GEORGE COWGILL
I was born in Birmingham, Alabama 49 years ago, still here.. probably going to die here, too.. I have a beautiful wife, a beautiful daughter, three rescue pit bulls and two cats. I sang for a punk band called Exhaust throughout the mid-nineties. We toured America coast-to-coast for two years with a spitfire vengeance, sleeping in basements, backseats, and roach motels. Without question, it was the best time of my life. I also owned a punk rock nightclub in the 1990s called Unity 1605. It was strictly non-profit and run in true D.I.Y. (do-it-yourself) fashion. In 2001 I wrote and directed the documentary “0274. Rezulin and the Death of Monica George.” The film is an emotional and somewhat disturbing story about a drug, a death, and a trial. The film paints a bleak portrait of justice in corporate America, relevant with society's descent into a nameless, faceless outlook on human life. Upon completion of the film I did a nationwide tour, speaking at universities and independent theatres. Of note was an invite to speak at Johns Hopkins. I spent the next few years writing screenplays, bartending, and traveling. I’ve had two books published, “An Account of Nothing” and “Unsung and Uncounted.” And then the firefighting… I followed in my dad’s footsteps and took a job with the Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service. Since day one I clocked in at one of the busiest fire stations in America. Fire, death, murder, you name it. I’ve never drank alcohol, even though I own two restaurants (Black Market Bar + Grill, 280 and 5pts). I play ice hockey to clear my head and I lift weights to keep calm. The last time I smoked a cigarette, or anything else for that matter, was in 1986. And I write. I write a lot.
National Suicide Prevention Hotline 988
thewashdownpodcast@gmail.com
#NeverAloneAlwaysForward
