Rolling Thunder (person)

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Rolling Thunder (née John Pope, died 1997) was a Native American medicine man. He was born into the Cherokee nation and later emigrated to Nevada and lived with the Western Shoshone. He essentially married into the Shoshone tribe when he united with his first wife, Spotted Fawn, who preceded him in death.^[1]

Contents 1 In print 2 In film 3 In music 4 Life 5 Death 6 Notes 7 References

[edit] In print

John Pope is the subject of Rolling Thunder (1976), a book by the American journalist and author Doug Boyd; and Rolling Thunder Speaks A Message for Turtle Island (1998), a narrative edited by his second wife, Carmen Sun Rising Pope. Rolling Thunder also figures prominently in Mad Bear (1994), Boyd's followup book to Rolling Thunder, which chronicles the life of Tuscarora medicine man Mad Bear Anderson, who was a peer and mentor to Rolling Thunder.^[1]

[edit] In film

Rolling Thunder is credited in the 1971 film Billy Jack, starring Tom Laughlin. In the film, Rolling Thunder leads the snake dance that serves as Billy Jack's rite of passage via an encounter with a Western diamondback rattlesnake.^[2]

[edit] In music

Rolling Thunder appears on Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart's album Rolling Thunder, a 1972 release. In 1975/76, Bob Dylan organized and headlined the Rolling Thunder Revue, a nationwide series of concerts. Rolling Thunder himself was said to have appeared at some of the shows.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Life

Rolling Thunder was a lifelong proponent of women's rights (although not, by current definition, a feminist); care for the environment; and Native American rights. His message, as related through the books about his life, is one of togetherness and inclusiveness. He founded an intentional community in rural Nevada, called Meta Tantay, in the 1970s, where he served as leader and healer. Meta Tantay included both Native and non-Native members; visitors over the years included Buckminster Fuller, The Grateful Dead, and Tibetan monks.^[1]

[edit] Death

Rolling Thunder died in 1997 from complications associated with diabetes. He also suffered from emphysema in the later years of his life.^[1]

[edit] Notes

[edit] References