Men, which was later adapted into the movie Jeremiah Johnson starring Robert Redford. Idaho played a pivotal role in non-Idaho writer Wallace Stegner’s epic historical novel, Angle of Repose, where his protagonists spent an important portion of the book living in the Boise Valley in the early days of statehood.  Another Pulitzer Prize-winning work of fiction. Ernest Hemingway was a part time resident in Sun Valley and died there of a self-inflected gun-shot wound.

Sports

Hall of Fame major league baseball player Harmon Killibrew from Payette (pop. 7,000) could hit a baseball very hard and very far. As a Minnesota Twin, he dominated the 1960s. Elected to the MLB Hall of Fame in 1984. Kristin Armstrong, Boise-based Olympic gold medalist cyclist in both 2008 and 2012. A bunch of Olympic medalist skiers (Kristin Cooper/Picabo Street/Bill Johnson/Jeret “Speedy” Peterson) because Idaho has mountains and snow. Oh, and Warren Miller invented the ski film as a young man in Sun Valley in the 1950s.  Gary Stevens of Boise rode three Kentucky Derby winners and had an acting gig in the 2003 movie Sea Biscuit. Jake Plummer, a Capital High School (Boise) product, played quarterback for Arizona State and in the NFL for the Arizona Cardinals and Denver Broncos. Justin Gross of Fruitland (pop. 4,500) became a pro-bowler in 2008 and 2010 with the Carolina Panthers. Another Sandpoint product, Jerry Kramer, was an offensive lineman for the Green Bay Packers team that won the first two Super Bowls and should be in the NFL Hall of Fame. 

# # #

There is your beginners’ guide to appreciating Idaho’s cultural contributions t the nation. I didn’t even mention that Bruce Willis once owned the Soldier Mountain Ski resort near Fairfield (pop. 300). Or that Bruce Willis starred with British actor Alan Rickman ("Snape" from the Harry Potter series) in Die Hard and Rickman will appear with Idaho’s own Aaron Paul in the upcoming thriller Eye in the Sky. The point is, once you know the facts, you discover that Idaho is probably the center of the universe.