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The story of the Cornbread Mafia has floated around Kentucky for decades — part legend, part cautionary tale, and part misunderstood history of the American war on drugs. Now it’s headed to the screen in a new documentary premiering at SXSW, directed by Louisville filmmaker Evan Mascagni and rooted in the firsthand accounts of Joe Keith Bickett, one of the central figures in the saga. When Mascagni and Bickett spoke with Kyle Meredith, the conversation covered everything from the origins of the outlaw myth to the complicated reality behind the headlines, and how a story that once filled prison cells is now playing film festivals. Listen to the episode above or wherever you get your podcasts.
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Mascagni traced his path from law school to filmmaking, explaining that documentaries became a natural way to explore stories that live somewhere between culture and history. “I thought I was going to be a lawyer,” he says, “but I realized I enjoyed making documentaries more.” The story of Cornbread Mafia grabbed him immediately after reading Bickett’s books. “If you were getting pot in the late ’70s or early ’80s in this part of the country, there’s a good chance it may have been coming from these guys,” he says. But beyond the outlaw intrigue, Mascagni saw a bigger point about the times. “You’ve got these guys who served decades in prison for marijuana, and now they’re getting out into a world where it’s legal everywhere.”
For Bickett, telling the story himself was about correcting the mythology that had grown around the name. “There was a lot of stuff out there that wasn’t actually true,” he says, noting that he spent more than 20 years in prison for his involvement. “People get this idea of the mafia — the Capones and all that kind of stuff. That’s all BS.” Instead, he describes the Cornbread Mafia as “a bunch of country boys just trying to make some money,” farmers who realized marijuana could be more profitable than tobacco. Looking back now, he can’t help but see the irony. “Four or five of us guys spent close to a century in jail together… on something that’s legal today.”
Listen to Evan Mascagni and Joe Keith Bickett talk about the Cornbread Mafia documentary and more in the new episode above or by watching the video below. Keep up on all the latest episodes by following Kyle Meredith With… on your favorite podcast platform; plus, check out all the series on the Consequence Podcast Network.
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