Kris Kristofferson Cleans Up His Act

The man who ambled into the film production office at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel resembled an aging beach boy.
But he was really Kris Kristofferson, the rock-country singer and composer, movie actor and onetime athlete and Rhodes scholar.
The beard was gone, also any sign of paunch. He had the biceps and build of a lightweight boxer, and Kristofferson, who will be 50 next June, looked about half his age.
Early in his career, Kristofferson often needed help to make it through the night, and his prospects of reaching a half-century mark seemed dim because of a drug and alcohol problem.
"I started to clean up my act when I turned 40," he said. "I never went to AA (Alcholics Anonymous) or anything like that, but I gradually got off the chemicals. I stopped everything when I became a single parent, caring for my daughter, Casey. Nowadays I might have a beer when I'm with my wife or in a social situation. Rarely do I have two." Kristofferson was given custody of Casey when she was 6.
Histhree marriages, including the second to singer Rita Coolidge, have produced five children: Tracy, 23; Kris, 17; Casey, 11; Jesse, 2; Jody, 4 months. The last two are with his wife of three years, Lisa.
He has also become a long-distance runner and while here, has discovered the thrill of riding the Waikiki surf. The most visible transformation is the loss of his trademark beard. He shaved it in 1981 for the movie, "Rollover," with Jane Fonda, grew it back and has shaved it once again for his role as a detective investigating a sensational rape and murder case for the Lorimar-CBS four-hour movie, "Blood and Orchids." The time is 1937, when cops didn't wear beards.
Kristofferson's newfound vitality has resulted in a rebirth of his creative drive. He hasn't released an album since 1980, partly because his record company had been floundering, partly because his career slowed down while caring for his daughter.
Kristofferson began composing again when he filmed "Songwriter" with Willie Nelson and he recently finished another album.
"It sounds pretty strong to me," Kristofferson said in an interview. "I think it's probably my best work since the "Me and Bobby McGee" days. The band and I sound the way we did in 1969, when we all knew how good we were but nobody else did."
The son of a two-star general, Kristofferson moved from one army post to another before settling in California, where he played football and majored in creative writing at Pomona College.
As a Rhodes scholar at Oxford, he studied poet William Blake, who is still his major hero. During his years on booze and drugs, he cited Blake: "The road of excess leads to the kingdom of reason." Now he adds Blake's warning that excess can also lead to ruination.
During his army training as a Ranger and a pilot, Kristofferson almost took a job teaching English literature at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. But he wanted to try his hand at country music. With Johnny Cash's encouragement, he began turning out hits. As his music reputation grew, film companies sought him for films. His career has ranged from box-office hits ("A Star Is Born," "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore," "Semi-Tough") to notable failures ("Heaven's Gate," "Convoy," "Rollover").
"You can see I gotta keep working," Kristofferson grinned, "and that's what I want to do. I'm full of creative energy now. I always played real hard when I was playing football, and I always worked hard, too.
"I know I can stay straight. My life has improved immeasurably since I quit the chemicals. I work better, my relations with my family, my band and the audience are better. I used to think the audience was my enemy. I don't anymore."

-Bob Thomas, The Associated Press